“The further I go, the closer I get to myself”.
Andrew McCarthy
Hello, young Padawan
The whole team of this blog joins me (we are not alone in my head indeed, but no worries, we are in consensus) to wish you for this new year love, glory and beauty, humor, compassion, travels and to discover the most beautiful places on this planet, others, as well as yourself.
To travel is to accept to lose oneself in order to find oneself better, to put things into perspective as you never could, it is to open one’s heart and soul to innumerable treasures that even Bill Gates could not afford himself, it’s looking at big landscapes (even bigger than Kim Kardashian’s ass!) and it’s especially knowing how to get back to basics: humility. And it will not be harmful in these Instagram times.
I can already hear you moaning: “but I do not have the money,” “but I have no holidays,” ” but I had a baby, this year it is impossible, “and blah blah. Blah. Except that you’re wrong, my little Padawan. Traveling is not necessarily going to the edge of the earth, it is knowing how to open your eyes, no matter where you are. Do not forget that on every thousand-year-old stone you put your delicate feet on, there is probably a globetrotter who stepped on first, with a backpack and a propeller beanie cap. Yes, I like the picture — Super Mario in backpacker mode.
So even if you live in Hell (not far from Ann Arbor, Mi. ed), you can just leave your house, put on sneakers and discover your neighborhood. A street where you’ve never been before, a park in front of which you just come before each evening, a nice wood in the neighborhood (if you live in Europe and you see some gentleman-ladies in this wood, lightly dressed in the middle of winter, spinning their purses, turn around, I’ll explain to you in a future post if you want). In short, you do not have to go to Acapulco for sightseeing. Maybe in your city, you have a beautiful church or old buildings that deserve to be honored by your presence, a small museum that does not look anything special but that will turn out to be entertaining, beautiful places you did not know they exist. So move your ass, put your mittens on and go on the discovery of your state, or discover your mitten state (I know, if there was an Oscar for rotten puns, I would’ve had one a long time ago, ed).
End of this little plea for your neighborhood and now time for those who intend to make a trip this year, or those who want to know a bit more about the “how not to be tired when you travel to a country where the people do not live at your time, or when you come back from it”.
prepare your suitcase effectively to leave in peace
Give all the chances to your journey by having an efficient packing of your suitcase. I invite you to have a look at my article on the subject. You’re welcome. Now you are not overstocked by useless stuff, you have not forgotten anything and the assurance of having everything necessary in flight and on your vacation spot, but no frills, great. Let’s move to the next.
Sleeping during the flight, only if it’s time in the destination country
To know what time it is in each country where you go: On a map, all the cities on your left (West) are before your time, and so logically, all the towns on your right (East) are late of your time. So if you live in London you are one hour late on Paris’ time. If you live in Detroit, you are ahead from Los Angeles but late from Paris to celebrate new year’s eve.
Editor’s note: And if you travel in March or October, inquire about time changes.
The ultimate tactic as simple as a pie: as soon as you put your behind in your plane and before turning off your phone, look what time it is overthere. And from that moment, adopt the time of the people’s country you are going.
It’s 11 pm in New York when you leave Amsterdam? Warn the hostesses not to disturb you (after picking a bottle of water) and do your best to nap as long as you can. Or at least close your eyes and rest. Lucky you, it will also allow you to fast during the flight. Fasting is the best way to tame your jet lag.
Also, plan to do a little three hours nap at home before boarding the plane if you know you can not sleep during flight.
It is midday in Singapore when you leave Geneva? If you wish: Bon appétit.
And so on.
You have your ass blocked on your seat, take advantage of it: the more conditioned you will be and at best your vitality will be on arrival. Also avoid, if you do not want to fast, to overeat their industrial food. It is not nourishing, better wait until you arrive to get a nice orgy of fruits and vegetables (According to the country of destination: beware of the tourista).
Stay hydrated during the flight
And I am not talking about alcohol. I know they have wine and beer in planes, but I assure you this is the last bullshit to do. But I’m not your father my little Padawan (hey hey !! Have you noticed the reference?!, Ed) you do what you want.
Already outside the plane, you know that alcohol dehydrates your body, so imagine during a flight with the atmosphere of the cabin. No, do not imagine, and drink water. You’ll have plenty of time to enjoy (get drunk) on your vacation spot.
No coffee (exciting), no sweet drinks (acidifying and not good for your pancreas). Water, braveheart, water only. I know you hate me. I love you too.
And fast, if you can. I know, I love you too.
Force yourself to take the pace as soon as you step outside the plane
It’s 7 pm in NYC, but 1 am for you? Do not go to bed. Do the check in at your hotel (beware of the hot shower, it’s not great for blood circulation within 3-4 hours after landing, it’s better to take it after) and go out for dinner. You are exhausted? Yes, it is normal, but force yourself as much as possible, ideally do not go to bed before 10 pm. No computer, no phone, no tablets, you must avoid the blue lights that are bad for your hormones, including melatonin.
Thus, you will do a normal sleep cycle and wake up at the same hour as the local guy. I advise the most comatose or insomniacs of us to still have an alarm clock at 8 am local time, to take the pace smoothly.
You land at 11 am in Paris, and you come from Michigan? It’s 5 am for you. You have “slept” on the plane, unless you have not thought about my tip, the hostesses may have bothered you every 2 hours and made you eat industrial foods, you’re worn out.
But do not go to sleep, think back to your youth where you made sleepless nights at ease with a peach complexion (how’s that, “shut up”?) And force yourself to move. Put your suitcase at the hotel and go for a walk outside. Of course, nothing intellectual, the Louvre has been there for several hundred years so it will wait for you.
Expose yourself in daylight as much as possible
Why do you have to go outside, night and day? Because the more you will be exposed to the natural light of the day (or night) and the faster your body will regulate itself. We adapt ourselves naturally to the sun since we, humans, have circadian rhythms.
And also, if any, do not expose yourself to blue lights a few hours before bedtime because they inhibit the production of melatonin.
Periods and traveling
No, I will not talk about punctuation here. As explained above, our metabolic rate in general and hormonal in particular is circadian. That is to say that it regulates on 24 hours.
So you will have guessed, hormone production can be disrupted with jet lag, including estrogen and progesterone because we are suddenly exposed to light (or night) at a different time than usual for us. So do not panic if you are late (be sure of your shot anyway, if you know what I mean …) or if you are ahead of your cycle. It can also be shorter or longer (shit … yes I know, ed).
To help you take stock of your cycle and understand yourself a bit better, there is an excellent free application on smartphones called “clue”, available on iPhone and Android. I use it for several years and it is very useful for me to know “what” to pack or not in my suitcase, or “schedule” my private moments, if you know what I mean (the happy owners of uteruses will understand me here). Xo.
Work out
If you do a night flight (from the point of view of the destination country, try to follow) but it is too much day here at the takeoff, before going to the airport, I advise you one hour minimum of active swimming. Or you can do your favorite sport, but swimming works well to sleep, I assure you. You can also try to spar and be knocked out haha! Nap insured.
If you’re tired on the spot, or on your way back, a good work out session with some good music sets the record straight, if I may say.
Well, if with all this you do not manage your jet lag and do not enjoy your trip (and your return …), I will go swimming naked at Lake St Clair in the middle of January! Backstroke! #notevenafraid
Xo, Wanderlust ✈️
Annecy Lake, Haute-Savoie, France.