Being Open to New Experiences: Because Horse Pizza Deserves a Chance š“š
Because the best stories donāt come from sticking to the familiar.
Travel is, at its heart, all about discovery. New places, new people/culture, and new foods. Yet for almost all of us, change is uncomfortable to at least some degree. Routines feel safe, and itās human instinct to stick close to what we know. Real meaningful growth, however, comes from stepping into the unfamiliar.
In recent weeks, Iāve written about the power of saying yes and the surprising strength of saying no. But being open to new things is a little different than just saying yes or no. Itās not just about the binary of yes or no, itās about cultivating a mindset that sees difference not as a threat, but as an opportunity.
Iāll admit, I wasnāt always good at this. I grew up in one of the places in the U.S. with the highest number of people who still lived in the state they were born in. Thenā¦I started traveling. (Side note: nobody would be surprised that my first international trip was to the USSRā¦go big or go homeā¦) Suddenly, things that would have seemed unimaginable at home became invitations.
Recently, I was sitting in a restaurant in Sardinia, staring down a pizza topped with what a friend told me was the local specialty cavallo ā horse meat.
When I started traveling, I wouldnāt have even considered it. I turned down many āweirdā foods during my time in the Soviet Union, but here, it was just another ingredient and a chance to broaden my horizons. I ordered it. Was it the best thing Iād ever eaten? Probably not. But was it worth the experience? Absolutely. It was a door into the local culture that reminded me that the value set I take for granted isnāt necessarily universal.
That same willingness to step past fear carried me forward. At Victoria Falls, I found myself strapped into a bungee cord, toes over the edge, heart pounding.
One leap later, I knew Iād probably never do it again, but I also knew that I was capable of more risk than Iād given myself credit for. That knowledge made it easier to say yes later on when opportunities came that felt equally daunting. I still havenāt jumped out of a perfectly good plane either, butā¦
Then there was the time I signed up to climb Mt. Kinabalu in Malaysia The trail was less of a hike and more of a vertical scramble in many places, grabbing at roots while rain turned the mountain into a mudslide. Halfway up I wondered if Iād lost my mind. But by the summit, I felt a satisfaction that only comes from doing something hard and unfamiliar.
Of course, not every ānew thingā turns into a passion. In New Zealand I tried whitewater sledging. Imagine rafting, but without the raft while wearing a wetsuit to protect you from the freezing water and hockey gear to protect you from the rocks youāll inevitably slam into.
Just me, a tiny board, category 4 rapids, and a raging river. It was exhilarating in the moment and absolutely miserable the second I got tossed upside down. Well, not the second because there were many of them, butā¦Once was plenty. Maybe.
And not everything new is adrenaline. Sometimes itās about exposure to realities youād rather pretend werenāt part of the world. In Afghanistan, standing among rusting Soviet tanks in the Panjshir Valley, I felt the weight of history and conflict in a way no headline or media story could ever deliver.
Was opening myself up to that experience uncomfortable, absolutely, but it was also groundingā¦a reminder that travel isnāt just about chasing thrills. Sometimes itās about deliberately about making ourselves uncomfortable and growing from it.
Then there are moments of awe that you experience and never let go of. Like the time in Zambia when I found myself close enough to a lioness that I could actually hear her deep raspy breath.
No fence, no glass, just raw nature and me sitting quietly, heart pounding. Sure, theyāre not known to attack safari vehicles, but that doesnāt change much. It wasnāt so much a new experience as it was a reminder that there are still plenty of places/experiences in this world where weāre not āin chargeā and thatās ok.
The more I said yes to these kinds of moments, the more I wanted them. Some were delicious, some terrifying, some sobering, and some magical. Each stretched me a little further out of my comfort zone, and each left me changed and a richer, more-experienced person.
Being open to new things doesnāt mean saying yes to everything, nor does it mean you canāt say no. It means testing yourself, figuring out which new doors are worth walking through, and learning something every time. Sometimes youāll love it, sometimes once is enough, and sometimes youāll discover your limits. But in all cases, youāll grow.
Your turn: Whatās something new you tried while traveling that surprised you? And whatās the one thing you tried once and swore ānever againā? Are there still doors you havenāt open that just maybe itās worth trying?