Why We Travel: The Transformative Power of Place
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Travel is often talked about like it’s a getaway—an escape from work, from stress, from the same streets we walk every day. But for me, travel isn’t about leaving something behind. It’s about stepping into something new—a version of myself that I only meet when I’m somewhere unfamiliar, eyes wide, mind open, heart recalibrating to a different rhythm.
Travel humbles me. Expands me. Exhausts and electrifies me in equal measure. It has a way of unraveling what I thought I knew—about the world, about myself—then stitching it back together in a way that makes more sense, even when it doesn’t. Because the truth is, we don’t just see new places when we travel. We let them shift something inside of us.
Every Place Leaves a Mark
Everywhere we go, we step into a story that has been unfolding long before we arrived. The landscapes, the people, the history—they all have weight. And whether we realize it in the moment or only after we’re back home, those places shape us.
Take MedellÃn. A city that, if you only knew its past, might seem defined by it. But walk its streets, let yourself feel the energy pulsing through Comuna 13, and you’ll see something different—a city that refuses to be reduced to its worst days. The murals that line its walls aren’t just colorful backdrops for Instagram. They tell a story of resilience, of people who chose to turn violence into art, who remade their home instead of running from it. And in that transformation, there’s something deeply personal. Because haven’t we all, in some way, had to rebuild from what’s broken?
Then there’s Skaneateles, a quiet, idyllic lakeside town that looks like it was plucked straight from the pages of Great American literature. Generations of families have lived there, their roots dug deep into the land. And for someone like me, whose ancestors have spanned continents and cultures, Skaneateles made me wonder what it feels like to belong to a place so completely. To know, without question, where home is. That kind of connection was something I’d never experienced firsthand, but standing on that lake, watching the town move in slow, steady harmony, I felt the impact of it.
Being Globocurious
Thisis why I started Globocurious. Because travel isn’t just about what to do and where to eat (although that’s a fun part of it, too!). It’s about how places shape us. The stories they hold. The feelings they bring out in us.
It’s why I don’t just tell you about the best stops in Taiwan—I also tell you what it feels like to walk its streets, knowing that its people have endured wave after wave of colonization and still welcome outsiders with open arms. I don’t just give you itinerary tips for Colombia’s Coffee Axis—I also tell you about the irony of drinking “second-class” coffee in one of the most famous coffee-producing countries in the world.
Because that’s what travel does in the best of cases. It cracks us open. It makes us pay attention.
Why We Travel
Travel is movement, yes. It’s going somewhere new, stepping into the unknown. But the real magic happens when those places reflect something back at us—a challenge, a new perspective, a deeper understanding of who we are and what we still have to learn. Everywhere we go, we collect pieces of the world. And if we’re open enough, we leave a little bit of ourselves behind, too.
Travel should feel humbling. The world is so much bigger than us, and it’s only when we step outside of ourselves that we finally start to see just how much we have left to learn.
Which place has changed you?
I’d love to hear about a moment, a city, or an experience that made you see things differently. Join me on Substack to connect and keep this conversation going.
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