Travelling!

"The world is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page" Saint Augustine

I love this quotation of Saint Augustine. I totally agree with it because that's exactly what travelling  feels like to me. Going somewhere you have never been before, exploring a new landscape, different culture and foreign people can give you so much. It can broaden your mind and enrich you in so many ways.

It is one thing to read about a country, about its inhabitants, history or culture and another one to experience it on your own. Just to give you one example, in my study of Geography at the University of Graz we had the opportunity to participate in an excursion to Cuba and as a preparation for the journey we had to attend a seminar. In groups of three we were asked to prepare a presentation of one special topic about Cuba like urban development or agriculture. Of course you learn a lot by doing so and it would be nonsense to travel to a country without any kind of preparation, but what I want to say is that you will not truly understand all the information you get (for instance by reading) unless you visit the country on your own.

On working out the presentation I read a lot about old colonial Cuban cities and the special charm these cities have. I tried really hard to imagine myself, walking through the streets of old Havanna, but comparing the feeling of actually being there on the excursion with the vision in my head months earlier, I can only say that I miserably failed.

Travelling can enrich you by learning from foreign people. Every country or let's better talk about the country's inhabitants, they all have their own special "character". When I think of Cuba and the Cuban people I am really thankful for the opportunity to experience their way of living.

First of all they have a more relaxed attitude towards so many things in life and I consider this a really positive characteristic.  For example when traffic is concerned no one would ever start to hoot just because another car driver didn't realise that the traffic lights have turned green. Another admirable characteristic of a majority of Cubans is their contentment. When we were travelling through the countryside of southern Cuba we once stopped at a small, shabby-looking building. Our professors told us that this was the school of the little village and that many of the children had to walk for hours just to get there. When we went inside the kids were dressed in school uniforms and they all looked so cheerful, so happy. Even though their families might be poor and they don't have a lot of money they are content with their life. I really got the impression that the children were glad to have the opportunity to attend school. I am not proud to write that but I think only a minority of Austrian children ever considers themselves thankful or happy just because they are "allowed" to learn.

I think a really important and essential message I learned by visiting Cuba is that sometimes you can't change a situation and the best thing you can do in that case is try to cope with it. Try to make the best out of the worst. Just thinking about how miserable your situation or life is won't make you feel any better, so stop it.

  

I could add a lot more Cuban experiences here but what I actually want to say is that every journey can broaden your mind if you just let it. You have to be open-minded and willing to experience the unknown in order to benefit from travelling and if you do so, it can really change your life in a positive way.