Back to: Kerala Board Class 8th English Guide and Notes
Table of Contents
Introduction
Marvellous Travel is a beautiful poem written by Joshua Fernandez about his traveling experiences. This poem depicts the life of a person who leaves everything to enter a journey. He describes what he has seen or felt throughout this experience while he leaves.
About the Poet
Joshua Fernandez was born on 19 April 1974 in Kaula Lumpur in Malaysia. He was a popular Malaysian film director and designer. His major works are Clock on the wall, Where Am I, Choices, Granted All that has happened.
Theme
Travel provides a learning experience like no other. It inspires people to seek out new places, keeping their pool of knowledge constantly topped up. It’s a great way to not only learn new things and immerse yourself in a new culture but it also provides a constant urge to continue learning.
Stanza 1
I travel with my eyes, Watching those silently cry, Asking themselves the question why, Someone left them without saying goodbye;
Here the Poet says that traveling gave him a variety and wonderful experiences that he witnessed through his eyes. Then he says that he watched many people silently crying. He asked the people what happened to them. They said that they have experienced the pain when somebody left them without saying goodbye.
Stanza 2
I travel with my thoughts, I travel with my pen; To write about children, women and men;
In the second stanza, the poet conveys that travelling is not merely sightseeing for him, he is always in a state of observation and thinking. He always travels with his pen to record his travel experiences. He is always in a state of observation and thinking. He always travels with his pen to record his travel experiences. As travel is the seed to write stories about children, women and men thus the poet says that it is travel that makes him a good storyteller.
Stanza 3
I travel with my voice, I travel with my hope, That something new, would spring into my horoscope, Whether in Asia, America or Europe, There'll always be something interesting to scope;
The third stanza shows the attitude of the poet towards travel. He believes that his voice can reach anywhere. The poet travels with the hope, that something new can happen at any time. According to him, life is always unpredictable. Wherever we are, anything can happen the next moment. Whether in Asia, America, or Europe, there will always be something interesting to scope. And, this is what makes our journey in life interesting.
Stanza 4
I travel to many different places, Mix with many races, Identify tribesmen by their faces, And little girls by their laces,
The poet then speaks about his travel to many different places. This provides him an opportunity to mix with many races and helps him identify the tribesmen by their faces. He travels without money, travelling to many different places enables him to interact with people of different races. This indeed gives him a marvellous experience getting to know different food, cultures, and lifestyles.
Stanza 5
So, please listen to my testimony, The good, the bad and even the ugly, Every experience is worth life's journey, For I'll always be marvelled, Whenever I travel.
And finally, the poet says, he travels without money. The poet says this by his own testimony, his own experience. He had a variety of experiences- the good, the bad and even the ugly. But to him, every experience is worth life’s journey. And hence the poet will always be marvelled at whenever he travels.
