Remember that bewitching sunrise you saw once? Or that heavenly wine you tasted last year? Or the smile of that little kid who rode on your bike in that obscure town?
The best way to retain these special memories is through a diary of your travel experiences. This has become easier with the digital medium, where photographs along with words help to record your story almost as it were.
To the real traveler, and not a tourist, these unforgettable memories are the real souvenir. A tourist will go about collecting handicraft or fridge magnets from the places he visits. A traveler, meanwhile, is out collecting stories.
Here are 5 reasons to maintain a travelogue of your journey.
1. Sharing is Caring-
Did you end up so late in a town of nowhere, that you could not find dinner for the day? Share that horrible tale with others, so they might avoid the same fate. Often travelogues detail information, which can be useful to others. You might gain followers for your travelogue if it is the right mix of information and experience.
2. Meet fellow travelers-
Travelogues also help you to meet other kindred travelling souls, who would have similar experiences like you. It is like corporate networking, but cooler. You can learn from other travel writers as well, and pick up tips and tricks to help you along in travel and travel writing.
3. Writing is rewarding-
To put your thoughts and experiences down in words will give direction and clarity to your introspection. Travel exposes you to a plethora of ideas, and writing about them is your best bet to maintain a chronicle of what happened where. In the gush to see more and do more, travelogue is a good way to record and relive
4. Gateway to a career-
Travelogues can also lead to great career opportunities if you do it well. It is not possible to start making money out of travel writing immediately, but there is always a chance that somewhere along the way, you may hit an amazing opportunity. To be paid to travel could be a good lifestyle choice.
5. Most importantly, do it for yourself-
Write travelogues because life is too short and the world too wide to travel to the same place twice. Write a travel diary, so that whenever you reminisce about a place, you can relive your experience there. To rephrase Walt Whitman from ‘O Me! O Life!’, that you are here—that life exists and identity, That the powerful play goes on, and you may contribute a…travelogue.
What do you think of travelogues? Do you like reading them, or writing one? Share your views in the comments below.
(image credit- smilingglobe.com, pixabay.com)
