For all of us who renounced the sweet homely holidays and flew over the cuckoo’s nest.

It is said that the human race fears the unknown, at first, too scared, we block ourselves to the things we might not recognize and we refuse to believe in some incomprehensible theories.

Truly…

Fearing the unknown is like wanting to know the tricks before going to see a magic show, because discovery is exciting, just like a smoke explosion. Our basic notions and physics knowledge vanish along with the magicians assistant, and we all like this, because it's fabulous and fantastic, like the nonexistent fable and the unknown fantasy.

Curiosity is one of the best qualities of the human being, it’s what makes us learn and explore past the standards making everyone different and more knowledgeable in whatever curiosity catches their eye.

And discovery enriches us and makes new connections of neurons in our brain, it makes our heart race faster creating adrenaline, it’s a chemical satisfaction within us. It’s scary but it’s exciting. It’s inapproachable but once you reach it, it feels good. It might be something you love but you have never lived.

I know, because I’ve lived it.

When I was 10 years old I was taken by surprise, and with no notice, to a country that wasn’t my own: France. I had barely packed anything, leaving behind all my clothes, toys and friends. I wasn’t used to the weather and I didn’t understand a single word and I admit it felt pretty scary. I cried every day for three months. My mother used to take me to school and by the time she got back home the nurse was calling her to tell her to pick me up. I could not tell the truth, that I was scared to death and I wanted to go back to my real home, I literally couldn’t say it because I barely knew how to say oui; so I learned to say I was tired, and my mother understood it was a code for “I’m tired of being pushed around”, or “tired of trying and not being understood”, or simply “tired of crying everyday”.

The thing is, my mother, although having a soft heart, is a strong woman. So as the culture lover that she was, she was not willing to negotiate, I would learn French and I would like it. She stopped coming to get me at school, and (obviously years later,) I learned that she used to cry every day at home too, because she felt like she was hurting me, but actually she gave me the best gift. She told me: Your mind and ears are like a flower, they are a closed blossom today, but little by little, trying hard, they will start opening and the flower will bloom, and then understand French and live freely in the lovely French culture.

Some mothers are always right, mine isn’t; so I was skeptical. But I had no choice and I fought, I kept my mouth closed for the next 2 months and soaked in everything I could until I knew my French was perfect, and that day, I became a little French girl, like the rest of them. The difference was, I had lived more, and I would not leave this story and my culture behind me. My mind had flowered and it became, with time, a garden for new cultures. I am now a big traveler, there’s nothing I love more in the world. I enjoy the unknown, just as much as I enjoy a magic trick, because I feel amazed by all the beauty I don’t even have words to describe, and all the cultures I never imagined existed.

So take my advice: the next time you are invited to go to the dark side, to explore the unknown, to travel around the globe, don’t think twice. Pack your bags, and fly to the moon, the desert, the mountains or the beach, it won’t matter. Just fly away.

But when getting ready there is a paradox, an unknown paradox. How can one get ready for the unknown? And most importantly, how does one not embody a cliché that precedes us, the cliché of “THE TOURIST”, the horrible cliché that makes you suffer in silence, people judge you instantly, you get charged double, you get lost and don’t even notice, because guess what? The cliché tourist has no clue. So play along and pack like no tourist ever would.

I pack my suitcase with...attitude.

I pack my suitcase with attitude and fashion.

I pack my suitcase with attitude, fashion, and style.

Because you might not want to be drawing attention to you under the wrong circumstances, but a real fashionable girl will not ever miss the chance to stand out from the crowd. So, you can be different, but be attractive; you can have an accent, but make them consider it a sexy one, you can be in the wrong street but never feel lost. And finally you can be a traveler but not a tourist.

So, as far as attitude goes, it sums up to the following tips:

Always act as if you know what you are doing. This means, you can read a tourist guide, actually do, but if you find yourself in doubt, looking for an unknown address in an unknown city, sit down at a café and read the guide as you have a cup of the local beverage. Coffee in Italy, tea in England, mint tea in Morocco, roasted strong Coffee in South America, matte in Argentina and a glass of tropical juice in the Caribbean. You can also lie down at a park and read quietly there. What is never to be done is to stand and read in the middle of a busy street, blocking all passage, because believe it or not, you will fall right into the clueless tourist look.

Attitude refers equally to your manners when you talk to the locals. Whether it’s asking for an address or buying a ticket, do not consider yourself either superior or inferior to them. Negotiate prices at the antique markets and try first to say things in the local language, fail, but enjoy tasting a new language, you might like the flavor of it.

And finally observe the horizon, enjoy the ambiance, absorb the moment. Not every single second requires a photo to be taken, but every place needs to be lived. Generally one sees more through the eyes than the lens, and you might miss something because you were taking the photo of something else. So when you want to take a photo, take it, but make sure you breathed in the air and perfume of that place first.

This does not mean to leave your camera at home, take as many photos as you want, and actually take unexpected photos, when one points a camera to something, people, curious people that we are, we try and look what’s there, so if you are taking an artistic photo of something not considered a Touristic Trap, you will gain artistic and local points, and we like this.

Now fashion:

I pack in my suitcase...clothes made to be creased, made to be packed.

MUJI Shrink Wrap T-Shirt, muji.us, $12.95

Dresses for every occasion, comfortable and fashionable for the promenades around the city.

Zara – Trf Lace Dress, zara.com, $49 (sale)

Zara – Trf Tunic, zara.com, $39 (sale)

Zara – Lace Dress, zara.com, $49 (sale)

Cotton and stretch for walking from North to South and East to West.

American Apparel Cotton Spandex Jersey Double U-Neck Dress, americanapparel.net, $40 (available in every color)
I actually own one.

And bring skirts to put on top of this dress for the night soiree in the chic restaurants.

Marni Printed Cotton and Linen-Blend Skirt, outnet.com, $128.75 (sale)

Layering is obviously necessary when you go to a cold destination.

American Apparel Unisex Peacoat, americanapparel.net, $184

And let not the weather bring you down, one can be trendy at all times, under any circumstances, in every season. Make sure you cover up when needed because the red nose only looks good on Rudolph.

American Apparel Polkadot Pantyhose, americanapparel.net, $8

And beat the stereotypes. Although shorts are the stereotypical item of the tourist, along with Hawaiian shirt (which are prohibited), there is no doubt they are the most comfortable thing to wear for a hike, and a beach stroll. So find a suitable, different, trendy short and forget you are a tourist, just be your fashionable self.

American Apparel Cotton Seersucker Bloomer, americanapparel.net, $10 (sale)

Finally the two most determinant accessories, the ones I adore, the ones that make the difference, sealing your outfit with style, from tip to toe.

The hats and the shoes.

No baseball caps, explore the universe of hats and dare to wear anything you like.

H&M Hat, hm.com, £7.99

Juicy Couture Felt Riding Hat, juicycouture.com, $48 (sale price)

And shoes made for walking that will walk all over the tourist look.

Toms Shoes Youth Glitter Collection, toms.com, $42

Bensimon Elastique Tennis Flats in Wine, shopbop.com, $57

Both comfy and artsy, no more need for high socks and snickers, and trust me, you will never go back.

After attitude and fashion, style will come along as if attracted by a magnetic force. And your role is to welcome it with your arms and mind wide open. Discovering is the nature of the human being and experimenting is too. So instead of taking your typical giant tourist camera, buy a disposable camera, or a polaroid in one of the flee markets you visit, and take photos of your experience and not only of the city you visited, with a new look. Don’t ask another tourist to take a photo of you, ask them to be taken in a photo with you. Enjoy the local activities, ask a nice waiter to tell you what bars to visit, try to get lost, go to the theater, go to design shops, eat food you’ve never eaten, listen to the street musicians on the way and get on a bus without knowing where it’s going.

And if you are too scared to simply close your eyes and follow your hunch there are guides, websites like www.shopikon.com, and phone apps like minube for when you travel to spain, urbanspoon for the best restaurants around, worldcustoms for, well...knowing the world customs...and there are plenty more.

Visiting a city is not about going there and coming back, it’s about living it and coming back changed. So you’ve got a few weeks to live like a local, don’t waste your time and take your time to soak it in. In the world there are no strangers, only friends we haven’t met. So hurry up and meet them.

Pack your Longchamp pliable bag and fly away to a new land to truly find yourself where you’ve never been. Because the further you travel from your home, the more “YOU“ you become.

Remember...

Travel light, pack well, live more and love it.