My Experience with Travel and Sleep
Shaping Cultural Experiences
Travel has been an integral part of my life since I was a young child. I grew up in a multicultural, bilingual home in the Netherlands with a Polish mother and a Dutch father. My
Update & BBC News Link
A brief update: One interview video will be uploaded tomorrow evening. I believe the BBC News One-Minute World News provides well-balanced reporting of news, hence why I wanted to share it. Top stories on May
From Nigeria to Boston
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9VNkCazT_T4&feature=youtu.be
When you first meet Oluwagbeminiyi Osidipe, you encounter a very vibrant, friendly, and unique personality. Oluwagbeminiyi or Niyi – as she shortened her name for simplicity – was named by her mother, who had a “very personal experience” when she had her, Niyi explained. Niyi is a Yoruba Nigerian transplant who arrived in the U.S. in 2006. As one of the most densely populated (West) African countries, Nigeria derives its name from the river that spans its land. To the South, it borders the Gulf of Guinea to the Atlantic Ocean. Originally colonized by the British, Nigeria gained independence in 1960. Its main ethnic groups are the Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba, who speak English and their own respective languages, while major religions include Islam, Christianity and indigenous beliefs. Niyi shares her story, her views on politics, cultural differences she’s embraced with humor, and what we can learn from each other by expressing curiosity. Her message is simple: travel enriches us through its exposure to new cultures, and enables us to grow.
Mark Twain on Travel
“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” (American author Mark Twain, Innocents Abroad).
Have you had the opportunity to travel (extensively, within your country, or even once abroad)? Can you relate to Twain’s sentiments? How does travel enrich us?
Pleasing The Taste Palate
Food has the wonderful quality of uniting us no matter where we are. There is nothing partisan or narrow-minded about food. It simply invites us to indulge, create recipes, and share with others. Two of my favorite Polish dishes (included in collage) are pierogies and barszcz czerwony – a beetroot soup – served on Christmas Eve in Poland. How does food bring us together? What are some of your favorite dishes and why? Can food trigger memories?
Stereotypes: Truth or Fiction?
DEFINING STEREOTYPES: “An idea or statement about all of the members of a group or all the instances of a situation.” (Merriam-Webster). Stereotypes enable bias and preconceived notions to perpetuate, but can also reveal valid
Annual Human Rights Report
“The world changed immeasurably over the course of 2011. Across the Middle East, North Africa, and far beyond, citizens stood up to demand respect for human dignity, more promising economic opportunities, greater political liberties, and
Euro Crisis & Emerging Stereotypes
Brief Crisis Breakdown Since the onset of the global financial crisis, or Great Recession, in 2007, the Eurozone has feared impending growing global debt levels, as well as sovereign debt within European countries themselves. In
Remembering Tiananmen
Today marks the 23rd anniversary of Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests in Beijing, China. Inflation, a lack of career prospects, the fall of Eastern European communism, and political corruption, are all said to have fueled anger
Coffee's Uniting Power
A cup of coffee can bridge cultural gaps. At least, that’s what Gizem Salgicil White, founder of Turkayfe.org, believes. Her organization aims to create awareness of Turkish culture, particularly within America. Gizem is a Turkish native,
Today’s Culture with Travel post is by Stephanie Annon
My number one bucket list item is to travel to all 50 states. I’m halfway there! I absolutely love traveling and would rather spend all of my savings seeing parts of our beautiful world. The past few years I’ve saved up and spent more time traveling abroad. I’ve learned a ton and had the best experiences (and food!), but one of my biggest challenges has been sleep while traveling. Long plane rides, time zone changes, and travel arrangements are seriously no joke.
Fortunately, I’ve screwed up enough times with different experiences to have learned the best hacks to getting your best night’s sleep while traveling. Traveling shouldn’t be ruined over lost sleep. Below are scenarios from three of my sleep experiences in Scotland, England, and Italy along with easy tips on how to get better sleep on your trips so you can enjoy traveling 10x more. Sleeping overseas doesn’t have to be a nightmare.
1) Staying in a hostel in Scotland and getting no sleep: HORRIBLE
I had never stayed in a hostel before. I was ballin’ on a budget, and the hostel was my cheapest option. Plus, I thought it would be a cool experience. My friends in college used to stay in them all of the time, so I didn’t think it would be terrible. The hostel was fine, but oh-my-gosh, the guy snoring near me was ungodly. Truly, never had I heard a sound like it before. I tried putting my pillow over my head, but it didn’t work. It was hard enough to relax sleeping next to strangers (I was so paranoid I slept with my backpack). Talk about regrets. While I was struggling for sleep I was wishing I had spent a little more money.
Tip: If you go to a hostel, take ear plugs. And maybe your significant other for protection. Or splurge and spend a little more money for your own room.
2) Traveling to London
I was so excited for this trip! I couldn’t even sleep the night before at home because London was the #1 place on my list to visit in Europe. However, as if I wasn’t tired enough, I was EXHAUSTED from the jet lag. The flight was six hours and the time change was a five hour difference. Because of the time difference, it would technically take my body five days to adjust to the timezone. I immediately crashed when I got to my hotel room instead of going out with my friends, which I regretted. My mood was a whole different story.
Tip: Don’t nap when you get there. Try to stay awake until night time so you don’t throw your body off. You can also start adjusting to the other country’s time zone before you leave. At least a week before your trip, make sure you are going to bed and waking up at the same time, not using your phone before bed, and have the proper sleep environment. Sleeping in a cool room and having the right mattress work wonders on getting your best sleep.
3) Airbnb in Venice
This was a weekend trip with my best friend that we had been planning for months while we were studying abroad. We were dying to go on the gondolas. The pictures from Venice had always amazed me. Our trip was perfect . . can’t complain about the pizza, wine, and gelato. I wish I could say the same about our sleeping arrangements.
We stayed in an Airbnb down a small narrow alley tucked behind the Rialto bridge which was super hard to find, especially coming home late after sipping limoncello by the river. We had used Airbnbs before and had fine experiences, but this was a very small Airbnb with a very tiny A/C unit that did nothing to help you beat the heat. We were miserably hot and didn’t sleep at all. We joked about how we should have stayed by the river all night.
Tip: Pack light pajamas (or sleep nude if feeling risqué), and bring a small fan. I have started bringing a hand-held fan every time I travel now, and I can’t tell you the amount of times it’s come in handy. My friends have started bringing one too and they have said it’s been a game changer. Our bodies were made to sleep better in cool conditions. Also, be aware that Airbnbs abroad might not be the same as they are where you’re from.
Hopefully these tips encourage you to travel more if you are worried about sleep issues. Traveling truly is the most incredible way to spend your money, meet the coolest people that later become friends, and indulge the most delicious food. When well-rested, you love it all a million times more.
Hi! I'm the founder of Culture With Travel and #CultureTrav. Please chat with us on social media and contribute in the comments! Follow @Nicolette_O
