These Are the Moments Why I Travel

I’m currently sitting in a second-floor bar with a fully open side overlooking a volcano in Nicaragua. I’m the only one here (it’s 3pm, but I was hot and wanted a cold Toña, the local Nica beer). I’ve been traveling around this new-to-me country over the last week, and as I sit here solo, listening to club music while the sun shines brightly, I’m reminded that this is why I love traveling. The little moments of where am I? what am I doing? how did I get here? how cools is it that I get to live this LIFE?! A bit of disbelief, amazement, awe, and pride.

Nicaragua has been a wild ride since I arrived. I spent most of my time in Popoyo, a small beach town where I hope to hold a retreat over the next few years. I stayed at a yoga and surf lodge where we shared meals and took classes together, while I still had my own space to breathe and digest. After hosting a week-long (and truly amazing) retreat in Costa Rica this was exactly what I needed. More time in community with life-minded, really interesting and diverse people. Some time on my mat alone and some good sleep. To say I arrived in Nica riding the high of the previous week's retreat would be an understatement. At the same time, I needed a little time to introvert and recharge.

I also visited Laguna de Apoyo, a peaceful spot along a volcanic-created lake for an evening. I ate dinner alone in their tiered decks being in the peaceful jungle and the cool breeze and the DELICIOUS mango tart (their specialty). Now I’m in the colonial city of Granada, with some side trips to volcanoes and tiny lake islands done to continue to connect with the earth, the locals, and a new place. I’ve loved my time here its bittersweet wrapping up my last day.

I love Nicaragua and can't wait to come back. And, I’ve had a few experiences that really hit me with sadness, a touch of fear, and wanting to understand more. I’ve traveled to over 30 countries and almost all the U.S. states, many of them alone. I’ve come to realize that almost every place is filled with really good people. Yet once in a while, things happen that feel hard, whether hard to understand or hard to accept. Here, I’ve been tested with both. I don’t need to get into details, as both were quick moments in the grand scope of my time here, but they are reminders that life is challenging for a lot of people. It doesn’t mean the people or the place are bad. To me, more than anything, they served as reminders of quite the opposite. That the world is big and complex and beautiful and diverse and good. And that we are ALL HUMAN.

When I travel, I try really hard to both appreciate cultural differences and see our shared humanity. I travel to learn, to understand, to experience. To see things in new ways and to become more aware of the world outside my bubble on Cape Cod. I truly believe that when we travel with this viewpoint, we grow our empathy and understanding. Not in a way that wants to change what we don’t like or impose how we would do things at home. But in a way that says, “Oh yeah, things can work differently and still be really cool.” And people everywhere are brilliant, especially the people of Nicaragua.

So here I am, sitting at the intersection of appreciating differences and seeing our common thread of humanity. Of me being who I am and knowing that me judging or immediately reacting isn’t the answer. What is? Patience. An open perspective. A smile. Trying to find common ground, both in the Spanish language and in the way things are here and everywhere I go.

Everything feels foreign and, at the same time, familiar. I feel safe and held, knowing there are good people here who have pride in where they live, and who want to share it, along with all the other travelers I’ve met along the way. That’s the adventure. That’s what keeps me getting off my little peninsula of Cape Cod and out into the world.