Ten Things That Freaked Me Out About Traveling

nemu artikel bagus nih
hal-hal yang sempet kepikir sebelum Mayday Project, alone..
alhamdulillah saya baik-baik saja, sehat, dan semakin bahagia setelah traveling :)
saya tambahin komen-komen berdasarkan kisah nyata, hehe..

Call it experience; and maybe a little added cynicism. Whatever it is, there are certainly things about travel that were once a huge problem to the novice me, but which have now paled into insignificance after many years on the road.

Some fears you learn to conquer – others you realise were never a problem in the first place.

Here are 10 of the big ones.

Terrorists

I know, I know, terrorists really are a threat, and if you're in the wrong place at the wrong time it would be a disaster. And that's something you worry about to start with. But you soon figure out that the chances of actually being caught up in a terrorist attack while you're travelling are about as remote as being hit by a bus that's being driven by a shark. Bad things do happen – but they probably won't happen to you.

Berhubung negara saya terkenal dg teroris, jadi ga terlalu worry about this. Lagian negara tujuan traveling termasuk negara aman.

Dirty restaurants

First time you hit a country with hygiene standards that are a little below Australia's, you panic. I'm going to die! There's meat lying out in the open, grime everywhere, a cat roaming around under the tables, and a chef who looks like he could use a polite introduction to soap. But you know what? It's those places that usually do the best food. And if it's popular you're unlikely to get sick.

Udah biasa makan di warung selama di Indonesia, perut udah terlatih selama ga jorok parah sih.

Mati gue, mau pesan apa ini?  ~at Samila Beach, Thailand

Foreign languages

I'm no linguist – I'm the first to admit that. But I no longer have the old fear that I used to of trying foreign languages, and of travelling through places where English is rarely spoken. After a while it's obvious that a smile and a little sign language will go a long way – and any attempt at the local lingo, no matter how embarrassingly bad, is appreciated.

Bahasa tarzan! Kalo negara tujuan ga pake English, pelajari sedikit bahasa negara tujuan. FYI saya cuma belajar bilang Thank You in Thai...sampai sana eh udah lupa gimana cara bilangnya. Jadinya perhatikan orang-orang kalo turun angkot trus bilang ke sopirnya, Kob Khun Kaa..

Long-haul flights

You always hear people moan about getting to Europe and their DVT or their leg cramps or whatever, and you start to worry. Just how bad is this going to be? But I don't mind the long-haul flights – watch a few movies, eat some food, listen to some music, close your eyes for a while and you're there, in another continent, ready for an adventure.

Perjalanan panjang saya mostly lewat darat, berjam-jam di bus. Udah biasa sih kalo di Indonesia naik bus atau kereta buat mudik. Kebetulan saya ini tipe pelor alias nempel molor. Buat yang susah tidur di perjalanan coba pake travel pillow supaya lebih nyaman tidur sambil duduk.

Homelessness

It's a strange feeling when you give up your home for long-term travel, when you hand back the keys to your apartment, pack all your things into storage and realise you no longer have a place to call your own. It's daunting. But after a while you start revelling in the freedom of it. No strings attached.

Berasa banget yang ini sampai di tujuan saat dini hari. Toko, masjid masih tutup. Jadilah nunggu di terminal atau duduk di resto. Ternyata banyak juga yang senasib, numpang tidur di KFC. Jadinya berasa bukan homeless tapi ya ini rumah saya, sedunia ini luasnya, mau tidur di mana kek terserah :D

Dire financial straits

Being broke sucks, don't get me wrong. But it's not the end of the world. A life of travel inevitably means a lack of Australian financial touchstones like Holden cars and quarter-acre blocks and fat superannuation accounts, but you soon get over that when you're having fun on the other side of the earth.

Duit mepet, ada yg tibatiba pinjem duit pula..ga jelas kapan mau balikin. Some people rely on Credit Card. Kalo saya, cash is the king! (berhubung ga punya CC). Andai memang kepepet banget, siapin tarik via ATM meski biaya sekali tariknya lumayan juga tuh. Malah kalo long trip gitu prefer numpang kerja di penduduk lokal. Bisa dapat tumpangan gratis, syukur-syukur dapat duit.

Americans

Ask any traveller – they get such a bad wrap. Americans are loud and obnoxious and annoying, according to most people. So that's what you expect when you meet your first American tourist. It quickly becomes apparent, however, that the obnoxious American is a lazy cliché – sure, some exist, but you'll also meet some great people who hail from the land of the free.

Belum pernah ketemu yang begini sih. Setiap kenalan dg sesama traveler jadi cepet akrab karena berasa senasib. Bisa sharing pengalaman juga. Syukur-syukur bisa dapat host kalo kita trip di negeri mereka.

Flying solo

Anyone who doesn't get a little nervous when they first set off on a big overseas trip alone must be some Terminator-like machine. It's frightening, taking on the world on your lonesome, with no one to rely on but yourself. But it's also hugely rewarding – not to mention free of arguments that include the phrase "but I wanna go here"...

nervous but I wanna go there, ini saya banget. Bonek lah! Anyway, did I look like Terminator machine?

Public transport

Not public transport at home, that's always been fine. But when you're in a foreign country and you don't know the routes, you don't know the ticket system, you don't know the language to ask for help, it can all be a little daunting. After a while though, you learn to accept the stuff-ups, assume you'll get on a wrong bus or wrong train at some point, and just go with it. (Oh, and take a photo of the route map when you find one - that way you'll always have it with you.)

Perhatikan, baca petunjuk, cetak peta, dan nikmatilah yang namanya kesasar. 

Being robbed

This goes along with the terrorism thing. You always kind of assume that putting yourself out there as a traveller in strange, dangerous lands will also open you up to the very high possibility of being mugged at knifepoint, whether that's in Nairobi or New York. But you know what? Don't spend so much time worrying about it. In my experience, take a few precautions and relax – it'll probably never happen.

Alhamdulillah aman aja saat saya solo traveling. Teman saya ranselnya dibongkar karena ditinggal gitu aja di depan masjid. So, jangan tinggalkan barang-barang tanpa pengawasan.

What used to freak you out about travelling?

SUMBER alias SOURCE 

Follow Ben Groundwater on Twitter @bengroundwater
Email: bengroundwater@gmail.com