When I say the “in-between state”, what comes to your mind? Is it the moment between living and dying? Is it that pause when you finish one project and the next is yet to start? Does this state cause anxiety for you? Is the uncertainty unpleasant and difficult, or is the state nourishing?
For me, the in-between is the moment when I get into a car, a van, or a bus with my backpack packed, moving toward another place to sleep. This is how I have often travelled since I was a teenager – jumping places every day. The in-between state is the moment when I have left one place but have not yet arrived at the next. For me, being on the road, driven from one place to another, is the best part of any trip.
One reason for it is that when you’re in a bus, there are no roles; you do not have to be anyone specific. You are just an observer – an outsider that can just watch. In a way, you are separated from reality, freed from the expectation to be anything at all – because when in a bus or car, you are invisible to those outside of it. Once you reach a destination, you must adopt an identity: a tourist, a camper, a holidaymaker, or a photographer travelling through. But whilst you are in the van (or whatever means of transportation fits you), you do not have to be anything. You do not have to do anything, unless you are navigating as a passenger (which I actually love doing).
The in-between represents absolute freedom. A road that never ends is probably the best kind of holiday I can experience: the changing landscape, the devil-may-care energy of whether we reach our intended destination or not. If we do not, there is always another place along the way. It is the complete opposite of having a checklist for life, or even for that specific trip.
This freedom is not just about physical space in front of you. It is also about watching the landscape shift whilst practically doing nothing. So being on the road is also a form of suspension: a very pleasant, floating feeling. It is as if things are happening without any force on your part. Moving from one place to another each day also brings a constant sense of new beginnings, which is where the beauty lies. Even if a place turns out to be not so great, there is another one happening tomorrow: either a better one or not, but you will not know until you get there. The solution is not the point here – the suspension is.
This style of travel requires the right group of people to do it with. Anxiety and tension are not good companions, and control does not help either. If your goal is simply to tick boxes off a bucket list, this approach likely will not suit you. It is for those who enjoy simply moving through changing surroundings.
I hesitate to say it’s about “enjoying the process”, because there is no process here. A process implies leading to a result, and the point here is not the outcome. When on the road, you are not producing anything; there is no tangible effect of travelling. We could argue about the destination itself, the memories, even the exhaust fumes, or other by-products, but there is no deliberate outcome. It is entirely about the journey. If you are capable of enjoying just that part and enjoying the people you are with – you know exactly what I mean. And I really hope you do.