6.20.2007

Ji-Soo: Intrepid Adventurer, Man of Mystery

There's not much to admire about solitary travel. The lone traveler imagines a personal adventure in the third person, assigns to himself such qualities as fearlessness, curiosity and tolerance, and goes about "discovering" the foreign land. But the lone traveler mostly engages in introspection, and the unfamiliar backdrop fuels his self-consciousness. Even this self-discovery is mostly fiction; having removed himself from his everyday existence and the judgments of those who know him, he is free to invent an idealized version of himself -- one that he hopes will last for some time when he returns to the world as he knows it. So solitary travel is just a high form of self-absorption, and the lone traveler is just wallowing in crude therapy.

I don't mean to exclude myself from the above verdict, or to apologize for my wannabe trip. I have a knack for self-absorption, and it is perhaps my defining personality trait. I fully intend to glorify every bit of my insignificant journey through Thailand, and to use these experiences to draw bold conclusions -- mostly positive -- about my character. The above crap about solitary travel targets the handful of people on whom I may impose these brutal observations, and hopefully it will preempt some of the eye-rolling and reflexive gagging that may accompany the consumption of my running commentary. The effort might be unnecessary, given that my mother is likely the only person who cares at all to keep up with my travels (hi mom!). She is blinded by a biological bond that renders her incapable of seeing any irony in what I do or say.

But if there is anyone else out there, please indulge me.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

dear intrepid, for how long are you traveling?