How Travel Changed My Life

I was one of the people walking in the busy streets of Makati. Getting myself stuck in traffic just to go to work and get paid was my boring daily routine. That’s my life 3 years ago, it was miserable until I started traveling. Travel pushed me further to a vast discovery and learning that changed my life unexpectedly.

I became less judgmental

In China, ask a direction from one guy and he’ll borrow a bicycle and take you there personally. There’s this guy who speaks a little English I asked for direction and since he couldn’t help, he asked two more people and eventually found the place I was looking.

Before I traveled here, I have so many negative opinions like how mainstream media portrayed about the country. An accusation such as territorial dispute is one of them, in which, 99% of 1.4 billion Chinese has nothing to do with it.

I will never forget those nomads from Tibet as they shared a magnificent history and culture that gave me a deeper understanding of people and that we are all the same despite we live in different lands.

We talked about opinions in general but traveling will surprisingly change it. It’ll make you appreciate all races, be it a nomad or people living in the city.

Improved my spiritual health

I feel happy meeting other nationality that has the same principles with me. Hearing their experiences especially the challenges in exercising their faith motivates me.

Although they were from different parts of the world and spoke languages I partially understand, I sensed their love for me and their eagerness to help. I felt closer to my spiritual family than ever before.

I became a nature lover

Stepping in an incredible paradise that God designed and created is truly rewarding. I’m always fascinated by nature’s vast diversity and the inter-relatedness of everything.

Usually, I don’t swim in deep seas but seeing these marine lives overcome my phobia. These little creatures interacting in their own habitat is really a wonderful thing to see. The calm vibes of nature help me relaxed and it fully captivates me.

Travel globalized my social life

I won a lot of friends from around the world and I had a great time crashing with them. You will be missed these people by the time you leave but thanks to the advent of the internet, you reconnect and stay in touch and be friends forever.

Having friends from different countries will teach you more about other cultures and customs. I had many fascinating conversations with them during travel or in social media, covering topics such as how much is the living cost in Singapore, why Indians have markings on their forehead and geopolitics in Asia.

Travel lead me to great opportunities

People mostly do not want to travel due to pressure at work, financial capability, busy schedules or just afraid to file a leave. But, there are many opportunities that come along with an adventure.

When I visited Vietnam, I met a lot of awesome friends and because of them, I got an opportunity to work in an Australian based International School in Saigon. Often my friends ask about my professional career and they tend to tell it to other people until it reached Singapore. I was really thankful that travel eventually improved my work-life balance.

It makes me more creative

I’ve been to Singapore, Japan, Hong Kong and I can say that the country achieved a sophisticated urban planning that makes me ask, why we can’t do this and that at home?

That spending time abroad allows me to see things I never saw fresh from my eyes and learn stuff I never heard. Indeed, travel gave me inspiration and change the way I think and create things.

I’m happier

These are just some of the sequence of events happened in my life that makes me a happier person than before. It helped me get rid of negativity, appreciate all the things around me and got a further understanding of the world.

We are in charge of our own lives. Making it hard and complicated or live with it happily is in our hands. We only live once, and life isn’t just about staying in a little corner of this planet.