The world is almost a year into the travel restrictions that have been put in place to defend against the spread of Covid-19. There have been some encouraging developments that have allowed many countries around the world to start re-opening, but international travel is still heavily restricted.
Luckily, there are ways to “travel” to any country you want without leaving your town or city. None of the following activities compare to actually experiencing a country in person, but they can help satisfy the itch during this time of travel restrictions.
Make a List of Countries You Want to Visit
This seems like a simple and silly exercise, but there is some science behind the effectiveness of writing down your goals. Your travel goals are no different.
You are more likely to get to more of these countries by making an actual list of the places you want to visit. Cap the list at 5. You might want to go to more places, but the purpose of this exercise is to narrow down your list to places you really want to visit.
Go to Your Local Library or Bookstore for Books on These Countries
Reading is a form of mental travel. A book is a portal to a certain point in time in a certain reality. Fiction often takes us to fantastical worlds that look nothing like our own.
Non fiction books in the travel genre are portals to actual places within our world. Some even take us back in time to explore the rich history of a country.
The best part of this mental travel is the cost. Library cards are free. Travel is a genre where the newness of a book isn’t that important, so your library should have a pretty good selection.
Try to find one book to read for each country on your list. Reading these books will come in useful when you can physically travel to these countries again.
Read Blogs From Other Travelers Who Have Visited The Places You Want to Go
Travel books tend to give more general descriptions of things to do within a country. Travel bloggers give a more personal experience that often feels more relatable. These bloggers typically have their own websites, but they are also active on Facebook and Instagram.
Many Travel blog brands also have a Facebook group for their community to discuss their travel experiences. You can join one of these groups to meet like-minded individuals who enjoy travel as much as you.
Try Making the Country’s Cuisine
Cuisine is one of the best ways to really immerse yourself into a culture. It has never been easier to experiment with exotic cuisines right in your own kitchen.
Just open Google and search “cuisine from (country you want to visit).” You will find dozens of recipes for you to browse until you find something you want to try.
The key is to be willing to go out of your culinary comfort zone. Depending on what type of food you are used to, the countries you want to travel to might have radically different cuisine. Ordering out is an option if you are not much of a chef. The only downside is you will be limited by the culinary diversity of your immediate geographic area.
Learn About the Native Botanicals
The plant world plays such a large part in our daily lives, yet most people don’t take much interest in the botanical life of the places they travel. Learning about the herbs and spices that are native to a country will give you an idea of the tastes and aromas to expect from their cuisine.
It will also teach you things about a culture that you would not otherwise learn. For example, say you were looking to visit Indonesia. If you look into their native botanicals, you would learn that 95 percent of the kratom, known botanically as mitragyna speciosa, is grown there. Its popularity in the west has turned kratom into a cash crop for Indonesian natives. You can now find kratom in a lot of different local places such as your botanical shops, vape shops or even gas stations.
Immerse Yourself in Media or Literature
The final thing you can do to satisfy your travel urge is to enjoy entertainment from the countries you want to visit. This may be in the form of literature, movies, tv shows, music, or any other art forms.
These media forms can be easy or hard to find depending on the countries on your list. Netflix has an ever-increasing selection of content from around the world.
Give these things a try and hopefully you will be able to go everywhere on your list sooner rather than later.
We are happy to present this collaborative post to offer valuable information to our readers.
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