“To travel is to discover that everybody is wrong about other cultures” -Aldous Huxley
Some youngsters, whether they are on a school trip or doing their first solo voyage, have the chance of a lifetime to experience world travel. Often, we tell them to “Take pictures!” “Write about everything!” But once they come back, all they have are a few pictures, an entry for day one and scribbles of tic-tac-toe games.
They will complain they were too busy having fun and did not want to bother writing while they were running a muck in Paris. It’s okay,we perfectly understand! We can absolutely commend them for even taking the opportunity to travel, but we would like to share some advice on how to get the youth culture to embrace their travel experiences. Skylab’s younger sister went on a recent first solo trip to New Orleans, USA and inspired me to write about youth travelers.
My first travel experience (out of the United States) was indeed with a coordinated school trip. I saved up money, sold many boxes of chocolate on the New York City subway and with a little help from my parents, found myself going to Madrid and Paris for 2 weeks. I took plenty of pictures (no video unfortunately), but, even though I am a writer, I had very few entries about my trip. Being that at the time I was an avid and chirpy 16 year old, I was more interested in staying up late with my friends rather than recalling my days abroad.
I learned my lesson and made sure I would not only appreciate, but do everything I could to preserve these memories. To better understand why it is important to acknowledge and remember your youth travel experience, first, lets understand why its important to travel in the first place.
Social Development and Interactions
For the youth, its important to be socially involved with their peers. It doesn’t take a sociologist to prove this point, but social development is important, especially when it comes to situations they might not encounter at home. Its vital to understand certain situations; such as trying to meet new people or make friends with a group. The students that also went on my “Europe 2003″ trip became my “Europe 2004″ trip “crew”, as we became very good friends and decided to go on the next trip the following year. Sometimes, you won’t be with people you know or even understand so youth travel reinforces the idea that its good to travel and interact with people of different cultures.
Cultural Experience
No one could possibly put a value on the cultural experience one gets when they travel abroad. Looking at historical monuments, ancient artifacts and beautiful scenery just fulfills your heart with amazement. But it is not only what you see, but also what you feel and experience. Taking part in the culture of another country; when in Rome, do as the Romans. Breaking the mold and getting yourself out there; getting lost in the busy streets of Singapore, feeding the exotic animals in Costa Rica or eating gelato with locals in Italy (like I did) and talking about American Idol. Sometimes, it can be so easy to open your eyes, take a walk on the wild side and let go. Next thing you know, you’ve done something interesting.
Now that we understand how important it is to travel, here is some advice for youth travelers and how to preserve those precious memories.
Talk to others about their personal memories
Somebody we all know out there must have traveled to at least one foreign country so get out and talk to them! Maybe you have a friend at school who has a mom that visited London. Or your teacher did a Study Abroad program in the 70’s in Greece. Maybe they did things you’ve always wanted to do, like skydive in New Zealand. The more people you talk to about their travels, the more it will make you want to travel and tell others about what you did and saw.
Get a journal and rip out most of the pages
I’m not telling you to ruin a perfectly good journal! Sometimes, we can get intimidated by a journal with millions of pages we know we might not be able to fill. Rip out some of the pages and carry a lighter load. You won’t feel as intimidated to fill up your journal and maybe you’ll want to fill those blank spaces. You could also designate pages to certain days to organize it a little bit, so you’ll remember to write about Day 3 in El Museo Del Prado in Madrid, Spain. A little more on the techie side? Invest in a portable laptop. Perhaps check out our article on whether you should invest in a laptop for current and future travels.
Do something familiar in other Countries
Feeling homesick already? Do something you can do at home, in the other country! If you are with friends, take crazy pictures that you would usually post on Facebook on a Friday night. You could write about comparing what you’d be doing at home versus how you should be spending your days abroad. You’ll most likely remember playing that fun scavenger hunt at the hotel in Tokyo. Go to a local pharmacy and buy some makeup and enjoy makeovers with your girlfriends. Not only would it remind you of home, but you’ll have some unique foreign makeup to bring home.
Get a funky camera
Save some money before your trip and get the exact camera you want! Personalize it; if pink is your favorite color, get a pink camera. Make sure it has the features you want. Maybe you will find the inner photographer in you. Love posting on YouTube? Get a YouTube camera that has settings to easily post your videos online.
If I knew then what I know now, I would have a lot more travel memorabilia to share with my loved ones. Hopefully, everyone, young or old, preserves and cherishes these wonderful memories. Happy travels!
Teresa is the Co-Founder of ArtofBackpacking; Ms. Art of Backpacking. She is currently studying to be a Journalist at St. John’s University. Upon completion of her University studies, she will travel and see more of this beautiful world. If she is not online reading all the latest travel blogs, you can find her writing and taking pictures around NYC, her hometown.
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