We usually talk about travel in terms of destinations: the city we’ve just landed in, the beach where we’ll relax, the mountain we’ll climb. Our feeds are full of arrival shots—Paris from the top of Montmartre, Tokyo at night, the Grand Canyon in full sun. But if you’ve ever been on the road for a while, you know that the richest memories aren’t always the obvious ones.
They live in the in-between.
I learned this during a 14-hour bus ride in Argentina, somewhere between Buenos Aires and Mendoza. The air conditioning was broken, the movies were stuck on a loop, and my seatmate, an older woman named Teresa, insisted on sharing her homemade empanadas with me. We barely spoke the same language, but she told me about her grandchildren through gestures and a photo album. By the time we rolled into Mendoza, I realized the bus ride itself was the story—not just the wine region waiting at the other end.
Why the In-Between Matters
We tend to undervalue transition time because it doesn’t photograph well. Nobody frames a picture of the bus terminal or the convenience store breakfast. Yet these are the connective tissues of global travel. They’re where cultures rub shoulders, where unexpected conversations happen, and where the sense of being far from home really settles in.
Waiting rooms, train compartments, and back seats become tiny laboratories for human connection. I may not recall every museum I visited in Japan, but I’ll never forget a local father who offered me a canned coffee on a delayed train, or the chorus of laughter in a cramped minivan in Kenya when our driver swerved to avoid goats on the road.
Travel as a State of Suspension
One of the hidden joys of global travel is that in-between moments free us from the rush of “normal time.” At home, waiting is frustrating. Waiting in line, waiting in traffic, waiting for deliveries—it feels like lost time. But on the road, waiting is woven into the fabric of the journey.
It becomes a kind of liminal space, a pause between lives. You’re not where you came from, and you’re not yet where you’re going. You’re suspended. That’s where reflection creeps in, and where some of the deepest travel insights come.
How to Lean Into the In-Between
Instead of resisting the gaps, embrace them:
- Travel slower. Take the local bus instead of the express. Ride the overnight train. Walk between neighborhoods instead of hopping in a cab.
- Put your phone down. Don’t kill the waiting time with scrolling. Let your eyes wander. Notice the small details—how people stand in line, how the light looks at the station, the rhythm of unfamiliar languages.
- Talk to strangers. A delayed flight can turn into a story if you let yourself strike up a conversation. Travel friendships often begin in boredom.
- Savor stillness. Not every moment has to be productive. Let yourself rest. Look out the window. Write a few words in a notebook.
The Journey as Its Own Destination
It’s easy to forget that the literal journey—the buses, trains, planes, and waits—is as much a part of travel as the postcard sights. If anything, it’s where the essence of global travel lives: in the hum of motion, in the shared fatigue of fellow passengers, in the quiet hours when you’re between places and entirely present.
When we reframe those in-between stretches not as lost time but as part of the story, the joy of travel expands. Suddenly, the trip isn’t just about the peaks—it’s about the connective tissue, the ordinary moments that string everything together.
And when I look back on my travels, it’s often those little gaps, the ones that didn’t make the Instagram reel, that surface most vividly in memory.
Because the journey isn’t just about where you go. It’s also about how you get there, and who you become along the way.
About the Author
Lena Marquez is a Canadian writer and teacher who has lived in five countries and still gets lost in every airport. She writes about the emotional side of global travel—the connections, surprises, and small details that make journeys unforgettable. When she’s not on the road, she’s probably planning her next train trip.
