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| Varkala Beach & the Arabian Sea: Kerala, South India 2012 |
Have you ever returned from a long trip to find yourself
feeling less than ecstatic about being home? You may long for the daily routine
that you’d become accustomed to while away. You may yearn for the landscape,
the flavors, even the scent of the place you recently inhabited. Within the past year, I have managed to spend
more than a 1/3 of my time abroad and I’ve often found myself in a sort of
travel hangover upon returning home. After
my most recent excursion, I was literally making mathematical patterns out of
the shadows on the wall, aching to be elsewhere in the sun. One thing for
certain is that no one is really going to feel your pain. What do you say? “Waaaah…I
miss having banana pancakes and Vietnamese coffee on the beach, swimming in
warm tranquil ocean water until the late afternoon and riding around an island
on a motorbike?” Being hung over after
travel - it’s one of those side effects that no one really spends much time
talking about. So, I decided to share a
few of the mechanisms that I’ve employed to help me to cope with the uneasiness
of returning home.
Staying Active
If you had a routine that you followed before your trip,
start adding the routine back into your regular schedule. I follow a regimen of yoga and an Ayurvedic
diet and I make a point to do my yoga at approximately the same time every
morning. I’ve found the re-establishment
of my routine to be very grounding. Getting enough exercise is always
instrumental in keeping the mind positive and knocking out the post trip blues. In addition to yoga, I also add in other
types of exercise like running, lap swimming and dance classes. There was one day last week where I did my
yoga routine, went for a run, then spent a total of 3 hours walking before
taking a dance class. At the end of the
day, I realized that I need to be cautious about being overly excessive.
Remember: There’s no place like home
Another great thing to do is to remind yourself of all the
things that you love about the place you call home. Sometimes I’ve even pretended to be a tourist
by visiting some of the landmarks where I live and taking photos. I’ve captured some shots of gorgeous sunsets
in my neighborhood. I find it thoroughly
enjoyable to fully immerse myself back into the vibrant cultural mix of my home
city by embracing the artistic and dance communities that I’m a part of.
Probably one of my favorite post trip activities (and one of the first things
that I do immediately upon each return) is to reconnect with family and
friends.
Getting Organized
I’ve found it helpful to clear out some of my belongings
that I no longer use and to do a bit of re-arranging in my flat. Ridding myself
of old stagnant stuff has made the re-adjustment process easier to swallow. I’ve also been keeping things moving forward
by working on my resume/CV and taking some tech classes online. It can be quite uplifting to organize journals
and pictures from the recent trip. At
the moment, I’m still going through photos and arranging them into an event folder
and I’ve been working on some additional writing related to my travel
experiences. It’s a great way to relive the
smiles, the endless white sugary sand, the mesmerizing way that the palms
seemed to always be gently waving to the sky….(sigh)
Pampering Yourself
I’ve always been an advocate for taking time out for a
little pampering. Part of my regular routine involves abyhanga, which is an oil
massage that I sometimes administer in the morning before yoga. Abyhanga provides increased circulation and
increases levels of stamina. Of course
pampering can take many forms…from facials and foot massages to simply preparing
a fresh meal or going for a long bike ride. Whatever pampering may be for you,
remember that taking good care of oneself can make the process of returning
home that much smoother.
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| Choosing the Next Destination....Where to Begin? |
The time in between trips can be particularly hard on you if
you have nomadic tendencies. Making the switch to returning home can be
uncomfortable and sometimes that discomfort can be more than just the jet lag
from a 15 hour time difference. I’ve had several people suggest that a good
remedy for the travel hangover might be to start planning the next trip. I haven’t begun this process yet as I need to
get organized with my work and my flat. However, the next adventure is never
far from the back of my mind.
At any rate, these are just a few tips that have kept me
going when I’ve found myself feeling a bit hung over after an adventure
abroad.
Most important: Stay Positive!
