8 Lessons I Learned From Traveling

Travel can change your life, it can open your eyes to new cultures and heighten your senses as you experience new sights, flavors, and sounds.

My travel journey started 2 years ago and every time I visit a new country, I am reminded of how little I know about our world.

If you’ve never traveled much, it can be awe-inspiring to talk with someone who does. They have a wisdom and understanding of the world that you can’t gain from simply going to the all-inclusive resorts and hotels in your own country. Travelling gives you a more complete picture of the world. If personal growth is important to you, international travel can accelerate your development.

Change your perspective with these lessons: Materialism is overrated:

When you travel abroad, it’s not easy to bring all your jewelry, your BMW, and fine silverware with you. You quickly find that you can do just fine without all of the items you seem to love so much back home. Depending on where you go, you will see other people living perfectly happy lives with very little in the way of possessions. Growing up in Jamaica, I got the impression that bigger is better, you must be dripping in gold ( and gold plated) and designer brands splashed all over was the way to go. Then I moved to Europe where I haven't seen one person wearing a GG belt an all the jewelry are small elegant pieces and no one dares to talk about the price tag.

My new vision of contentment is to own a small farm with a cottage somewhere far away. I would raise some sheep, or cows and be left alone without worrying about being exposed to too much media and alternative facts in the news.

Different cultures have different priorities

While some societies value fame, fortune, possessions, and other forms of material success, many other societies have little concern for this sort of thing. You’ll notice that other countries can value things like friendship, family, religion, adventure, or comfort.

Not to say that one is inherently better than the other, but differences do exist. I am partial to the sense of community and caring for your "neighbor". This is what I know. At times, there is a stark contrast between some cultures when it comes to this. Polish people will look out for and help others they personally know. This might be perceived as cold and unkind by others from other cultures but to them it's normal.

There are a lot of people in the world that don't have the basics

We take many things for granted. This hit home in February 2022 when millions of Ukrainians had to flee their homes and sought refuge in Poland and other neighboring countries. With a war raging next door, our friends and family mobilized; some volunteered at shelters and donated food and clothing and others took families into their homes and sheltered them. Since then we have been extra careful with our resources and we understand and appreciate even more what we have and the importance of helping others and that people do not have the bare minimum required to keep them alive.

Friends can be found anywhere

You don’t have to limit your friends to those people you see five times a week. It’s possible to create and maintain friendships across the globe. It’s easy to stay in touch these days with all the technology available. People in many parts of the world are far less guarded than they are at home. Of course, some are more guarded. Check out my blog post on How to Make Friends in A New City

You learn to be flexible

Many things are less reliable when traveling. You might not understand the language or know how to navigate the transportation system. It's not uncommon to have your plans disrupted as you might get lost a few times but, you will learn to be more flexible and creative. Most things will be new to you, food and drinks, a new way of doing a particular task. Learn a thing or two and bring that new skill home with you.

You waste a lot of time

When you’re traveling, you won’t want to spend your time staring at your smartphone or watching TV. If you're like me you'll wake up early and start your day, trying to see and do everything! You’ll want to be out living and experiencing the local scene. You’ll realize how much time you waste back home doing things that provide little value to you. Travel for my family is serious work, day trips, museums, and food tours. There isn't a moment to waste when you only have a few days in a country that you know will be impossible to see everything on your first stay, but you still try.

Being able to travel is a privilege

Travelling can be a spectacular thing. You’ll also find people on your journey that travel a lot more than you do. I've spent hours listening to travel stories from places I dream of going. To someone, you've never traveled outside their town, they sound like wild tales, but if you're ever privileged enough to visit temples and ruins and immerse yourself into a new culture, you'll forever be changed.

People are all the same

While cultures can differ considerably, many things are the same. People love their children regardless of what country they’re in.

Everyone is striving to be happy and to find meaning in their life. The important things are the same wherever you go.

Your perspective of the world will change if you get out of your country and visit someplace new. Different people and societies can teach you a lot about the world and yourself.

It can be expensive to travel internationally, but it’s worth the expense. Begin saving today for a trip that can be fun and might change your life.