Is traveling on a budget really happy?

When I was in college, I often traveled on a budget, but the poorest trip was only once.

I have always been a more casual person. I seldom spend my time calculating and spend more time carefree. When I was looking at a map of China in bed that day, the three words "Shanhaiguan" attracted me, so that night, I took more than 200 yuan with me and got on the train to Shanhaiguan.

Shanhaiguan Station

There are too many stories about "Shanhaiguan", so I won't quote them here. At eight o'clock in the morning, the sun was just right, and the majesty of Shanhaiguan Station directly diluted the fatigue of the night train. I waved my sleeves to dismiss the drivers and hotel owners who were scrambling for customers at the station. According to the travel homework I had done in advance, I arrived at the first stop - Laolongtou.

With my backpack on my back and my camera in hand, I walked around and said hello to passers-by from time to time. During this period, I also met two immortal grandfathers. We chatted while walking. They shared many travel experiences with me and told me: "You can only live once, so walk more when you are young."

Bagua Array

Full picture of Bagua Array

The Bagua Array made me dizzy. Thanks to the help of my traveling friends, I was able to "break the array". Standing on the Great Wall by the coast, the wind is slightly cool and there are no clouds in the sky. This is the second time I have seen the sea. The first time was in Qingdao. It seems that because of the historical flavor, the sea here is much more spectacular. The waves hit the city wall, and my heart broadened.

Sitting on the pavilion on the shore, leaning against a pillar, I took out the breakfast I had prepared - bread, milk, and ham, and felt the majesty of the sea while eating. "Your breakfast is quite nutritious!" said the travel friend I just met next to me. "Haha, I bought it in the supermarket last night." I answered casually. The sea breeze is not very strong, it is slightly cool and has a soft feeling.

Chenghai Tower

"The First Pass in the World" is not as majestic and tall as imagined, but the dilapidated city walls show a real sense of heaviness. I know that this used to be the most important pass, and heroic soldiers once guarded it, but now there are only two old men in military uniforms at the gate of the city, and the laziness on their faces is clearly visible. Young and inexperienced eyes cannot read city walls that have gone through hundreds of years of vicissitudes, but these vulgar and ignorant things that the tourism department is doing now are undoubtedly boring even to themselves.

Shanhaiguan

Without staying too much, I was ready to leave for Jiaoshan. There are no buses, and tricycles are ridiculously expensive. After asking about the distance, it was about ten miles. After checking that it was still early, I gritted my teeth, picked up my bag and started hiking. Along the way, we passed through the city wall, walked through major roads, small roads, dirt roads, and streets. After more than an hour, we finally arrived at the foot of Jiaoshan Mountain. After replenishing some food, I climbed up the Jiaoshan Great Wall with a slope of 70 degrees using my hands and feet. On the top of the mountain, the entire Shanhaiguan scenery is unobstructed, spread out in front of you like a map. I was so tired that I sat under a tree and chatted with the cleaning man on Jiaoshan Mountain. He told me that his ancestors came from Guandong, and also told many historical stories about Shanhaiguan. The wrinkles on his face trembled slightly when he spoke, reminding me of the old city wall I just walked through. I have to say, I also walked back, which took more than an hour.

Jiaoshan

Cable Car

At five o'clock in the afternoon, I had completed the entire journey as expected. I ate two plates of dumplings and watched the roller skating performance in the square for a while. Finally, I returned to the train station early. On the three o'clock train at night, I chatted with a friend from Wenzhou for five hours at the station, and finally he put me on the train.

Three hours later, I got off the bus and arrived at the second stop of my trip - Tianjin.

At six o'clock in the morning, the weather was gloomy, and I sat on the steps in front of Tianjin Station after not sleeping for two consecutive nights, as if I was floating in the air. My head was a little dizzy, my heart was empty, hungry, cold, my whole body seemed to be suppressed by something, and I couldn't breathe. I was so exhausted that I could fall asleep as soon as I closed my eyes. I endured it, and a huge feeling of loneliness and helplessness enveloped me. I asked myself over and over again in my heart: "What the fuck is this for? What kind of suffering are you suffering? Why the hell am I here to suffer if I don't sleep on a good bed? Don't you want your life..." So that the whole person later had a feeling I had the urge to cry, but I stopped in time and told myself: This is a valuable experience. If I get through it, I will win. I grabbed the 60 yuan left in my hand and started on the road.

I basically completed the entire Tianjin tour on foot. Since I chose to challenge myself, I should be more cruel to myself. Tianjin doesn’t have much sense of history, but more modern eccentricities. During the whole day, I only ate two pieces of bread and then walked through the streets with a heavy backpack. To make matters worse, it rained all morning. At one o'clock in the afternoon, I found a stone bench in Nankai University and sat down. The sun came out, and I took out the book "Small House" in my bag to read for a while to refresh myself. I didn't want to fall asleep sitting down after just reading for a while, and then fell straight back and fell all over. When I got up, I saw people not far away covering their mouths and laughing.

At five o'clock in the afternoon, my physical strength has reached its limit. I feel like crawling on the ground. At the same time, I am also so hungry that I can't hold on any longer. I found a place called Snack Street from the bus stop sign. There were only five stops. When I got in the car, I was thinking that I must not take a nap. Unexpectedly, I fell asleep as soon as I thought about it.

I woke up when my head hit the seat in front of me on the road, but I saw that it was already more than five stops. So I made a quick decision: wherever the car is parked, I will get off as long as there is a restaurant. After two more stops, the four characters "Spicy Hot Pot" on the roadside instantly caught my eye. After a big meal, it was already dark, and I took a car to the "Eye of Tianjin".

After taking a few photos, I sat on a chair by the Haihe River for an hour, replaying the two days' experience in my mind like a movie, and then took the bus to Tianjin Station.

The train at one o'clock in the morning was overcrowded, full of migrant workers and their bloated luggage. After squeezing for a long time, I finally found my seat. I didn't care about the crowd or the hot smell. As soon as it touched the seat, I fell asleep.

At six o'clock in the morning, I limped off the train. My legs were numb from being squeezed, but the coolness in the wind still gave me a feeling of new life. When I saw Jinan Station, I felt like I was going home.

Postscript

Although the journey is over, the meaning of travel is far more than that. I didn't like traveling before, mainly because I didn't have money, but once I started traveling, I couldn't control it. Of course, I don’t spend much money on each trip. It only costs a few thousand yuan in total, and I earn it all by working on my own. Thousands of dollars were a bit much for me at the time, but the things I got from traveling were definitely not something that could be bought with just a few thousand dollars. What you see, what you hear, what you think, what you feel, as well as the total relaxation and sense of self-wandering, cannot be measured by money. After working, thousands of dollars are no longer as important, but we also lose time, energy, physical strength, and interest. At that time, even if I flew on a plane or stayed in a luxury hotel, I could no longer find the feeling of youth.

At the same time, I found that traveling alone is very good. Loneliness is the normal state of life. Being with loneliness can hone one's character. You can think of a lot when your thoughts are not disturbed, and the feeling of wandering alone is also very good.

You only live once. When you are young, don’t be too good if you can handle it.