Hidden Travel: The Secret to Extraordinary Trips

By Stephen W. Brock

Have you ever had a magic moment on a trip that so moved you, you knew you'd remember it forever? Hidden Travel shows you how to experience more such moments anywhere, even at home. While most travel guidebooks reveal sights that matter to others, Hidden Travel teaches you how to find what matters to you, on trips around the world or just around the corner.

 

It's about using travel to get enough distance from your ordinary life to realize just how extraordinary it is. In so doing, you'll also discover more: more meaning, adventure, relationships, purpose, happiness, creativity, fulfillment, joy or whatever you want more of in your life.

 

Through stories, insights, research findings and exercises gleaned from 40 years of travel to over 50 countries, you'll learn how to:

 

• Experience a different, more meaningful kind of travel many long for but few find.
• Discover the best places to visit and how to find hidden wonder anywhere.
• Turn your trip into a learning laboratory to try out new interests, personas and travel adventures that go beyond your wildest travel bucket list dreams.
• Pursue unusual quests and ask unexpected questions to connect deeply with locals — even if you're an introvert.
• Grow your confidence and courage on a trip in safe, fun, and exciting ways whether you travel solo or with others.
• Discover and savor the happiest part of your trip by connecting your creative passions with what you discover on your journey.
• Turn the inevitable bad times on a trip into peak moments and lasting memories.
• Develop new ways of seeing that involve all your senses.
• Do a volunteer vacation in a way that helps rather than hurts.
• Plan a trip more easily and pack better by leaving behind unhelpful baggage, both physical and emotional.
• Experience and even create magic moments for you and others anywhere.
• Discover a new way to think about time that will transform your trips.
• End any trip well by practicing this one secret to wrapping up a trip memorably.
• Apply your trip to your life so that each day at home feels more like an adventure.

Whether you're a beginning traveler or are into adventure travel, family travel, slow travel, sustainable travel or just wanting a better vacation or holiday, this different kind of travel book offers a refreshingly different way to approach travel and life. It's an inspiring perspective that works for road trips near home, journeys to international destinations, or even when you can't travel.

With short, easy-to-read sections and inspiring travel photography from Europe and Great Britain to China, North Africa to South America and throughout the US, this book makes the perfect gift for you or that special traveler in your life who desires both a better way to travel and a more adventurous way to live.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sublimity Press
• Release date: Apr 1, 2021
• ISBN: 9781735118819

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

I’M DRIVING FAR too fast through Tuscany. It’s a region of Italy that deserves to be savored like a fine wine rather than rushed like an Italian shooting back a morning espresso. But a plane (or at least a plane ticket) awaits in Rome with my name on it. So, I opt for the freeway—Italy’s speed-limit-as-a-mere-suggestion Autostrada—instead of narrow, meandering roads that wind through ancient hill towns. Even from the A1, I can see these villages in the distance, standing out from the surrounding fields like beacons of longing. They make me ponder all I have experienced on this trip and yet also, all that remains undone, undiscovered and un-wondered. Amid the thoughts that flood me as I drive, a curious one stands out: Why, after 30 years of traveling and even living all over the world, have I never read a book that helps me make sense of all that I’m feeling right now?

Before this trip, I had perused the travel section of my local bookstore. Probably a third of the books bore a subtitle such as, An irreverent guide to Naples or New Orleans or Nairobi. But in this moment, I don’t want irreverence. Or snark. Or jaded cynicism about how tourists have ruined the place. Nor do I want the reverse, a same-old-same-old litany of familiar sights and top things to see. I care less about a book that tells me where to go and what to do. I have plenty of resources online and off for that. I’m more interested in learning about how to travel in a manner that is more meaningful for me, for my traveling companions and for those I meet along the way.

I want a book that will help me make sense of the wonder I’ve found in unexpected, often hidden locations. One that shows me how to find more of the people, places and experiences that will touch me in ways I can’t explain. One that also helps me navigate through the seeming downsides of travel, those moments where you miss your connection, miscommunicate your intentions, or mistake the hotel bidet for the toilet (hey, it happens). In short, I want to learn a different way to think about travel.

And while I'm at it, I'd like a book that will guide me not just through the world all around me, but deeper into the places within me that either erupt with childlike joy or, conversely, quietly stir me. I want a book that can help me connect all that I’ve seen, done and become on this trip to my life back home so that every day at home can feel more like a great adventure.

Because I cannot find such a book, I try a different approach.

I write one.

Welcome to Hidden Travel.

CHAPTER 1:

SECRET DESTINATIONS

All journeys have secret destinations of

which the traveler is unaware.

—Martin Buber

Ican’t tell you all that you want out of life—that’s your secret, your personal quest—but I do know one thing on everyone’s list: More. More excitement, adventure, wonder, purpose, meaning, connections and experiences that matter. More of those magic moments that define a place and time and that also define you.

We all want more good things. But those good things (which are rarely, by the way, things) seldom appear in the places and ways we expect. What we most desire infrequently comes our way through a direct approach. The more we are looking for is typically found in the unexpected places—sometimes hidden in remote, out-of-the-way corners, other times hidden in plain sight and occasionally hidden within us.

This book is about your yearning for more. Not more in the consumerist sense, but in the quality of life sense. In this book, we’ll explore various forms of this more: more joy, peace, freedom, adventure, sustainability, courage, wonder, access, creativity, surprise, time, significance, fulfillment and, really, life. We’ll see how sometimes your greatest more actually lies in less. Best of all, we’ll look at how to find your personal more by helping you understand what matters most to you and how you can get—you guessed it—more of that.

Finding that more, however, is not easy. If you’re like most of us, you get so caught up in your so-called ordinary life that you fail to realize just how extraordinary that life can be. To see the wonder in the ordinary, you need distance from it. While you could quit your job, move to a foreign country or take some other drastic measure, there’s a less dramatic alternative: hidden travel.

Hidden travel is a form of travel many people long for but few ever find. It’s less about how far you go and more about what you do—and what you become—on that journey. You don’t have to travel far to travel well. Even a short distance from routine can help you reconnect with passions, creativity, relationships and desires—hidden purposes—that you’ve neglected for far too long. I call this hidden travel because so much of what you value remains just out of sight, yet surprisingly accessible. And it won’t come to you unbidden or without effort. You have to go to it and go for it. Like a good explorer, you may have to dig a bit (into new experiences or old habits), turn over some rocks (or preconceptions), and go to new places (emotionally, as well as geographically). You’ll have to step out of your comfort zone because your more rarely hangs out there.

Hidden travel doesn’t require much. You need not venture around the world. A trip around the block with a willing heart and perceptive eye can do. Just a few small steps beyond your front door will reveal that so much of what you yearn for lies close but hidden. It’s right there. You’ve just been missing it. But not for long.

BENEATH THE SURFACE

IF YOU EVER travel to Istanbul, you’ll likely encounter the popular sights: Topkapi Palace, the Blue Mosque and the Grand Bazaar, where what seems like half the male population of Turkey is trying to sell you a carpet. You’ll probably also visit the famed Hagia Sophia (the former Byzantine church that now serves as a mosque). What you might miss is a set of stairs across from the Hagia Sophia. These lead beneath the street level to the Basilica Cistern, an underground water supply for the city built by the emperor Justinian about the same time as the Hagia Sophia (around 532 A.D.). The cistern has played a pivotal role in films ranging from Inferno to From Russia with Love. But seeing movie screen images of this subterranean reservoir does little to prepare you for the wonder of this vast underground pool.

Picture a flooded basement the size of several football fields (the cistern covers over 100,000 square feet [9,290 square meters] and at one time held something like 2.8 million cubic feet [over 79,000 cubic meters] of water). Add to that image 336 marble columns supporting the massive stone roof and you get some idea of the scale and ancient feeling that permeates the place. Atmospheric lighting—bright enough to see by, dim enough for mood—casts a reddish glow. Walkways crisscross the water (which reaches a depth of only a few feet—less than a meter), allowing you to wander into the furthest reaches of this massive space. The interplay of light and shadow enhances the sense of time and mystery as you pass over the still water and peer at the silvery fish swimming beneath you. It can feel as if you are walking on the water itself, strolling over an interior sea in a candlelit cathedral, with reflections of the marble columns and darting fish adding to the unusual yet moving experience.

These days, signs outside point to the entrance of the Cistern in both Turkish and English. However, when the Ottoman Turks captured Constantinople (Istanbul’s former name) in 1453, they were unaware of the existence of the Basilica Cistern. For almost 100 years, this massive underground reservoir lay beneath the surface of the city, unseen and unknown by the city’s conquerors. Eventually, scholar Petrus Gyllius, investigating the antiquities of Constantinople in 1545, followed up on strange tales he’d heard from locals. These ordinary citizens reported lowering buckets through holes in their basements and bringing up water and even fish—an amenity probably not disclosed in their lease. On further exploration, Gyllius made an astonishing discovery (a rediscovery, actually): He uncovered the entrance to the cistern and the hidden waters that had lain beneath the city for a thousand years.

Hidden travel is much like the rediscovery of the Basilica Cistern. It’s about secret destinations, finding what is there but hidden. Sometimes, that means discovering places few others know about, as Gyllius did in 1545. In other situations, it means witnessing something thousands of people have already seen but discovering within it something new, something more. In short, hidden travel involves finding both hidden places of wonder and hidden wonder in ordinary places.

Most travel guidebooks tell you about sights that matter to others. Hidden Travel teaches you how to find what matters to you—whether on a trip around the world or around the corner. Thus, you won't find long lists of specific secret locations here. For those, go to my summary at www.ExploreYourWorlds.com/hidden-places or read the examples of obscure finds I've noted between each chapter here. Instead of lists, the following pages reveal a personal approach to discovery, more like a treasure hunt than a group tour or a cookbook rather than a directory. It’s a quest to connect your inner interests with what you encounter in your world, then seeing how to infuse that with greater purpose in the world. As you do, you'll figure out what moves you and how to find personal meaning in unexplored places, relationships, and experiences.

Be warned: This will require intentionality. Hidden locations, magic moments, meaningful connections, and other secret destinations rarely give up their surprises without effort. This is why Hidden Travel isn’t just about taking a trip. It’s about making a life of adventure, creativity, meaning and purpose. That, in turn, involves mindfulness and a different mindset wherever you are because ultimately, hidden travel is about experiencing more in all areas of your life.

A WORLD OF MORE

IRELAND WAS, FOR my wife and me, a series of firsts.

It was the first time I heard the expression, There is no such thing as bad weather. There is only inappropriate clothing.

It was the first time since middle school that anyone had questioned my genealogy. I can tell from the name on your credit card and from your eyes, said the diminutive matron of a remote gas station outside Galway, that you are clearly one of the Brocks from up on the north coast of Ireland. Until that point, no family member had ever informed me we had Irish ancestors. But who was I to argue with such an authority?

And it was on our first morning in the country that we sat down in our B&B to my very first full Irish breakfast of eggs, smoked salmon, sausage, bacon, sautéed mushrooms, roasted tomato, toast and that dark, almost purplish substance I would soon learn was black pudding.

As we dove into our meal, we asked our hostess about things to see and do in this, the Kinsale, area. She called in her husband, the apparent resident expert on local sights.

Well, do you golf? he asked. There’s a lovely course just up the road.

Sorry, but we don’t play, I replied.

He looked back and forth between us several times before his pronouncement: Shame. Tis a shame.

I nudged at my black pudding during the long pause.

Any other things this area is known for? I tried again.

Are you sure you don’t play golf? he said, a flicker of hope still burning.

My wife, Kris, and I looked at each other, as if reconsidering our sporting abilities.

No, unfortunately, while we’d like to, we don’t, she said.

Shame, was his only response.

Eventually, after I brought up some possibilities such as a local castle I’d read about, he conceded that, yes, those could be interesting sights, if, well, you know, you’re not on the greens.

The conversation and our huge breakfast wound down. We went to our room, loaded up our stuff and said goodbye to our hostess.

As we walked to our car, we ran into the husband.

Have a pleasant trip, he said. Then, almost as if he couldn’t help it, he added, And you’re quite sure you don’t play golf?

We both nodded. His expression was one I imagine Willy Wonka might have displayed if some gold ticket winner had shown up at his chocolate factory only to inform him she was diabetic.

*******

Your sense of more often arrives in the liminal, the in-between times and places. That’s why this is hidden travel. You find your more in the big wonders that pop your jaw, but also in the unexpected small moments. I can barely recall what else we did on that first day in Ireland. But I can still picture the look of disappointment in the eyes of our B&B host and his Irish lilt in that one word, Shame. On any trip, you may run into people who share your passion or those who want you to share theirs. You may adjust your more in light of new discoveries or you may stick to your original goals. You may even take up golf. It’s up to you. But each moment on a trip has the potential for being so much more than it may seem.

Even the apparent detours or challenging situations can be meaningful. Writer G. K. Chesterton once noted, An inconvenience is only an adventure wrongly considered. It all comes down to how you view it and how you choose to live out your more, on a trip and at home. Or maybe especially at home during circumstances such as work challenges, family commitments, health issues, financial constraints, or a pandemic that can prevent you from traveling.

No matter where you are, you can embark on this journey toward more meaning, purpose, joy or whatever your sense of more is. It starts with reading the following pages and most of all, trying the various exercises for it is in the doing that you’ll discover what is hidden. So let’s dive into this wonderful experience called hidden travel, where you will discover that a world of more awaits you.

HIDDEN PLACES

IN BETWEEN EACH chapter of this book, you’ll find examples of hidden places that have stood out to me. I have not, however, included the most hidden of places I’ve visited for several reasons. First, many of those places wouldn’t make sense to you. Even some I’ve listed may make you wonder why they’re so special to me. But that’s the nature of hidden travel. Your hidden discoveries (and mine) only have to matter to you (or me). Second, many are private, such as the invitation to a person’s home or a secret speakeasy. These places aren’t replicable, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to share the details. Third, with many, I have no images to show you because people in the most hidden places react to cameras like cats to water. Finally, I’m trying to show you examples so you can go out and make your own discoveries even as you learn, throughout this book, that hidden travel is about more than hidden places.

Still, I realize that some of you would love other examples. Thus, I have compiled a list of hidden places and obscure destinations beyond those in this book. You can read about them at www.ExploreYourWorlds.com/hidden-places.

CHAPTER 2:

START AT BEFORE THE BEGINNING

Well, said Pooh, what I like best, and then he had to stop and think. Because although Eating Honey was a very good thing to do, there was a moment just before you began to eat it which was better than when you were, but he didn’t know what it was called.

—A. A. Milne, Winnie-the-Pooh

Hope is a curious word. It’s overused in some circles and absent in others. But hope is essential to life. A hopeful perspective will get you through a tough day or trip. It will infuse your