There are tons of people living on this earth, most of them in places you rarely think about. One of the great experiences of traveling to a new place is experiencing the different people that fill each strange destination. Each country and locale has its unique cultural traits that people adopt and carry on in their lives. One group stands out unique from another through their beliefs, their shared customs and ethnic characteristics. Encountering people in a foreign place exposes a person to the variety of individuals, the beauty of diversity and the astonishing way in which place influences identity. As someone who has seen many different parts of the world I am always deeply fascinated meeting people from a distant place, learning about their home, and taking in their perspective. I am always met with the wonder of what it must be like to live as they do, in the country they live, with the history and experiences they have had.

The idea of this experiment is to immerse yourself in the local characters of a foreign place and experience their individuality. On your first outing in a new city, devote several hours to a peaceful morning watching people from a window or market square. Introduce yourself to strangers on the street, invite them in with a sign that says “tell me something about you” or “teach me something about this place.” Spend hours talking to and interviewing the people in the street about their lives, discovering what it is that brings meaning to them. Draw sketches, take photos, or take video of the people that impress you most. Form connections reaching beyond cultural lines and learn what life is like for an Italian, a South African or Japanese person. Create a documentary or video collage of the highlighted stories weaving interviews from people around the world asking them the same questions about life. What you will have is an amazing tapestry of international portraits capturing the voices of people around the world honoring their knowledge and the ways in which meaning is brought to life from the far reaches of the world. There are few experiences that offer as much joy and fascination.