I’ve been traveling for a bit now, working remote on the side. I feel more like a local than past tourism experiences since I don’t have as much time to kill. I’m not spending my days museum hopping, visiting historic sights, or taking photos at land marks. But that’s fine since remote work is more ideal for solo travel since I can move on my own schedule. I can wake up early or late, work a bit, take the subway to check out a restaurant I saw on Taiwanese YouTube, work at a coffee shop for a few hours, then check out a new climbing gym elsewhere in the city, and maybe work a bit more. Every day I wake up, pull out my compass and spyglass, roll out the Google Maps, and chart my course. This has helped me build self reliance. I’ve been learning what I do and don’t like to do and how to find place I do and don’t like to go. But while planning everything myself is pure freedom, I do miss having someone to talk to.
I miss having someone to talk when I’m having a meal, when I’m taking the subway, when I’m waiting between sets at a show, when I’m sitting in a coffee shop, when I’m having my first drink, and in every other moment of boredom. Not only is that someone a conversation partner, they’re also a full fledged human being with their own interests that they can share with me. I’m down to try new things, new things that I have never thought of before. Two brains can think of more things than one. Sharing is caring, but sharing is also cheaper, because I get to share your wallet, and of course, you get to share mine. You can fit a whole lot of people into a bus. You can also fit a whole lot more family style dishes into four stomachs than three, and three stomachs than two, and two stomachs than one. The more internal organs, the better.
Of course I can meet new people during my travels but I’m a little shy. A fisherman learns to catch fish by observing the behavior of fish. In my case, I learned to drink like a fish. I’m half certain that my Chinese gets better when I’m drunk, not to mention that my inhibitions are inhibited by neurological inhibitors in liquid form. So I can have some fun, talk to some new people, make small talk. But these people I meet, I know I’m likely never going to see them again. The amount of time I spend in a place is inversely correlated with the activation energy threshold necessary to get myself to talk to strangers. But strangers can become new friends, and new friends grow into old friends and who knows where the world will take you.