Travel to Exist vs. Exist to Travel

In my constant desire to understand why I have more frequently been having feelings of going through the motions over the last few weeks, I think I may finally have stumbled upon an answer that will allow my thoughts to take me elsewhere and help to break me out of that mental funk going forward. It is very easy for European cities to become a jumbled mess of cobblestone streets, pedestrian only areas, museums of marginal interest, castles perched high atop the city overlooking famous churches, and some body of water. In that regard, it can be difficult to distinguish one city from the next since the sightseeing destinations in all of these cities are exactly what I just mentioned. So if they all essentially contain the same sightseeing components, what ultimately gives each city its' own personal signature which makes it a worthwhile stop on the backpacking sightseeing circuit? It's not the bars or clubs because you can find fun, quirky, exciting, and/or hole-in-the wall places in any city. Personally, it boils down to 2 things for me. Food and local entertainment.

One of my greatest enjoyments when traveling is eating local cuisine. Now, while I have grown tired of the endless ham/smoked meats and cheese sandwiches throughout Europe, you can't beat the local dishes. No matter what local ingredients are used to give a unique spin on a particular region's cuisine, and no matter whether the meal is something that truly agrees with my taste buds or not, there is no arguing the fact that regional food makes a destination memorable.

There is also no arguing the fact that regional entertainment such as traditional music, dance, etc can also elevate the standing of a particular city in my mind. These 2 facts were clearly evident in my last 2 destinations of Budapest and Lisbon.

There are beautiful sights within any country. Some sights, as I have mentioned in previous blog posts, are without a doubt more stunning than anything I've seen in either Budapest or Lisbon. Due to the fact that there hasn't been an absolute 'must see' destination in these cities, it can be easy to just go through the motions until reaching a destination with greater star power. You know the drill: Get a map of the city. Go to the big colorful picture spots on the map. Eat whatever food fits into your budget. Sleep in hostel dorm. Move on to the next city.

I was lucky enough in Budapest to break that cycle when I stumbled upon a local festival which had vendors selling local food, beer, wine, and spirits. Also had a performance stage with people in traditional dress doing traditional dances throughout the day. It didn't hurt that the venue for the event was high atop the city in the castle district. So in addition to the local feel of the event, you also had views of the entire city with the Danube running through it.

Eszter Pillok-Vajda selling her Hungarian spirit Rac Urmos at the festival

In Lisbon, my new friend Mary and I went to a local hole-in-the wall bar that is known for the traditional fado music. YES Hostel in Lisbon has been amazing with their recommendations of places to visit in and around Lisbon that are known by the locals and off the typical beaten tourist trail. And despite not understanding a single word about which they were singing, you could just close your eyes and appreciate the emotion with which they were singing. Much in the same way as the festival in Budapest, this really was an experience that elevated a mediocre sightseeing day, to arguably my most memorable day in Lisbon.

And when I think back to the rest of my trip, the days and experiences that come to the forefront of my mind when asked about my favorite moments of the trip usually have a story of delicious local cuisine and local entertainment tied into in some way, shape, or form.

All of these thoughts have made me keenly aware of the fact that there are 2 distinctly different methods of travel to which most of us subscribe. I have labeled them as follows. There is the Travel to Exist theory, which is the theory I have subscribed to on my journey. And, there is the Exist to Travel theory which I found myself falling into as of late. Let me explain.

With the Travel to Exist theory, the length of travel time is finite and is determined by how extravagant you are willing to be with your spending. In essence, you are taking a break from your real life and using travel as a means to exist until that time when you choose to go back to your pre-travel way of life. In knowing that there is a finite end to your travels, one will most likely plan their trip with as many amazing sights as possible and spare no expense when it comes to food and unique local activities so that they get the most bang for their buck.

With the Exist to Travel theory, essentially your existence is tied to the desire to travel indefinitely with no plan of returning to your pre-travel life. With that in mind, budgeting your money becomes paramount if you want to maximize the length of your trip. It can be much easier to go through the motions in this style of travel because in trying to save money it is less likely that each day will be filled sightseeing destinations that require entrance fees and more likely that time will be spent just wandering around the city, soaking up the atmosphere and eating the cheapest local food possible, again to stretch out your money.

There is no right way of travel and each of these travel theories can be equally enjoyable so long as you are aware of how you want to travel. I think what was troubling me lately was the fact that my mindset going into my trip was to Travel to Exist for 11 months and be blown away on a daily basis by sights, food, and culture from around the world. But recently, I found myself unexpectedly slipping into the Exist to Travel theory. And while there were days where this was enjoyable, I had gotten away from seeking out local restaurants and local entertainment in favor of spending more hours in the hostel being a lazy uninspired backpacker. Essentially my travel life was starting to mimic what my life at home would be on a day off but I was just living it in a foreign city.

Many of you are probably keenly aware of the sentiments expressed in this post and probably have a pretty good idea of the type of traveler you are. But if you do find yourself falling into a funk or experiencing backpacker burnout, taking the time to attend local festivals/activities and be slightly more adventurous with your eating habits might be just what you need to recharge your backpacking batteries.

And now for some other orders of business:

As many of you may know, I was awarded the dirtiest camper award for my travels through Africa. Given the fact that I am traveling for 11 months in total, spending the time and money to do laundry in Africa just didn't seem worth it, since 30sec after putting on clean clothes they were already dirty again. I lost out on the cleanest camper award to my beautiful friend Kelly from South Africa. She certainly had a knack for always managing to stay remarkably clean in areas with red mud, dust, and dirt. And if she did have an article of clothing that got too soiled for her liking, she would just return from a trip to the local market with a few new outfits. Well Kelly, to you I say...

In recent months, I have forgotten how much fun it is to take pics of people posing in front of uninspiring monuments, wearing silly clothing, etc. So for my posts to the conclusion of my trip, I am going to introduce a photo segment entitled, "Flippin Ridiculous" whose name is inspired in part by the mature adult language often used by our fearless African tour leader Kate in order to protect all of our innocent ears.

To people using an Ipad as your camera, you look flippin ridiculous.  Instead of burying your head behind a computer monitor to take pics, hows about you use that device to surf the interweb for an actual camera. You know, the type of camera that could fit in a pocket slightly smaller than a kangaroo pouch.

Ladies Ladies Ladies. How many times do I have to tell you that high heels and fancy runway dress have no place on cobblestone streets. You may be attractive, but you know what? You look flippin ridiculous.

And since this is a travel blog, a bit of a review on Belgrade, Budapest, and Lisbon. Visit Visit and Visit. As my friend Scott has said about Belgrade, "It has a bit of a grittier feel than alot of other European cities." To be honest, it is the type of place that when you walk out of the train station, your first inclination is to turn right back around into the train station and go somewhere else. But it does have a unique energy and retains some of that post-communist feel that can make for many entertaining hours walking around the city.

Budapest is just about my ideal city. When I think about the components I would include in my ideal city, it would have a castle with an amazing viewpoint of the city below, pedestrian friendly zones with cobblestone streets, a river running through it, and unique eateries. Budapest had all of that. It felt very safe, and was a bit softer around the edges than Belgrade while still retaining some of that post communist feel.

Lisbon is indeed a mini San Francisco, complete with its own Golden Gate Bridge, steep narrow streets, and cable cars. There are amazing views overlooking the city and many pedestrian friendly zones that make for easy navigation around the city. There are easy day trips to beautiful surrounding areas such as Sintra and Cascais that also have their own beautiful castles, and ocean overlooks. As with so many other European cities, Lisbon is also in love with graffiti art and has a pretty vibrant nightlife scene, so I've been told.

And now for the proof:

Pictures to this point are from Belgrade

Pictures to here are from Budapest

Lisbon pics up until the performance artists. Sintra pics up to the 2 gargoyle heads. Cascais pics starting with the residences overlooking the ocean.

Cheers everyone.