Venice Imagined - Before Departure

As an international student, thousands of miles away from home, I always consider myself as a wanderer. Purdue has become my home in the States, yet the feeling of loneliness that hits me when listening to friends talk about their plan to go home for the weekend or holidays only increases my desire to leave everything - especially the sadness of not being able to visit my family - behind and travel to new places.

It is interesting how different I feel about coming to a different country for school and going to different countries to travel. Both involve the same process of obtaining a visa, packing, getting on a long flight, arriving at a place I have never been to before, and getting to meet new people and experience different cultures. However, the expectation and the goal of each trip are so different that it changes my view on the process. When leaving home for school, I am more likely to think about how I would not see my family till the next summer first, while the fun moments I have had at school and many more that awaits would stay in the back of my mind. On the other hand, when leaving home for a break in a different city or country, the excitement would be the first and the last feeling going through my mind. 

 Alain de Botton, the author of The Art of Travel, starts off the book talking about - or rather, complaining about - how the anticipation of travel is never attainable in the reality. He says, while our expectation only focuses on the beautiful scenery and the great architectures, we are bound to be disappointed at them blended in the ordinary images that we can find easily in our lives back home. In addition, we, as weary travelers, are only to observe the scenery with tired eyes while holding onto petty worries in the back of our minds. However, he moves on to say that the art of travel is really about being receptive and open-minded to different perspectives to observe the scene.

"The pleasure we derive from journeys is perhaps dependent more on the mindset with which we travel than on the destination we travel to." (De Botton, 246) 

In my opinion, having ordinary elements in the scene that I thought to be a perfect masterpiece does not lower the quality of the trip, but it only makes the trip more interesting as it gives you an opportunity to notice something different in what you think you are familiar with. It is only with the anticipation you build from looking at pictures and doing research of the places that you can have a better understanding of the background of the places. Of course, it could be disappointing to find the places crowded with tourists or surrounded by stores you always go to at home. Yet, by standing at the spot you spent hours planning to visit, you have an opportunity to grasp the details and the atmosphere of the scene.

Venice is such a magical city to me. I had no prior knowledge about Venice other than its nickname of “the city of water.” As I see more pictures of Venice and hear about it from those who have been to Venice, my anticipation only keeps on growing. The pictures of canals and houses on water make me wonder about the architecture and the culture developed with such environment. It is very interesting how the city still functions as a residence for the settlers, while there are countless tourists visiting throughout the year. The popular Italian cuisine is always a plus. Seeing no car on the street and riding the vaporetto will be an entirely new experience as well. I can’t wait to observe the beautiful scenery myself and appreciate the captured history of the Mediterranean.