5 Helpful Tips to Avoid Homesickness

We all know how magical and spectacular traveling is, but what is not talked about quite so much is that traveling also comes with a bit of a down side. So here I give you a couple ways to combat the inevitability of homesickness:

1) Get out and DO STUFF

This might be the most obvious tip and possibly the most difficult. When you are missing home it might be hard to enjoy all the new and cool things to explore in the new place you are currently experiencing, and therefore easy to remain in a

rut in your airbnb. BUT we all know that feeling of an unproductive day and therefore know that such thing will just make the homesickness even worse. PLUS you are in a brand new place  with so many things to explore, so plan your day down to the hour (make an excel spreadsheet…I´m serious), and fill it with what you will see and explore that day outside of where you are staying. When your mind is working on introducing and making sense of new things, it’s harder for it to regress back to what it is missing from the past. Then, when you return home from a day jam-packed with exploration, the tiredness will make Netflix and bed time that much sweeter.

2) Take a break from social media

In this world of virtual connectivity, it is tough to disconnect, not only because its everywhere, but also because it’s addictive. You might think it’s a comforting idea to look at pictures of familiar faces, but scrolling through instagram gives you a very high probability of contracting one of the most serious sicknesses of the millennial generation: FOMO (a state of mental or emotional strain caused by the fear of missing out).  Looking at pictures and talking to people from home takes you away from the awesome opportunities you have in the new place you are exploring and can potentially make you feel worse that

you are not physically there in the picture you`re looking at. You know what they say…´ignorance is bliss´ and I promise your loved ones will be excited to have just as good of a time, if not better, as they had in that picture when you return. SO disconnect, go on hiatus, or maybe even go a little crazy and delete the app! Instagram will always be at your fingertips, but cultural monuments of foreign  countries might not be!

3) Keep your basic habits and throw some exercise in there

Life feels a little chaotic when you aren’t sticking to your regular routine, so the only solution to that problem is to make one! Make a plan for your days and have that plan include exercise, even if that’s just a 20 minute walk in the park. Maybe every morning you promise yourself to get up at the same time every day, make breakfast, go for a run and then come back and shower before doing any sightseeing or anything else in your day. Getting outside is SUPER important for the body mind and spirit so make it a habit!

4) Learn something new

Perhaps a new language? (cough cough wink wink) In all seriousness, as said before, if the brain has something to work on, it tends to worry less about things

that it gets stuck on when its bored. And let me tell you, learning a new language can keep that guy busy for years. *Quick sidenote: at Elebaires you can advance and learn Spanish WHILE meeting other travelers so it’s a 2 birds with 1 stone type of situation* And here is one last tip that I personally found to be effective because of my love for coffee and books…

5) Go to a café for merienda and read a book

In Buenos Aires you´re likely to find a café on every block (likely packed around 6 oclock) , so if you are a coffee lover like I am, take advantage of them. Here at around 6 they have what you might know as tea time to eat and drink a little something to hold you over until 10 oclock dinner. So join them! Buy a book in Spanish (to practice) and go to a café and get yourself a nice big cup of coffee and alfajor, and maybe do a little bit of people watching. It gives you something to do outside of the house accompanied by a tasty treat!

With all of these tips, I hope you start to feel a little bit at home away from home:)