Vagabonding

This, by Rolf Potts, is one of the most simplistically profound and positively challenging books I've read in quite a while - for certain one of those all-round well-worth-keeping-as-an-indispensable-dogeared-companion-that's-been-reread-multiple-times kind of books.

   Ostensibly, it is a reference/guidebook for people who want to go travelling around the world long-term. But it is far more than that: Rolf's advice, though thoroughly and flexibly practical, cuts deeper to the whole point of travel itself, and brings the reader (who can be presumed as a would-be traveller) to question some serious unexamined things about goals, attitudes, and various mixtures of these that may hinder the actual experience of travel. I would not even dare to summarise his broad reflections on this - as there is so much wisdom and insight packed into this relatively short and delightfully readable book, derived both from Rolf's own travel experiences, his friends', loads of other travel writers from contemporary and historical times, and anecdotal biographies of people who should be inspirational goal/attitude-models to people who might consider vagabonding. Travel is ultimately, argues Rolf, about broadening your understanding of yourself through broader experience of more of the world: and so an openness to unconventional and unexpected, a sociality and generousity, an ability to rest in the present moment and take things as they come, getting to know people just as much as (if not more than) places; this is how adventures happen, not by intricate planning and paid tours.

   I've already pencilled in a short list in the back of this book of places I want to visit. Not that I travel much but after a charity hitch-hike from Sheffield to Croatia via Krakow I went on nearly four years ago now (yikes) I definitely developed an adventure bug, and so when I've paid off the bulk of my post-postgraduate debts and saved up a decent chunk of annual leave, I'll be ready to hit the road.

   But - as Rolf also wants to make clear from his philosophy, this approach to travel isn't one that strictly even necessitates travelling particularly far from where you live: soaking up new experiences and avenues of society and culture is literally something that can be done any place people are, and most people tend to live in places where people are, I mean, I know I certainly do.

   So what does that mean?

   Live is an adventure - treat it like one!