The first thing I did after getting to Switzerland, was go for a walk through the forest right next to the place that I was staying. There were so many trails! I didn’t have a map with me, so I just went for it…going up and down whatever trail I wanted and not knowing exactly where I would end up. I saw the sunlight sneaking between the trees, walked through piles of leaves covering the trails, and stood next to a river at the base of a huge beautiful bridge. As I was taking in all the views, I realized this has been my favorite thing to do while traveling…get lost. Whether in a forest or walking down the winding roads of a European city or riding a scooter in Thailand down streets I can’t even read the names of, getting lost has resulted in some of my favorite travel memories. Both by myself and with my travel mates. I’ve found there are different meanings to the term “get lost.” Sometimes you really can’t find your way, but other times you go off track exploring a place that looks exciting or you willingly let others take you somewhere and you have no idea where you will end up.
Now, I know you are probably thinking “that doesn’t sound safe at all!” But I assure you I was just fine. There were the occasional times that I really was lost and not in the most ideal of places. Like when I got dropped off by a Thai taxi driver on Koh San Road in Bangkok at 4:30 am when all the crazies were still out from the night before. I ended up getting directions to catch my tour bus from a nice lady boy. Or when my mom and I couldn’t find our hop on hop off bus in Sydney and were wandering the streets of China Town in the pouring rain. It’s times like these when you are forced to be resourceful or learn how to be more prepared the next time around.
My favorite way to get lost is when I choose to wander into the unknown. Sometimes you are going a certain direction, but see something enticing and think, “what the heck, that looks cool!” So you go check it out. My friends DJ, Maarten, Tobias, and I were riding scooters from Chiang Mai to Pai in Thailand and saw a sign for a waterfall. We decided to try and find it. After driving through some village roads, a super sketch dirt path, and getting eaten alive by mosquitos as we walked up an overgrown trail that weaved in and out of a river, we got caught in a downpour. We made a team decision to turn around before getting to the waterfall and we were all disappointed and soaked. But I got to take one of my favorite mental pictures that day. We were driving back on the muddy path to the main road and Tobias and I got front row seats as Maarten slow motion fell over on the scooter. DJ jumped off bending over laughing as Maarten laid on the ground covered in mud. Meanwhile Tobias ripped his elephant pants from having to keep us upright navigating the scooter and I peed mine from laughing so hard! We had quite the time getting lost trying to find that waterfall.
Letting someone else lead you somewhere can also be thrilling. Especially when the person leading you speaks very little English. There’s this town in Laos called Luang Prabang that has a bar all the backpackers seem to end up at, Utopia. Curfew in the town is 11, so when Utopia closes people are corralled to this bowling alley that is open till 3 am. There was a crew of us that hopped onto a tuk-tuk. We squished together sitting on laps and my friends Tom and Ole stood on the back holding onto the roof. It was a routy ride full of laughs and Tom trying to “foot ski” on the road off the back of the tuk-tuk. Our driver said he knew where he was going but after driving 20 minutes out of town we all got a little nervous where exactly he was taking us. We did indeed end up at a Lao bowling alley, drinking Beerlao and bowling barefoot. It was an amazing adventure! Sometimes you just have to follow the crowds and trust the Lao tuk-tuk driver will take you to the right place.
I have countless memories from getting lost on my travels. It lead me to breathtaking waterfalls, in-between islands on a kayak, and to the top of mountains with unreal views. It introduced me to friendly locals, interesting hitchhikers, and lifelong travel friends. It took me on adventures of watching lantern floats go down the Mekong at the end of Buddhist lent, singing with people from India on a Milford Sound cruise, and swimming with bioluminescent plankton (one of the most out of this world experiences I highly recommend!) Looking back on all of these memories makes me so glad that I discovered this new hobby.
So do yourself a favor and get lost! Go by yourself, take some friends, or find a match on Tinder to go with you. Go get lost for a couple of hours or for a weekend. Walk/drive down that path you have always found curious but never actually gone down. Explore a nearby city you’ve never been to and just walk around without a map or your phone. Heck, go to a new bar and get lost in conversation with that stranger sitting next to you. I promise you that you will come out of the experience with a new friend, awesome mental pictures (as I like to call them), or at least an interesting story.
Getting lost is when you find the best treasures in life.
The Pathless Atlas 