The Transcript

A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions – Oliver Wendell Holmes

I recall seeing a meme a while back that essentially said ‘Well! 2020, this shit was definitely not on my vision board for the year’. I cannot remember when the last time was I laughed as much as I did reading that and even now shake my head almost in disbelief when I think about how this year has been so far. It has thrown all our well laid plans for a toss. 2020 has certainly been one hell of a wild ride and sometimes it feels like we aren’t quite at a point where we get to stumble on wobbly legs off a hellish roller-coaster trying to find our balance.

Between the global pandemic, the civil unrest in the US, natural disasters around the world, hurricanes in the Caribbean and North American wildfires it feels like so many of us are simply fatigued. I know I am. I feel like every day I go through all the emotions – sometimes even within the same hour. Added to the fact that the almost collapse of the travel industry, all our normal triggers for stress relief – aka travel, adventure, exploration, wanderlust – isn’t something that is accessible to many of us.

I recently came across a fantastic article in National Geographic (which I will link to in the show notes) about why travel should be considered an essential human activity. The article address what travel means for so many of us, how travel helps us and why we need to travel to live a more fulfilling life. One thing that the author, Eric Weiner, wrote that really resonated with me and I am sure, with many of the folks who read it. He says, “Hope lies in the very nature of travel. Travel entails wishful thinking. It demands a leap of faith, and of imagination, to board a plane for some faraway land, hoping, wishing, for a taste of the ineffable. Travel is one of the few activities we engage in not knowing the outcome and reveling in that uncertainty. Nothing is more forgettable than the trip that goes exactly as planned.”

If you think about it, since time immemorial we humans have always traveled in search of opportunities, trade, adventure and even just for pleasure. Travel gives us a chance to escape the mundane – our everyday – and find ourselves again. Travel acts as a door to our creativity, our curiosity and the world around us. When we travel, we find ourselves in awe at the wonder, grace and also humanity of everything around us. Travel touches our hearts, taps into our soul and makes us feel alive – inside – where it truly matters.

And travel does not always mean far flung adventures to far off destinations. It can be just a new way of things at things that we already know of. Sometimes even a quick drive over to the next town, a weekend getaway or a visit to a museum can bring forth a that feeling of wanderlust. And now more than even people are finding creative and innovative ways to explore. In a recent podcast interview with the founder and CEO of Airbnb, Brian Chesky mentioned that after almost a 80% drop in revenue in early March and April, Airbnb bookings are almost on par with their YOY trends from prior quarters. People are traveling off the beaten path, booking quirky and unique homes, and even staying for longer durations now that work-from-home and school-from-home is becoming the norm.

In the travel industry, the U.S. Travel Association’s “Let’s Go There.” campaign, National Geographic’s #knowbeforeyougo and Fodors Travel’s #travelsomeday may seem like catchy marketing campaigns to boost up the travel economy but there is something to be said about feeding that inner wanderlust. In fact, a 2014 study at Cornell University explored how the anticipation of an experience like a trip can increase a person’s happiness substantially—much more than the actual event or thing. Even during a pandemic thinking about travel can make you happy. Hence the term #armchairtravel has become so popular on social media with over 40K tags on Instagram alone. Just because we cannot hop on a flight and escape does not mean we cannot imagine, educate and feed our minds with all that travel has to offer. Destination marketing organizations and local tourism boards are encouraging “drive tourism” – a campaign aimed at encouraging people to travel in and around their own communities as way to not only curb the spread of the pandemic but also provide a much needed to boost to local business that are struggling in during the pandemic.

So Season 05 of the CulturallyOurs podcast is all about exploring the world around is through a local’s lens. From Japan to Jordan, New Zealand to Mexico and elsewhere we connect with locals – people who share their neck of the woods with us. They share a bit of their lifestyle and culture along with their favorite hidden gems, their favorite activities, their community and all things in between. Think of it as a guide to explore the world through their eyes. This isn’t a mini guidebook or a travel checklist for when things open up and we can go back to the way life was. In fact, travel might never be the same again. Instead think about this season as inspirational and aspirational travel – a way to connect and learn about the world around us and the people who live in it. Then when it comes to making plans to get out there and explore, I hope you will use these experiences and life stories to plan a trip that will help you rediscover not only yourself but the world around you in a different light – one filled with empathy, understanding, appreciation and wonder.

Welcome to Season 05.