from my life
Crutches and people.
After my hip surgery a few weeks ago, I've needed to use crutches to get around. And one of the unexpected benefits of this is all the people I've ended up talking to. I can't go anywhere without someone asking me "What did you do?" every 2 minutes.
It honestly reminds me of when I started traveling 22 years ago. During those days, it was ALL about talking to people, all day long. You would ask people on the street for directions, ask taxi drivers for recommendations, ask other travelers if you could sit at their table with them in order to meet someone new.
Talking to people is such an easy thing to do. Even for introverts, such as myself, it's important to remember that all you need to do is say 'hello'. That's enough to get a conversation started, anywhere in the world.
With these crutches, others have been saying 'hello' to me. And I've met all kinds of folks as a result, including athletes, a super cool priest, a local politician and dozens of interesting people in between. It's nonstop conversations. I explain what happened with my hip and suddenly, the other person is sharing something from their own life....and a genuine connection is made, even if for a mere few moments.
I love it and it has completely reminded me of the importance of saying hello to strangers while traveling - on a plane, in a cafe, on a bus, in the street, on the beach, anywhere. You never know who you'll meet. These random face to face conversations, especially while traveling and being surrounded by people from a different culture, are so rewarding. It's real difficult not to feel good afterwards.
Trust me when I say that such conversations will often be more memorable than the super fun and interesting activities you do in a particular destination. That's just how life works. Human connection always rules.
Don't forget to say 'hello' throughout your day, it's the easiest trick there is!
-----
Tour announcements.
At the moment, I have a few spots available on two different and awesome tours this summer...
If you're interested, please check out the details!
Also, I am aware that these destinations are close to the situation in Ukraine. However, I'm running these trips because I feel it is safe to do so and because I want to support the people we work with - local guides, drivers, family-run businesses and more - in these destinations. It's been a rough two years for too many people in tourism!
I'm in constant contact with my teams and contacts in these countries, and as long as it is safe to travel there, we're going ahead with our great tours and doing what we can to support the communities we visit.
If you have any questions about these trips, please let me know and I'd be happy to answer!
