Travel broadens the mind
If there is one thing which has defined human nature throughout history it is our fidgety, irrepressible impulse to move, to discover and cross new frontiers, to adapt to new environments, to appease that same unquenchable curiosity which prompted our earliest ancestors to swing down from the treetops and start exploring the jungle floor six million years ago.
In the Neolithic age ,the first sailing vessels and the invention of the wheel, both designed to move people around in different ways. Nomadic hunters and gatherers moved in search of food following seasonally available wild plants and game. Then Ancient man began to build roads to facilitate the movement of troops through empires, and eventually civilians began to travel in caravans. Travel for the purpose of commerce and trade took explorers to strange lands to meet other people, and bring back riches of unfathomable value.
Perhaps one of the most famous conquerors, Alexander the Great travelled and invaded vast amounts of the Persian Empire, in central Asia, India and Egypt. He’s known for spreading Greek culture and cities bearing his name still exist today like Alexandria in Egypt and Iskandariya in Iraq.
Hypatia, a Greek mathematician, philosopher and astronomer , credited with inventing the astrolabe : a brass instrument used to establish latitude and time. An important aid for early explorers, the astrolabe uses corresponding positions of the sun and stars to determine time and geography.
The Romans were an innovative bunch with it came to infrastructure. Road-building began in 300 BC and by the 2nd century BC, the empire’s network was complete. They linked Rome with 113 provinces and many more towns and ports, with 248,548 miles of road.
A reason for early travel was the Olympic Games in 776 BC in Olympia , Greece.The games held every four years, brought athletes from vast Greek Empire to compete in various sports disciplines.
The so-called Age of Discovery, between AD 1400 and 1600, saw a vast number of Europeans embark on voyages to areas of the world previously unknown to the Western world. Portuguese Vasco da Gama was the first European to sail to India in 1497, Christopher Columbus (pictured) made four transatlantic voyages to America from 1492-1502 and Ferdinand Magellan was the first person to circumnavigate the globe.
The Industrial Revolution brought leisure travel to Europe. The new middle class, comprised of factory owners and managers, had the time to travel thanks to industrialized production with efficient and faster machinery. They had more money and more time to relax and take part in recreational activities.
Air travel began after World War II, when a surplus of aeronautical technology and ex-military pilots who were more than ready to fly. Only the rich could afford holidays.
Today, the travel industry represents an economic behemoth and one of the most economically important leisure activities in the world. With the advent of trips into the outer atmosphere, dubbed ‘space tourism’, a new and exciting chapter in travel technology is developing and could change the face of tourism for centuries to come.