What makes your journey a good trip? Some people emphasized its educational value, as well as emotional enrichment, in meeting the native people there, while others based it on their enjoyable experiences such as savoring traditional dishes or posting their travel photos on Facebook and Instagram. It can be defined in a million different ways.
Nevertheless, there are certain aspects that make our trip valuable. You should have taken at least 50 pictures of the site that would surely amaze your family and friends. You should have visited at least 5 tourist attractions, and learned something from it. Moreover, you should have befriended and added at least 10 native foreign friends there on Facebook. Once you have accomplished these, you could say that your trip had been great.
Isn’t it ridiculous? It is as if you are achieving specific goals in order to make your trip worthy. Why do we have to do something that is gravely affecting our daily lives?
I had a trip to New Zealand when I was in middle school 2nd grade. It was a one-month trip, and I was accompanied there by my older sister. She and I were young back then, and we knew nothing about that country. As a result, we usually spent our time inside the apartment that we were staying in. The only things that we did in order to pass the time were either watch the TV or converse with each other. Most of you might say that this trip was not a successful one. Since when did we measure success or failure through traveling?
I still had a great time even though I was unable to witness many sights, meet many people, or taste their traditional food. I could see some of those in New Zealand’s commercial. In addition, I had the rare opportunity to have a conversation with my sister about our lives. It also gave me more time to spend on appreciating nature. I could not experience these in Korea, and I am grateful for it. New Zealand is truly remarkable for its magnificent landscapes.
Do not make your trip something that you have to challenge yourself with. It is only a trip, and not a school assignment. Do not try to make too much conventional sense out of your trip just because everyone else did. You should make it your own. The most important thing is that you had a wonderful time.

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