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Some Answers for First-Time International Travelers: Part 1

February 19, 2013 at 7:58 PM | by | Comments (0)

Confession: I'm far, far away in Turkey right now. It's a country that's new to me and new to one of my good friends. There's more. This friend arrived to America as a young child and, ever since, hasn't ventured outside the confines of three US states. Now she's in Turkey with her first passport stamp. Watching her learn and interact I can practically see little lightbulbs go on above her head as realizations about the world—the one outside her world—strike.

She's not stupid. Far from it. She's just completely new to travel, having been kept grounded by passport obtainment issues and then higher and higher education.

Sometimes I really must step back and assess the tidbits of knowledge and international etiquette I myself have absorbed simply by stepping into a variety of airplanes, airports, continents. What now comes naturally to me is still quite daunting to the amateur traveler. I'm answering her questions and I'm learning as well. So I'm keeping a list of these answers. Here's some:

· Not all airports have free WiFi (she's totally spoiled by JetBlue's Terminal 5 at JFK).

· Not all airplanes have seatback TV screens with satellite programming (again, spoiled by JetBlue).

· Flight attendants generally don't care about: in which bin you stow your carryon; the fact you're vegetarian unless you've ordered a special meal in advance; that you really have to pee while we're on an active runway; that the onboard coffee sucks.

· Speaking a little more quietly, more reverently than the usual loud, affable American volume can make all the difference.

· Airports are big. Big airports don't necessarily have golfcarts, or even moving walkways, to get you from gate to gate.

· Cruise ships are massive. They are like floating skyscrapers and yes, over 3,000 people regularly fit in just one. It's crazy, I know.

· International Starbucks often offer different things, both drinks- and pastry-wise, but they will always have WiFi!

· There's no way to switch TV programming between languages. The shows are either dubbed or subtitled or in one language, and that's that.

· Jet lag is a very real thing. Drinking lots of water is definitely the best way to help beat it, as everyone says.

Note: all this was only after two days. Check out Part 2 for the rest of the trip.

[Photo: Bryansblog]

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