I truly believe traveling is education.

Pro tip: travel light with a carry-on and backpack — then you can move fast, with less chance of losing your luggage. My recommendation: if you can’t get your laundry done in a week, you’re in the wrong place!

But back to education. Culture — including food, language, and daily life — teaches you to see, to listen, and to enjoy living in the present. I try to walk as much as I can, eat where the working people eat, and usually I don’t order immediately. I sit, order a drink or juice, and watch what most people are eating. Feeling out of place? Don’t be afraid to use common sense and instincts. You build patience, tolerance, and learn a lot. This exercise shows you how we carry preconceived notions and fears with no basis other than lack of knowledge.

Enter with a smile, and you will leave with a smile. Attitude and mindset will take you to the end of the world.

I prefer hostels and Airbnbs to hotels. I don’t need a spa, restaurant, gym, or other things I already have at home — plus, I’m only there to sleep, spending my days in adventure.

One of my favorite and most interesting places I’ve visited recently is Ecuador — a small country in South America and, literally, the middle of the world. Land of volcanoes, glaciers, the Pacific Ocean, the Galápagos Islands, the Andes, the birthplace of the Amazon, Indigenous tribes, incredible fauna and flora, the closest place on Earth to the sun, and trout fishing streams that feel like the Alps in Europe. The equator itself divides the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

You’ll find sunsets and views from a highway at 14,000 feet above sea level, happy people, and fresh fruit, vegetables, seafood, and the best soups in the world. If you enjoy folk art, weavings, and handcrafted treasures, you’ll love Ecuador — a place rich in culture, history, and beautiful people.