Travel as a way of being

Who are you in a foreign place?

The question of “who we are” is the central question of our lives. Are we defined by what do? Are we how people see us? Are we even how we see ourselves?

“Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.”

Alan Watts

Without going too deep down the rabbit hole today, suffice it to say it’s a question we affront every time we need to introduce ourselves, send a CV or upload an 80-character bio to a new platform (which feels like every day when you’re in therapy, navigating a life transition and working on a personal re-brand *raises hand*).

So, who am I?

According to demographics, I’m a 36-year-old single cisgender caucasian woman who lives in Italy. According to my birth chart, I’m a Gemini sun with Aries rising and Pisces moon. My identity is the hybrid of two culture, Italy and the US. Three if you count the “third culture kid” aspect of belonging in the in-between, in the grey zone of neither here nor there. I’m a kind of global citizen who feels most at home in the broadly definable “expat-immigrant-international” sphere.

Who I am is also what I do.

I’m someone who spends all of her time thinking about humanity and our place in the world, and as much time as possible exploring it.

I’m a traveler.

And yet, it’s always funny to me when people ask why I travel so much. Once they learn that I’m a travel writer, they smile, nod and say, “Ohhh, you travel for your job.”

Not to be pedantic, but as someone who tries to live as authentically as possible, intentionality matters. And that’s not my “why”. I don’t travel because it’s my job.

I made travel my job because it’s who I am and what I love to do most in the world. Traveling is like breathing. I can’t not do it.

While it took me some time to overcome imposter syndrome and start calling myself a writer (that’s a story for another post), traveling for me more than an action. It’s also a way of being.

It makes me think of this quote about creativity:

“Living life as an artist is a practice.
You are either engaging in the practice
or you’re not.

It makes no sense to say you’re not good at it.
It’s like saying, “I’m not good at being a monk.”
You are either living as a monk or you’re not.

We tend to think of the artist’s work as the output.

The real work of the artist
is a way of being in the world.”

Rick Rubin, The Creative Act: A Way of Being

Which brings me to my point: for me, travel is inextricably linked with living. It’s about expanding beyond the limits of what you know about yourself, your identity and your culture by immersing you in a foreign place. It introduces new stimuli, fresh ideas and different perspectives on how to live.

When you do it right, travel teaches you an entirely new way of seeing. You see outside yourself. 

"A great way to learn about your country is to leave it."

Henry Rollins

For me, travel is an active, immersive experience that overwhelms the senses and blurs the boundaries of what is real. It’s what I’ve been doing since I was born, so it’s what feels most innate and familiar. I was raised in a multicultural diplomat family that changed homes and countries every few years. Being on the move, satiating my endless curiosity, the thrill of possibility.. that’s my status quo. It’s staying safe and still that feels foreign.

And there’s a beautiful courage and vulnerability there. We never know exactly what we’ll find, or how we’ll feel, when we’re in a new place.

Places change you. New experiences spur a transformation. There’s a process of shedding who you are and what you know as you absorb new information, new sensations. 

Travel gives us the chance to explore ourselves outside of our comfort zone, to expand beyond our limits. It opens us up to infinite potential.

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Who are you when you’re somewhere far away, when everything around you is unfamiliar, when no one knows you?

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