Tuesday Travel Tip

Journal!


No, seriously, JOURNAL.


It's the best thing you can do to remember your trip and look back on it for years to come. I journal in my normal life anyway, in a past life I was a good writer. And maybe got paid to write. But in this life I work a boring uneventful job.

JOURNAL.

You may think I'm crazy. Or it's not worth it. But it's the best thing you can do. I've taken several trips and have notebooks for each one and have filled them with stories of my adventures. They are AWESOME to look back at now. And yes for the most part I'm sure your travel info and pictures are on Facebook, twitter or Instagram. But there is still something about making a little room in your purse or backpack and sticking in a little notebook and a few pens.

I've sat in some incredible places and journaled. I've sat in a cafe in London writing about my week, in a chalet in the Alps, with a view of the pyramids from the roof of my hotel. It's worth it to have this physical proof that your trip existed and you sat somewhere amazing to take a minute to catch up, relive what you have been doing, and truly experiencing life.

I kept this blog while i was living in London and yet I had a personal journal I kept too. I would jot down a few things before class or on the bus. I would buy a chai tea and sit in a park and write. Anywhere I caught a few minutes.

And it doesn't have to be a novel. I love writing so my entries were lengthy. But just a few sentences. About what you did that day or how you are feeling. What you want to do next or people you have met. While moving across Europe for 3 months it was handy write hostel info, where the Internet cafe was, internationally calling codes, etc. it might seem weird but fun to look at now. Studying with people I got to know I jotted down inside jokes, favorite places, funny words and phrases. That's the stuff I like to look at now even as much as my thoughts and feelings at the time.

So get a journal. Take it with you. USE IT. find a cool place to write and catch up. Talk about jet lag, and changes in plans, and adaptability, and how you feel day to day, how expensive things are, an unplanned weekend trip, a new friend and their contact info, and where you stayed, favorite piece at a museum, or that you just sat in a park and people watched whole casually reading/writing and having a relaxing afternoon in a new place.

Trust me. You will be glad you journaled.