Kea [00:00:00] You are now listening to this episode of Tea With Kea. All right. All right. Oh, thank you for that little woop woop. That could be like a little. A little, a little drop one here. So for the people who will be listening to this who want to know who that little woop woop came from, let the listeners know who you are!
Esu [00:00:25] reporting to you live from Belgium. This is Esu and yeah. I don’t know. Who am I. That’s a great question. I got real deep. Real fast. Yeah. My name is Esu and I’m a friend of Kea’s. We went to Cornell together, undergrad, good old days, a lot of struggling. But you know, it was good. We survived and now I’m actually back in school again doing my master’s in Belgium. And yeah, after I graduated with my bachelors, I did that whole little working thing. It wasn’t little. I worked like a regular adult and I was like, you know what? I have my whole life to work. Let me go to school. Mm hmm. And then I started in the US and I was like, you know what? Education’s really expensive here. Let me take this elsewhere. So, yeah, here I am going.
Kea [00:01:13] Throat is clear. There’s honey in this. All right. Yes.
Esu [00:01:23] I should like I wanted to add ginger to mine and stuff, but I would have had to cut it and I’m just not about to do that right now.
Kea [00:01:31] What’s crazy is I actually did this is OK, so this is green tea with honey and ginger and lemon.
Esu [00:01:38] Sweet girl. That’s my favorite. So my plan was to brew a nice piping hot cup of green tea and then add some freshly, like, mashed ginger to it, ginger juice. And, you know, sometimes if I want to add some lemonade, some honey, but it’s not just ginger and the green tea is fantastic. But after I got out the shower and folded my laundry and washed my dishes, I was like am I about to create more dishes right now, aside from this cup, I’m stepping out of there. I opted for just black tea with lemon.
Kea [00:02:16] Honestly, you can’t go wrong with that either though, also. OK, so remind me, what time is it there right now?
Esu [00:02:23] It is currently twelve, eleven in the morning, Monday, October 12th. And I think it’s like six pm over there. East Coast.
Kea [00:02:31] Yeah. That’s when I literally was like, hold on tight, I’ll be up anyway. And I was like, OK, OK, all right.
Esu [00:02:39] Yeah I know I try to be good and go to bed around 10:00 or 11:00, but then one thing leads to another and next thing I know, it’s like 1:00 in the morning.
Kea [00:02:47] That is a very, very relatable. Although lately I feel like actually it’s relatable because it depends on like what I’m doing. I’m doing nothing.
Esu [00:02:58] I’m doing OK, girl, same girl. I wish I could say I stay up and I’m productive sometimes. Yeah. But it’s usually at the last minute. Other than that I’m just up until, I don’t know, doing a whole bunch of nothing.
Kea [00:03:11] I mean honestly though nothing is like a part of self care so like.
Esu [00:03:15] Exactly. It’s all justifiable, you know.
Kea [00:03:18] So but yeah. Because I was really thinking I was like, OK, because I know, I know. I’ve hit you up a while ago on Instagram. And I know you said that you’d be very busy between whenever it was. And now did you mean like business school was or was.
Esu [00:03:33] Oh my gosh. Yeah. So I feel like school never ends. So the school the academic year starts in September. So from September until, let’s say, beginning of July, I just had my first year of school. And then from July until September, again, it’s supposed to be quote unquote, summer break. But with the way the education system is set up in my university, you have a second set of exams, and that’s from August until September. And then so catch me, like I said. But the school year starts in September and it also ends in September. So I have like a two, three week break in between the school year. So the academic year and. Yeah, so I was just enjoying time with my family and getting ready to start up with my thesis, which started since like last month this month. So, you know, just getting back in the groove of a new school year during wrona times. And so that’s what I was doing before.
Kea [00:04:29] That’s like wild thinking about downtime. But I guess it’s like you get like an uninterrupted two weeks, so.
Esu [00:04:37] Right, exactly. It was actually really nice, like not having to worry about anything really small for that she was of town.
Kea [00:04:45] Is that the only time that you come back to the States?
Esu [00:04:47] So I come back in between my, I guess, semesters. So that would be September. And then also in February ish is when I come back to the states.
Kea [00:04:58] Do I get. Right, because I remember like I remember when I was in England, they had like a two and a half week long Easter break. Mm hmm. I think in Belgium.
Esu [00:05:10] Um, honestly, I think we had like a Monday off Easter Monday. That’s something that’s about it. On is already Sunday. So, no, it’s nothing like undergrad where we had like or even I feel like some countries in Europe give you a whole two weeks off for Easter or a week at least.
Kea [00:05:28] Mm hmm. That was like a new I was like what looks like Easter break, which is like extra long, like a little vacation, OK?
Esu [00:05:36] Right. I remember you have the longest Easter break when you studied abroad, but yeah, none of that for me right now, unfortunately.
Kea [00:05:43] You know what? It’s OK because you are doing what you do. I’m a ask. OK, so undergrad were you you were both science, right. Or something
Esu [00:05:53] or. Right. Right. So undergrad. I studied food science as my major and minor in nutrition and health. And then now I’m doing nutrition and rural development as my masters.
Kea [00:06:06] OK, ok, look at this. You said she said I’m going to continue my education because they other work thing is, you know what, I’m I don’t even know. Speaking of
Esu [00:06:18] work, how is work for
Kea [00:06:19] you? You know, it’s interesting. Oh God, it’s crazy. You ask this because had you asked me this question before I went on vacation, I probably would have given a different answer. But so work is great. But since you brought up this question, I might as well, you know, share it to the listeners, which we’re I guess we’re going to find out on LinkedIn anyways. But I have decided actually to leave my current job for another job. Oh, yes. And I was Liston’s you. Thank you. Thank you. I appreciate it. It doesn’t hit me because, like, I got the news, like on vacation and then of course, because I like had to I literally like called my like, you know, point person on slack and was like, hey, yeah, no vacation. But I’m calling about my two weeks in. But it’s wow. I dropped the
Esu [00:07:06] bomb
Kea [00:07:07] literally and then it was like dropped like in the chat but I had to go back to work yet because like it’s not tomorrow yet. Right. Yeah. But that’s also that’s also that’s exciting. There it is. It’s exciting. But also at the same time, honestly, I’m very scared because, you know, like when I graduated Cornell, I literally I started this job and that’s that’s all I’ve been doing. I haven’t been. Oh, yeah. I haven’t been anywhere else. And, you know, they treat me well like they’re very nice, you know. So it’s like very scary to leave. Yeah. But I also feel like I’m going to get to grow a lot. But anyways, yeah. So long story short, work is good, but literally I was just offered this job that I applied for, so I’ll be. Yes. Thank you. Next weekend. I probably won’t talk talk about it in the beginning of the beginning. At the beginning. But yeah. So that’s, that’s, that’s where I’m at right now.
Esu [00:08:07] Awesome. Do you have to move or anything for this position.
Kea [00:08:10] No, no. Good heavens no. So it’s in Atlanta technically like Atlanta Metro. Yeah. But of course you know, because they’re still not in the office right now. So yeah, I’m not in the office. I wouldn’t be in the office. They said that before covid they work from home Monday, Wednesday, Fridays and I go to the office.
Esu [00:08:33] Oh wow.
Kea [00:08:33] Before covid. Yes. What. Because with the job I have right now, like you could work from home whenever you wanted to, but yeah. So the job that I’m going to be starting, they have designated an office days is Tuesday, Thursday. So. Oh wow. I still get that flexibility which I appreciate but beautiful. Yes. Yes. So, uh, you know, we uh we uh. We shall see. We shall see. But enough about me, OK, because I want to I want to rewind back to you. OK, so I want to get a ball on your brain question before you decided to apply to schools in Belgium. Why which countries have you already visited before before making this decision? Oh, wow. It’s too long and
Esu [00:09:20] it’s not that long. But I guess on the European continent, I had studied abroad in Italy, so I had a living experience there. I had visited the Netherlands just for like, you know, family and leisure without England and Spain. Yeah. And I need to pull up a map right quick.
Kea [00:09:44] Germany, OK, with all travel.
Esu [00:09:47] Russia, right. So, yeah, it’s very loose. It’s so easy to travel around.
Kea [00:09:54] Mm hmm.
Esu [00:09:55] Impax Before this, I had also been to Ireland. I have cousins there. What else, what else? I think that’s more or less it for Europe. I don’t think I’m forgetting anything. Switzerland. Yeah, that counts.
Kea [00:10:12] I wanted to go the
Esu [00:10:14] girl when you go bring money because it’s expensive. Oh, I think it’s the most expensive place I’ve ever been to. Like. Really? Yes, really. When I went there, I was like, oh my gosh, bread and cheese is like thirty five dollars forty. I’m not even joking, I guess because it’s fondue. So it’s fancy but still fun. Yeah, but still I’m like hold up. This is like the cheapest thing I can eat and everything is just different forms of bread and cheese. But yes, Switzerland is really beautiful. I recommend it.
Kea [00:10:45] I heard that it was like the best place to go skydiving.
Esu [00:10:48] Oh wow. I haven’t looked into that.
Kea [00:10:51] I mean, I don’t know if I do it, but like, I heard it and I was like, OK, that must mean I look cute from above. OK.
Esu [00:10:56] Exactly. Yeah, I would probably do like an aerial hot air balloon type thing or
Kea [00:11:02] something nice,
Esu [00:11:03] but like skydiving. I don’t know about that yet. You’re right. Would you do it though, huh. Would you skydive or have you done it before.
Kea [00:11:11] I have not done it before. My friend was going to do it and this girl like who was like my a broad acquaintance, she had skydiving when she was in Switzerland and she was like I was like, yeah. And I was like, you know what, I like
Esu [00:11:27] to do this.
Kea [00:11:29] Yeah. Let me just, you know, a pencil this and for the future, definitely not twenty twenty but the future where everybody. So we’re OK. So you have family in the Netherlands and Ireland like family that you like like like hang out with, hang out with family.
Esu [00:11:47] All right. So like so my family in Ireland, they’re cousins and then the family in the Netherlands, they’re more like family, friends. So I’m also Nigerian. So when I say family like that doesn’t just mean like my mom, my dad, my immediate aunt and uncle is. It can be like my mom’s best friend or like my aunt’s best friend, who is now my new aunt or whatever, you know. Yeah. So, yeah, I have a lot of those and different places.
Kea [00:12:11] That’s if I feel like that definitely adds to the experience of traveling like because, you know, you get them up and they tell you like what’s going on. I was like, oh, there’s this little hole in the wall where you can actually get cheese and bread. It’s not thirty five dollars or something like
Esu [00:12:25] this is where you should go. This is where the tourists go. This is where we go.
Kea [00:12:29] Oh that’s what that’s so. Oh my God. OK, so you did the whole travel thing. Boom, bam bam. And then you were like, OK, so did you start getting your masters in the States or you went straight?
Esu [00:12:45] Right. So when I had graduated with my bachelors, I was like, all right, we got this degree, what’s up? Somebody hire me. So I started working immediately. But then at the same time, I was like, I don’t want to stop the school momentum because I was concerned that if I take any form of break from school, I would not be able to go back again and be like, you know what, I don’t I don’t want to. So I started working full time and I started my master’s part time online, which was it was cool and all. But I just didn’t feel like the experience was as rewarding as being in a classroom with the professors and your classmates. And then it’s like I’m also paying all this money to just teach myself. I mean, not like I couldn’t do that for my bachelors, but, you know, I don’t know. Yeah, I’m just like I, I don’t know if I want to also with doing school online part time and takes a bit longer because you’re not just doing school. So then yeah, I decided to leave my job and leave my part time program to go full time here in Belgium.
Kea [00:13:51] That is that’s like see when I hear that, I think that’s kind of scary because like at that point you’re already like a dull adult. You know very well. It’s like when you’re like, you know, figuring out college in the beginning, you’re like you’re not a kid, but you’re like a fresh adopting a real adult, like you’re breaking the law. But not exactly. That’s about it. Yeah. And now, like you made a decision, like essentially on your own that you were going to do this.
Esu [00:14:19] And yeah, like my thought process was I remember being a senior at Cornell and I was like, oh my gosh, where am I going to work? Like, whatever job I get out of college has to be the bomb because, like, I went to a bomb university. So my job obviously has to be the bomb. Quite frankly, it doesn’t always work like that. And it’s totally OK for whoever’s listening. You know, you get that degree and you just see what’s out there for. You might not be your dream job, but you just go for it. So I was working and then after literally after onboarding and training and like doing my job for some time, I was like, I don’t really like this anymore. Yeah. So between like the two years that I was working as a quote unquote real adult, I. Changed jobs like three times. So do you hear that you’ve been with the same company since you’ve graduated is like amazing to me because I feel like for me I’m always like, you know what, I’ve outgrown this position or I don’t like it here. I need to keep it moving. And also, when I was looking for jobs as an undergraduate, I wanted to take my career internationally and abroad. But unfortunately, I just didn’t find a position like that. So, yeah, when I started to realize maybe I can take my education abroad for more than just a semester abroad, that’s what I started to look for. Mm hmm. And here we are to
Kea [00:15:35] literally this is the stuff that I love to hear to because I’d be like I’d be scrolling Instagram and I see a little pig. And I’m like, oh, I’m like, she’s so cute. She I heard doing a bang thing like, oh, I like whether her education, like, you know, submerging herself in the culture that it’s not her own, just like just throwing herself out here and just like just, you know, like thriving, thriving.
Esu [00:15:58] You grow, thriving and struggling, doing both
Kea [00:16:01] well, you know, sometimes sometimes thriving is just surviving. But like, you know, right now, I think I think well, we’ll take that right.
Esu [00:16:10] But like, literally going back to that student budget, you like you know what it’s like to not have like a full income working part time as a student is different than being like a full time adult. I’m like, whoa, that’s no more true.
Kea [00:16:24] Oh, my goodness gracious. At my
Esu [00:16:27] school. Can you imagine just not having the income you’re having now anymore? Just gone?
Kea [00:16:34] I cannot. I cannot. I am unable to concretely fathom that at this moment,
Esu [00:16:40] error error cannot be
Kea [00:16:43] literally like blue screen. Blue screen. I had not even like I had not even thought about that.
Esu [00:16:50] Yeah. So like I went from having income to just not having income. But luckily I had saved, you know. Oh yes, I’m working. And that was truly only possible for me because I was still living at home when I was working full time, which is another question people usually have for me, like how can you afford to travel so much? And it’s like, well, if you’re not paying rent, that can be money for other things, you know,
Kea [00:17:15] bags because literally like a third of our income basically, or I think I don’t know, like I, I know when you apply well here anyways, your income at least be three times the rent. But yeah, that’s true.
Esu [00:17:27] I didn’t know that was the thing.
Kea [00:17:28] Oh well I’m a girl. I think in some places it’s like two and a half. But I know here is three, but it’s like if you’re, you know, able to like live with your family and not pay rent, that’s definitely money that you can be pocketing. So which makes sense because then, yeah, you can you can use it to do things that you want to like travel. So, you know, I mean, have you been OK? So since you since you went to study, have you done any traveling or any just like a quick little weekend things?
Esu [00:18:03] Honestly, not as much as I did when I studied abroad for just three months. I feel like because first of all, Belgium is one of those countries that I never really, like, dreamed of going to. It wasn’t like on a list of countries I always wanted to go to. It was just kind of there for me. So now that I’m I like I just found myself here for my education, I’m like, wow, there’s a lot to explore domestically, but and also Belgium and Brussels, the capital is considered, quote unquote, the heart of Europe or the capital of Europe. It’s kind of in the middle of everything. Yeah. Like you can easily get everywhere by train, by plane. And it’s pretty central to everything, which is nice. So I think the only real weekend trips I’ve done have been Amsterdam and Paris and yeah, nothing other than that that I can think of. I’ve kept it pretty low key and local.
Kea [00:18:58] Yeah. I want to go to Paris. That was like on my list of places to go. But long story short, I had planned a trip and this is like when I was studying abroad and I had like it all figured out, but then I wasn’t like really caring about school like that. So apparently I had planned it when I had to, like, give a group project presentation that was like twenty percent of my grade. And the plan was going to have left like early, early that morning. And all of us were going to have to give our presentations like later in the afternoon. And I was like, do I want to take a zero as a twenty five percent way to my grade? I was like, nah, so you know, I was a girl with money.
Esu [00:19:35] But now that you bring up that story, that reminds me, I actually did take another, like, weekend type trip to Germany, too. I think it was Berlin. Yes. And I had a group presentation like the first day that I arrived and I was like a group, just so you know, I told them beforehand. I was like, I’m not going to be here, but I can, you know, record my part on PowerPoint. You can just. It’ll be like I was there, you know, whatever that we can do to make this work so that I can be not there, but still present, let’s make this happen. But yeah. Twenty five percent. That’s a lot. Yeah.
Kea [00:20:10] Well, you know, it was it was interesting because like I remember, for the majority of the classes, there would be like three grades. And then like that was that, you know, and attendance didn’t count for any of the classes. And so, you know, just some days it was harder to get out of bed than others, you know? Well, man, I definitely feel like. Well, OK, so let’s let’s let’s rewind. So when you were in, it was Padova, as I pronounce it. Right.
Esu [00:20:43] Honestly, Pottuvil like there’s like the English name and the Italian name.
Kea [00:20:48] What was your Kalyani?
Esu [00:20:50] I think the Italian one was Padova. I had forgotten Padova and then I think the English was pardoel. OK. Yeah.
Kea [00:20:58] One, two, one one of those.
Esu [00:21:00] Yeah.
Kea [00:21:01] OK, correct me if I’m wrong, you were like doing some like type of state thing, right. Like you weren’t in a dorm. You were with the family. Right.
Esu [00:21:09] Correct. I opted for a home stay. Actually, I don’t really think I had a choice for the program that I picked. So I picked up a study abroad program that allowed us to stay with an Italian family because I felt like my experience would be more like emersed if I stayed with an Italian family as opposed to living on my own and doing my own thing. Mm.
Kea [00:21:30] And would you kind of select would you suggest that for I guess someone else is like, I’m trying to go abroad and I mean obviously I went to a country where they also speak English. So I don’t have to you know, when I think of, like, submerging myself, like, yeah, it was, but there wasn’t that language barrier. Would you suggest that, like, option for someone else who wants to study abroad and a country that they don’t like the language to?
Esu [00:21:56] Yeah, I think I would recommend it for like anyone, really, because there’s no better way to get to know, like, what family life is like with Dane. The life is like what customs are like than to live it with people who have lived there like their whole lives. So yeah, like even for me, I knew no Italian going to Italy for the first time or I was my second time going. But yeah, I didn’t know the language really. Anything I learned was on Duolingo, on the flight. There would be like, yeah, I took Italian one 101 one when I arrived and lucky for me, so I filled out a questionnaire. So I requested to stay with the family that knew English. So that was good for communication. But yeah, just like their dinners and just living in a place, they feel like when you live in a dorm or apartment, they kind of make it more universal and comfortable for international people as opposed to living in a house. It’s like, all right, this is what homes are like here. I don’t know. It’s a little bit different.
Kea [00:22:56] Yeah. So hold on. OK, here you can we rewind. Yo, you didn’t have to know any Italian when you apply to the program. You just like did it like you didn’t like take any Italian like in school or whatever.
Esu [00:23:09] Girl. No man. I’m lucky for me. Couse couse the College of Agriculture and my. Oh yeah yeah yeah. Right. They had no language requirement. I feel like people in arts and sciences they had to at least take like one semester or something. But for cows, no language requirement in my program wasn’t even through Cornell really. It was through Boston University. So yeah, they were like, just show up. We’ll teach you when you get here, which is awesome.
Kea [00:23:35] Goodness. Literally. See that that makes me admire you even so much more. That’s like going to a job that like you’ve never done I know nothing about and you’re just like yeah. You’re just going to learn like when you like get thrown into a girl.
Esu [00:23:47] That’s the best way to learn this thing.
Kea [00:23:49] That’s true, I guess, because in my mind I’m like, OK, I would like to, you know, at least know, like, a little a little a little bit here. A little bit there before, you know, we go ahead. And it’s like, you know, like we want to pool. I mean, Lotos. Right. But you were just like, OK. And I have used Duolingo to I do like it, but high key. Low key. I’ve been making the al sad because, you know, you need to practice today and you’re like, do you lose your three week? And then once the streak is lost cause I don’t pick it back up. But then I was like, yeah,
Esu [00:24:25] my little apple has been neglected for so long now. It’s it’s OK though. But yeah, for me I guess about and also like how I stayed in a town called part of a popular. Not many people even know what that is in Italy. They’re like when people here, Italy, they think of Milan, Rome, Venice. But I picked a small town so that I could help myself learn the language more. I figured if it’s not as touristy as the other places, not as many people will know English. So if not as many people know English, it will force me to learn the language even more.
Kea [00:24:55] What are you? Do you think that during your time there, you got to the point where you’re like, oh yeah, I’m not here having conversations in Italian at least like, you know, everyday conversations every day.
Esu [00:25:12] Let’s see. Let’s see. Well, I did make some local friends and we would like I would teach them English and they would teach me Italian, which was nice. And it was really nice because I lived near, like they call it, a cafe where you can get pastries and coffee. And I would order more or less the same thing in Italian. So that helped me. What else? What else. Although I feel like for me, whenever I’m learning language, the first words I learn are culinary words like food or food, because I want to be able to order what I want to order. And I remember like struggling to learn how to say I want my meat well done in a restaurant. So like I feel like meat usually is just not well done in Europe or anywhere. Really. Yeah, I like medium rare, medium, whatever.
Kea [00:25:58] They want to eat a lot and
Esu [00:26:00] they want it. Yeah. They want it to be like moving at you and I’m like I don’t want my I don’t want my meat to be talking to me honestly. But yeah I forgot we were talking about food and languages. I went off on a tangent
Kea [00:26:12] girl ok with have is all about tangents. OK, like on us when I say this is your episode, I mean this is your episode, OK, this is a conversation we can bounce all over the place, you know. So I, I met, I met a girl talk real talk. OK, so yeah. So you know, I just I got back from Vegas.
Esu [00:26:32] It’s like what, how many hours minutes ago did you just get back.
Kea [00:26:36] We got back like two thirty. So we tried to like like we came back like right after we got off the flight and then I took a nap and yes, here we are.
Esu [00:26:49] But was it a family trip.
Kea [00:26:51] Yes. Yeah, it was. It was OK. So so my mother’s boyfriend, his birthday is October seven. So apparently like I saw him and my mom, they love Vegas. This like go now. So, of course, like, you know, my mom was like, oh yeah. Like Jerry, we can go to Vegas. And then my mom was like, you and I actually kind of Vegas. And so I was like, Oh, hey, you don’t go to Vegas. And he was like, Yeah. So we went to Vegas.
Esu [00:27:16] So was it was like the first time.
Kea [00:27:20] It was my first time and I was
Esu [00:27:24] I’ve been before then a couple of times I think, yeah. It’s really like it’s own universe. I feel like,
Kea [00:27:30] you know what, I want to do the day thing. So I start thinking about who are some interesting people I know. And I was an interesting person. I know. So I was like, oh, cool girl.
Esu [00:27:40] You know, when I saw my message, I was like, oh, well, honored. Because I remember when you were talking about I feel like I remember when Timothy was just a concept. And now that it’s like here we are like, bro, doing the thing.
Kea [00:27:58] Yes, indeedy. Feed the needy is crazy because. All right. So I don’t know if you remember this, but I remember this. So let’s rewind, rewind, rewind, rewind. Twenty, thirteen. OK, the summer before Cornell won, I knew I knew from Jump that you were freaking hilarious because I remember I don’t know if it was like class twenty seventeen and coming or whatever it was, but it was some, it was some Facebook group. Oh my God. And you were like we’re going to have cubs, Cornell University booty shakers. And I was. So what was it? Do you remember this conversation.
Esu [00:28:41] I feel like I, I do I oh my gosh. I feel like the summer before Cornell, I was so high. I was like, oh my gosh, who am I? People where they ate my food. That’s kind of cute because they’re mascots, a bear, you know.
Kea [00:28:57] Exactly. I was like, OK, I do not know this girl, but I know that I want to be friends with her.
Esu [00:29:02] Oh, my gosh, that sounds like me.
Kea [00:29:06] Honestly, I was crazy to like going to campus and like, you know, shenanigans and whatnot. And then, you know, Cornell beaten us down, but I still made my way out. So to girl
Esu [00:29:18] beat down was real, but we survived. How were you
Kea [00:29:22] exactly. Exactly. I’m like, all right, let’s go on now, because I met some really dope people,
Esu [00:29:29] my lifelong friends for real brothers and sisters.
Kea [00:29:33] Exactly. Exactly. I’m like, you know, when people talk about college in the days, I’m like, yo, like these friendships maybe here they’ll be here. Oh, sure, this is good. Why did you eat? Well, you said it’s like midnight. So you already ate dinner and all.
Esu [00:29:47] Yeah I already did. I, yeah I had a big meal midday and then a snack afterwards but yeah. Speaking of Grenelle do you remember how we met.
Kea [00:29:59] What have we met? Mm. Wait, hold on. I was the first first oh, we did we OK, was it at the still image barbecue?
Esu [00:30:11] I feel like it was me, was it before that or was it at the.
Kea [00:30:16] Because I remember, like, I was wearing glasses because, like, I don’t know why, because I wear contact them like Hillary was also there. Was that like the first time we met in person?
Esu [00:30:29] I am not sure if I was the first time, because I’m thinking of I think it was like a week maybe, and I’m not sure. I don’t I can’t remember if we were in the same group or we just our groups crossed paths or something and we exchanged phone numbers. I remember dropping your phone and I was
Kea [00:30:47] like,
Esu [00:30:47] OK, I will never forget because I felt so bad. I was like like you were like handing me your phone and like it just like slipped out of your hand or my hand. Bottom line is ended up on the floor. And I was like, oh my goodness, I can’t believe this just happened because we were trying to exchange numbers.
Kea [00:31:05] I cannot believe that I forgot that. Yes, OK. It was outside the steps of UJ and you had to had the purple and black case. And I like went to after it happened, I was like I was like, I wanna like, tell my mom because I was like, yeah. So like first weekend class hasn’t even started literally the last week.
Esu [00:31:23] Yes.
Kea [00:31:24] Yes. Oh yes. I remember I had totally forgotten that that happened. Wow.
Esu [00:31:29] I feel like I owe you a phone for the rest of your life now.
Kea [00:31:32] Oh my gosh. Yeah, yeah. Because it just it just it just happened so fast and it was like, really. But like, no, it’s not. It’s all good. It’s all good because like, you know, these things happen, like is it really college if I, you know, break something.
Esu [00:31:47] So honestly, I broke my phone to like the first month of school and shattered glass. I was literally like, you know, how you just grow in bed with your cell phone, Instagram, whatever. Back in the day we had Yik Yak and all that stuff, I would just be scrolling with, like, you know, glass falling out of my phone. It was really bad.
Kea [00:32:05] I would have cried, I would have been like, oh, yeah, I needed a Band-Aid to text you back first. Hold on. I mean, those were those were some times. Oh, my goodness. And it’s not like we’re going to, like, go immediately, like grass green fixed or something.
Esu [00:32:21] Like one guy who has cash like that. Not me
Kea [00:32:26] girl. Oh my goodness gracious. Yeah. OK, this actually makes me think. OK, so you you brought up this point a little earlier and this is actually one of the points that I want to talk about. So specifically with traveling in Europe. And obviously, like I can, I can only speak to, like, recovered. But yeah, getting around in Europe is like so cheap because I was born on a budget, budget, budget, budget, budget, and I remember I pay like a few pounds and the Megabus will literally take you anywhere. Like to where.
Esu [00:33:02] Yes, honey. Megabus that that is the way I think they call it Flick’s bus now or. Yeah, I think it’s Megabus in the US, but it’s Flick’s bus here in Europe.
Kea [00:33:13] OK. OK, wait. Like flip a pancake.
Esu [00:33:17] Yeah. Like est l i x flix
Kea [00:33:20] o flix like like you figure. OK, ok, ok.
Esu [00:33:23] I look at the flick of the wrist but X flicks, I don’t know, I got one but
Kea [00:33:31] that little sound bite in here you know, because I’m like pop and pop and so they’re not going to like assuming we
Esu [00:33:36] don’t, we don’t own any rights to any lyrics that were just sound. This is just for recreational purposes I don’t suppose, but yeah. Flick’s bus, Megabus. What else. Cheap airlines.
Kea [00:33:48] She laughs Oh my goodness gracious. Yeah, just traveling. And General, like in Europe was so frickin cheap. Like everything was just so frickin accessible. Like I kind of I kind of want people to do like a little girl trip, like if you can. I was like, not right now but when the world turns. Yeah. Oh my God. Yeah. Oh holy guacamole. Travel restrictions be like oh man. I just talk to my friend about oh like I wanna go back to Canada. And then I looked at them and I was like, oh crap. Yeah, we can’t do that right now.
Esu [00:34:24] Speaking of that, t w are traveling while wrona like you got to, you can’t go anywhere and if you do you got to be on the down low because people be like, oh how dare you travel when there’s an epidemic going on. I don’t know about you
Kea [00:34:40] whether people have travel. Shame you,
Esu [00:34:42] not me but I feel like yeah actually yeah. Because I went home in the US is like not doing so hot with Wrona. They’re like you’re going to go home. And I was like yeah I’m going to go home.
Kea [00:34:54] Who was coming at like your family was like who was out here coming to your neck.
Esu [00:35:00] Literally people were like, are you sure you want to go? Like Yeah, I’m not even going to mention what group of people these are. But yeah, people were like, yeah, I would advise you, I would strongly advise you just stay here. And I’m like, Hmm, no, I’m not doing that. Yeah. I want to go home. I haven’t seen my sister all year. All twenty twenty. I have one biological sister had not seen the girl all year. And I’m like this, this ain’t right. We got to fix this ASAP. Got to go home now.
Kea [00:35:30] Look like twins by the way.
Esu [00:35:32] I think when
Kea [00:35:33] you had that little post where I was doing like the same head gestures and it was so cool. I love
Esu [00:35:39] you. Yeah, she’s my little sister. Shout out to her doing her third year at Tulane, doing the same. Yeah. But yeah. Like going home was like, OK, everyone’s like the US. They had me. I don’t even know. Are you guys still on your first wave? Have you hit your second wave of wrona or.
Kea [00:35:56] No knowledge on the first one. But look, things we changed all the time and I’m just like. I just I don’t know, I don’t I don’t know who Kootenay Kucinich, and that’s that’s that’s my two cents. I feel like I saw a post that Europe was about to like a second wave. Is that correct?
Esu [00:36:21] Oh, yeah. We have we’re we’re starting our second wave. It’s on the up and up. So restrictions are getting tighter again. And, you know, but honestly, it’ll be all right. We’ll be fine.
Kea [00:36:32] It will. It will.
Esu [00:36:34] This too shall pass.
Kea [00:36:36] Exactly. Just like, you know, all the crazy things that have happened in the world prior to this, not like, you know, invalidating people’s feelings and like the people who are no longer with us, but for the fact of, like, you know, humankind as a whole, like humans will exist past twenty. Twenty. How many? I don’t know.
Esu [00:36:56] Right.
Kea [00:36:57] We we we don’t see. But I wrote real talk, though. I used the I was thinking about that too, like going places. But then it’s like, do I share that I’m traveling because. Yeah. Because there is, you know, obviously a stigma right now surrounding traveling and your exposure to other people. I already don’t have the energy to come for people who just don’t come from me. That’s just why
Esu [00:37:25] I which is how it worked. But people have energy.
Kea [00:37:28] They do. They do. I don’t know where they get it from. But I mean, I’m just like I don’t know, like if it was especially if it were a stranger, I’d be like, who are you? If it was someone I know. Honestly, I probably honestly, probably I don’t even think I would still care because like, I would like I go places with my mom. I go home to see my mom. So it’s like I’m already with, you know, the person whose opinions matter that like more than others, just like you’re not my mom, like been
Esu [00:38:03] here,
Kea [00:38:04] you know, so
Esu [00:38:05] so like. Yeah. When you travel, how do you typically document your experiences and how do you share them. Do you use Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook.
Kea [00:38:14] Yeah. Real talk. I don’t use Snapchat anymore. The only time I have to is these two instances either a someone sent me a snap and I’m like, OK, I’m open. It can be. I like the fact that it has the memories, so I’ll just open it and then. Oh yeah. A year ago today. Two years ago today. But I’m not blogging like I used to like that link. I’m going to email. Yeah. Yeah. Because that was when Cowls was like Yeah. Blog about your travels. And I was like I can put some words together and some, you know, some pictures together. I’m usually just posting stories on Instagram or if it’s like really like, you know, silly, whatever stuff I don’t want released to the public, I’ll just put it like the group chats or whatever. Yeah, but that’s, that’s, that’s mainly are you are you only on Facebook or what. Because I mean I’m sorry, not Facebook. Instagram because I know a lot of people that I know are kind of not really using other platforms besides Instagram now. Right.
Esu [00:39:20] I remember back in the day I used to be like, wait, would be Facebook. I guess starting off Facebook. I would share all my posts from my traveling. And then Snapchat came along and I was like, Yo, this is cool. I can just like quick pics. And the geotagging remember geotagging like, oh yeah, the filters and you can show people where you are. I remember that I was crazy about Snapchat for that feature and I’ve progressed to just Instagram pretty much. I post stories there, I post regular post there and you. I’m not sure that’s what I’m usually doing, and I remember I used to try to do like blogging when you sent me that link to your blog and I read through it, I was like, wow, this is why writing is important and it should never die. Yeah, because pictures are cool and all. But like the words that go with it, the story behind the picture and the moments, it’s really
Kea [00:40:16] it’s a lot. I was actually thinking about that when this was when I was coming back from Orlando on our flight, I believe, because sometimes like, you know, when things don’t go as they’re supposed to like as planned, I start wondering, like my mind starts doing this at low rates and I’m like, all right. Like, you know, or how are we going to get back on track? And yeah, it was crazy because so yeah, I have looked back at that post and I was just like I was really I really feel like that night we didn’t know if we were going to get off the cliffs. I really felt like you held me down because I was been I was really.
Esu [00:41:00] Yeah, reading through it. I was like I didn’t even realize, like, that was that was a really like the circumstance we were in, like that was real. Oh, real danger
Kea [00:41:10] was how I swear. It was like, this is crazy because, you know, sometimes I see people who are, you know, solo travelers and I, you know, commend them for that because it definitely takes courage to travel alone, you know, somewhere that you haven’t been. And I’m just like, yeah, when I was, like, looking through, I remember all the emotions came. But I mean, obviously all of my emotions were there, but. Yeah, yeah.
Esu [00:41:43] You’re reading through it, I was like, oh, my gosh, I forgot that this even happened and then like. Thank you so much for writing this, putting this experience into words to whoever is listening to you with key dotcom, could the archives 20 16 study abroad? It was it was a jolly good time.
Kea [00:42:04] It was it was like looking back on, you know, all the good stuff. Because, I mean, just a really honestly, I think that experience made me realize if I, you know, and like old and rich and want to retire somewhere and not in the US, honestly, I want to retire. And Southern Italy like.
Esu [00:42:25] No, just like
Kea [00:42:28] that is that is where it was. I mean, the the architecture, the food, the water, the people, the people were a little bit more sexually suggestive than like I thought. Well, I guess I should have known that beforehand, but it was OK with you, but
Esu [00:42:46] I wasn’t even ready.
Kea [00:42:48] Girl Yo, remember that one guy was like, we were going to a restaurant and he was like, do you want to ride on my moped or something?
Esu [00:42:57] I don’t quite remember. But like
Kea [00:43:01] I feel
Esu [00:43:01] like that’s shoot your city. Like people will just shoot their shot. That’s not
Kea [00:43:07] like Italians. They they’re like, hey, like bear for word. I was like,
Esu [00:43:14] OK,
Kea [00:43:16] this is this is this is how things are, you know, you know, going down rapidly if you are, you know, of course this is 40 know years in the future. But do you think that you’d ever, like, retire abroad? Are you think that where do you where do you see yourself? Obviously, you’re in Belgium. You’re you know, about your thesis is done or you’re in the process.
Esu [00:43:41] Girl, I’m just getting started.
Kea [00:43:44] OK, see you in the process. You in the process first. How how how long do you think, like, you plan to stay in Belgium and then location wise, like, where do you see yourself or are you kind of like open to the world or. I want to, I want to get in your brain. What’s that. What’s what’s the wonderful mind of ASU?
Esu [00:44:01] Oh my gosh. My brain right now. But thinking about the future, it’s kind of it’s not scary. It’s exciting. But at the same time, it’s such a blank slate. You know, I don’t want to paint a certain picture and then something changes and it’s like, oh, no, that’s not what I imagined myself for myself. But in the future, I don’t know, like I really do like Europe. But now that I’ve lived here for at least it’s been a year so far, the US is not bad either. I used to be like, oh, I need to get out of the U.S. like, you know, social welfare is not the greatest here and higher education is really expensive. And Europe, she’s doing everything right. But now that I’m here, I’m like, you know what? The US, we have our pros and cons in Europe, they have their pros and cons. Hmm. But I really don’t know. I just I’m looking I’m also really understanding now the importance of living close to your family. Yeah. Because now that I’m here and yes, I have like extended family and family friends in Europe, it’s just not the same as my mom, my dad, my grandparents, my siblings. So I would like to be close to them. But at the same time, I wouldn’t mind building my career and building my future in Europe or elsewhere.
Kea [00:45:13] That was literally such a perfect answer, I felt as if, like you had written this out and practice it because
Esu [00:45:21] no man, no think about my future. Like every now and then had my quarter life crisis earlier this year. I was like, oh, my gosh. Twenty five.
Kea [00:45:31] Hello, girl. Quarterlife crisis. That’s all. That could be a whole nother episode in itself because. Yes, just the week long table that I like, I like the way that you put it, saying, you know, you’re not going to, you know, write something in stone persay just in case things turn out differently because. Yeah, like you could have a plan, but then, you know, you might go this way. I go that way even better than what you had anticipated it. And if you’re it seems like you are being like open to opportunities, but also the family portion, because I personally didn’t really, really, really feel that until like after Cornell, obviously, you know, we couldn’t just hop in the car and, like, go home to the city on the weekend, you know, but thinking, you know, even being overseas, obviously, you know, it’s you coming home. It’s not saying, hey, like my you go come visit me, you know, so and I think and I think that a lot of people can relate, especially to 20, 20, considering how much uncertainty there has been. No. You can be close to your family because. Yeah, like, I, I actually thought about going back to New York because I’m like, OK, New York City, you know, has everything not just, you know, up there. And I clearly would not be making the 10, 11 hour drive back to Greensboro. So, you know, Atlanta, it’s close enough to where I can still, you know, get home like four and a half hours, depending on how fast I drive, you know, but yeah, definitely traveling and definitely has its perks in terms of engulfing yourself and the life of someone’s, you know, culture that is not of your own. But also when you think about long term, where your heart is and, you know, being close to your family, I think that’s the benefit to that we have right now. You know, we are young, we’re able bodied, considering, you know, how much savings we have. A little little something.
Esu [00:47:53] A little bit of something.
Kea [00:47:55] Yeah. Not not, you know, extravagant because I do want to go to Australia, but I’m saving that.
Esu [00:47:59] Oh, I used to be like my dream country.
Kea [00:48:03] Wait, really. OK, this actually makes me think. Yes, OK. Places on your like list of want to go like you, like you, you need to like have these experiences in your life. Like I don’t know if you’ve put these on your list but where do you want to go that you have not been yet.
Esu [00:48:24] Wow, so let’s see, I used to be the kind of like dreamer when it comes to traveling, because with social media it’s so easy just to see where other people are. And you want to be there like I want to be where she is or I want to be where he is. And I used to have these lists, like, I want to go here, here and here. But now I’m just like wherever the wind blows me, that’s where I want to go. So it’s nothing like I. I remember, like, when I was younger, I want to go to Paris and then I guess I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been there now and it’s like, OK, so Paris is just Paris. But for me with my career, I want to go to more countries in Africa because I don’t know. I don’t know. And it’s not that I don’t know why I feel like with travel, Europe is romanticized and the US is romanticized. So those are places that I typically travel. But within my own home continent, I’ve only ever gone to Nigeria. So I would like to take my career in the food industry and travel more within the African continent and then also travel more in Asia. I’ve only been to South Korea. Shout out to my friend Bianca, who is living there right now. But yeah, I guess for me it’s an open seat. Nothing like that I can really think of on the forefront of my mind. What about you? You said Australia.
Kea [00:49:48] Yes. Yes. Australia is definitely on the list. I have a couple of friends out there that I’m like, Hey, girls, I’m a make it out to you. When I was like a little a little different because, you know, obviously you’ve got to plan. And I definitely so I haven’t been to Asia. I want to go to Tokyo. I don’t need to honestly, I’d say Tokyo stop right now on my list of places to go.
Esu [00:50:18] I want to go. That’s the thing. I want to go everywhere. It’s such a hard question. I want to go where I haven’t been before. So that’s my answer.
Kea [00:50:25] Literally. Literally. Ever been there. OK, yeah. I want to go.
Esu [00:50:29] Exactly. It’s that simple.
Kea [00:50:30] Exactly. Exactly. So hopefully, you know, when my piggy bank gets a little, a little bit and hopefully with the guidelines that are set right now, hopefully, you know, the rate at which the pandemic is spreading hopefully becomes on the decline. Fingers crossed for
Esu [00:50:52] all
Kea [00:50:52] of us. Yeah. So hopefully, you know, when when things return to, you know, somewhat what they were before, that I can make that happen. But, you know, we’ll we’ll see. We’ll see. I definitely think that the I, I follow a lot of travel pages on. So yeah. Just seeing like damn like this looks dope or even like I was one of my groups at that time and we were just throwing out ideas and places to go. And so I had I had a place in mind and I think I thought this because so I still use my Cornell email to and there was a one email that was like Cornell and Cornell parents trip to the Galapagos Islands or so I saw that.
Esu [00:51:41] I thought, yeah.
Kea [00:51:42] And I was like, oh my goodness. Like, yeah, I want to see, like, those tortoises and those finches. Come on. Yeah. But then my cat was like children.
Esu [00:51:52] Also anything associated with that school price tag just goes up.
Kea [00:51:57] Girl, girl, girl literally. Yeah. I was like so I use it on the news email to tell me I got a discount or what.
Esu [00:52:04] Like and it’s not
Kea [00:52:06] exactly it’s like fake and I’m like OK so I see, I see what you’re doing now. I see what you’re doing. It’s cute. Those cute. It’s cute but yeah. Honestly, like I just, I want to be able to have more shared experiences with people, but I enjoy being around in other places and you know, we’ll, we’ll see what happens. We’ll see what happens.
Esu [00:52:32] That’s really important. And that’s something I’m just learning about, like shared experiences, especially when traveling earlier you had mentioned like solo travel. That’s something I really used to do a lot, because I feel like if I have to wait to coordinate with people, I’m not going to go anywhere. So I would just like find my flight ticket, buy my ticket and just go. And now I’m understanding that while it’s not necessarily where you are, it’s also who you are there with
Kea [00:53:01] facts, facts, facts. Although depending on the size of the group, because let me tell you, I tried to plan an eight person ship that turned out into two people.
Esu [00:53:12] Right. I’ve been there like that, too, actually. I went from like a six person trip to just me going, oh, wow. I was like, you know what? I’m I still live my life.
Kea [00:53:21] I’m going, see, that’s. The thing I really like about you, it’s like when you as like an individual, like you say, OK, I want to do this, I am going to do it like you make things happen, you know, like you you don’t function dependent on others like you, you know what you’re about. And you make it happen, you know, like you you are a doer.
Esu [00:53:45] Thanks. Yeah, I try. I mean, I just feel like it’s important to. Yes. Do things with your friends, but sometimes it’s like friends. Are you with me or what. That’s what I think our trip together was. My first trip, like with someone that I knew honestly we were were like that was I was so hyped when you were like, do you want to do spring break together?
Kea [00:54:11] But I’m gonna be there at Emilee now.
Esu [00:54:14] Yeah, that was my first that was really my first time traveling with someone and it was hands down the best experience of my life.
Kea [00:54:23] Yeah, I wish I could hug you right now. All Yeah. Looking back at those photos, I was like I was getting like all nostalgic and then it was crazy because, you know, like I have, you know, on the website of the archives because it was four years ago. But it doesn’t even well, four and a half years now doesn’t even grow crazy, you know, time.
Esu [00:54:46] What is time, girl?
Kea [00:54:49] If I knew. If I knew, what was your takeaway points be?
Esu [00:54:53] Yeah, I guess my key takeaway point flash points would be to have an open mind and don’t be afraid to try to explore new cultures and new environments. And wow, that sounds really corny and cliché, but I feel like it’s really as simple as that. Honestly, I feel like we live in a society where we like we are doers. We can do whatever we want to do. So we just plan things as we envision them. And we’re not very flexible to things outside of our plan. So my advice is just sometimes it’s OK to go with the flow and take the scenic route and yeah, enjoy life.
Kea [00:55:36] I like that. I like whether it’s at
Esu [00:55:38] home or whether it’s abroad.
Kea [00:55:40] Go with the flow and enjoy the scenic route. Thanks for listening to this episode of T when he can’t get enough to with key. Keep listening for some bonus content. OK, ok, so this is your segment. You go ham girl.
Esu [00:55:56] Hello. Hello everyone coming to you live with this little extra bonus segment on travel. Yeah, I just felt like it’s important to know these things from at least our experience. Right key. When I was reading through the blog post from our trip to Italy and it’s like we had our phones dead on a couple insincerely and
Kea [00:56:15] I was not cute
Esu [00:56:16] and it was not cute. So I just thought it would be nice to give your listeners, like, you know, essential things to always keep on you when traveling. So the first thing’s first is a portable power bank, like not one of those that just charges your phone one time, but like, you know, one that can hold like three to four charges in case you need to charge your phone or like a friend needs to charge their phone or in case you’re stranded and you just need to keep your phone going throughout the whole day. I don’t know about you, but how long does your phone battery last these days?
Kea [00:56:48] You know, I actually have a decent battery like I could. I could use it, like, regularly. And then if I don’t charge it, I’ve woken up on like twenty percent.
Esu [00:57:01] Wow. Hashtag blessed.
Kea [00:57:03] But then if I start like video chatting, then it dies really quickly. But I could go to sleep and still have charge when I wake up.
Esu [00:57:12] Wow. I don’t know what I do, but if I leave my house the full charge by like four hours later I already have like nothing and I’m like oh my goodness gracious. Maybe has my is like I don’t know anyway but yeah. Always go with a power bank and leave the house, the full battery. And when you’re traveling internationally, it’s also important to have an adapter or converter, right.
Kea [00:57:33] Yes. Oh my God. I had to buy a converter because like the you have to stick it in the wall. It was like
Esu [00:57:38] yep, yep, yep. That’s essential because you don’t want to, you know, have your American little outlet and it’s like not out the plug, whatever the terminology is. And then you’re like, wait a sec. Yeah. It’s so cheap to buy them on Amazon too, as opposed to buying it when you’re already in the country.
Kea [00:57:56] Oh yeah. Definitely like having things before you go because then you. Yeah. You don’t have to like go to the trouble of actually finding it and then prices because of course like you know in our cases the dollar. Well yeah. When I was abroad this is before I went down the the great British pound was I think like one point, almost one point five times superior. The American dollar. Yep. Every dollar I spend, I’m just paying actually. Fifty cents. Like what? This is my
Esu [00:58:24] life, I remember shopping in Britain back then was just not the move, your dollar was like your dollar means nothing to them. We’re like, oh, we’re going to need two of those.
Kea [00:58:33] Exactly. And I’m like, wait, hold the line, please. Yes.
Esu [00:58:37] Speaking of money, carrying cash in whatever country you’re traveling to, because, yeah, there are some places I don’t accept Visa or MasterCard or whatever. You have Amex and there’s some places that only accept cash. So it’s always important to have the correct currency.
Kea [00:58:54] Mad facts, mad facts and what little I get your get you like a fanny pack that stays under your shirt for your passport.
Esu [00:59:03] Oh this is important because.
Kea [00:59:06] Yeah, like you that’s literally that’s your life. You know, when you think about traveling, they’re not like, OK, show me your driver’s license. No, they’re like, wait, where’s your ID? That’s like thinking about the heart in your body, like, you know, and people are pickpockets. So I wasn’t a victim, but my friend was a victim. So I would advise yellow flat fanny pack to keep under your shirt so that you know that you have your identity and your money on you at all times so that you don’t find yourself, like, stranded.
Esu [00:59:39] So I’m learning from you. I’ve never done that before, but I’ve heard of that tactic. Yeah. And also especially traveling while black. It’s really important to always have your ID on you because, you know, like discrimination and discrimination. Discrimination is discrimination no matter where you are in the world. So people will look at you, be like, oh, she black, oh, he black. They don’t belong here where your idea like boom, boom, boom. And they’ll just think that you’re an illegal or something. So, yeah, having your I.D. is really important.
Kea [01:00:11] Yeah. I would also say like and I guess I’m saying this now because of covid because so in the beginning when I was abroad, I had to have my paperwork stating that I wasn’t staying for more than six months when I got my short term student visa because I was not going to be there five months for the semester. I was also on traveling. Yes. Like, you know, you’re already going to have your battery pack in, you know, your little your little bag. But I would say just go ahead and print your papers, too, because, like, even if you’re not doing anything wrong, like when you’re approached by authorities, like, you need to be able to answer their questions completely and fully. And, you know, like just having all of your paperwork just in case they at they come at you like with some B.S. So in that case, like, I had my papers physically printed out from the university stating what my purpose was. And then when traveling, like having physical copies of I’m only in the country this long and this is my proof of departure date. So yeah, I would say printing is old fashioned, but honestly, like it could save you.
Esu [01:01:19] It saves you. Yeah. So you don’t have to walk around with the hard copies, but at the same time you still have proof. But I remember I was like whip out my student I.D. like hey like look, I’m just a student here, like, you know, I don’t know any better. Mafalda. Yeah, let’s see. Cash I.D. keeping it safe. And I yeah. If you have space in your bag in Europe, I remember reading in your blog and also just from being here still water is not always free when you go out.
Kea [01:01:48] Typically I’m like
Esu [01:01:49] going for tap water. I recommend you walk around with a water bottle or if you’re going through security or port security, bring an empty water bottle that you can fill up because for the most part here, tap water is safe, generally speaking. So, yeah, traveling with your own water or water bottle will save you in the long run
Kea [01:02:06] that Asseri dead.
Esu [01:02:07] Asseri were you saying something earlier. I’m sorry if I cut you off. No, I’m actually
Kea [01:02:12] like reaching for my water bottle right now because I’m like hydrated. No for because I think I drink like the little like Dasani water bottle. I don’t like the flight but but I’m like oh have I drinking. Have I drunk. I’m English. It’s hard, it’s hard.
Esu [01:02:30] Like I don’t mean like so like literally staying here. I’m just like don’t yell at me if I don’t know English anymore because it’s like, it’s like people know what you’re trying to say. So like you know no stress. Mhm.
Kea [01:02:42] Oh sorry. The water. Is it just good today.
Esu [01:02:47] Yeah. What’s the weather like over there. And I’m going on a tangent.
Kea [01:02:51] It was raining obviously like in Vegas, you know, it’s the desert so it was hot. Yeah. We got back to Atlanta, we was had back from the airport start pulling down. I was like OK, oh we do this once I try to get out the car like this. It’s OK. It’s OK. Yeah. I mean, you know, every human here, like, sometimes when I go out for my walk, I’m like a little humid, but, you know, I am and I’m mad at it sometimes.
Esu [01:03:19] I mean, I miss the warmth. It’s cold over here.
Kea [01:03:23] But we look at cute yellow jackets with a look ahead.
Esu [01:03:26] Oh, thank you. I try time to get a new one for, you know, whatever the season, but. Yeah, what else? What else? When you travel, what kind of headphones do you use or earbuds.
Kea [01:03:36] Oh, I have these little like plug earbuds and I call them my earplugs. Oh yeah. Because I actually so I don’t own air pods.
Esu [01:03:47] Neither do I. I was, I was looking at the price hold of your and this much on my fear, not even just my fear. First of all I got money like that. Second of all, what if I lose it. They’re so small.
Kea [01:04:01] OK, literally that happens like one of my friends, like she’ll lose them and the little case and it’ll be like in her bed or something. But also when you’re traveling like there’s no plug. So like if you want to listen to the scariness in front of you and they’re not providing, you know, the regular, you know, earbuds, it’s like, OK, so you’ve got your air, which you can even plug it into the ox because they are like you still can’t hear like garlic.
Esu [01:04:30] I just invested in, like, noise canceling headphones and girl, when I’m traveling game changer, like, I don’t hear anything. I can’t hear the wind. I can’t hear someone talking. I can’t hear the baby crying like, oh
Kea [01:04:42] my gosh,
Esu [01:04:43] you know, like the over the ear style.
Kea [01:04:47] Oh yes. My one of my coworkers, he had a pair and I was like, let me see, let me see what these are about. And Yeah. One and it’s like you’re in your own world and I’m like, oh this is interesting.
Esu [01:05:02] Oh. Speaking of interesting, like I don’t even know it doesn’t have anything to do. Interesting. But like snacks and stuff like that. Do you travel with your own snacks. You rely on airplane snacks. Like what do you do.
Kea [01:05:13] I pack snacks. I made my choice. OK, so this time when I traveled I had like bought anything because it was you know, it gets closer to the point to where, like, you’re forced to go buy food because there’s literally just like scraps. I was like holding out and I was like surviving on my scraps because I was like I knew that I was going to be gone for at least four days. So I was like, there’s no point to buy groceries because they just going to sit. So my choice of snack was Parmesan crisps, OK? But I had also bought some red velvet chocolate. But when I woke up this morning, I actually ate it all. So I guess technically it wasn’t a travel snack because I had eaten it before I started traveling back. Well, but yes, I do. I am a fan of packing my own snacks, but that’s good.
Esu [01:06:03] See, I’m just getting on that wave because before I used to be the girl that’s like, you know, like at the airport. So for me, I love Cinnabon. So that would be like a snack I get at the airport because my airport had Cinnabon and like snack wise flying southwest, they hook you up with them. Good, good snacks like, oh, I like have you you have you flown Southwest before?
Kea [01:06:27] I’m trying to think I feel like I haven’t, but I’ve heard like good things.
Esu [01:06:30] Yeah. Oh my gosh. Yeah they will, they will give you snacks that are not just like the peanuts and the pretzels. They’ll give you like tasty cookies and crackers. And I’m like, what the. Oh, not like those, that’s like super beauty. I think it’s like more international. You like the. Yeah. Maybe here, I think they give you like Nabisco type cookies. OK, you know, I’m like, OK, this is a good. So I used to just never really pack my own snacks and then I end up buying stuff and then now I’m like, wait a second, why am I wasting money on snacks or depending on the airline to feed me when I can pack my own snacks and pack healthier?
Kea [01:07:10] Honestly, that’s the truth, though. That is like the dead man. I say now thinking like I’m really thinking of a question that’s like, girl, when I go back and this idea is not to be because I’m like, OK, so I’m not normally like normally I write down everything, but I’m trying to be more like spontaneous. Oh, I don’t have like my notebook with me. I’m just like we talk like that, but now I’m like, crap. Now I realize I want to ask you a question because I’m like, OK, so you’re into food and like nutrition, but you also want to be able to travel. So I’m like, is there a job that exists that you can do where you like travel and help people make like healthier options for the food that’s available to them? Or like what? I don’t know. I’m just talking right now. But like, does that make sense?
Esu [01:08:06] Yeah, I see what you’re trying to say. You have a food. The thing about the food industry is like it will it can take you wherever you want to go because food is one thing that unites us all across the globe. Yeah. So, like, I can work in the private sector of industry and if I work as a product developer, I might have to go to different countries and make samples of, you know, food products or go to the agricultural side because, you know, everything starts from the ground. And yeah, I feel like in the industry there are a lot of opportunities to travel, but also with research, there’s opportunity for travel. But, yeah, I guess for my career trajectory right now, I’m kind of looking more at food security. So, yeah, I feel like that in itself would I would have to go to the countries or the regions that are insecure, assess the region in the circumstance. And, you know, I feel like, yeah, there’s opportunity for travel in my field.
Kea [01:09:04] Mos Def, Mos Def. I mean, because yeah, like you said, like, I eat who I am because if they if along like. Come on. All right. Last OK, so not even last belykh.
Esu [01:09:18] So food just like oh my gosh. Food traveling with food. Sorry I just jump on this new wave. I know it’s not new, it’s new to me, you know, like food jars are like insulated food.
Kea [01:09:30] Thermos is way, way like like for food to maintain its temperature.
Esu [01:09:35] Yes.
Kea [01:09:37] So like do I do it. No. But like do I know of it. Yes.
Esu [01:09:41] Right. Like I never used to. I think I did it like once back in elementary school when my mom would send me to school with like hot pasta or something. Oh yes.
Kea [01:09:48] Like hot super hot soup.
Esu [01:09:50] Yeah. Things like that. So now that I’m like an actual adult and I’m like trying to eat better and save money, I’m realizing that when you travel it is so it’s such a lifesaver because you can always have a hot meal on you at any time or a cold meal if you want to. Like these days I’ll just like heat up some whatever I have in the fridge, throw it in one of the food jars and if I get hungry today, I have a whole meal and I’m like, whoa, oh yes.
Kea [01:10:17] Literally that is Clutch A.F. because yeah, it’s like, wait, hold on. I want to eat this meal as it was intended.
Esu [01:10:26] But you’re not always going to have access to a microwave. You’re not always going to like, I don’t know, see food that you want to eat. But if you pack it with you, it’s just yeah.
Kea [01:10:35] Now I’m thinking like, wait, hold on. I need to like, actually, you know, what can I. Is it too early to like, put this on my Christmas list? Can I do this. Can I do that.
Esu [01:10:44] No, of course. Girl they’re already having Christmas chocolates and decorations in the stores. It’s never too early.
Kea [01:10:50] I’m actually like going to text my mom right now because, like, logit, this is something that I would like to have that also it’s going to last forever and, you know, traveling in the future,
Esu [01:11:03] like you
Kea [01:11:04] call them,
Esu [01:11:05] like I don’t even know when am I literally I went from having zero to like five of them because I have some that I can use and put water in it or coming from the US. I packed some jollof rice from home literally in one. Yeah. They’re just so handy just to even keep an empty one on you. You never know. Like if you go to a restaurant and you have leftovers, you can literally toss the leftovers in the food jar and eat it later. And it’s still hot,
Kea [01:11:33] you know, and these prices are like very reasonable, like I’m saying, like so many different like ones,
Esu [01:11:39] OK, a lot of different companies. They’re definitely higher and expensive ones. But regular Jugulator, like Walmart, Target, IKEA, they have them too.
Kea [01:11:49] Oh, yeah, I know. I’m looking. I’m like, ok, ok.
Esu [01:11:53] Like for me, I don’t think I’ve spent more than ten dollars. Yeah, twelve dollars on one, which is affordable for me.
Kea [01:12:00] No, I feel you, I’m looking. I see one. I see one right here from Wal-Mart that says twelve ninety eight there.
Esu [01:12:06] There we go.
Kea [01:12:07] Thirty three ounce. OK, let’s see. Oh, it’s
Esu [01:12:11] important to have like my mouth.
Kea [01:12:13] Where did you see of a wide mouth.
Esu [01:12:15] No, no, no. I don’t have a wide enough. Obviously I have no right with the jar. Should be wide enough for you to like stick your hand in it so you can clean it properly and also like, scoop food into it.
Kea [01:12:25] Yes. Yes, I know. See, this is another thing I love about tea with key is because I, I’m learning from you now, OK? Because I was like, OK, I’m, I have to want to show we’re going to chit chat. I’m alive so that I didn’t
Esu [01:12:42] have some tea.
Kea [01:12:43] Yes, exactly. And it’s it’s really because it’s like now I’m going to be a better traveler when people listen like they can be better travelers because I wasn’t even thinking I’m like, what? Also I never know. Like what I want is give because I’m usually like I like giving gifts. I never really know. Like, OK, like what. Like receiving gifts. And I’m like if my is like hey was like hey man so I’m in need this or this was cute. There’s so many
Esu [01:13:14] cute ones like I kid you not. I have one that looks like would kind of on the outside and then I got another one that looks like marble.
Kea [01:13:23] I’m OK,
Esu [01:13:25] right. I’m like they’re, they’re so stylish too. Or even just a plain stainless steel one is like, you know, like a modern, simple look. Oh, yes. And with that, I asked more travel utensils.
Kea [01:13:38] Yeah, because yeah, sometimes, like, when I go somewhere, I’ll just like fast food, for example, if I want to go, I’ll just like take extra silverware because I’m like yeah, yeah. And extra napkins because I don’t have I’m clumsiest buildings myself. Yeah. Yes. Because yeah. Because it’s like if you’re eating on the go and. Yeah. Like what you like, you want to have options you know on the go.
Esu [01:14:08] Oh it’s so important. I feel like also in this day and age where people are being more conscious of sustainability, I know here for a fact like plastic utensils are like not really a thing so much in Belgium, like they’re going more towards wood or bring your own. I know my dining hall at my university. They’re like, yeah, you can take your food to go, but bring your own cutlery.
Kea [01:14:30] Hmm. But actually is a lot better. That’s just that’s interesting because. Yeah, like I know they were doing it with the straws, like save the sea turtles. Yeah.
Esu [01:14:41] And like but it doesn’t stop there. Yeah.
Kea [01:14:43] Yeah, yeah. Because like plastic straws are no longer a thing like they’re just well I mean like at restaurants anyways. I don’t know if I think that, I think that fast food still have I still have plastic straws but yeah. In terms of like being more sustainable, they look similar
Esu [01:15:02] kinds of creative, like they use like pasta and like paper. And I’m like, oh OK. With the straws.
Kea [01:15:09] It’s crazy. It’s crazy. Sure. Oh, I know.
Esu [01:15:15] Laughter All right, let’s see.
Kea [01:15:19] Let me back up for me. OK, so for this for the love for this little part, did you want to add anything for what people should know when they are going to travel with what they should take,
Esu [01:15:35] take, take, take. We talked about documentation. We talked about. Oh, I mean, this is just a random bit, I guess, with boarding passes, you know how you can put it on your phone now can be fatal. That’s handy. But at the same time, you don’t always want to have to count on your phone battery. Because what if it’s like dead and you need to use your boarding pass or something? That was a tangent. Oh, no, no, no, no.
Kea [01:16:01] Let’s see. Oh, I love tangents. I love tangents.
Esu [01:16:04] Going to bring with you. OK, this is more of like. Bring with you the back of your head local holidays and knowing when things open up and things close, because after reading through, reading through the blog posts, it’s like, yeah, like you might think it’s American. Everything is open, but it’s really not.
Kea [01:16:25] Yes. Oh, my goodness. I guess we were like struggling like I remember like closer to getting to our hostel. Yeah. Stores are just closed and it would be like the day time. And I’m like, yes.
Esu [01:16:37] So I guess just knowing where like where you are and what they do and how they operate is very important to save yourself at facts.
Kea [01:16:47] But if you listen to the other tips and you know, like Hungary, for example, you probably have your travel snacks with you. Right. And that will save you, too. Yeah. I’ll try to think what else what I
Esu [01:16:59] owe comfortable shoes,
Kea [01:17:01] girl, honestly. Yes, that is because I anywhere and to honestly, I feel as if. I wish there were more like extremely, extremely comfortable shoes, but also extremely, extremely cute, but fashionable
Esu [01:17:20] but comfortable,
Kea [01:17:21] like price wise, like, am I asking for too
Esu [01:17:24] much? It’s really not too much to ask. Like, I think about that.
Kea [01:17:29] Yeah. I just I literally like like I said, I just got back from Vegas hours ago and yeah. Like I wasn’t really thinking. I was like, oh, I’m not going to be walking that much because like, you know, the strips like an area and like everything are
Esu [01:17:46] on your feet all day.
Kea [01:17:47] Yes. Like I literally I kid you not. So the other day we took like I kid you not twenty two thousand steps in one day and white and black shoes. And I was like I was really out here trying to be cute every day.
Esu [01:18:03] You said you were not wearing flats.
Kea [01:18:05] You know I was
Esu [01:18:06] or you were OK. So, like, my feet hurt because they were like, yup, yup, yup, I feel you. I know exactly what you mean.
Kea [01:18:15] Yeah. So if you’re trying to be cute and travel, like, just yeah. I wish trying would be like too cute and I’m like, oh my feet are so richly comfy shoes.
Esu [01:18:27] That’s, that’s really important. Like I feel like you would think like OK, I’m wearing flat shoes so it can’t be that bad. But then after a while you’re like, hold up my feet hurt.
Kea [01:18:37] Exactly. I’m like al like wearing watches, nonexisting
Esu [01:18:43] like like I’m the kind of person to that. Like when we’re talking fashion and traveling and comfort and whatever, I would be the girl that’s wearing like heels out and about in the forest because I’m like, I want to be cute at all times.
Kea [01:18:55] Yeah. And it’s like I want the photo to include my feet, like, hello.
Esu [01:18:59] But like at the same time, I don’t want to hate myself in the evening when my feet are like hurting, blistering
Kea [01:19:06] and then it’s. Yeah, literally. And then you’re like, why did I do this to myself.
Esu [01:19:11] Yeah, but now just wearing cute sneakers, suffice honestly, just a pair of sneakers will do the trick.
Kea [01:19:18] That’s the truth, that’s the truth because, yeah, you’re trying to like travel, but also not hate yourself.
Esu [01:19:23] Yeah, like we’re getting we’re getting older. Like we got to watch out for our bodies. We got to take care of ourselves
Kea [01:19:29] are like we can’t just, you know, drink milk and like, hope that, you know, it’s going to carry us like osteoporosis exists like that probably will happen to us. But like arthritis exists, like, come on. Like we’re young but still. Yeah. Like the more we take care of ourself now because you only get one set of bones. I mean I guess like your bones could grow back. Well, like, you know, I mean like
Esu [01:19:54] now we’re talking biology. True. And they can grow back stronger. But that’s that’s not to say you should go breaking bones or.
Kea [01:20:00] Exactly. Because now like we’re older, they’re not going to like, repair themselves as much as if we were like, yeah. Four years old. So the point is, yes. A comfy shoe company.
Esu [01:20:08] Shoes. Yeah. Oh, my gosh. You know, I don’t think I don’t think I had anything else. What seemed like the the way we covered a lot.
Kea [01:20:19] I find people are really going to get a lot of this episode.
Esu [01:20:22] I hope they do.
Kea [01:20:24] I think they will. I think I know it will. I know they will. It’s going to be. It’s gonna be great. Yeah.
Tea With Kea 