No more heroes, no more real adventures
October 11, 2011 in Philosophy
or: why do you want to travel the world?
Why does one want to give up his secure life at home to travel the world on a motorcycle?
I think there are several reasons:
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You personally want to achieve something special that not many have done before
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You want to meet new people and learn about foreign cultures
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You want to see the earth, its different landscapes and fascinating nature
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You hate your life at home and want to get away from it
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You always dreamed of being an adventurer, a kind of “outlaw” on the road
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You want to be a “hero” – you want the admiration of your abilities through others
Probably, there are many more reasons why people go out there to travel the world on their motorcycle. And for most people it certainly is a combination of several factors.
Is it still a true adventure?
But the question is: is it still something special to ride your motorcycle around the world? Is it still a true adventure? Are you still a hero surviving out there on the road?
It seems that everybody can nowadays simply go out there on the road and travel the world without much preparation – just an extended version of a vacation. Not like 20 or 30 years ago, when doing something like a RTW trip on a motorcycle was considered a real adventure – something that only tough guys could do, returning home as true heroes – taking the admiration of the others as granted.
Forums, blogs, travel pages suggest that there are lots and lots of travellers out there – many more than before. But is this really true? Are there more people travelling the world on a motorcycle now?
Yes, of course this is true – there are more people out there riding their motorcycle around the world – thanks to a brilliant product and image marketing by BMW, Touratech and other companies that have sent thousands of identically equiped “wanna-be-hero-adventurists” on the road.The true adventurers and modern media
But in my opinion this is not the full truth behind it. There are still many true adventurers out there searching the personal experience, the foreign cultures, the new and unknown – and there were always many of those adventurers travelling the world – also 20, 30, 40 … years ago.
But in those times communication and sharing information wasn’t as easy as it is today. People then travelled the world without writing a blog, without facebook updates, and without new positions on twitter every day – maybe some of those travellers wrote books about their travels later – but there are also many stories out there that have not been told – simply because it wasn’t possible.
Yes, of course this is true – there are more people out there riding their motorcycle around the world – thanks to a brilliant product and image marketing by BMW, Touratech and other companies that have sent thousands of identically equiped “wanna-be-hero-adventurists” on the road.The true adventurers and modern media
But in my opinion this is not the full truth behind it. There are still many true adventurers out there searching the personal experience, the foreign cultures, the new and unknown – and there were always many of those adventurers travelling the world – also 20, 30, 40 … years ago.
But in those times communication and sharing information wasn’t as easy as it is today. People then travelled the world without writing a blog, without facebook updates, and without new positions on twitter every day – maybe some of those travellers wrote books about their travels later – but there are also many stories out there that have not been told – simply because it wasn’t possible.
On the other hand, sharing knowledge through modern media has made travelling much easier and safer for everybody – so it is probably true: it isn’t as much adventure anymore as it was 30 years ago.
Ask yourself
But ask yourself: why do you really want to travel the world? Is it really only for glory? Is it only to be one of those heroes that have conquered the world?
I personally don’t want to do it because of the glory and fame – even though it is of course nice if somebody acknowledges what you have achieved.
But ask yourself: why do you really want to travel the world? Is it really only for glory? Is it only to be one of those heroes that have conquered the world?
I personally don’t want to do it because of the glory and fame – even though it is of course nice if somebody acknowledges what you have achieved.
I want to meet people – I want to see the world – I want to visit strange places – I want to experience new cultures – I maybe want to check out my own limits – I want to do things I haven’t done before – I want to learn – and most important: I want to live!
So many like-minded people
Yes, it is true: you are not considered to be so special anymore – there are many people like you out there, doing the same things, having similar adventures, giving up their save andboring live at home – just like you.
I am personally happy that so many people are out there exploring the world on their motorcycles, bicycles, by foot, canoeing… – I have met so many nice like-minded people, living and enjoying their live; people with whom I can exchange thoughts and ideas, and have fun enjoying my life.
Yes, it is true: you are not considered to be so special anymore – there are many people like you out there, doing the same things, having similar adventures, giving up their save andboring live at home – just like you.
I am personally happy that so many people are out there exploring the world on their motorcycles, bicycles, by foot, canoeing… – I have met so many nice like-minded people, living and enjoying their live; people with whom I can exchange thoughts and ideas, and have fun enjoying my life.
So: It is good to have all you adventurers out there! See you on the road one day!
PS: and if you still have doubts: ask you family and friends at home, whether it is something special to do a RTW trip on a motorcycle, to live on the road for a while. They will certainly tell you that it is something very special (and probably in their eyes quite often also very crazy and stupid).
