The Importance of Writing About Your Trip

The biggest moments of your trip are easily recalled even years later, and photos will always serve as a reminder of where you've been. But what happens to the details? What was the best flavor of gelato you tasted in Italy? How do you say "Cheers!" in Greek again? The best way to remember even the smallest details is to write them down.

Quick, write it down!

In defense of the written word, here are some reasons you should keep a travel journal:

• Something to do on long plane/train/car rides. It's hard to keep up with a journal every day, but if you have a long ride ahead of you, it's the perfect time to get down what you did yesterday or over the past few days. 
• A way to wind down after a long day. If you're still wide awake from your exciting day, stop your mind from racing by concentrating on writing about your day. Even if you're exhausted, try to keep your eyes open a little longer to jot down the big events and get to the details later. But don't wait too long, because unless you have a photographic memory, those details disappear quickly.
• Remember more details. Get down every detail you can so you can go back and relive your trip over and over again whenever you want.
• Share more with friends and family. Obviously, the more you remember, the more you can share when retelling your travel tales.
• Share with future generations. Inspire your kids, grandkids, friends, neighbors and anyone else you come across to explore the world by sharing your experiences with them.

"Okay, I'm convinced. But what do I write?"

You should write down anything you think you'll want to remember in the future, but here are some ideas if you get stuck.

• The scents, colors and flavors. Pictures can capture sights, but only you can capture what the food tasted like, markets smelled like and city sounded like.
• Funny or interesting exchanges. Language barrier with a store owner? Funny conversation with a local? Write it down verbatim (if you remember it that well) and laugh about it for years to come. 
• Inside jokes. Things tend to become funnier when you're exhausted, so even if you don't think it's funny years later, write down that joke or funny thing that happened, at least you can laugh at yourself later.
• Names and dates. I am the worst at remembering names and dates, so I try to write down the names of every city, landmark, restaurant, etc. I visit so I can remember, and maybe go back one day too! Write down names of your travel companions, tour guides and anyone else who made an impact on your trip too. Don't let them go nameless in your personal history.
• Words and phrases you learn. If they're not in your first language, try to write them phonetically too so you can remember how to say them down the line.
• Drawings. I can't draw, but if you are blessed with an artistic hand, sketch as often as you can! You can put your own twist and personality into what you see, and I'm jealous of that.
• The exciting things you've done and what you're still looking forward to. It's always interesting to go back and re-read how excited you were for an experience, and then how terrifying/boring/awesome the experience ended up being.
• Every detail you can get down! Nothing is too big or too small, and Future You will appreciate that effort when the little details have faded from memory.

Fun Fact: 

Science has proven that writing things down actually improves your memory. The physical act of writing activates different parts of the brain than even typing away at your computer. This technique can help you when you study too; instead of reading your textbook over and over, write down what you should be memorizing and you'll find facts are easier to recall. If you don't believe me, click here for a full explanation from Lifehacker. 

Thanks for reading, and good luck keeping up with your travel journals!

-Sam