3 Easy Ways to Experience a Different Culture

Cultures have always fascinated me. One of the main reasons to travel is to experience different cultures. My dream is to become a world traveler and document my journey with photos. I will collect those photos in an album and name it “Around the World Journal”. Maybe even publish it someday… Dreams aside, here are 3 easy ways that you can use to get your culture experience. 

1. Try their food.

Choose a culture or country that you want to know about and find out what kind of cuisine they eat. You can go to a restaurant and enjoy the cultural ambiance, or if you know a friend from that country, you can ask him/her to cook for you. This way you will be able to see the process of preparing the food. I have tried both methods to learn Indian culture. My Indian friends have taken me to an authentic Indian restaurant and they said that it was exactly like restaurants in India. It’s amazing how much you can learn about them from their food!

2. Listen to their music.

You can go with either traditional or modern music, it depends on your interest. Every country has its own music style influenced by culture. So you should definitely listen to some music if you want to learn about their culture.

3. Watch their movies.

Movies are reflections of real life. In my French Language and Culture class, my professor shows French movies every class. She shows only about 10 minutes of the movie but we can always observe so much about French culture.
 

I have one more suggestion but I didn't list it into the “3 easy ways” because it might not be that easy for some people. It is trying on their traditional clothes. Seeing what their clothes are like and actually trying them on is absolutely a wonderful experience. I was lucky to have an opportunity to try on an Indian wedding dress last year and I finally understood why my Indian friends stress so much about their 7-day wedding.

Hope these easy methods can help you learn more about the culture that you are interested in! Have a great Spring break.  

Fly Like a Kite

This morning I saw a friend’s status saying: 

"Here's where I've been when I was 5, 10, 15 and 20 years old: London, UK; London, UK; London, UK; New Jersey, US." 

Many people shared the post and traced their own footprint along with it. I thought that was very interesting because I realized that I was in three different countries at those ages. So here goes mine, 

"Qingdao, China; Grimsby, UK; Qingdao, China; New Jersey, US.” 

I’m imagining writing this down twenty years later… Hmm… just made me so excited about my future!

When I look at the first 20 years of my life, I cannot deny that my parents are great influences on me. They provided me with a home where I could feel free and secure, but they weren't afraid of letting me explore new things. They encouraged me to be courageous and curious towards new things, and they would always stand behind me so that I would feel protected when I stepped out. Although they made a lot of sacrifices for me, they have never given up pursuing their dreams. Unlike many Asian parents, making every effort to ensure the success of their children, my parents did not make me feel that I was the center of their life and thus I don’t feel the pressure to impress them with my achievements. I’m so thankful that they didn't stop pursuing their dream for me.

We moved to England when I was ten because my parents were admitted into a school there. Their friends told them that it was important for me to receive a stable education in China, but they trusted me and knew I could handle facing the new environment. I went to the UK with only a few English words. All three of us were students at that time and that encouraged me to learn and adapt to the English speaking environment. After one year, they finished their study and decided to move back. Friends and family said that they were silly. Apparently it was many people’s dream to immigrate to western countries, but it wasn't my parents’. I went back to Qingdao, my home town, and started catching up on coursework. That was the time when my Math and Science knowledge were laid solidly.

I realized that I’m like a kite flying in the sky, and no matter how high I fly they always hold my string tight in their hands. This gives me power to fly even higher in the sky because I have security of knowing they will never let go of my string.

Road Trip and Spring Break

Counting down the days guys… I can’t wait for Spring Break! This year’s Spring Break I’ll be able to fulfill my dream of going on a road trip, SO EXCITED! You have probably seen the movie Elizabethtown by Orlando Bloom and Kirsten Dunst. Well I fell in love with the road trip scene in the end of the movie. It must be epic to see beautiful sceneries fly by the car window while listening to your favorite songs. Road trip can help releasing all the tensions from work, study and anything that stresses you.

This Spring break, I'm going to Virginia with seven other good friends. I've been there last Spring break and loved it so much. If you ask me what I will do there, I really don’t know the answer… Last time we just chilled and didn't do anything! It was a break from the busy school work we had, so we didn't want to be stressed with where to visit.So that was a real break for us! We stayed in a cozy beach house and cooked two meals a day. We tried to sleep as much as we want and eat as healthy as possible. During the day, we would walk to the beach, play volleyball, make sand castles and do some photo shooting. I think this kind of vacation is what I need right now, and with the road trip, it’s just going to be AWESOME!

Plus I need to see some sunshine after New Jersey’s long winter… 8 days to go guys!Hope you all have some amazing plans for Spring break. As long as it makes you relaxed, it doesn't matter what you do.  

How to Plan for an Interesting Vacation

I love vacations, and I don’t think anyone doesn't  But planning is very essential in making the vacation interesting to you. Let me share my planning procedure with you all!

• Choose a destination. 

     Choosing the right destination can make your trip more enjoyable and     memorable. There aren't many rules in how to choose it; you choose wherever you feel like going! For instance, I like to go to tropical places during winter because I can escape from the cold weather and wear pretty summer clothes, and also most tropical places’ winter is more comfortable than summer; summer can be unbearably hot and humid but winter is warm and dry. But this is not always the case, sometimes I feel like to go to somewhere that’s covered in snow and go for skiing and see ice sculptures. You can have millions of reasons of why you want to go somewhere, but be sure that you know that is the place you want to go.

• Do I have enough money? 

     Ask yourself this question before going. This can be a factor that you choose your destinations. Maybe you want to go for a place that’s cheap airfare. Although people say that money isn't everything, it does get on people’s nerves sometimes. You don’t want to go to a place and find out that your money can only pays half of the trip. My parents always say to me that I should never be cheap on myself when traveling. It’s hard to avoid money spending during vacation so it’s really important to plan ahead and make sure that you can afford this trip. If you are going to another country, calculate the currency and exchange some money for that.

• Find out your interests. 

     Everyone has different interests and hobbies. It would make more sense to visit somewhere that interests you. Despite that some people find museums boring, they still visits museums only because that they think they should go to museums if they visit Europe. It wouldn't be fun to visit somewhere that doesn't meet your interest, so why force yourself; after all you pay to have a good time. 

Hope these tips are useful to you. Enjoy your week guys!

10 Things that You Need in Traveling

Traveling is fun, but it also requires a lot of preparation before departing. Being in another city or country or any whole new environment, I would like to see that there's nothing left behind. It just gives me confidence! I remember once I forgot to bring my hair brush to a conference in Portland Maine, I was much more nervous before my presentation than usual. Little things like this may have a great influence on my mood I realized. However, I don’t like to over pack stuff and bring a huge suitcase when everyone else only brings a duffle bag.
I have 10 items that I would bring with me and they have made my travel experience so much more relaxing and convenient! 

1. ID or passport. This is the most important item when you travel. You will need it in the airport, bus station, liquor store... Take it but don't loose it!
2. Some money. This is also the most important thing. Don't ask why...
3. Adapter or transformer plug. If you are traveling to a foreign country, be sure to take this. It won't take too much space and you will need it to charge your phone, laptop and other electronic devices. Some countries have different plugs than America, and some have different voltage, so you need it!
4. Medicine. If you are aware of your minor illnesses or allergies, it would be smart to carry some medicine with you.
5. A camera or a photographer friend. Personally I can't travel without this. Viewing the world through a camera is so amazing and looking at the pictures afterwards is even more fun. If you are not a big fan of photography, just take some with your phone, you will enjoy looking at those pictures later on. 
6. A water bottle. Drink more water so that you don't get sake while having too much fun.
7. A pair of comfortable walking shoes. Shoes are important especially when you are traveling. 
8. One electronic device. Yes one is enough! It can be a laptop, an iPod or a smart phone... anything that you use to inform your family that you're alive.
9. A casual bag. So that you don't need to drag your suitcase everywhere.
10. Any personal items. Contact lenses, make up and whatever you need daily, BRING IT!

Hotel Transylvania

What do you usually bring when you travel?

Travel Tips: Right Time and Right Place

Spring break is coming up, so my friends are planning a trip to Virginia. One thing that’s not in favor to us is the price of hotel room. I can’t believe how much they raise the price during Spring break period; it’s almost twice as much as usual! We could probably save 200 dollars if we were going one month before.

Choosing the right time to travel is very important; sometimes it will lower your cost, and other times it will give you a unique experience of the culture.

A few years ago, a friend from America visited me in February. She came around the time of Chinese New Year, and that was definitely not the appropriate time to visit. During the Chinese New Year, most businesses are closed, so there isn't much to do for tourists. Since it’s the time for family gathering, people from every city want to get back home before the New Years Eve, and as a result, the train stations, airports and bus stations are packed with homesick crowds. Tickets are sold out in one second during this time, so if you travel during this time, it might delay your schedule. There isn't much going on except for the New Year customs. And to be involved in this you need to know someone local. Staying in their house and having New Year’s food would be an awesome experience, but as Benjamin Franklin said “Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days”. Although we did host my friend warmly, it would be more convenient if she had visited two weeks later.

On the other hand, France, Trinidad, Brazil and many other countries have their carnivals in February, and they love to have tourists joining to the party. Mardi Gras, French for “fat Tuesday”, is a celebration before Ash Wednesday. It is not hard to tell that food plays a big role in Mardi Gras. Along with delicious food, people also wear costumes and masks to celebrate. It’s one of the biggest carnivals for many countries in Europe and South America.

It is important to do research before you make the decision of when and where to visit. Back to my Spring break planning, hopefully we can find a cheaper hotel…

A Travel Review of Hong Kong

I've been to Hong Kong several times in my life. The first time was at the age of 6 and I've been in love with this amazing city since then. Hong Kong is located on the Southeast coast of China. It was a colony of England until 1997, thus you don’t have to worry at all if you don’t know their language, in fact, Hong Kong is a bilingual city; most people speak English and public signs are also translated into English. But don’t get me wrong, Hong Kong is not a westernized city at all! You can still find old Hong Kong style streets with open market selling food, snacks, groceries and all kinds of stuff. Some of the famous local restaurants are located in those streets; they might look very old and small, but trust me, they are very good!

Food is a big thing in Hong Kong. People even go to sit-down restaurants for breakfast; they call it the “morning tea”. There are hundreds of choices for “morning tea”. One time I had 15 dishes with two of my friends for breakfast. Well the portion of each dish is nothing comparing to restaurants in America, so that people can order more and enjoy the variety of food. So take a walk outside in the morning and find some street food to eat, don’t be lazy and order breakfast to your hotel room!

If you love shopping, Hong Kong would be a paradise for you. As far as I know, some people go to Hong Kong just for shopping. It is a place where you can find both western products and eastern brands, and the prices of some products, comparing to main land China, are much cheaper.

There are so much that you can do in Hong Kong, just like you will never get bored in New York. Thus, I would definitely recommend Hong Kong as a five-star tourist city.