What 2020 Has Taught (& Re-Taught) Me About Travel

By Deborah Widdick

Views from a previous New Year’s Eve in Zihuatanejo, Mexico

As I write this, live from the depths of the limbo that encompasses the period between Christmas & New Year’s Eve, I’m reminded of what I’d normally be doing this time of year. And no the answer isn’t gorging on my sixth cheeseboard (we’re up to number nine, baby).

For with the exception of one year, I have spent the past seven New Years Eves in different corners of the globe - from Australia to Europe, Latin America to the Caribbean. To be able to have done this, I realise, is a great privilege - one I am very grateful for. To this day, I am an advocate of finding yourself at the start of the new year in a foreign place, surrounded either by old friends or new.

There’s something refreshing about resetting for a new year in land previously unexplored. I find a trip at this time of year invigorates me to get through January completely avoiding the blues I might, like so many do, otherwise fall prey to.

In the weeks leading up to this limbo, I was dreading my emotions as we reached it. Like so many other Globelles, for the majority of this year, I’ve found myself grounded, spending over half of the year either in lockdown or a tiered form of restriction of movement. A New Years Eve trip, of any kind, is firmly off the table - and I’ll be celebrating at home, like three quarters of the UK, if the news of fifteen minutes ago is to be believed. Not what I would have imagined if you’d asked me a year ago, but so it goes.

It’s been a very different year in these ‘unprecedented times’, and like many who have been fortuitous to remain largely unimpacted from a health perspective, I’ve been doing my best to find the good in our current circumstances.

Although our ability to travel has changed beyond recognition this year, I’ve found this has provided an opportunity for me to reflect on my relationship with Travel, and what it means, over six years on from founding Globelle Travels.

What follows is my thoughts, exactly, on what has 2020, as a result, taught (or re-taught) me about travel.

It’s not about where you go. It’s about what you do.

So you’re not able to pop off to another continent? No beach, mountain, desert, panoramic city views or lagoons in sight? It doesn’t really matter - what really matters, is how you spend your time where you are.

A view from my local park, which I only discovered this year, as a result of Lockdown & having to meet friends outside more.

Because you could head to any of those places, and still not enjoy or make the most of it, if you didn’t decide what to do there, and act on it. There’s no point finding yourself in a paradise if you’re not willing to explore the attributes that have helped make it so.

I’ve had friends realise their adventurous spirits in so many ways, all from the comfort of their own home - be it repurposing an old washing machine drum to serve as a pottery kiln, or cultivating a trip inspired wildflower garden, or even, if you’d believe it, weaving.

And up until now (counting from the beginning of March), there are at least three new canine friends in my offline community, which has lead to the discovery of a multitude of green spaces nearby that might have otherwise remained unspotted.

The core of travel is new experiences - we can explore wherever we are, if we seek out new experiences there. Focus on what you can do.

Which leads me onto my next point - travel does not have to be your only passion.

This is a really interesting one, but something I’ve found has come up often in discussions with well meaning friends. As the Founder of a Travel Community, a lot of the focus on my extra curricular passions in conversation has historically been given to - you guessed it - travel.

Now I love travel - but it’s not all I love, and this year has really given me the opportunity to remember that. I love reading, especially if accompanied by a freshly made coffee, perfectly warm bath, or fine glass of Pinot Noir (I’m also open to all of the above at the same time). I love cooking, documentaries (Honeyland, if you’re after a recommendation) and flower arranging.

Since being grounded earlier this year, the option to discuss ‘where have you been recently?’ has been a no-go, unless you want a recollection of the distinguishing features of every supermarket aisle I’ve graced. And I think we’re better for it.

This year has challenged us to have conversations we might not have otherwise had, and explore topics we would normally shy away from.

For those of you, who like me, who might have felt so much of their identity was wrapped up in their ability to travel, I hope it has reminded you - it’s not, there’s much, much more to you in many ways.

Do not underestimate the power of the Day Trip.

One of the cute cottages discovered on a day trip to Bradwell On Sea, Essex, UK

So say we’re back to normal in 2021. Many of you may find yourselves with limited annual leave, and a desire to ‘make up’ for lost time where you were unable to explore. I hope this doesn’t mean you plan many short trips, with crammed, jam packed itineraries, which do not allow you the chance to unwind and seek spontaneity (unless, the former and only the former, is very much what you’re into, in which case - you do you!).

Because there is an alternative way to combine limited time, and a craving for real adventure. Do not underestimate the power of Travel’s little sister, the Day Trip. It can be the fix you need.

It could be a local national beauty spot. It could be a museum a couple of cities away. It could involve a lovingly prepared packed lunch. It should involve adventure.

2020 has meant many, many more Day Trips for lots of our Globelles. And do you know what? If you’re in need of a break, with a set amount of hours in oneday to spare, they really are worth the effort.

It’s one type of trip I will be more frequently incorporating into my travel plans for 2021.

We need to re-think how we travel, and the impact we have on the communities we visit.

For most of our like minded Globelles, we know this is not new news.

But to see real progress - and real change - we have to be open to continuously re-thinking how we approach our adventures, our choices, to be better. For many, Pandemic aside, this year has been eye opening in just how unjust a world we still reside in, and all the work that remains to be done to address this.

Here are a few of the questions I’ll be committing to continuing to ask myself throughout 2021 and beyond:

When you plan your next trip - how will you decide where to stay?

Will you, if flying, offset your carbon?

Will you challenge your accommodation on their policies to make sure your stay is more sustainable?

Will you consider how you are contributing to the economy of the local community you are visiting when making choices about which tour companies to engage, and which hospitality venues to patron?

Will you question how where you’re choosing to visit is doing more to give back to the environment they are operating in?

When you look for inspiration for your travels, will you choose to actively seek out different perspectives? Will you seek out undiscovered voices, rather than relying solely on the sources that provide your ‘go-to information’ - sources that perhaps have similar life experiences to your own? Will you read reviews of your newly discovered perspectives/ experiences, and act on them?

Will you support and champion businesses that have a founder from a different ethnic background to your own?

If you’re looking for a refreshing account which highlights lots of different perspectives - I’d highly recommend checking out @hownottotravellikeabasicbitch

I hope you find these helpful, even if only as thought starters for your own questions you might want to ask.

And finally, Travel offers an ability to connect, which unfortunately, cannot be paralleled.

Look, I’m not anti-zoom, or any other application you’ve been utilising to take part in quizzes, online escape rooms (they exist) and even just for a good old chinwag over some vino. In fact, I’m incredibly thankful these exist, as they have proved brilliant tools to keep a sense of connection alive this year when the prospect of meeting up face to face has gone out the window. As a founder of an originally online community, I understand the excellent ways technology can help us connect.

But there is something, that cannot be duplicated, and that is the magic of a meeting, that can only occur, in one particular place, at one particular time, where many paths that would otherwise not meet in this world, find themselves there together.

I’m talking about the Russian woman I met while touring the Vatican, almost 15 years ago, whose conversation proved insightful, and ignited my interest in exploring.

I’m talking about the Greek Cruise Ship Captain I met on top of the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in Singapore, herself, on her first four-hour break on land in three months, myself, on a 48 hour stopover before heading home to the UK for the first time in 18 months.

Learning about her experiences, and her passion for the sea (as well as admiring her Louis Vutton ‘treat yo’self purchase), while sharing exorbitantly priced finger food alongside some cocktails and the views of the metropolitan hub, is one of the experiences that has shaped me. It is the moment I will remember as instilling in me how much more alive a person appears when they are pursuing their passions.

Last year, I remember sharing a traditional Croatian meal in a group of nine, hailing from five different countries, having spent the day exploring Krka National park together. There was a level of joy at being able to share in a moment with those from a background other than my own, with a common interest at the heart of it (who doesn’t love food) that brought us closer together.

To return to point one - these types of moments can occur wherever you are. However, there is a certain elevation to these chance moments, when both parties are not necessarily adhering to a fixed timeline - or at least, not to the sense of one.

One of the things I am most looking forward to when 2021 rolls around, is hoping to make many more connections like the above while on my travels.

To Wrap Up

As we end 2020, I hope you have a clearer idea of what travel means to you. I hope you make the most of the final hours of this year, and more than anything, I wish you a very happy start to 2021.