How Tourism Benefits an Individual's Intelligence and Mental Well Being

My girlfriend and I have different ideas about what makes for a good vacation / tourist holiday.

My interests are that of visiting museums, water falls, hiking trails, gorges, historical forts, archaeological sites, and so forth.

Take for example my recent trip to Crawford Lake Conservation Area and Hilton Falls - both near Milton Ontario.

The Crawford Lake Conservation Area included an Iroquois village / archaeological site which we visited. The site was certainly educational - and I purchased 20 flint arrowheads at the gift shop. (The girl at the desk looked at me funny when I bought so many, but whatever.)

This brings me to my first point:

#1. Many tourist attractions are also educational.

#2. Many tourist attractions require a degree of exercise.

And exercise is good for you, not just physically, but it also boosts mental well-being.

#3. Many tourist attractions also sell things - which fuels our interests in history, education, and in my case: archery.

Like the arrowheads I purchased.

Or like these arrowheads I photographed at the small museum at Crawford Lake.

#4. Beautiful scenery makes for great experiences and photography.

And also amazing videos. Like the following videos I made of Hilton Falls.





Which was all very much fun to do.

When my girlfriend and I first met her idea of a vacation was relaxing at home - basically doing relatively nothing and just relaxing. Since then however I have taken her to the beach many times, waterfalls, gorges, hiking trails, bicycling, museums, art galleries, archaeological dig sites, and numerous other places.

And during that time she has realized, yes, it is more expensive to travel and explore and try new things - but it is also way more enjoyable.

If you've ever met someone who doesn't like to travel you probably know that people like that are actually quite boring. eg. Years ago I worked in an office and the guy next to me never traveled. He only stayed at home and watched Japanese anime - and nothing else. He had never even seen a single episodes of The Simpsons. His entire life revolved around staying at home and watching Japanese anime. That was it. Pretty boring.

Now you might think "Hey, doesn't your entire life revolve around archery?"

No. Not really. My entire life has many things it revolves around. Archery is just one of many interests. I also enjoy writing, painting, poetry, sculpture, photography, making/editing videos, woodworking, bicycles, and many other activities.

Someday I would even like to go back to university, write a dissertation and get my Masters degree. I am confident enough in my writing abilities that I can do it too.

As opposed to the people who haven't really blossomed in their lives because they sit at home, do nothing and haven't really explored the world or expanded their understanding of it.

And have fun while doing it.