Archive for December, 2017

The more you travel, the more you have to read.

Sunday, December 31st, 2017

News_2

Researching new destinations is only part of our reading.

The big increase to our daily news consumption comes after we have discovered a new place.

Every time we visit a new country, we naturally take an interest in its people and culture. And every time we see a news article about that country, we feel we need to read it.

It could be about avant-garde art in Uzbekistan, wild fires in California, the Himbus People of Namibia or dissidents in Central China.

If we travel with a guide we usually get to know them.

So our interest gets personal.

In Iran our guide was Rasoul, a delightful young man who we got to know very well. We still communicate with Rasoul on a regular basis.

We even met his family.

We have just been travelling in Ecuador and spent seven days with José, who showed us some of his top spots.

José even took us to his home town of Gulaceo. Here we visited the local market and José introduced us to his favourite meal of Roast Pork with rice and beans.

On a walk around Lake Toreadora in Ecuador we met Yap, a intensive care nurse from Singapore. She was a great companion on the grey and sometimes damp walk, especially for Thea.

The two didn’t stop chatting for the entire two hours.

These experiences give you an affinity with the places you visit and the people you meet along the way.

Now, whenever a news article pops up regarding a place we have been or an experience we have had – we read it.

So far this trip we have visited eight new countries. That’s eight more places we now have to read about.