One of the things I love about going on trips or traveling to new places is meeting new people. On my own, I am not the friendliest of people, in the sense that I would not be that person who, in a room filled with strangers, will take the initiative to strike up a conversation with the person next to me. In all likelihood, I am that person with earphones on, eyes trained on a book or on a show on my phone. That does not mean, however, that I do not like meeting people. I do. I just go about it a different way. On every travel, you are bound to meet someone. Maybe it’s not even a proper meeting, but for a moment in time, you make contact – brush elbows, exchange a few words, trade a smile, or just extend an imperceptible nod. All these interactions, small though they are, are significant in their own ways.
Let me list down three people that I love “meeting” on my trips. Let me know if you’ve come across them as well.
1. The helpful grandpas and grandmas
I feel that the most welcoming people are our older ones, especially the grandpas. Let me cite three examples.
Somewhere on the station at Gwanghamun in Seoul, we were disorientated and didn’t know where to go. We had our maps out, but nothing makes sense. The dense crowd is not helping, either. Suddenly, a grandpa came forward and, although we do not understand Korean, we could tell he was asking where we were going. We told him the name of the place (which I do not remember now, sorry), and it appears he doesn’t know it either (although I had suspicions that he knows where it is, but we just screwed up the pronunciation). Even the map which we downloaded off the net also confused him. So he motioned to someone else, and here came another grandpa. Another grandpa joined in soon after. When we all separated with effusive thanks, I don’t think we got a clear answer where we were supposed to go, but it somehow didn’t matter. The sight of the grandpas banding together to help these hapless three foreign females was simply too cute.
And what about my I-missed-my-Jeju-flight-because-I-left-my-bag-passport-and-everything-in-the-airport-bus fiasco? The people that kept me company as I waited for the bus to complete its circuit and arrive back at the airport were the grandpas who were in charge of logging in the airport buses. Again, we could not understand each other, but never did they make me feel like the “stupid and distracted girl that lost her bag in the bus”, although I was already feeling that way. As I sat there for a good 45 minutes, they would repeatedly come over to me, point to the log and indicate that the bus will be arriving in this much number of minutes.
These grandpas are also one of the most willing to give directions or tell you which bus to get on. For others, you’d have to ask them first, but grandpas tend to offer their aid unsolicited. Peach and I were standing, wet and shivering from the rain after a visit to Kinkakuji. Together with us at the bus stop is a grandpa who saw us looking at the bus schedule for the quickest way to get to the Kyoto Imperial Palace. He then came forward and told us which bus to take, and where to get off. That definitely saved a lot of time (and allowed us to get dry earlier).
2.That little kid…
…seated across the aisle on the subway, crossing the street beside you, or ahead of you on a queue inside a supermarket or convenience store. That little person that you’d least expect to interact with on a trip.
Kids are guileless, and they also have an innate curiosity that I find enviable. Not to mention, cute.
My eyes are always drawn to toddlers and pre-schoolers when I happen to come across them. They could be with their parents, or with their teachers and schoolmates. They are the ones that will not judge you even when you are a new face showing up in a new place. They may stare at you, yes, but often with an open curiosity, more than making judgments or drawing conclusions about you.
3. Other wandering travelers
Wherever you go that is unfamiliar, it is always good to find a kindred spirit. You may not have a long or even substantial conversation, but that sense of kinship, that idea that you are not alone, is comforting.
I always mention to my friends that one of the best things (for me) about travelling solo is that I do not feel responsible for anyone else but myself, so there is a degree of freedom attached to it. I do not really feel alone, because there is always at least one other person who is just like me, and I take a bit of comfort in that. Several times, while I was wandering around Tokyo by myself, I look up on the subway and meet eyes with another foreign traveler, holding his/her own map or guidebook, and we just understand each other. Some we still keep in touch with, and others becoming part of our good memories.
Of course, I also have mixed feelings about this, because half the time, you may also come across other travelers that you’d rather not have shared an encounter with. *wide grin*
It has been a week since my last post, although you’d know what I’ve been up to if you’re following me on Instagram. During my trip to Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh, I have had my fair share of encounters – many of them good, some not so good, and most are memorable. I will probably talk about them in future posts.
These are 3 of the people that I love meeting while I am travelling. I hope the list will become longer, as well as my opportunities of seeing new places.
Who are the people that you look forward most to coming across when going places?
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