I used to see countries I’d visited as places I’d ‘done.’ Slow travel changed that.

Earlier this year, as I set foot in country number 50, I expected the milestone to feel significant. Instead, I realized how little the number actually meant.

As a teenager, I became obsessed with seeing the world. My first purchase on Amazon was a set of 50 mini flags to study each day. I turned to quiz websites like Sporcle to learn country capitals and populations when I should have been solving math equations for school.

At 14, I’d already developed my first major travel goal: visit every country in Europe. Later that year, after a trip to Greece, Italy, and France, I was every bit as enamored with Europe as I’d imagined I’d be.

Unfortunatel…