Pursuit of the Ordinary Moments when I travel

The pursuit of the ordinary -- How & why I travel Very differently:

I love site seeing don't get me wrong.
But I Love doing the most common every day activies when I'm traveling.
For me, traveling is not going to see the most epic things.
For me, traveling is appreciating the world and appreciating the people who live at where I'm visiting.
I don't go to places for the glamorous pictures or to show off where I've been.
I spend a lot of effort and a lot of time finding out and learning about each place, the political history and current situation, the environmental state, the social struggles of its people well before going there.
And when I am there, these information I have gathered would always be at the back of my mind, with every step I take in their city, I remain conscious of the backdrop of situations in the city in which they make a living.
So much so that I make sure not to do certain activities, 
Not to do certain things ,
So as to remain mindful and careful about what I'm doing.
I have gained this habit I guess not because of me being pedantic,
But because I've done all my university papers through on the places I travelled to, so researching on a deeper academic level became a thing I end up enjoying and making an effort in doing for every trip.

For me traveling is never and should never be about glamour or the pursuit of epic things.
It should and needs to be about understanding first and foremost,
But while traveling, it should just be all about appreciating the world we have and the earthlings in it .
So with me, you may often find me doing the most mundane and rather ordinary things,
like walking through the most obscure park or a beach, 
or just randomly weaving through residential streets for hours.
For me, every day when I'm traveling is a day for me to live my life in another place, in as ordinary a way as life could be lived.
Walking around itself feels sufficient and fulfilling for me.

And it's the little moments and the little things, and little gestures from people an exchange with someone, that are the most memorable to me, and will mean the most to me.

It's how Boh here remembered exactly what fruits I like for the smoothie from the 1st day I purchased from her stand, and she remembered precisely how I don't want any sugar nor any ice,
She always recognised me and welcomed me with a smile,
I went back to her stand every day and would spend half an hour looking for parking around old town just to get a smoothie from her;
It's how everyone greeted me with a smile when saying Sabaidee with their praying palms in Luang Prabang, and did not hesitate to listen to my request;
It's how the grey cat at the temple with the big golden Rock immediately reached out to jump into my lap as soon as I sqautted down to greet it with some rubs, it meoweed and meowed and approached me needily;
It's that feeling of bliss when gliding down the Mekong river, cooling my skin with the yellow water on a hot day.

What makes traveling beautiful ks
Not the yachts, drinking alcohol or getting wasted, 
Not conquering mountains or camping in freezing cold conditions, 
Not surfing huge waves or sailing or sunbathing on remote islands, 
not designer fashion 
or partying all night longnekth friends.
It's the ordinary seemingly insignificant things that mean the most to me.

It always annoyed me whenever my granddad saying that I was out "having fun again", which was his way of saying that I had gone travelling.
But having fun was never a concept for me.
If you knew me you'd find that I'm not into games or enjoy them much,
Having fun was never my aim by travelling.

Appreciation always was at the core.
So selfishly, if I don't get to appreciate a moment or a place or an event properly, I get quite discontent about it.

This is just how I see the significance of traveling and why I travel.
Traveling is when I truly live and live fully. That's why I love doing it - I love doing this thing called life itself.
And there's so much more to why I love it of course, but appreciation is at the centre of my love for travel.
I love being able to be out and about and appreciating this world,
I love living as much as I can in the world.
That is all.

I may not be good at explaining it.
Does that make sense?