The Art of Travel by Alain de Botton

I read a review of the book “The Art of Travel” by Alain de Botton about a month ago and made a mental note to get a copy of  the book.  The review mentioned that it isn’t about the usual where to go but more of the how and why so I got a little intrigued.  After visiting 4 bookstores, I finally found a copy this week.

The book tackles various facets of travel – departure, motives, landscape, etc. - and allows you to view it through different perspectives – through the eyes of a novelist, a poet, a painter, a sketcher, etc. 

The chapter, for instance, on “Departure” describes on how anticipation and imagination can sometimes, for some people, be more pleasant than the actual experience.  When you see a travel literature with, let’s say a nice photo of a beach (crystal clear waters, white sands, a hammock under tall coconut trees...), it elicits feelings of excitement, relaxation, calmness … and yet when you finally visit the place, you get consumed by the inconveniences of getting there like the long lines at the airport, bad traffic, rude drivers, etc. Even worse, once you’ve reached the destination, instead of enjoying, you start thinking about problems you left back home or at work and get anxious.  In a novel entitled “A Rebours“ by J. K. Huymans published in 1884, the protagonist, after a disappointing trip to England, decided to remain in his villa for the rest of his life and surrounded himself with travel photos, itinerary print-outs, an aquarium, etc. so that he can experience the pleasant aspects of a long sea voyage without its inconveniences.  (I used to get more overwhelmed by the anticipation phase but I guess after having gone through a lot in life, I have mastered the art of appreciating the “now” so inconveniences don’t really get into me except when I’m really hungry! Haha…)

Another interesting chapter is on “Landscape”.  A poet named Wordsworth said that regular travel through nature was a necessary antidote to the evils of society.  He invites readers to abandon usual perspectives and consider for a time how the world might look like through other eyes because unhappiness can stem from having one perspective to play with. He also believes that up to some extent, people are malleable – our identities change according to whom, and sometimes what we are with.  The company of certain people may excite our sensitivity, while others awaken competitiveness.  Wordsworth also coined the phrase “spots of time” referring to particular nature scenes we have witnessed that stay with us throughout our lives and remind us of important virtues like how his memories of the Alps evoked in him a spirit of strength.  He also recommends visiting sublime places to help us graciously accept our limitations, obstacles we cannot overcome and events we cannot make sense of, without bitterness and anger.  (As I was reading this chapter though, my only regret is not climbing Mt. Sinai as it was Botton’s sublime place. When I visited Egypt and was in the Sinai area, I opted to sleep because the assembly for the trek was at 3am!  But then again, even without visiting a sublime place, I'm perfectly ok with my imperfections. Haha…)

The last chapter which I tremendously enjoyed was on “Art” and it was from the perspective of Van Gogh. I love his paintings (I have 3 framed Van Gogh reprints at home) but it was only through the book that I found out more about him like for instance, discovering that before he became a painter, he had failed attempts to become a teacher and a priest!  And that literature and paintings of other artists were what opened his eyes to places.  In the same way, that was his reason why he moved to Arles from Paris - to paint the south so that people, through his work, can see “it”.   And it’s just simply amazing that in his 15 months of stay in Arles, he was able to do 200 paintings, 200 drawings and 200 letters!  (Whoa!  I wasn't even able to paint a single canvass in the last 12 months and considering I only do abstract! Wahaha...)   

Anyway, I think the most important takeaway from Botton's “The Art of Travel” is to notice and appreciate first where you’re at before you go to distant places as some people may have climbed the highest mountains and crossed deserts and yet, haven’t really “noticed” what they have "seen" at home.  :)