LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST
⇷☓⇸
Looking for something new in life? Well head for the airport and travel to new destinations for your global adventure around the world – you won’t be disappointed!
You may have lists for everything already – what to pack, gadgets you need, destinations you want to visit and activities you want to experience. However, what you may forget to do is to take a step back and actually enjoy your experiences.
To actually make the most of your new adventures you will need to be able to relax, chill out and be open minded about the new environments you will suddenly find yourself in.
These are the best ways to achieve this:
1. Don’t live through a lens
It is so easily done and I know I have been guilty of this many times while travelling to anywhere new. With so much technology and gadgets at our fingertips it can be super easy to forget to live in the moment and not through a camera lens.
As important as it is to capture those photos of exotic places and the new friends your making, it is even more essential to make memories too that will last a lot longer than photos and videos. By living behind a lens you are inadvertently removing yourself from the moment and not immersing yourself fully.
I would suggest taking your photos but spend no more than 10-20 minutes doing so and then actually take time immersing yourself in your surroundings, admire its beauty and take in those new smells, sounds and sights. Don’t be one of those tourists that go to a spot, take a billion photos and then instantly move on to the next place.
2. Travel Slow
It is so easy to rush through a new city trying to move on to the next one and cramming in as much as you can to usually a tight time period and restrictions (damn you visas!). However, to really enjoy yourself, its so important to travel slow and focus fully on your daily experiences.
If you can try and give yourself a few extra days in each place – I try and aim for at least three days in each new place that I go to (if its not worth three days then just move on and have more time in somewhere that is more worthwhile).
By doing this you can then gain those more unique experiences that other travellers aren’t having. Get to know the locals, make friends and discover spots off the regular beaten track, its amazing what you can discover with an extra day somewhere.
If you feel like you’re not rushing then you are more likely to enjoy yourself more and be less stressed out about getting to the next place.
3. Use public transport
Not only is this essential to saving money but it is also the most unique and best way to experience the country from the locals perspective. You are a lot more likely to discover places you never even knew existed or heard of and is more often than not the best way to find hidden gems.
Travelling with locals can often lead to funny and amusing scenarios, making your adventure stand out and more memorable. Even if it was stressful at the time, I bet you will look back on that experience and laugh about it whilst telling your friends and family.
Take it in your stride and ‘travel slow’.
4. Getting Lost is Not Always a Bad Thing
I don’t know about you, but I often find that I will try make sure I know everything about my route before I get there. which whilst certainly isn’t a bad thing to do, it can also ruin the fun of adventure and exploring.
Definitely keep a map to hand, or have Maps.Me on your devices, but ignore them every once and a while and purposefully get lost in a new city or town. Its honestly amazing at how quickly you find new and hidden gems that no one knew about and aren’t listed in the tour guides.
Note – Don’t forget to keep your wits about you though, and make sure you don’t just casually stroll into dangerous areas.
5. Break through your comfort zone
We are all guilty of ‘playing it safe’ and not taking too many chances or exerting ourselves to try something new that we usually would never have even thought of. To make the most of your travels, and lets face it, life, you need to be willing to break outside of your comfort zone and truely live.
Fear of heights? Do a bunny jump or a sky dive. A bit introverted? Jump into a group and make some new friends (everyone is in the same boat while travelling and looking for friends too). Only like western food? Try some unusual delicacies like fried scorpion or crickets.
Thats the best thing about travelling, it changes you as a person and definitely for the better too.
6. Things sometimes never go your way
But, honestly thats OK.
Whether you are carefree or super controlling, no matter how much you prepare, plans can still go wrong or awry. It just the way the world works unfortunately. You may find that all the hotels are booked out, your flight has been postponed or cancelled, or that there are serious road works stretching your journey time out longer than you expected, its to be expected. This is the reality or travel and life in general.
The most important thing to remember is that its not all bad! You’re having an adventure and at the end of the day these ‘bad’ experiences are just adding more laughs to your story telling in the future. It shapes you as a person and when things go wrong later in life you will be able to embrace them, shrug them off and laugh. In some instances you will be able to improvise to get around the issues as well.
7. Try new culinary cuisines
For some people this can be quite a daunting experience, especially those that are very set in their ways and are fussy eaters in general. But, I can almost guarantee that the local food will become your new favourite thing about travelling.
Mostly the dishes you will find abroad you will never have come across at home nor would you have tried before. It really opens your palate and thus broadening your horizons further causing you to be more open minded. It’s essential if you stay at homesteads where the owners cook for you to accept their home cooked meals.
8. Be open minded to everything
This is pretty much the most common saying for this whole post. The reason, I presume, why you have left have home to travel the world in the first place is to change up your life and leave that boring 9-5 job to experience new cultures, places, and memories.
Be sure to be open minded to new religions, cultures and people. Everyone is different and may not share the same views as you. By allowing yourself to accept them will help you to not only have a more meaningful experience but also develop you as a person too. Branch out, live a little and live life to the fullest!
Safe adventures!
