If you have been following me on twitter or instagram you know I have been regular at the airport recently. A trip out of town once or even twice a month is not uncommon for us. I have been asked a lot of questions regarding my travels – why do you do it? why do you drag your 8-year old? how does kuttyma react? are you not tired? why do you travel?

Why we travel?

I do not have an answer to it. Travel is much beyond destinations and places on the map. Wanderlust runs deep within me and I lucked out yet again. My 8-year old and husband seem to share my love for travel. The need keeps me seeking travel deals and destinations.

But there is another part of travel – the lessons I learn as I discover the world. Lessons I hope my 8-year old clings to as she grows up and discovers herself.

The World is Big

I want kuttyma to always remember that the world is much bigger than her comfort zone. It is vast. It is unfathomable. Just being aware of the world around us, makes us a better humans and I hope exposing my daughter to the world will make her a responsible human.

Learning Acceptance

In today’s world of hatred and bigotry, being able to accept and embrace the differences in people is a skill. Traveling is a great eye-opener. It teaches my daughter and me, how different people are. We talk about it all the time. Her perspectives sometimes astound me and often they make me want to pack the suitcases again.

Patience

I am impatient and often feel that children these days are way less patient than I am. Forget watching paint dry or grass grow, they cant wait for the app to download. Traveling is often about patience. Waiting for the flight, battling delays and the unexpected.

Connecting the Dots

We are all different and yet similar. Traveling helps us connect the dots and make our differences insignificant. Children learn that beyond some superficial differences everyone is alike and that is indeed a very small and connected world. Traveling paves way for kids to do it themselves.

The Learning

Traveling makes books come alive. The lessons never stop and are not easily forgotten. Tagging along lesson plans to any trip is a great way to motivate kids to be lifelong learners.