Metamorphosis
When one thinks of traveling, one thinks of bringing oneself to far off lands in order to experience what they have to offer, and indeed that is the primary focus for me as well when traveling. However, another, perhaps secondary but nonetheless important aspect for me is to remove myself from my day to day life, from anything familiar. In a way, I'm sort of wrapping myself in a cocoon, insulating myself from my life, job, relationships, worries, familiar faces, familiar routines, etc. Rather than erecting walls I simply surround myself with thousands of miles of unfamiliar land and sea. It can be difficult in day to day life to find time for reflection and introspection. This is doubly true when one both works and lives in a very social atmosphere, as has been true for me for quite some time. Traveling is different. When traveling (alone) social interaction can be somewhat hard to come by, and the natural state is to be alone with your thoughts. Without considerable effort it would be very easy for me not to speak to anyone for weeks at a time. Meeting people on the road is a skill that I've come to develop in my travels, but even so, in the absence of job, parties, roommates, and regular interaction with close friends I find myself spending a lot of quality time with, well, myself. Part of the drive for me to take off again on these trips around the world is a need for the opportunity to go inside my head for a while. To sequester myself off into my little woven home and begin my metamorphosis, my guess as good as anyone's as to what my final form will take.