A cultural wanderer is somebody who loves to travel. They enjoy immersing themselves into foreign cultures, gaining new perspectives and discovering the worldview of others. They take the roads less traveled, moving away from the usual tourist spots, and into experiences that will change their life forever. Forget staying in a comfort zone; the cultural wanderer has a thirst for something that is alien to all they have become accustomed to. Life is there to be lived, travel is a necessity, and the world is a playground just begging to be explored.

Do you want to become a cultural wanderer? Perhaps you already are. You may have ticked off half of your bucket list already. But if you’re not, and if you have the urge to follow the path of many a cultural wanderer who has traveled this fair earth, then we have some tips for you here.

Here’s how you can become a cultural wanderer!

But if you’re not, and if you have the urge to follow the path of many a cultural wanderer who has traveled this fair earth, then we have some tips for you here.

Make a plan.

What country are you dying to visit? What cultures are you interested in? Where is your heart leading you? Answer these questions, research your destination, learn the lingo, and start to make plans to get to where you want to be. Whether you visit somewhere you have been before, or are wanting to try somewhere completely new, book that flight, pack your bags, and prepare yourself for a learning experience. And when you land at your chosen destination…

Take your time to explore.

Don’t do what the tourists do. Forget about rushing from A to B taking pictures for your Instagram account. Don’t overload your itinerary with places to go, and things to do. Move slowly, exploring every facet of the place around you. Sit in a park and watch people going about their business. Listen to the conversations going on around you. Take time to notice how people live and interact with the world. Walk down the smaller streets and peek into every nook and cranny. Go beyond the guidebook and explore the location you are in. Get the vibe and let the culture soak into your system.

Taste the food.

The cultural wanderer doesn’t look for places with a menu that serves food from their home country. That’s what the tourists do. Instead, you should try new foods, sealing yourself into a new culture through the spectrum of taste. Yes, some of the foods may not look appealing, but you will never appreciate other cultures until you take the risk. From the spicy curries of Thailand to the sushi dishes of Japan – https://f1e.500.myftpupload.com/tasteofjapan/ –  broaden your taste palette and dig into the foods that form a part of everyday life in the country you are visiting.

But if you’re not, and if you have the urge to follow the path of many a cultural wanderer who has traveled this fair earth, then we have some tips for you here.

Opt for a longer stay.

A two-week vacation will allow you to get to grips with some of the culture in the locale around you, but you would serve your wanderer credentials better by staying longer term. A month, two months, even a year, give yourself the time to fully explore the place you are visiting. Heck, you might even call it home after a while. Use an international property site to rent a place – https://www.rumah.com/properti-sewa will get you somewhere in Indonesia, for example – look for something affordable, and set up residence for as long as you are able.

Talk to the locals.

Assuming you bothered to learn the lingo (and a real cultural wanderer would), spend time getting to know the locals and engage them in conversation. They may be neighbors living next door to you (if you did take up residence), they may be people you meet in a bar or an eating place, or they may be the people you sit next to when taking time out to soak up the culture around you. You can read all the guidebooks in the world, but you will never truly know a place until you set foot in the locale and get a first-hand perspective from the people who make up the population of the country you are in.

Take part in world festivals.

Every country has a festival that is unique to them, and by visiting and being a part of the event, you will find out more about the culture, from the national heritages to the chosen religions. From the Mardi Gras in New Orleans, with opulent balls and exotic costumes, to the spooky Day of the Dead in Mexico, take a look at the world festivals on this sitehttps://greenglobaltravel.com/top-10-festivals-in-the-world/, and add them to your travel bucket list when you’re considering what cultural experiences you would like to get involved in.

But if you’re not, and if you have the urge to follow the path of many a cultural wanderer who has traveled this fair earth, then we have some tips for you here.

Become a volunteer

Don’t be a tourist. Don’t visit a place for what you can get out of it. A true cultural wanderer has a charitable side, taking an active part in the place they are visiting, and making a difference to the lives of the people around them. We aren’t talking about this in a patronizing sense – you shouldn’t impart your western sensibilities or way of life on a people whose culture seems backward to yours – but rather embrace the culture, volunteering to build up communities, rather than take something away from their heritage. Consider the volunteer programmes at https://www.volunteerforever.com/article_post/, and find something you may be able to get involved in. From building schools to taking part in conservation projects, you can make a real impact in the places you decide to visit.

Embrace the everyday

Shop in local supermarkets, drink in small taverns, get a part-time job if you are staying for a longer period, join in with the locale’s leisure activities, get a bus or a tram, read the newspaper… to truly immerse yourself into the culture, you need to live like a local and involve yourself in the minute details of the town or city you are residing in. Only then will you begin to understand the way of life of the people around you.

So, what do you think? Do you have a craving for something different from your usual holiday destination? Do you want to explore a culture that may be far removed from your own? Look around our site at some of the places we have visited, or consider the destinations you may have already thought about when drawing up your bucket list of places to visit. There is a whole world to explore, and so many new cultures to discover. Could you be a cultural wanderer? Let us know your thoughts!

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Contributing Author

This blog post was written by a contributing writer.