For years now, I believed that people who travelled the world wanted to find themselves, however as someone now living the dream, I can say that I think it does the complete opposite and in fact helps people lose themselves.
I know this because I am now three months into my travels and feeling lost is a daily occurrence but as bad as it sounds, for me it’s actually a good thing!
I have realised that when you travel, you are suddenly thrown into a completely unfamiliar environment, one that is miles away from the comforts of home, the routine and the people who know you better than you know yourself. You are now in a new place where you are faced with a blank canvas, new cultures, options, broken plans, no routine and most importantly, people who have no idea who you are.
I say this is important because until I travelled I thought I knew myself rather well. I knew what made me happy and what made me sad. I had my route planned out, knew where I was going and what I was doing. I had my routine at work and friends who understood me and would be there for me no matter what, however travelling is somewhat different. Your plans will change unexpectedly, throwing you off track. You will meet so many people and in a short space of time have to get to know them as if you have known them your whole life.
Suddenly you are faced with lots of different personalities and views that you haven’t come across before, and people who don’t know you. At times this can be a challenge and unfortunately, as a solo traveller there are days when travelling with others takes its toll. We are all human and we have emotions. At some point everyone gets tired, moody, annoyed, upset and mad. They say things they don't mean and then naturally feel bad knowing they never meant it. But when travelling no one knows this because no one knows each other.
I write this post whilst sat in my hostel in Gili Air, Lombok Indonesia. The people I have been travelling with moved on and so I spent the day on the island reflecting and looking back over my travels so far wondering why I have been feeling lost... and today I finally understood why.
Travelling isn’t about finding yourself, it’s about losing yourself to become a better version of yourself. The people we meet and the places we visit are influential in making this happen. I know it doesn’t sound positive, but I think being lost is in fact an advantage. It enables us to get away from everything we know and everyone who knows us. In this space we are presented with a precious place to discover more about ourselves, not just how others do and use both positive and negative experiences to help us achieve it.
Therefore, my advice to anyone travelling is not to travel to find yourself but in fact take it as an opportunity to lose yourself and embrace that lost feeling, because you never know what you might find.
Of course travelling has its tough moments but all in all I can say hand on heart that it has been the most amazing experience and one that I will cherish forever. I have met so many amazing people, seen lots of beautiful places and experienced so much in a short space of time - and I’m loving every minute of it!
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