Notes from the Path AJ Photo
Part 2:
On Travelers & Tourists.
Alias Jones
Greetings from the isle of Kinali, part of the Prince’s Islands outside of Istanbul,Turkey. As we say here,“Merhaba!”
I’ve lived here since June of this year,settling down from my travels for a while to do a little writing. Somehow I stumbled into an amazing spot on the “village” end of the island where I found a groovy little hippie pad about 120 feet above the Marmara Sea, with a panoramic view of Istanbul, numerous fruit trees and a garden I’ve cultivated.
I even have a neighbor with sheep.
This place rocks.
Any similar set up in the U.S. or western Europe would start at about $1 million for the property alone, and I’m sharing working poor rent. Life is good.
Known locally as Kinaliada, this little island has a road that follows its rocky perimeter, and its just a little more than an hour’s walk around it. Only 55 minutes by ferry from the center of Istanbul, Kinaliada is a summer time favorite weekend destination of the city folk who need a break from the psychological weight of 18 million neighbors. With a year-round population of only about 300 or so, and a summer population of about 1,500, you can imagine the impact that 5-6,000 daily visitors can make on a summer Sunday. Monday through Saturday are usually 2,000 or fewer, and quite bearable.
From time to time I give myself a laugh, mentally referring to the visiting Istanbulers as tourists, as in, “Eh... Tourists...”! I suspect that some of the mainlanders are thinking the same thing when they see me. After all, my blond-ish hair tends to give me away as distinctively non-native in these parts. But having been on the road for 31 months now, I probably qualify as more as traveler than tourist. I’ve done my share of each and there are some meaningful distinctions between tourists and travelers.
To start, tourists seem to deal more heavily in time tables and itineraries. After all, when you’re out of the office only for a few weeks, many people want to get in as much as they can before they head back for another 50 or so weeks of the “real world”.
Travelers on the other hand tend to wander, without regard to time. If we don’t get there today, perhaps we get there tomorrow. Or next time around, and that’s ok. We view it as a marathon rather than a sprint.
Budgeting is different, too. Tourists tend to budget in nice, large, round numbers, and they’ve usually saved the money over the months since the last vacation. Travelers budget in very small denominations, often realizing that a bus ride may our daily food bill. Since travelers aren’t in any rush to get home, we become pretty good at math, carefully dividing the loose change in our pockets by the some-hundred number of days we wish to continue traveling. Skill with fractions comes in quite handy in this regard.
Tourists have destinations. Travelers have general directions, and we change course based on mood, weather patterns and things termed “meta-physical”. Tourists have cuisine. Travelers tend to think in terms of nourishment. Tourists measure their sleeping accommodations by the number of stars on the sign. Travelers more often count the number of stars in the sky.
Tourist often sport the latest “resort wear” styles. The t-shirt I’m wearing as I write was found on a south Turkey beach last summer – its a silly, bright green David Beckham model – and the shorts I’m wearing were given to me by a yoga classmate this past March off the south coast of Thailand. Funny thing... I’ve never been in need of anything for long. Somehow, as the need arises, the solution appears. That’s pretty typical for travelers. I don’t recall that experience as a tourist. Hmm...
One big tip for those considering life on the road… Fresh underwear is defined as underwear that you have not worn yet today. If you can deal with that, you are on your way to becoming a traveler.
Alias Jones is a rat-racer-turned-vagabond and is frequently considered to be one of the luckiest guys in the world. He does not argue the point. In his travels, Jones is a frequent columnist for English speaking newspapers abroad, has hosted a Texas Blues/Rock radio show in Bodrum, Turkey & teaches Reiki healing. He is completing his book tentatively called: Would-Be-Super Heroes: An Official Training Guide - non-commercial project that is slated for free download in multiple languages early 2009.
More details on Jones & his travels can be found at his official website or you can write to him at: aj@aliasjones.com
November 12, 2008 by Network Abundance Publications
