WE HOPE THIS BOOK HAS MADE YOU UNCOMFORTABLY anxious to travel, and helped you realize that the material things holding you back are worthless. By no means is this text exhaustive; it is simply a glimpse into the wonderful underworld of travel, filled with street food, art, music, parties, and the opportunity to learn about the world by experiencing the different ways people conceptualize the idea.
On the road, you’ll learn that travel is only partially about the destination. Being out of your element—wherever you are in the world—teaches you to tap into your survival skills physically, mentally, and socially. You will figure out valuable lessons about yourself and how you respond to novel situations. Some people you meet will lead lives wildly different from yours, and others will be eerily similar. You will find that friendship is universal; that language barriers are easy to overcome; that no matter how broke you are, there is always a way to get a drink, share a laugh, and dance like you mean business. You will sleep standing up, eat lying down, sprint through airports and bus stations like an Olympic athlete, get thrown off your intended path only to find something much more exciting, discuss political theory using mostly hand gestures and grunts, and love every minute of it.
When clicking through other people’s travel photos just won’t cut it anymore, we urge you to start planning a trip of your own. Before you get bogged down with student loans, mortgages, kids, spouses, and responsibilities, learn a little about yourself by hitting the road. You don’t need much money to have the time of your life abroad, as long as you decide that comfort can wait, that food tastes better street-side, and that being a little grimy isn’t a big deal. Sacrifice to disappear, and the world becomes yours.