We have a lot in common with the Beat Generation. Like Jack Kerouac and Allen Ginsberg, we want to take crazy adventures — we have a desire to see the world and learn about new cultures, and we’re educated and need that intellectual stimulation — but we want a little more control over the situation.
That’s the one major difference between Millennials and the Beats — we plan. We don’t just hop in the car and drive off with a map and a dream. We make some semblance of an itinerary, and we bring a lot of our lives with us, most often the following (not this):
Camera: Nothing is more satisfying than bragging about all the things you did on your trip to your entire Facebook network. It’s especially gratifying when in-between photos of beer bongs and tequila shots, there’s evidence that you did something cultural or cool, like rock climbing, cliff jumping or eating something exotic.
iPod: Gone are the days of mix tapes and FM radio. Generation Y doesn’t have to make “road trip mixes” – we can just hit “shuffle.”
Electronic reader: We stay tuned into all of our favorite novels and newspapers with these handheld devices. They store hundreds of books at once, so you’ll never be bored in an airport security line again. But it also means that we’re less likely to meet interesting fellow travelers.
GPS: Our lives are so stacked and packed with things to do that we simply don’t have time to get lost. GPS comes standard on most cell phones now, making traveling even easier and more time-efficient. Our parents would sleep in their cars or crash in a park; we hit the “hotel” button.
Social Media: We just can’t leave this behind. No one knows why, but we have a certain need to update everyone about everything all the time. We tweet, we post on Facebook, we check in on FourSquare — our social media network knows where we are at all times. We may still look at traveling as “getting away,” but really, we’re not. At all.
Debit/Credit Card: What’s cash?
Condoms: Do you really know where that exotic-looking girl/guy has been?
Something Caffeinated/Energy Bars: Despite our best efforts with guidebooks and GPS, things happen. Have a bag full of stored energy just in case your travels lead you into the wee hours of the morning.
Cellphone: Texting. Calling. Internet. Alarm clock. Duh.
Basically, we bring a lot of stuff…but each of these items maximizes the potential of our trip. That GPS, for example, ensures that we won’t get lost and never make it to that obscure landmark we wanted to see — but it also means that we lose the experience of navigating a foreign country on our own.
Photo by santheo
AM I THE ONLY WEIRDO WHO STILL MAKES MIXED CDs FOR ROADTRIPS AND HATES ELECTRONIC READERS LIKE THE DEVIL’S SPAWN???
Also, GPS < maps.
I AM OLD SCHOOL.
<3
Dude — caps lock. Just sayin’ =P
On a more related note — I, too, hate e-readers. You just shouldn’t replace the feel of a *real* book. But I can see where they’d be helpful on road trips — they take up less space (same with the CD v. iPod thing)
However, GPS = lifesaver. I can’t Mapquest myself when I’m, oh, I don’t know, trying to get to a concert and drive straight by the road I need to turn onto, *ahem*. I think we can all agree that having a GPS screaming at us to “TURN AROUND!” would have made that car ride quite a bit less painful.
This is true. But we also figured it out by the time we hit OP, so it was a bit of an adventure