Have you ever read Where's Wally?
On each page you've got to squint and look for that doofy red and white-striped Englishman. And his dog. And his Mrs.
And when you've done that, you can flick to the end of the book and find a long checklist of all sorts of random things you can find. And you check boxes to tick them off once you've found them. On it goes.
Imagine this. You are in Paris, France.
Oooh there is Notre Dame! Tick. Keep moving. Ohhh look the Arc de Triomphe. Tick. On you go. Woowww the Eiffel Tower! Tick. Meh, let's go and get a coffee and croissant. Our Eurostar to London leaves in an hour.
I have no problem with this sort of travel. Truly.
If this is your intention, that's great. You have limited time. You want to maximise your trip. You've come half-way across the world and you want to see glimpses of it all. That's understandable.
But and yes, there's a but, don't expect anything other than surface level appreciation of a place and its people.
Sure, you'll get the photo, and maybe even the fridge magnet, but that's where it ends.
Choosing to do less brings on FOMO. It sucks to miss out. I get it. But by leaving a few more boxes unchecked, you'll actually notice Wally wears a rucksack, carries a cane, and maybe has a French mum.
Less can be more.
Pictured above: Shibuya Crossing, Tokyo. Can you spot Japanese Wally?