Oh, the People You’ll Meet
Take a trip down memory lane with me this weekend
I was recently thinking a bit about all of the characters I have encountered through my adventures.
Travel is fun because you get to see beautiful things and eat unusual food, generally enjoying new experiences.
One of the surprises for many travelers, I have observed, is how much they enjoy the people they meet, both other travelers and locals.
I am actually painfully shy in reality, even if most people don’t think that could be true. My mother used to bribe me to talk to strangers-no kidding! She’d give me money to buy cookies at McDonald’s and make me order them, just so I would interact with other people. I’ve worked hard to overcome that, but it’s still there on some level.
So, being in a realm where I have to talk to strangers on a daily basis, often in a foreign language, has been an interesting challenge over the years. I share this personal detail mostly because I want to encourage other shy people to try to break out of that shell while traveling. Being friendly and open, striking up conversation with locals whenever the opportunity presents itself, this is a skill that pays off in incredible ways. Believe me, I’ve got crazy stories about people I’ve met. Lots of them. Here are a few of my favorites from a trip a few years ago in Italy…