By Quentin Monasterial
Courier Staff Reporter
Brian O’Neil, Courier Chief Photographer
An avid traveler, Dolgin sets his wandering soul free as he travels around the world every summer. In fact, he says that this has been a regular passion of his since he was in college. And since then, he has been to a lot of places, ranging from Asia to Africa (and, of course, the United States); the total number of countries he has traveled to amounts to about 70 countries.
But, in light of his most recent trip, Dolgin traveled to the Philippines, the Middle East, Africa (specifically, Kenya, Egypt and Zimbabwe), Thailand, and finally, China during the previous summer. He recounts the experiences he garnered from the trip: “The safari in Kenya, pyramids in Egypt, going through Cairo… I enjoyed it; it was a lot of fun.”
In addition to the experience being fun, Dolgin also believes that it made him a “more worldly person in the sense that [he’s] been exposed to a few things” and has made him “realize how small the world is.”
Traveling doesn’t always guarantee a safe passage to luxurious contentment; as is inevitable in everyday life, things don’t always go as planned nor do they turn out as planned.
For example, Dolgin explains, “I’ve had wonderful times in Paris and I’ve had so-so times in Paris.” The same goes for Greece, where Dolgin also says he “had wonderful times” and “so-so times.”
But, Dolgin clarifies, “It’s not the place–it’s the experience you have, the people you meet [and] the adventures you go on.” And like all experiences and adventures, there are ups and downs, negatives and positives, but that is what makes them so impactful and enriching. Not because they are stress-free, or because they simply make you happy. These experiences are impactful because they stress you out and sometimes don’t turn out as you expected it to, and yet at the same time, they fill you with joy and wonder.
In response to concerns for traveling expenses, Dolgin reveals that “it’s not expensive at all.” In fact, he says, “you’d probably spend more money home and staying in this country than you do traveling over the summer.”
“If you want to go somewhere, there is nothing holding you back,” says Dolgin. He sure didn’t. And he has clearly proven that you can do the same–nothing is holding you back.
“I put on a backpack and did Europe for the first time.” Now, I think it is time you do the same. Put on your backpacks and go to that somewhere you’ve been dreaming of.”
