The Things We Do - Day 7

What I Learned This Year = Hobbies & Interests

My most absorbing hobby of 2017 was probably traveling. This blog post would not be sufficient to tell you how much I enjoy traveling and how much I gained from traveling in Asia (China, Japan and Korea) this summer. However, I will try to pass on some highlights about what I experienced and learned.

1) Americans' perceptions of Asia do not match the reality. For example, many people have asked me about my safety while I was traveling. I felt more safe traveling in Asia than I have in many countries in Europe. And that's just not my opinion. Japan ranks in the top 10 safest countries in the world; the U.S. doesn't even make it into the top 25 (http://www.worldatlas.com/articles/safest-countries-in-the-world.html). Safety, food, politics...the average American (including myself!) just doesn't have a very accurate view of many Asian countries.

The ferry line in Japan - people just leave their bags to hold their place while they eat or sit down to relax.

2) Trusting (rather than fearing) strangers is a better way to live. I've been a fan and participant in Couchsurfing for a while now. And I still love it. I love the way opening your home up to strangers changes you and the way that you see the world. I stayed at many people's homes and hosted a few surfers myself in 2017.

3) Spend more time in gardens. I visited a lot of gardens while traveling and I loved every one of them. Walking through serene, harmonious nature is good for the mind and the body. The next time life is getting you down, take some time to walk through a garden.

Garden in Hiroshima, Japan