Traveling is one of my passions, and it was something I did a lot prior to the whole lockdown mess and the Covid-19 situation back in 2020; now, after being fully vaccinated, I can travel
Traveling is one of my passions, and it was something I did a lot prior to the whole lockdown mess and the Covid-19 situation back in 2020; now, after being fully vaccinated, I can travel again, and honestly, I love it because I went crazy at home these past two years in lockdowns. My depressions hit pretty hard; traveling as a queer person of color can be challenging, but it’s my way of escaping my anxieties and mundanity and is the way I have a piece of mind. Traveling is the way for me to discover more about other cultures as a second-generation Indian kid; it also helped connect with my culture. However, there are a lot of myths about traveling out there, so we need to debunk them because they make traveling look like it isn’t.
#Myth 1- You can be killed while hitchhiking
Most people think there are really special, and I applaud that, self-love and all but the likelihood that a serial killer kills you is very, and I repeat, very slim. You have 0.00039% of being the victim of a serial killer; you have better odds playing poker and are more likely to be killed by a mass shooter than while hitchhiking. Mass murder is an issue that we need to talk more about; we need to talk about gun violence because that is the real issue, not hitchhiking.
Hitchhiking is a natural common way of traveling in any country, and it was considered a safe way of traveling for a long while between America and Canada. The myth that hitchhiking is dangerous dates back to the early 50s when the FBI led a scare campaign across the nation to make people stop this practice. Well, if you guess this had something to do with race and racism in America, then you’ve hit the jackpot. The FBI started this fearmongering campaign because it was mainly civil rights activists that were hitchhiking. It has been embedded that hitchhiking is synonymous with serial killers, but this is a hoax.
#Myth 2- Travel is dangerous
I’m sure by now most of us have watched those nightmare travel shows on National geography where the travelers are busted for drug possession or simple kidnap and sold off to the black market. But this will most likely never happen to you; this is fearmongering at its best; it has to be said that this kind of thing happens to the rare traveler. I admit that it might deter you from traveling, but then again, what is danger-free in this world? You shouldn’t let fear dictate your life and how you live it. Travel is not as dangerous as people on the new make it sound, most of the countries you visit will welcome you with an open heart as a self-proclaimed globetrotter; I can assure you that you will barely if never be mugged or robbed during your visit, the chances of you getting robbed is higher in your home country that while traveling.
#Myth 3- Couchsurfing is dangerous
Well, if I legit couchsurfed my way across Europe and South America in my twenties, I can tell you that all those horror stories you heard out there are as legit as the Candyman or the chupacabra. Couchsurfing is a cheap way of traveling, and as the name suggests, you crash on a local’s couch or spare bedroom as accommodations; it’s not free but a hell of a lot cheaper than paying for hotels. While it might be for everyone because not everyone feels safe staying in a stranger’s home, it is still a safe and fun way of traveling. It is also the fastest way to learn about a culture. I’ll give you one piece of advice when it comes to Couchsurfing: trust your guts (if you feel unsafe somewhere, just get a hotel because your safety is more important than money) and always read reviews before staying somewhere.
Sound off in the comments section below and tell us some of the myths about traveling that you believe.