Pao VS Traveling

"I'll show you a place high on the desert plane, where the streets have no name."

"Where The Streets Have No Name," by U2

I'm not sure who said it, but there's a quote out there that says traveling is not about the destination, but rather the journey (was it the book of John?). Anyway, I never really did subscribe to that quote. For me, the actual act of traveling from one country to another is the most uncomfortable aspect of traveling. A person like me could only feel skeptical with those movie scenes where people greet each other at airports with hugs, kisses, and happy tears. If it were me, I'd greet people with blood shot eyes, various profanities, and complain that I hadn't had a respectable bowel movement in how many hours. But, that's all part of my charm.

In this post, I'd like to share my ten favorite things about traveling to other countries.

10. Music

One of my favorite traditional Korean music is Arirang, which tells the story about love, loyalty, and the longing of things that were. Then, we compare it to today’s music where we have artists like Lady Gaga whose songs tell stories about how to be prostitutes.

9. Buildings

Your countries architecture tells a lot about how innovative and economically prosperous your nation is in my opinion. The astonishing Republic Plaza of Singapore. The towering Gauchetiere of Montreal. The iconic Empire State Building of New York. The commanding Tour Granite of Paris. If your city has a building worthy enough for an adjective, it’s probably well worth the visit.

8. Night Scene

A country’s night scene brings people who are looking for a good time into one contiguous place. Sans the alcoholics and potential thieves, it’s a great place to meet people your age and get to know the locals. It’s also a great place to practice basic survival phrases of the local language: “My name is________” or “Where’s the hospital?” or “Wanna start a life together?”

7. Sunset/Sunrise

Depending on which one I’m able to catch, it’s pretty important for me to check out how the sun rises or sets in a different country. It sounds pretty stupid, because you’re thinking the sun sets the same way in every country. Well, my theory on that is you can go to hell. One of my favorite sun rises was actually in Romania, where I trekked up the Carpathian Mountains with an American girl and saw the little village turn from horror movie to the Sound of Music.

6. Weather

Having been raised in Florida most of my life, I never did get to experience snow. I’m always delighted to experience “new” weather that I’ve never seen first hand. Before living in Korea, the only blizzard I had ever experienced was the Dairy Queen kind.

5. History

I love hearing about a country’s history through her people. I could sit around with a local and just pick their brains for their knowledge and feelings about their motherland. I also love going to historical places, because I love feeling like I’m in a place where something special happened. For example, did you know that not only is Union Station in Washington D.C. a place where famous dignitaries have hung out, but it’s also one of the most famous places where I lost my retainer. Fun fact!

4. Language

Saying “No intiende” to a Korean was one of my highlights in my first few months of trying to learn Korean. Even though I may be horrible in learning new languages, I am quite the believer that if you open yourself to a new language then the world will open itself up to you.

3. Culture

Even after being a teacher in Korea for almost two years, I’m still caught off guard when a student bows to me. That’s the beauty about culture. We all breathe the same air, but our cultures make us stand apart. In America, we greet our teachers with a wave, while in Korea they greet their teachers with a bow. In America, we punish our students with detention, while in Korea we beat them senseless with slippers.

2. Food

A true globetrotter is not just adventurous in travel, but in culinary terms as well. It’s just the nature of the beast. You can’t go to Japan and eat McDonald’s while you’re there (though, I’ve been guilty of this very thing). One of my favorite memories of my Romanian trip was going to this Taco Bell-esque place, which was basically a run down house with a large open window, in the middle of the night. Hanging in the middle of the room was this big chunk of meat over a blazing fire. My guide, who was a skinny kid just a few years younger than me, ordered 2 wraps. The wrap was like a chalupa on steroids. It was filled with a handful of vegetables, 800 pounds of meat, sprinkles of cheese, and this bread wrap. Eating it was a challenge, but pooping it was going to be disastrous.

1. The People

A country just isn’t a country without her people. Even though I haven’t traveled extensively as some, I have met some amazing and hospitable people from all over the world. The friendships, the story telling, and the ardor for travel is all part of the amazing experience.