Traveling? Here’s How To Track It All

Wow, my first journal entry. It’s been about forty-eight hours since I arrived in Taiwan, but I’ve already experienced every emotion imaginable. I’ll start from the beginning:
[The first three sentences. 9/25/2010]

One of my best decisions while living in Taiwan — besides actually moving there — was keeping a daily journal of all the things I saw and experienced. Aside from remembering everything that happened, it was a wonderful way to track my growth, education, and self-discovery during that amazing time. Reading it again, it was unbelievable to, not only relive those memories, but to see how my opinions and paradigms changed through those months. Heck, just reading the first week of entries was like watching two different people.

“Cool. So What Exactly Do You Write?”

All the stories. All the people you meet. Your friends. Your laughs. Your joys, struggles, and pains — that way, your journal will capture everything with crisp accuracy. (What’s more honest than what you thought exactly at that moment?)

Somehow, I stumbled upon the underworld-controlled area of Taipei, festering with aggressive prostitutes, gambling halls, massages, and betel nuts shops. I couldn’t help but roam around the area to further explore the darker-side of Taipei; I didn’t see too much during the mid-afternoon, but I’m sure if I returned at night, I wouldn’t be disappointed.
[9/26/2010]

Then Reread And Enjoy

I promise you’ll rediscover many things you forgot. I know I did. (I was a crazy kid.) It’ll retell the crazy moments:

I wasn’t about to get killed by the Triad, so I apologized profusely.
[10/9/2010]

Anything is possible. Okay, so today I woke up with 48NT$ in my pocket.
[10/14/2010]

It’ll express the emotions:

My night ended with a brilliant fireworks display and a refreshing, nighttime breeze. Honestly, this week was a non-stop, violent rollercoaster that threatened my emotional and, at times, physical well-being. I cannot fathom what next week will deliver.
[10/10/2010]

And it’ll share the realizations:

Moving forward, I truly believe that my rethinking of existence and reframed mindset may start to unlock the key to eternal happiness. In this next year, I can only do so much, but this constant battle could solve all of life’s problems.
[10/30/2010]

A Quick Heads-Up

[quote align=”right”]Rolf Potts once said that you can experience every type of emotion in one day while traveling. Today proved him correct, once again…
[9/27/2010][/quote]I will warn you, however, writing an entry everyday ain’t easy — and I often noted that in my journal — but it’s for the best. “Feel free to be as brief or as rambling as you want,” is a good piece of advice by Rolf Potts.

And in forcing myself to update the damned thing, I also got wonderful writing practice and birthed a new hobby. But it was still more fun to read what I wrote than to actually write it.

Fact is, traveling is an amazing opportunity for adventures, impressions, growth, love, and discovery.

Just make sure to track it all.

Give it a shot and let me know your results! What did you discover? Do you also keep a travel journal or something similar? Leave a comment, hit me up on Twitter, or add me on Facebook.

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