“There are no foreign lands. It is the traveller only who is foreign.” Robert Louis Stevenson
This quote is worth remembering because there will be times during your trip when you’ll come face to face with people, beliefs, customs, food and attitudes that seem very strange to you. This is what makes travel exciting but it’s also what makes it a little intimidating. Remembering the customs in the places you are visiting where even the acts of eating and greeting remind you that you are a long way from home. Remember though, the unfamiliar is what makes travel worthwhile and without it we’d all just stay at home.
The more open you are to new experiences the more likely you are to experience things you’ll never forget. For example in many African countries it’s a custom to welcome the lonely traveller into not just their towns but their homes too. Fear of the unknown may stop you accepting these kinds of great opportunities. Here are a few tips which should help you cope with all the new things you’ll see while you’re away so that you’re in a position to really enjoy them.
Prepare yourself, that way you’re in the right frame of mind to deal with anything you experience. The first thing to remember is not to expect too much from yourself; you’re bound to feel a little odd when you first arrive so there’s no need to panic.
Hit the books. A great book provide a welcome retreat during bouts of culture shock and reading up on your destination before you go will help make you less shockable. Teach yourself a little about the religious beliefs and cultural practices of a country and you’ll see that far from being strange they normally make perfect sense.
Go with an open mind. It’s difficult not to spend time daydreaming about a trip because we normally book it months in advance but don't create a fantasy in your head of what you expect to find. A combination of travel guides, photos and other people’s stories tend to paint an idealistic picture of a place. They don’t show the moments just after you’ve missed your bus, the parts of the city that aren’t so pretty or the seedy parts of town it’s best to avoid. None of these are reasons not to travel, but it’s worth remembering that you’re not travelling to a fantasy. Realize that and you’ll love it.
Travel Insurance! Then of course, there’s the other sort of ‘unexpected’; the bad sort! The sort of ‘unexpected’ that puts your luggage on a flight to India when you’re going to Japan, or rips a whole in your pocket just big enough for your passport to fit through! For all of these and more there’s insurance. Good travel insurance is well worth the investment even if you don’t need to use it, because you get great peace of mind from the moment you set off. Talk to your travel agent for recommendations on what's right for you.
Presented By:
Rawhide Travel & Tours Inc
6008 W Bell Rd # F105
Glendale, AZ 85308-3793
(602) 843-5100
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