01 May 3 Simple Steps to Prepare to Blog Abroad

In the world we live in today, where quotes about traveling by any means necessary laid over-top of dreamy pictures make daily appearances in you social media feeds, where you can’t do a Google search about a place without coming across the travel blog with a rundown of travel tips, where announcing your past and future travel plans are met with statements of jealousy, it can be easy for your blog to fall into a cycle and habit of being a bit of a travel diary.

But, your blog can provide so much more. It can act as a bridge of cultural connection, especially in a time when people seems to want to isolate themselves more. Taking the time to seek out cross-cultural experiences and subsequently sharing these observations may take a little more effort than a restaurant review, however, it will enrich your writing and your audience’s experience.

With these three simple steps, you’ll be on your way to writing more meaningful blog posts focused on cross-cultural understanding. They’re perfect for thinking about in between packing, or for reflecting on when you’ve returned. With a bit of foresight, incorporating culture into your travel and increasing your own understanding of the host culture is easy.

Step 1: Prepare

Take a moment and think about your blog. What kind of voice does it have? Who is your target audience? What are the kinds of things that you already focus on? Take a moment and jot these down. If you haven’t started a blog yet, think about and write down what you want the answers to be. These are going to help guide you in how you write about culture.

Once you have a rough idea of your own personal blogging style, do a bit of research related to your destination. Check out the CIA World Factbook to find a nugget of information that you want to investigate more. Do a Google search for the holidays of the country you’re going to. Check out some globally focused online magazines like Wanderlust or Roads & Kingdoms and see what has been written about before and what you’d like to explore. Think of this as priming the pump; by thinking about culture before you go, you’ll be more attuned to noticing things once you are there.

Guidebooks are also a great research resource and often include some culture tips

As a last bit of preparation, double check that you are familiar with all of the equipment that you’ll be using to document your experiences. If you’ve gotten a new camera, get comfortable with the menus and settings. Figure out if it takes a long time for your camera to turn on before it’s ready to shoot or not. If you focus on writing, get comfortable having a note-taking method handy, whether it’s a note app on your smart phone or a small notebook and pen. If your intentions are to share your experiences with the wider world, you don’t want to find yourself at a once-a-year ceremony fumbling with your camera.

Step 2: Observe and Experience

When you’re traveling, it can be really easy to want to find things and places that feel familiar and comfortable. You can find yourself ordering pizza and french fries at every opportunity or turning down invitations from locals to their house in favor of going back to your hotel. Resist those urges as much as possible! Many of the greatest cultural experiences come from simply saying “yes” to what may sound like a crazy, off-the-wall offer. Culture comes in many forms, but one of the best ways is through a human connection and interaction. Even if it means missing out on a day at a museum, consider taking every opportunity to connect with local people.

[Side note: trust your gut on any invitation or interaction that feels uncomfortable. Do not feel obligated to say yes to someone who is coercing you into something or that feels off.]

If there are any local holidays or festivals happening during your time abroad, make it a point to attend and participate. Find the location of the festivities and get there early. While in many parts of the world, things will not start on time, it gives you time to start making observations and notes for your blog later. It gives you time to notice the space, the smell, the sounds and the activity to describe on your blog later. Find out if there is a way for you to participate in a way that you feel comfortable with, such as lighting a candle or circumambulating or sharing food.

The author participating in a “bai si” ceremony upon her arrival in her new community.

Seek out some of the things that you came across in your pre-trip research. Maybe you read about a traditional handicraft – seek out the artisans. Or you read about a special food or drink ceremony – find a place that provides that experience. Perhaps local music is what really excites you – find a local venue or musician. Your previous research should help point you in the right direction to find these kinds of cultural experiences, but will also help you to have meaningful interactions with them as well. Don’t worry about missing some of the bigger sites in favor of an experience with some local people.

Step 3: Reflect

Whether you trip was a two-week whirlwind or you’ve moved abroad and have set up a life, take time to reflect on your experiences. Think about what place these practices, holidays, foods, handicrafts hold in the culture you visited. Consider how it is different from the culture of your blog’s audience, and consider how it is similar. What attracted you to your experience and what about it made you uncomfortable? What is the story you want to tell?

Reflection can be an ongoing process throughout your time abroad; take a moment each evening to think about what part of the culture you experience that day and how you can tell other people about it. Write these down in a notebook, journal or electronic note. It’s easy to put these things off until well after the fact, but that also makes it easy to forget your impressions and feelings in the moment. You can use these reflections help with further research for elements of things that you didn’t understand.

Daily journaling can help you to remember details to use in blogs posts months later.

Taking the time to think intentionally about your time abroad can help when it comes to writing your blog posts. You may realize that you want to write a serial narrative, connecting everything together; or you may find that it works better for you to break each experience out into separate posts. Keep in mind that you don’t have to share everything in your reflections, but rather they are a useful tools for structuring and formulating posts for your blog.

That’s it!  Keep those three easy steps in mind and you prepare for your next adventure abroad and you’ll be on the right path for a rich and engaging blog. What are you preparing for and what is your method to prepare yourself as a blogger?

This is a guest post by Christine Bedenis, a well-traveled millennial from the Midwest. She is a Returned Peace Corps Volunteer (Thailand), now living and working in Ghana. She was a winner of Peace Corps’s annual Blog It Home contest in 2014. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter.