TRAVELING: The Purpose

Traveling is a great experience. It is not simply the exertion of exchanging places or moving from one place to another- it is first-hand knowledge of people and places. We may read books, see movies but actually going to places and meeting people, interacting with them, listening to them, is a totally different experience. When I first set eyes on the world's most celebrated monument, the Taj Mahal, it was a very different and unique feeling. I still remember a British lady standing next to me, commenting "Only a few sights are actually better than their photographs".  

Not for nothing did the travelers and explorers like Marko Polo and Hsüan-tsang undertook the risk of going far off, unknown places. Our own saints and sages undertook such journeys right from Adi Shankaracharya to Swami Vivekanand. 

No experience is comparable to trekking and hiking in the hills. The sheer thrill and joy of exploring unknown places and setting foot on untrodden paths, where each next turn and bend opens up a new vista before your eyes, is just mesmerizing. The secret of success in this, lies in 'pack less to experience more'. Put the bare necessities in your backpack and get started.