A habit to help budget travelers

While wandering the earth, youthful travelers often pick up habits. Unfortunately, many of these habits involve drinking, smoking, and doing drugs. While these habits can affect the local population and mare you from gaining the self-awareness you left to home to gain in the first place, not all habits need to be bad. In fact, some habitual addictions can be a good thing.

Though its true sustained exercise isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, this traveler believes that that picking up a small addiction to distance running can aid a person’s travel. While this may seem crazy, a good daily jog can have a multi-faceted affect. First, jogging can bring a sense of balance and schedule to an otherwise chaotic schedule. On top of that, running opens up the ability to see more of the location you are in, while getting a true sense of the local culture.

In the last year of my travel, I have been on countless runs from main cities that give a better perspective of how the local populations actually live. While many tourist destinations have an opaque image of how locals live, getting out of the city gives a candid look at day-to-day life. On top of this, if you are willing to smile, say hello, and allow others to run with you, you are in store for a treat. From youth following sheepishly, to adults who rarely see westerns, a jog outside of the tourist world can be eye opening.

If you are planning on running abroad, make sure you take precautions. Dressing appropriately for the heat, as well as the local culture, can be a dilemma. To curb this, more layers and running in the early mornings or evenings keeps everyone happy. On top of that, make sure you know some street names, your hotel name, and have an ID and some money on you in case of emergency.   Enjoy the run and make sure to be welcoming to encourage local participation!

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