Why 'Live Like A Local' Is Actually Brilliant Advice — And How To Really Do It

Last year, my husband Luke and I decided that we wanted to take the plunge: We'd sell our belongings, pack our bags, and travel around the world. We went into the experience with two overarching goals: First, we wanted to learn as much as we could from the cultures and people we encountered. And second, we would use our time on the road to find out what it means to truly live like a local.

To give you a bit of background, for the past two and a half years we have run a blog called Sutton + Grove, where we work with small, conscious brands to share their stories. It's always been exciting to read about these people, but as time went on I began to think, "Wouldn’t it be amazing if we could go and actually meet them?"

On the road, we met makers in Krakow, Poland; Berlin, Germany; Phnom Penh, Cambodia; and Indonesia. Looking back, one thing that fascinated me about a lot of the makers we met on our journey was their outlook. Our Western culture is all about go-go-go—reaching goals and then new goals—but the majority of the people we talked to were just content. They were happy with what they had and what they were doing.

For instance, when we visited Tess, the owner of a brand called Love Stories Bali, we got a glimpse into Balinese culture. Tess partners with local artisans who specialize in traditional Batik hand-painting, natural dying, and sewing to create sustainable pajamas, and she gives 100 percent of her proceeds to local schools to integrate sustainability into their lesson plans.

During our visit to Bali, we went into these local schools and taught a little art lesson with the kids, visited Ratna—one of Tess's community partners—at her Batik hand-painting and dying workshop, and popped into a local dying shop. Crossing paths with all these beautiful Balinese people, even just briefly, was such an incredible experience because it gave us a glimpse of what it's like to live in someone else's shoes for a day, and their passions came through immediately. You can read about other cultures all you want, but to truly see them up close, to see how they live, how they work, what makes them smile—it is something else entirely.

When you are in a new place, look up communal workspaces or visit local coffee shops. These will typically host cool events you can pop into as well.