The benefits of keeping a travel journal
Keeping a travel journal tops all the other ways of recording a trip. Whether it’s waking up in Italy, visiting with a local family or approaching the Pyramids of Giza, an image doesn’t always capture the moment. Sure, photos are great. They might spark a memory. But actually documenting what you were feeling when those notes from your life were played can’t be beat.
While on vacation it’s easy to get sidetracked. Heck, that’s part of the point. Sitting down with a notebook and a pen at the end of an amazing day provides a break from the swirl. I like to find a nice quiet corner of a hotel bar and knock out a few pages before going to bed.
Your experiences will be richer for it. You’ll start to approach things with a writer’s eye, engaging all of your senses. You’ll see things you might have missed. Talk to people you might have passed over. And you’ll climb that next hill just to see over the horizon.
When you do sit down to write, I only have one piece of advice – and this is something that every novelist, poet, or journalist I have ever met (who was worth anything) tried to impart upon me – ignore your inner editor and just write. You can always go back later and besides this journal is for you. The idea is to record the experience… how you felt at that moment in time.
For years I kept a personal journal. Since I first learned to spell, I’ve been writing down my thoughts in one form or another. Yet, somehow over the last few months I’ve let that habit lapse. Maybe it’s because there are so many other ways to record our lives. From digital cameras to twitter there are a million outlets. But I always go back to my journal when I’m out on the road.
posted by Johnny Quest
John Geysen, Copywriter
Collette Vacations
