Nothing can beat that feeling of anticipation, trepidation, excitement, danger and pleasure all rolled into one. Adrenaline: a primary catalyst behind the love of travel, be it traveling for a change of scenery or with a purpose such as adventure or volunteering. When you make that decision to step outside your comfort zone and do something different, it changes who you are in ineffable ways.
I remember watching ‘Touching the Void’ after first reading about it and being taken through the rollercoaster of emotions felt by the two mountaineers, Joe Simpson and Simon Yates as they scaled the Suila Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985. The docudrama based on true events becomes riveting and frightening when on their descent, Simpson has a fall that shatters his leg. He is later faced with the chilling knowledge that Yates has no choice but to leave him to die by severing the rope that secures them together, if he is to save himself.
All turned out well in the end, however. They both survived the ordeal and went on to tell their story. Simpson first wrote about it in a book titled ‘Touching the Void,’ and it was this work that inspired the docudrama.
As the years went by, Simpson and Yates returned to mountain climbing, albeit never together. In an interview with The Guardian Newspaper Simpson noted that, “… if I hadn’t had that experience in Peru, I would never have become a writer, which I love. I wouldn’t have become successful and I would not have the comfortable life I now have.” Simpson credits this adventure for shaping his life today, and really, isn’t that what traveling should be about?
That leap of faith
Seeking new experiences in traveling is extremely popular now. Often it involves some form of physical activity that not only generates new skills, but also compels you to push your limits and overcome hurdles. This experience has two sides to it. On the one hand, someone who spends a great deal of time in the water will be energized just by the decision to go canyoning or white-water rafting. But the resulting thrill depends on how well they can adapt to the demands of a team, or how they can overcome greater heights or push through bigger rapids in the process. On the other hand, a person who is completely overwhelmed by the fear of water sports might nevertheless choose to engage in it to conquer that fear and feel a sense of accomplishment. This is the reason that adventure sports and adventure travel are employed by organizations to inculcate in their employees the tenets of leadership, confidence, problem-solving and teamwork. It is an activity that takes people over a certain personal threshold.
If you ask someone about their experiences ziplining across the Cypress Valley in Texas, USA or springing from the Behana Canyon in Cairns, Australia, they will probably dwell a little longer on that moment when they decided to jump. It is that moment when courage emerges victorious over fear, and winning over the unknown that gives one a sense of purpose in life. It is in that brief moment between the vitality of life and the possibility of death that you reach a certain clarity about yourself and about how strong you really are.
And of course, in all this we cannot underestimate the importance of what nature has to offer. Far too often, we are cocooned in our offices, apartments, classrooms, and we do not have time to step out for a breath of fresh air even if we have the inclination to. If we focus on this aspect in our travels, though, the benefits that ensue can be bountiful.
Appreciating nature not only calms the mind and body thereby reducing the stresses of work and life but also coerces us to respect our surroundings and care for nature. It engenders an emotional connection with our environment which we will keep coming back to.
Adventure travel does not only encompass leaping from a height or zipping across some unknown chasm. It can also be a metaphorical adventure of learning about a new culture. Wandering off the beaten path and opting to travel through eco-tourist hot spots such as the My Khanh ecotourism village off the Mekong Delta in Vietnam or Ubud in Indonesia will not only expand your horizons through the arts and crafts, delicious exotic dishes, rich history and ecological diversity of these South-East Asian countries. It will also augment the lives of the local population and help in preserving an environment that nourishes the region’s biodiversity.
A paper published in 2022 on ‘The effects of tourism on conservation at the monkey forest in Ubud, Bali’ by Bruce P. Wheatley and D.K. Harya Putra finds that, “By promoting traditional Hindu religious values and tourism at The Monkey Forest of Ubud, the local community is effectively protecting all its flora and fauna.”The research paper emphasised how the local community is invested in conserving the environment as they see first-hand and benefit from the economic development that ensues from ecotourism to the area. Moreover, the macaque monkey population that inhabit the Monkey Forest near Ubud have seen an exponential increase due to human (tourist) presence in the area, as their food (to a large extent) is provided by visitors to the forest”.
Voluntourism to the rescue!
When people travel with the intention of volunteering to help local communities in the fields of education, agriculture, healthcare and so on, it is called Voluntourism. If this is done in a sustainable manner, that is if volunteers are experienced in the work they choose to do within the local village they visit and if they stay for longer periods of time, then the impact they make on the lives of the people is greater and more productive. This also enhances their own knowledge of the local people, thus enabling them to work cohesively with them to better their prospects while respecting their unique culture and beliefs.
However, this must be done right. Many of those who engage in voluntourism say that it becomes meaningful to all stakeholders when an organised body provides the voluntourism opportunities. James Boosey from Suffolk, UK mentions his first voluntourism endeavour to Uganda which fell short because he saw more harm done than good, in an ICS blog. He was 19 then and was traveling to teach. In hindsight he admits he was inexperienced and also realised how the children at orphanages were like puppets made to perform for the visitors so that they could garner more support for the orphanages themselves. Later, he volunteered through ICS (International Citizen Service) and found the experience more fulfilling because it was done in a more structured manner.
The alternatives are simple: when volunteering to teach, one can teach the teachers the best methods to engage with learners rather than teaching the students alone, as this learning will then only remain with them and not future learners. Furthermore, volunteers should do work that is in keeping with their own skills and learning and they should indulge in the local culture as much as possible by taking tours, purchasing local products and living as the locals do. Overall, there must be authenticity in one’s aspirations.
The takeaways
Traveling to enhance lives (including your own) is commendable. It can yield diverse benefits from all those involved if one is invested in an unselfish outcome. Even with adventure tourism, it is about learning from various activities in order to bring that knowledge back with you to your home, workplace and community. Traveling with a purpose emboldens individuals to take on leadership roles, to stand up for innovative methods of work, industry and inclusion. And it changes the fabric of society in such a way that it is the collective experience that becomes valuable, not just individual capabilities. So, travel smart and travel well; but before you do, ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?”
(Anouk De Silva)