History of travelling, perhaps, is as old as the history of mankind. Earlier people used to travel on foot either alone or in caravans. It took days to years to reach the destination.
Another quite luxurious way was to travel through waterways. After the second world war Arial traveling became more advanced and impregnated deep into the modes of traveling. Moreover, the comprehensive railway network also improved communication and means of traveling relatively fast somewhere in the middle of nineteenth century.
So far the causes of traveling are concerned, people travel for tourism, business, and family get together etc. Nowadays more people travel than ever before because of improved transportation network and communication facilities.
People in the past used to travel in search of livelihood, to escape from natural disasters, or to carry out the expeditions. Another very important reason to travel was the religious tourism. Inhabitants of different places used to travel to visit their religious places. For instance, Muslims travel to Saudi Arabia to perform Pilgrimmage.
It is a religious duty of all Muslims if and when affordable. Muhammad PBUH reestablished the traditions of Prophet Ibrahim (AS) by performing first Hajj in Islam along with 1400 companions in 10AH (632 CE). Eversince, Muslims perform this religious obligation at least once in a lifetime.
The history of travel is incomplete without the mention of great traveller of 14th century Ibn e Battuta. Ibn Battuta started on his travels in 1325, when he was 20 years old. His main reason to travel was to go on a Hajj. His traveling went on for around 29 years and he covered about 75,000 miles visiting nearly 44 countries. Besides, religious cause people travel for business.
Travel increase the business opportunities and grow business as well. International travel statistics suggest that 1.3 million people travel for business every day in the U.S. alone. This gives rise to cultural mix as well. People travel to other countries and adopt various cultures. Another very pertinent reason to travel is to get education and job opportunities.
A report released in Washington in November this year notes that the United States is the top destination for international students and the number of students from Bangladesh, Nepal, India, and Pakistan is on the rise.
The “Open Doors Report on International Educational Exchange,” published in November 2022, identified China and India as the largest sources of international students to the United States.
During the current academic year, China sent 290,086 students, which is 30.6pc of the total number of international students in the US.
People also travel to fled warzones and chaos. Afghans have suffered more than 40 years of conflict, natural disasters, chronic poverty, food insecurity, pandemic and a changeover in government authorities. These events intensified instability and violence in Afghanistan causing displacement of locals.
According to the data available with UN Refugee Organization, more than 6 million Afghans have been driven out of their homes or their country by conflict, violence and poverty by the end of 2021.
Similarly, creation of Israel was a violent process that entailed the forced expulsion of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians from their homeland to establish a Jewish-majority state, as per the aspirations of the Zionist movement. Between 1947 and 1949, at least 750,000 Palestinians were made refugees beyond the borders according to the statistics available with an Aljazeerah News Report.
As far as benefits of traveling are concerned they’re of various nature. Traveling relieves stress and anxiety. It helps you to explore different things. Traveling has been scientifically proven to lower stress levels.
Most people tend to be happier when they’re traveling and don’t have to worry about work. However, one of the more interesting aspect of traveling from a Cornell University study is that people also experience a direct increase in happiness from just planning a trip.
Traveling has also been found to reduce the instances of depression in people. Depression is a complicated medical condition and not easy to get away with but thanks to the good alternative of traveling and vacation.
Also, traveling and vacation have been found beneficial in reducing the risk of heart attack and chronic illnesses in people as compared to those who don’t pay any heed to traveling more frequently. Travelling gives immense knowledge as well as boosts your physical and mental health.
Nowadays, travel vlogging has become a business opportunity for people. They travel to different countries, explore the food and recreational areas and earn money online due to their travel expositions. Last but not the least, traveling helps one to learn different languages.
It is nearly impossible to conclude the different aspects of traveling in a single piece of writing because traveling is a major event to deal with. To conclude, a quote by Ibn-e-Battuta is worth mentioning here. He said that traveling leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.
