When you travel, do you do the things you want to do or the things you think you should do?

Do you see a church, a museum or a ruin as a sight you should do when visiting a destination or are they places you actually want to visit? And do you consider chatting with a taxi driver, tour guide or security guard as an equally engaging and rewarding experience that can reveal as much about the destination as the sight you're visiting? The way we travel and how we experience places is something I find myself continually pondering, especially after reading the comments to my post Vanity Portraits of Today's Young Ego-Trippers, along with the responses to the Travellers vs Tourists debate on Eric's TravelBlogs.com. In her thought-provoking comments to my post, Sandy writes: "The discussions about going into yet another church/museum/ruin that they would never have visited in their own towns was a discussion I recall overhearing 25 years ago. I am also reminded that we aren't very well trained to be tourists. I know that for all of the travel I've done, it took me fifteen years to work out, as you have, that the destination and the moments unique to a site are enriched by engaging with locals in a non-touristy and meaningful way." While I have to admit that after three months of researching books in Italy, I was less inclined to visit "yet another" church than I was at the start of the trip, I normally like to see Italy's churches as art galleries, hiding wonderful masterpieces within, but I'm a fan of art and architecture. I only visit museums I really want to experience; I love contemporary fashion, design and technology museums in particular. And get a kick out of exploring archaeological ruins, especially those that are more than just a pile of rubble or are atmospherically located; I like to imagine how people might have lived, and believe the history of a place reveals so much about its present. But I often wonder why people work their way through the highlights lists in guidebooks, ticking off the must-do attractions if those things don't really interest them. If you love churches, museums and ruins, go for it! But if you don't, then only seek out things that interest you. If you're a sports fan in Milan, skip the Duomo and fashion quarter and see a football match at San Siro Stadium or take a car for a spin around La Monza. If you're a foodie in Dubai, give the malls and desert safari a miss and do a tour of the city's shwarma stands and Indian sweet shops. You like meeting locals? Enrol in morning language classes then spend your afternoons at the local markets, cafes and bars. I've always wanted to write a kind of anti-guidebook, a guide to all the things that are worth experiencing in destinations that are left out of the books. What do you think? Now what kind of traveller are you? When you visit a place do you do the things you think you should do or do you focus on the stuff you want to do?

Pictured? When we were in Alice Springs a few months ago we spent an evening at the speedway - right after we watched a local football match.

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