It’s the middle of the night in Iran as well as I have to go to the bathroom, which occurs to be down the hallway.
Great.
Where’s my long-sleeved shirt, pants as well as shoes?
Fumbling around in the dark I try to get dressed without waking up Nick. I browse for my headscarf as well as wrap it around my hair to make sure that no strands are showing. By this point, I’ve virtually burst by the time I make it to the toilet!
quick ahead to Belize, four months later…
It’s the middle of the night as well as I have to go to the bathroom, which occurs to be outside.
Great.
I get out of bed using my teeny small bedtime shorts, tight storage tank top as well as no shoes. I open the door as well as leave. I’ve made it to the shower room easily, quietly as well as without bursting at the seams!
What a difference.
I’m absolutely going to requirement to utilize the shower room in the middle of the night after this huge drink
We had a realization the other day. during our four years of travelling, Nick as well as I have generally spent our time in conventional regions: Asia, Africa, the middle east as well as the Sub-Continent, as well as we’ve (I’ve) had to travel around being mindful of exactly how we (I) act as well as dress.
In Southeast as well as northern Asia, some women wear short shorts, sleeveless tops as well as tight-fitting clothing, however they generally don’t show any type of cleavage.
Couples abstain from showing any type of affection when in public, even holding hands is uncommon.
In China especially, it’s unusual to see regional women drinking alcohol. We both like to “do as the locals do”, so we refrained from showing affection in public as well as I barely showed any type of cleavage, however I did drink alcohol!
You won’t see any type of cleavage at this dumpling celebration in China
In Africa, it was normal to see women using whatever they wanted. Although, parts of the continent are Muslim as well as as a result we had to gown accordingly. We rarely, if ever, saw regional couples showing public screens of affection.
It was typical to see African women in tank-tops
In the middle east as well as central Asia, the majority of the population are of the Muslim faith.
It would have been extremely improper to show as well much skin, or to wear tight-fitting clothing. In Iran, it’s the legislation for women to wear a headscarf, however thankfully for me, it was wintertime time so I didn’t mind the additional warmth!
Showing affection to your considerable other in public is a guaranteed no-no as well.
On top of the strict gown codes as well as “moral” codes, in the middle east drinking alcohol is frowned upon (and in some cases, illegal). Also, Muslims don’t eat pork…so bacon was out of the question!
No pork allowed
In the Sub-Continent, in buy to prevent unwanted / unfavorable interest from the regional men, I covered up as well as used proper clothing.
Especially on the beaches in India, the interest from guy was a problem. You absolutely requirement to be prepared before going to India!
In Sri Lanka, it was much much easier for me to take pleasure in the sand as well as sun without fretting about the gawking eyes of regional men. showing affection in public right here is likewise a no-no.
Beef is seldom eaten in the Hindu religious beliefs as well as we barely ever found it in Nepal as well as India.
This was before I understood about exactly how the regional guy of India acted…cover up ladies!
Can you keep up with all of these policies as well as regulations?!
Not only was using specific garments or not being affectionate towards each other a bit tough at times, discovering western comfort foods was rather a task.
Although we absolutely like trying new cuisines from around the world (Mexican, Indian as well as Chinese are a few of the world’s finest foods), there always came a time when we just felt like some sushi, pizza or a hamburger!
Most of Asia, Africa as well as the middle east wasn’t able to satisfy our western food cravings.
Deep fried goat innards…oh ya, by this point in Malawi we were absolutely craving a burger!
Since pertaining to Mexico as well as Belize, we feel like we’re on a holiday!
This is our very first time in central America as well as we’ve been right here for 2.5 months so far. We both weren’t sure what to expect as well as hadn’t experienced Mexican or Caribbean culture before (outside of resorts).
I’m delighted to state that we’re both having an amazing time as well as are grinning from ear to ear!
Two extremely delighted Goats on the beach at Isla Holbox
I can absolutely see why lots of people book holidays from north america or Europe to this part of the world.
Not only are there no limitations on what women can wear, what foods can be eaten, or exactly how couples must act in public, there’s just an simplicity as well as kicked back feeling when travelling in this region.
Who wouldn’t want to travel here?
The beaches are covered in pure white sand, the water is a few of the clearest we’ve ever seen as well as the marine life is abundant! outside of the beach towns, we’ve took pleasure in a few of the lots of colonial cities in Mexico.
Valladolid, Merida as well as San Cristobal were a few of our favourites. We liked wandering around soaking up the colourful buildings as well as standard clothing.
We’re both thinking about history as well as spent a long time gazing in awe at seven ancient Mayan sites in the region, one of which was a question Of The World!
AH, the great life! enjoying the waters of Holbox Island
Lively music is played in restaurants, bars as well as on the streets. We’ve even seen people spontaneously dancing!
The regional food as well as western foods are all extremely satisfying. Gone are the days of equine meat, unseasoned foods as well as fried rice that we ended up being accustomed to in central Asia.
We like hearing online music while eating dinner
Buying a bus or boat ticket has never been easier. right here in Belize, everybody speaks English as well as in Mexico, a lot of people in the tourism market spoke English, which was fantastic because hablamos muy poco español!
We’ve likewise been sampling the regional beers, liquors as well as coffee of the region as well! everybody can drink alcohol freely as well as freely here, religious beliefs as well as customs don’t dictate otherwise.
We like margaritas!
While walking hand-in-hand, we have to remind ourselves that we’re not on holiday as well as that this feeling isn’t going to end…this is just exactly how life is in this part of the world.
Will we go back to locations where we have to gown & act conservatively?
YES!
Even though there are specific limitations we have to abide by in specific areas of the world, travel is all about experiencing different cultures as well as methods of life.
It may not have been easy, or felt like a holiday when we were in locations like Tajikistan, however if we never travelled there, we would have missed out on so lots of experiences.
I can’t picture having never seen the towering snow-capped Pamir Mountains, devouring goat meat from a bucket, or satisfying people who really online in yurts in the middle of nowhere.
I can’t picture missing out on this legendary 2 week road trip with the Pamir Highway!
Experiencing special places, diverse cultures as well as different religions is what travel is all about.
We wouldn’t modification our past travels one bit. anywhere we’ve been has been exceptionally fascinating as well as adventurous. Although it may not have been simple at times, our travels are always unforgettable as well as exciting.
…but for now, we’ll be on the beach with a drink in hand.
What do you think? must we only travel to locations where we are able to act exactly how we want, eat what we want as well as gown exactly how we want?
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