I think that’s the best part of traveling the freedom to exist without constantly watching the clock or answering to anyone. Coming home can definitely make you notice that.
I just came back from a trip to southern Italy with friends and I expected to miss the weather, food and places we visited.
Weirdly, what I miss most is something much simpler: freedom.
We had a car, stayed together in an Airbnb and could basically wake up and decide what the day was going to be. We visited Lecce, Monopoli and Brindisi, explored random places, went out, drank, trained a little, celebrated a friend's birthday and sometimes just did absolutely nothing.
There wasn't someone constantly asking where I was going or when I'd be home.
Now I'm back in my normal environment and the contrast hit harder than I expected.
It made me realize that independence isn't necessarily doing crazy things. Sometimes it's literally just being able to say "let's drive somewhere" and then doing it.
Anyone else ever come back from a trip and realize the thing you miss isn't actually the destination, but the version of your life you had there?
I think that’s the best part of traveling the freedom to exist without constantly watching the clock or answering to anyone. Coming home can definitely make you notice that.
Sometimes it's not the place you miss it's the version of yourself you got to be while you were there.
Humans are migratory animals. Our budy and mind are healtiers and happier when moving and exploring new scenes. It has been only 5% of human history that we have been living in captivity. Meaning, not allowed to walk freely and sleep freely anywhere and live most of our lived adapted to our employers (to work routine).
Yeah, that is called being on vacation.
That’s why I retired early. I love to travel and explore new places but I also like to be in control of how I spend my time. It is also why I have cut back on any volunteer work or other commitments.
What holds you back at home? If it's work/study, it makes sense. But blame society for that. If only we still were hunter gatherers...