Traveling around the world is genuinely thrilling and always full of fresh experiences. It offers us amazing opportunities to learn about new cultures, people, and places, which can only be a positive thing.
When I finished school and headed off to university with a nice little part-time job, I realized two key things: I could actually cook my own meals, and I could afford the occasional getaway to an exciting destination. This revelation made me dive into Google Maps and every flight website I could find, searching for cool and affordable places to visit. After all, I was still a student living mostly on baked beans on toast and the occasional tequila shot during a night out.
During my university years, I managed to visit several European cities like Florence, Amsterdam, Dublin, and Brussels—anywhere easy to reach from my nearest airport. However, my limited budget and desire to explore more made me avoid visiting the same place twice. I refused to even consider it. And there lay the problem.
While trying to grow up and reading glossy magazines filled with ‘bucket lists,’ I ended up undervaluing the idea of visiting a place more than once. Traveling became a point of pride, a list of new destinations to check off. If money was no issue, I wouldn’t travel unless the destination was exciting and new. Now, this mindset does encourage more exploration and discovering new places, but dismissing a location just because you’ve already been there isn’t always the best approach.
It’s perfectly understandable not to want to revisit a place if you didn’t enjoy it, but that was never my issue. Fast forward a few years, and my friends convinced me to go back to Amsterdam. My initial reaction was, “Really, again?” I dreaded the idea of revisiting it and wished I could go to Barcelona instead, a place I’d always wanted to see.
Thankfully, life taught me it’s better to let experience replace preconceptions. My attitude of treating travel like a checklist and ignoring places I’d already seen was unhelpful—it actually limited my view of the world. The truth is, places continually change, people come and go, and new spots are always emerging.
Travel is about creating experiences and memories we can cherish. My most recent trip to Amsterdam was actually my ninth visit, and I’m eager to go for the tenth time. I’ve learned that ‘experiencing’ a place is far more valuable than just ticking it off a list without really getting to know it. Travel is fun and exciting, and while it can sometimes be challenging, it’s always a new adventure.
