Do Painful Travel Experiences Lead to Happiness?
We have all experienced it before. The panic, fear, or dread felt so acutely during a horrible travel experience gone awry. Everything that can go wrong does. And for that moment in time, you do not know how on earth things will get better. But then things turn around, you find a solution, and you live to tell about it. And how!
I have had a few of these travel experiences in my life and I can absolutely say that while I don’t wish to repeat them, they made me grow as a person and as a traveller.
Losing my passport while en route to Thailand
This one caused pure anguish. A friend of mine and I meticulously planned a trip through Thailand one summer after university. I prepared all my travel documents and put them in a document holder to be worn around the waist. On the way to the airport in Stockholm, I carelessly took it off and placed it in the seat pocket in front of my bus seat. When I realized the error of my ways, I was standing at the check in counter and the bus was long gone.
I wasn’t able to locate the bus until the next day, and when I did, the bus company said there were no documents to be found on the bus. I had no other choice but to cancel the trip completely. Strangely, my documents turned up a couple of weeks later, but by then it was too late.
Falling through a skylight in Mexico
Another case of carelessness resulted in a severely lacerated hand, cuts on my legs and a mother who ordered a couple of extra strong Margaritas to pass the time while I was getting sewn up. I was 14, on a family vacation in Huatulco, Mexico. Prankster that I was (am), I decided it would be funny to give my family a scare as they left the hotel room. The hotel was built on the side of hill, so it was easy to climb onto the roof of the lower level rooms. I jumped into what looked like a well (to this day I don’t know what a well would be doing on a roof) that was covered in leaves and dirt. I quickly discovered this wasn’t a well, but an old, unwashed skylight made out of glass. My jump shattered the glass and I fell through. The cuts on my hand and legs resulted in a total of 60 stitches, masterfully sewn by a gynecologist who arrived to pick me up on his moped.
A romantic evening that turned out anything but romantic
When I travel, I tend to only book the first night’s accommodation and book the remaining nights on the fly. I like this because it lets me stay flexible and update my travel plans based on tips from locals and other travelers I meet. Normally, this results in a pleasantly serendipitous experience. On a trip to India several years ago, this strategy worked out a lot differently than I had hoped.
My wife and I travelled by ferry and rickshaw from the Gates of India in Mumbai to Murud, a beautiful beach town a couple of hours south of Mumbai. We arrived to discover that every single room was booked, and our hopes for a short respite from the crowds in Mumbai were dashed. Darkness was falling and we were out of ideas, other than sleeping under the stars. Luckily, and that is debatable, a friendly Indian who heard about our plight approached us to offer a room that he still had free. The room, which we paid a comparative fortune for, was an adventure in itself. Poorly lit, made entirely out of concrete, with bars on the inside of the windows and no running water, we pondered whether we would be locked inside.
But when we now look back at our trip to India, Murud has a special place in our memories. No matter where we are and under what circumstances, we can always say, “At least its not Murud!”
On a side note, Murud really is beautiful and you should visit if you are in the area. Just make sure to book in advance if there is a public holiday! See the end of this post for some photos of the beach in Murud, India.
Pain gives way to Happiness
Could these experiences have been avoided? You bet. They were all a result of carelessness and inexperience. But these things happen. Looking back, I tell these stories in a light-hearted manner, although at the time, they were anything but funny. In the end, such painful travel experiences create particularly vivid memories. Memories have a funny way of making the pain fade and instead give way to fond memories, gratefulness, and a strangely deep appreciation for these travel experiences.
Murud beach, India
Murud beach, India
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