Heading to the West: An Alternative Gap Year

This summer, instead of the cliché South East Asia trek, I headed West to North America for two months of tourist photos, high calorie foods, and Americans asking me ‘oh my god are you from Europe?’ While the trip wasn’t quite the Kerouac stereotype I was expecting, it was a truly life changing experience that I believe rivals Thailand any day.

Many people are put off from travelling anywhere less exotic than Burma for fear that peers will judge them as unadventurous or boring. However, although I couldn’t legally drink when I went to the U.S. it didn’t stop me from experiencing roof top parties and 2 a.m. rap battles in dodgy bars. Students are often lured to the likes of Thailand with the promise of full moon parties and cheap drinks but I would much rather celebrate Canada Day on a beach in Toronto whilst eating funnel cake and watching fireworks at sunset.

Alot of people tell me that North America isn’t culturally enriching enough for gap year travelling, and that they wouldn’t “find themselves” there. My reply would be, if the home of country music, jazz, controversial politics and iconic architecture isn’t culture, then really what is? In total I visited eleven cities, from Toronto, to New York, to Chicago to San Francisco, and bar seeing elephants in the wild, the U.S. was able to offer me everything and more than South East Asia ever would.

I couldn’t legally drink when I went to the U.S. it didn’t stop me from experiencing roof top parties and 2 a.m. rap battles in dodgy bars…

One of my main problems with treks through Asia is that the high levels of tourism has resulted in negative effects on communities and frankly unethical exploitation of animals; where exotic creatures such as tigers are doped just so students can get good Instagram selfies with them. Travellers need to stop paying for these photos or ‘experiences’ and in turn prevent tourism from ruining the local communities and indigenous species. I left North America with some of the most amazing memories from travelling such as seeing the skyline from Toronto Island at night to taking a boat trip up to Niagara Falls, and the best part is that it didn’t have any negative impacts on locals or the wildlife.

The main perk of travelling in North America is of course the lack of language barrier. Nothing is more frustrating or embarrassing than attempting a very complicated mime to ask ‘where is the toilet?’ that results in offending locals and you looking like you are performing a complex eighties dance routine. But just because you aren’t learning a new language while you travel doesn’t mean you can’t engage with interesting parts of the North American culture, for example in Boston the ‘Freedom Trail’ is a brilliant way to learn about the political struggles of the country. America is an incredibly diverse place, with almost every city having its own China Town, Little Italy and international food markets; there is no reason why you can’t learn about other cultures just because you are travelling in the western world.

Travellers need to stop paying for these photos or ‘experiences’ and in turn prevent tourism from ruining the local communities and indigenous species…

The only big draw back from travelling in America is of course the cost. While flights to Asia are pricey the accommodation when you arrive is very reasonable, but sadly this isn’t the case in the U.S. The hostels I stayed in were upwards of £30 a night (with Canada coming in more reasonably at approximately £20 a night), and of course you can always try couchsurfing. However, something must be said for the fact that my hostels were never ridden with cockroaches, snakes or poisonous spiders, which is not guaranteed in Asia. Basically, you really get what you pay for.

So next time you plan on going travelling, don’t overlook North America, it may just surprise you.