Traveling to Foreign Countries

As I’ve mentioned before, we love to travel and recently we have visited countries that we have never been to before.

Even though we like to visit the tourist spots, we also like to see the areas outside the tourist spots. I like to see how the average person lives compared to my own country. One way to do this is to visit their local grocery store. We look at produce and candy to see what different items we can find.

When we go to different countries, we try to learn how to say thank you in their language. This can really go a long way to making locals feel like you are making an effort to be polite. If I forget to look it up, I usually ask a police officer we see or at the first place we buy something. When we get off the bus, we thank the bus driver. If we buy something in the store, we thank the cashier.

I also ask if I can take photos if I’m in a specialty shop and tell the people that I want to share this lovely place with my friends back home. Usually, they have no problem with this and appreciate that I ask in advance. If you are in a museum or tourist place, make sure you are allowed to take photos before you take them.

Try to use the local currency if possible. Usually, it is cheaper to use their currency than using your currency. You seem to get a better exchange rate when using their money.

Keep in mind that there are many places where you have to pay to use public toilets. Usually, if you buy something from a fast food place like a drink, there is a code on your receipt that allows you to use the bathroom. Sometimes we have found a tourist information place or a library that has a free public bathroom. Recently we went to a Hard Rock Café in Helsinki, Finland and they had a free bathroom.

Have you traveled to a foreign country? What advice would you give?

Original photo by Pat Hensley