In moments when I'm having a hard time, when I'm pressed by obligations at work, when I need an escape from reality...
I close my eyes and remember the beautiful moments from my travels.
Yes, I only remember the good times.
There are always ugly moments and there will be, but I want to forget them and don't think about them.
Was my flight delayed or cancelled, did my luggage get lost, was there terrible turbulence, did my car break down abroad, did I seek medical attention for burns, food poisoning, spider fish bites , high temperatures...
Was my accommodation overbooked, so I changed the hotel or even canceled, so I changed the city as well...
For all these years, wherever I traveled, I etched in my mind beautiful moments, the smiles and faces of the people I met, the history of the cities and countries I visited, the beautiful architecture of their buildings and beautiful pictures of their gardens and parks, the view of natural beauty , but also the museum settings and the meals I enjoyed...
I don't want to remember any ugly moments, and there were some...
I like recalling those bad moments and how I dealt with them, how I turned them around and created good ones from them; it adds a different element to the memories and, after the fact, the pain or problems caused by them so they're just things that happened.
I don't forget them. but I don't call them to mind when I need travel moments for a gentle reset from stress 😀
All those unpleasant situations made me improve - in planning, in preparing for the trip, in dealing with them when they occur.
An example of a humorous situation:
I went to a business meeting in another country in one day, leaving early in the morning, returning late in the evening. a meeting that lasted 4 hours. I only brought my laptop...
Due to the storm, the plane that was supposed to bring me back home couldn't land and so I stayed far from home, with only my laptop.
Not even a toothbrush... Not even spare socks and underwear, a clean shirt, nothing...
Since then I know, even if I go for a short time, far from home, I carry a small backpack with me, with a few spare pieces of clothing...