Nathan Stefanovsky, BSN, RN, Primary Care Family Nurse Practitioner Doctor of Nursing Practice Student
Attended UMSN Clinical Field Experience in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand (Fall 2019)
Where ever you go, there you are. This is quote I once heard from a distance traveler, who found herself wondering how she got to be in the position she was in. She had been traveling to “find herself” but ironically was unable to do so. The circumstances leading up to this sort of comment are, however, not uncommon. For me, in my many travel experiences, I have found myself, but it was certainly not because I was looking for myself. Perhaps, it has been through the process of self-expIoration, curiosity, challenges, and/or indulgences that has led me to a point of understanding and clarity of what meaningful travel is. I have been fortunate to travel with family, friends, myself, and random strangers I met along the way.
Tha Ang Village, Thailand
When observing others while traveling there is a sense of wonder of the purpose of peoples’ travel. Is it to create meaningful experiences in someone’s life or is it simply self-indulgent? In a way, when you travel, one must imagine you are an ambassador for your country. How would you want other people to perceive you if this was the case? I ponder how one can successfully travel and fully integrate into the setting that they are in. It is this idea of traveling with purpose, but to be fully cognizant of this purpose, while maintaining a level of cultural humility and respect for every person around you. Cultures are colorful, people are rich and vibrant, and I think it is safe to say that each person is their own culture. It’s as if there are currently 7.5 billion cultures! And this is what makes the world beautiful. If we respect this idea, there is so much to learn from each other. Traveling outside your comfort zone where the language, beliefs, customs, social structures, the way we perceive and understand the world, the people, and the cuisine are all unknown, and in some cases unnatural yet creates a sense of awe. Trying or experiencing something new you have never seen or done before builds those new neural connections to the possibility of what is and what can be.
I believe global experiences work to foster a foundation of humility, openness, and acceptance of others. Of all the experiences in my life, each of my travel experiences have been the most unique and enriching. I have learned to become more patient and to welcome the uncertainty. I have had to learn an “anything goes” approach and that can be challenging for many. And this can be challenging for me especially at times when something is completely out of the scope of my experiences. Because of my adventurous spirit, I think about how to balance my self-interest while leaving something positive behind in global experiences (self-fulling vs. giving back to the communities).
There are always things to reflect on. Whether it is something recent that happened or something that happened ten years ago. Occasionally, I find myself having an “a-ha” moment as I think back to the ‘one time in that one country’. It is the moment where all the dots connect. My most recent trip to Thailand reignited a flame inside of me. On my first few excursions traveling to the Thailand, I was more in the “traveler-mode”. I made friends with the local people of the communities I stayed in and the relationships felt meaningful but temporary as I had to continue on my journey. Thailand at the time felt like it catered more to tourism, making it feel less “authentic” *. This is a challenge that comes with having limited time to travel and only being able to visit a few areas. I am a curious person and I value relationships with people and the world around me. Since then, I have invested a lot more time in learning about the cultural heritage of the places I visit. This includes their history, arts, cuisine, religion, and the natural environment, which all seem to shape various communities in different ways. While we stayed in Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat), I had the time to develop relationships with both the students and faculty and learn about life through their eyes. I was able to learn what their eyes see. This is something I missed on my first few go-arounds. These relationships are a vital component to allowing yourself to be best person you can be, while increasing cultural awareness. During previous travels, I may not have been looking in the right place, skewed from my own faculties of something that was right in front of me. I believe that one cannot fully integrate his/herself into a new place unless they let go of their comforts of home that may be customary to them in their home country. They have to embrace the fear of uncertainty and take a step into the unknown. For this experience, Thailand and the people I met will always hold a place in my soul. It is these experiences I live for and grow from and I hope that this idea can be reciprocated.
For future travel experiences, understanding and learning about a country, whether it is the geography, the cuisine, the history or even the weather, will allow for a better integration. For people who have never traveled before, a new place that is outside their normal conveniences of life can be overwhelming. It can be sensory overload leaving these people confused and distraught because of the lack of coping skills. On the other hand, it is important to debrief, since everyone’s experiences and reason to go traveling to another place are different. There are always challenging experiences and amazing experiences. It is important to be able to discuss these events, so you are not stuck on a mental island, trying to understand how you have grown based only on your life experiences. Most importantly, learning how to travel, not as a tourist, but as someone with a level of cultural humility and awareness, only makes the experience richer, while preserving your image in that society and respecting the people you interact with.
*When I think of this word, I think of an idea that I am a guest in someone’s home, and I should be cognizant of this and act accordingly (i.e. being respectful). If I do this, then hopefully the opposite party will reciprocate as if they are the host. This establishes a relationship to learn and grow with each other. This was the relationship I had experienced in other countries in Southeast Asia and Indonesia, but I didn’t feel this as much in Thailand until I got farther north due to the proximity of tourism in the central and southern regions of Thailand.
