AM I A TRAVELLER OR A TOURIST?

As I sit here in Vichy it is clear to me that the only thing that counts is what you feel, not what you have. I am resting after a long swim ; I have joined those pensioners who go to thermal resorts to regain their health and to relax. It is comfortable and soothing for body and mind, everything is at hand, and it is not expensive. A comfortable bed, three meals a day, a quiet park, a swimming pool and yoga classes are all I need.
Not everyone who travels is a tourist. And not everyone who carries a backpack is a traveller. I fall in between these two categories. I do not haul a rucksack, sleep in a tent or stay on the road for a longer period of time. Neither do I belong to a bus tour, camera-totting crowd.

Three years ago I decided to go to Paris to brush up my French. I stayed in a half-hostel, half-hotel. In the morning I attended classes and the afternoon was free to do whatever you wanted. I met a lot of people from all over the world and we used to go out every d...