Traveling Softly and Quietly

by Nithin Coca

First there is hope - that travel will turn him into a better person. Then came loss - the unexpected passing of his beloved grandma, just one month before departure, changing everything. Traveling around the world sounded like a fun way to grow, but now, for Nithin Coca, a young, idealistic, recent College graduate, it has turned into a whole lot more.

Nithin has staked his future on his grand voyage, one year through Europe, the Middle East and Asia. He believes traveling will help him overcome his naivete and shyness. Yet, he immediately struggles to fulfill his expectations, feeling lost among other travelers, including his high school travel mates. They are seeking very different notions of fun and growth. Nithin wonders if he truly is worthy of his grandma's praise, how highly she spoke of him, her eldest grandson, to her relatives right before she died.

To thrive, he must overcome his fears and trust himself. So he breaks away from his friends to travel more slowly and quietly, and takes on new challenges; volunteering, teaching, learning how to be where he is. In Southeast Asia, the last leg of his trip, Nithin realizes that traveling is not a checklist of adventures, nor a catalog of stories. Traveling is intensely personal, each experience is only yours. Traveling Slowly and Quietly is about that which we all want in our lives - meaning - through the tale of a young man seeking his purpose in life.

215 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2014

Reviews

[Joey Lim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This abstract was written after having listened to Nithin’s Talk that he gave during First Penguin’s Community Cafe and read his book.

Reading Nithin’s story makes us wonder, what does traveling mean to us? Is it just an escape to temporarily run away from the harsh reality? What Nithin showed through his stories felt different from this picture of traveling. To use a quote by Paul Fussell in Nithin’s book, “before the development of tourism, travel was conceived to be like study, and its fruits were considered to be the adornment of the mind and the formation of judgment. The traveler was a student of what he sought.” We can be certain that the student of traveling, Nithin was looking for something more than an escape, he was looking for new and different experiences that can influence and shape his self.
Even though his travels did not bring him houses and cars, tangible items that serve as easy measurements to gauge one’s “success”, he had gained a wealth of experiences, friends, knowledge and skills. Judging from the fact that he pursued these instead of material wealth, it is safe to say that these intangibles mean more to him. He has incorporated multicultural experience into his life and what he learned through his travels into his work as a writer and social activist, lending contextual even handedness and a global perspective to his writings and opinions.

I highly recommend this book.

[Yotam · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are countless stories of people finding themselves while traveling the world. This is a story of someone finding the world while pushing himself to grow. Rather than a travel memoir where other people and places are consumed as experiences in service to the author's growth, the reader watches as the author learns to put himself at the service of the people and places he visits.

The book confronts and ties together important but often neglected issues from globalization and the search for authenticity, to our expectations and the difficulty of simply being present. The conclusion - perhaps predictable and a little cliché - is that authentic travel experiences rely on authenticity and honesty with one's self, and humility towards others. How the author arrives at that conclusion, through both courage and timidity, selfishness and generosity, alienation and belonging is a path that even those who have never set foot outside their birthplace can relate to.

[Frances Ellen · Rating 2 out of 5]

While I honestly appreciate the intent behind the book, the thoughtfulness and introspection-- there were bits that were off-putting to me. There were some instances that drove me to the point of annoyance. I wished that the author criticized his fellow travelers less, I felt that it was too much and it made it sound like he was far superior than everyone else, only because he chose to do things a certain way. Sometimes the musings can also be a bit repetitive, and the book can be much shorter if not for these. ".. like this one time in Turkey / Thailand / Budapest / Lagos.."
It also sounded like the author had a lot of regrets, held grudges and compared himself to other people often.
Love the title, the author's intentions, and how it was an easy read, but it was difficult in the sense that he was a negative person overall.

[Ryan Lewis · Rating 4 out of 5]

An authentic experience, traveling quiet and softly feels true to a young man’s journey about finding meaning and happiness in both traveling and his place in the world. A quick read for any conscious traveller.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nithin's honest and open portrayals of his travel experience in search of growth and meaning is very well written. It allows the reader to have a window into his journey and even challenges those that have traveled to reflect on their own experiences.