I wonder how many of you enjoy the pleasures of travelling barefoot?
I'm not talking about a weekend trip but the serious stuff: Travelling
for several month without even carrying any shoes, staying bare
everywhere… things like that!
Having left Europe for good I'm enjoying my life in India, staying
barefoot all-year-round, wherever I go, whatever I do. For me, being
barefoot isn't just a fashion statement: It's a lifestyle, a way to
express myself… And of course an amazing sensual experience: Walking
barefoot I'm far more "in touch". Conditions are perfect down here as
long as your soles are used to the heat of the summer.
LIVING barefoot is a great experience, but what I love even more is
TRAVELLING barefoot! I'm travelling a lot and I've virtually explored
every nook and corner of India on my bare soles! It's an exciting
experience to roam around without any footwear in my backpack,
trusting in my leather-like soles toughened over many years. It's
exciting to be constantly in touch, to FEEL the country, to experience
every change in temperature or texture of the ground! It's SO
communicative: Every now and then somebody asks me "why are you
wearing no shoes?", and here in India, the reactions are almost always
positive if I explain the advantages of a barefoot lifestyle.
Especially in the South where something like a "barefoot culture"
still exists.
And by the way: Even if quite a few people in the West are gravely
concerned about "health risks", especially if it comes to barefoot
travelling in countries like India – I can assure you I've not faced a
single problem throughout the years! I've been travelling barefoot
since my schooldays and there's nothing my soles didn't get exposed
too but I haven't caught ANY of those countless diseases which fill
the pages of guidebooks and travel-related Web forums! I suppose once
the soles have turned into a sort of "living leather" the risk of
catching something through hand-contact are by far more serious, but
even then I'm trusting in my natural immune system and am not tempted
at all to wear gloves!
I know I'm not the only barefoot traveller - I've met some of you out
there, on the roads. But only every now and then… The web might be a
good place to hook up! Let's get in touch, let's share our
experiences! Make this a meeting-point for our "tribe"!