By telling us your country of residence we are able to provide you with the most relevant travel insurance information.
Please note that not all content is translated or available to residents of all countries. Contact us for full details.
Shares
Nature has always been and always will be an infinite source of inspiration and a wonderful gift for every living being. From animals, plants, trees, to insects, sea life and humankind. However, to discover and embrace more closely the inner beauty of nature, we have to trek, to hike, to climb, to be involved with every little living detail within nature. Seamlessly, the best way to do that is, traveling as much as possible. As Saint Augustine said: “The world is a book and those who do not travel, read only a page”. As a nature lover, I hardly refuse to read only one page of the book. Thus, I have a special connection with the sea, mountains, forests, and all the environmental aspects. Indeed, I have done and still doing a lot of travel for scuba diving, snorkeling, hiking, and trekking. As a matter of fact, the most memorable travel for me was when I climbed the third highest mountain in Morocco and the hardest one to hike as well. The journey was in 2017 and lasted five long days. Not only, the trip was difficult, painful and exhausting, but also, was it a wealthy experience at several levels. Firstly, we learned how to socialize and enhance our team spirit as we were a group of fourteen individuals with numerous faces that we saw for the first time. Traveling with people you do not know, with different mindsets and values can be a real burden if you do not know how to deal with such situations. It was really a life lesson for all of us. Secondly, we were able to connect for five days in a row with nature by being disconnected from our mundane life, smartphones, network, laptops, social media, and the material world. At that time, you discovered the hidden beauty of our mother nature and likely discovered another YOU, the inner YOU. Thirdly, we learned how to overpass our limits, to go toward our goal no matter what, no matter how tough, are the obstructions we find in our path and no matter how things can get worst, we have to withstand the constraints. It was a very challenging trip overall: it was very windy, it was cold, and I was injured in my left foot. Nonetheless, everyone kept pushing forward and, when you arrived at the top of that mountain called M’goun, you feel like on the top of the world, free, proud and released. It was worth it as it was a sight for sore eyes and pain relief. Last but not least, this hiking trip was a great opportunity to contribute to underpinning social sustainability and some ecological issues. On one hand, we knew that we will be going through several poor villages along the road. Hence, we bring with us some clothes, blankets, school supplies and medicines for the villagers. I dare that no one can forget the smiles upon the children’s faces while receiving books, toys, and colored pencils. On the other hand, we decided to clean the road up from some big non-biodegradable garbage we found along the way. We could not remove all the trash but it was a symbolic contribution as we were all aware of sustainable development and environmental issues. It goes without saying that our mother nature gives us more then we give back. Nevertheless, it seems very odd to me that some people can travel and have fun while destroying nature and the environment by throwing garbage everywhere they go: woods, sea, beaches, mountains, and even wild nature. However, traveling enabled people to become a new version of themselves, and as Ibn Battuta said once: “Traveling, it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller”. Accordingly, let's be a responsible traveler and sustainable consumer of our mother nature, so everyone can tell a good story to the world.