The two longest trips I’ve taken away from home are my study abroad semester in Sevilla, Spain and my open-ended stay here in Buenos Aires. Some of my best friends came from my time in Sevilla, in fact one of them is coming to visit me and she arrives tomorrow. And no, she is not my girlfriend, but some travel snafus forced her arrival date back to the 14th. So what is the 5th and final thing long-term travel can teach you? How to cultivate amazing friendships.
From sleeping in the airport in Barcelona, to going crazy in Amsterdam, the friends you make while traveling will always share a certain kinship with you. Your experiences on the road will translate into unique stories that only you and your travel buddies are privy to. Davy and I will always remember all the trials and tribulations we went through in Europe biking, and Ben and I will always remember our Italian whirlwind tour.
With services and websites like Skype, Facebook, and CouchSurfing it’s easier than ever to stay in touch with other nomads. Talking with old friends always gets me pumped to travel again, especially if they’re going places I’ve never been before! In my opinion, someone who wants to travel is going to be more open by their very nature. Hostel-hopping peeps are some of the most easygoing people I’ve ever encountered. If you open yourself to other people, you’re bound to make some amazing chums!
You can find the first 4 parts of this post series here:
- What Can Long-Term Travel Teach You? Pt. 1: Self-Sufficiency
- What Can Long-Term Travel Teach You? Pt. 2: Patience
- What Can Long-Term Travel Teach You? Pt. 3: Thriftiness
- What Can Long-Term Travel Teach You? Pt. 4: Cultural Awareness
PS- Check out a traveler dispatch post I contributed over on TravelOjos, good blog to follow if you like Latin America!
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The biggest lesson we can learn from long-term travel is an empathy for all people that we may not have originally ever had. We realize they are are brothers and sisters no matter the cultural differences. Thanks for this great series.
Ben’s 2 bits of travel advice for Italy: don’t eat the veal in Rome, and don’t sit up quickly if sleeping top bunk on Italian bunk-beds with wooden slat supports for fear of firing them like missles at unexpecting victims (Evan) below you.
I hope you are doing well pookie!
<3
Hey Evan….This is my favorite post from the series because it’s SO TRUE. I’m so thankful to have met my Spain peeps. I’m super jealous that Marta gets to visit you in sunny BA! I’m sure there will be plenty of stories from your trip, can’t wait to hear them all…..try not to get yourselves kicked out of any restaurants/hostels/bus stations/bars, etc.
And yes, I do read your blog, although I’m a first-time commenter.
Anyway, miss you!! Jason says “hello”