It's a wonderful time to be an armchair traveler

Video and the internet changed everything. Before that you either visited a place in person or through text and images. Geography text books were an early gateway to exotic terrains. Comics, novels, and books provided narratives and settings. A personal favourite was Lands and Peoples, a multi volume encyclopedia. Films showed places of course but Hollywood is not real life.

Now we have a cornucopia of content on travel and tourism sites, personal vlogs, and YouTube and other platforms. Sites like Expedia put out brilliantly shot and narrated capsules on places around the world. Whatsapp and other messengers bring home these sights, sounds, and real world travel experiences with warp speed immediacy and impact.

The quality of the content is getting so good that it all but eliminates the need to go there. Whether it is the Taj Mahal or the Colosseum, a cathedral in Goa or the Vatican, the Red Fort or the Big Ben, today's superbly shot videos with close ups, long shots, drone cameras, perfect lighting and sound showcase a destination far better than you could hope to see on a visit.

Yes, walking up the Champs Elysees and eating a panini from a kiosk still beats just seeing a video of the iconic avenue in Paris. But we've also taken the train and the bus to Les Diablerets in Switzerland only to be met with thick fog that completely shrouded the scenic peak. Or seen the Mysore Dasara jostled by crowds and rowdies. Or seen the Red Fort to find half the areas closed off. Or reached Geneva on a day the landmark Jet d'Eau fountain did not work. Face it, being there is not everything.

So next step, virtual reality. The movies are getting there already. We recently watched the new Top Gun movie on an Imax screen and it was cool. As an avid armchair traveller I'm waiting for the immersive virtual reality day when I can walk on a meadow, dive into the ocean, ski down snowy slopes, cruise through downtowns at night, and do all the things that travelers yearn to do in distant and exotic lands.

It will happen.

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