How I learn more from my travels: Travelling to Learn

Some travel to escape, others to explore. Either way, it can be easy to feel like you’re just a spectator on the outside, nose pressed to the glass. It often takes years of living somewhere to develop a deep understanding of the place. But there are shortcuts. Places are, for the most part, about the people that live there. Experiencing their food, arts and language help bring you so much closer to them. Of course, doing beats seeing every time. Arts, crafts and cookery courses provide the perfect opportunity to roll up your sleeves, get stuck in and taste life on another side of the world.

I have always been fascinated and inspired by Japanese design, from dementedly cute cartoon characters to sophisticated, elegant paintings. It was only when I had a go at Japanese calligraphy - taught in schools from an early age - that I realised just how deeply aesthetic principles were ingrained into the culture. With brush in hand, stone to grind sumi ink at my side and a sheet of washi (Japanese paper) in front of me, my teacher patiently explained the basics of shodō, the way of writing. Balance, technique, clarity of mind and control were paramount. All, incidentally, traits for which the Japanese have been praised. My efforts did not reach such elevated heights. It would take years of dedicated practice to achieve that. However, I did feel I took a few more steps towards making sense of the place I was in and its people.

As much as we fall in love with a place though, it’s impossible to bring it all home with us. Souvenirs and holiday snaps can help preserve the memories, but falling into post-travel funk is not uncommon. Besides, a key-chain or postcard churned out by the thousands can hardly sum up what your trip meant to you. I used to go on and on about the fabulous time I had to whoever was in earshot to relive the magic. I've learnt the hard way that it’s not a good idea to start every sentence, “When I was in...”.

Instead, wow your friends with tales of your adventures over [a meal you learned to cook while traveling]( (http://www.worldreviewer.com/experiences/art/four-seasons-hotel-cook-school-in-chiang-mai/57206/) ,served up on tableware you made, all while wearing an outfit you designed. And you’ll no longer find people dreading your holiday snaps when they turn out as well as photos you took at travel photography school or safari photography school. So the next time you travel, you’ll have a few more tricks up your sleeve to make those all important connections. If you’ve studied well perhaps you can speak with, or even sing to, the locals. Then the world really is your oyster. After all, you’ve already learnt how to shuck it.

More things to learn while travelling » Things I'd like to learn first

	Wildlife Safari Photography Arts, Crafts & Cookery in Tanzania Have you ever tried to photograph a once-in-a-lifetime, heart-stopping holiday moment and found the result to lack more than a little of the spirit of the original? Plenty of theoretical knowledge can be gained at home, and you can practise your documentary shots at the local high street or your wildlife snaps on the cat, but nothing compares to the real thing. For the best of both worlds, there's always a wildlife photography holiday. With your photography tutor by your side, you can test your new-found knowledge of lighting, lens-selection, filters, shutter speeds and field-depth on some of the most glorious sights a Tanzanian safari has to offer. This time, your holiday album could contain a herd of wildebeest crossing a roaring river, cheetah cubs playing in the shade of a plane tree, a gazelle captured mid-leap or even a hunting lioness, just as you remember them. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user yaaaay
	Painting in Marrakech Arts, Crafts & Cookery in Marrakech, Morocco Delicate watercolours inspired by cool, green fields and cloud-scattered skies are all very well, but how about something more exotic to fuel your artistic passions? Morocco offers a whole new palette of visual inspirations. Awesomely beautiful sunsets, endless stretches of sand, the nomads of the Sahara and the Red City itself, with its souk, ancient fort, rosy-coloured buildings and ornate mosques. Wherever you look, there is something to suit your style, from open scenes of untamed nature to twisting streets full of food stalls, dancers, spice shops, textile stands and jewellers. Testing your painting abilities in a less familiar environment is always exciting, and a week's painting course in Marrakech allows you to generate new ideas and experiment with techniques under expert tutelage, and to stimulate your imagination through the exploration of a fascinating, varied environment. As part of your painting adventure, you will be able to watch slide shows and demonstrations and learn about the country and culture you have come to observe, as well as receive first-hand instruction and guidance on how to make the most of your skills, at whatever level they may be. Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user DavidDennis
	Fashion Design in Milan Arts, Crafts & Cookery in Milan, Italy If spending a month away from reality, immersed in the heady world of high fashion and exploring your own creative potential as a designer sounds like heaven, then Milan is surely the place to do it. With the trendy Via Montenapoleone and the beautiful Galleria Vittorio Emanuele just streets away, and fashion finding expression in everything from pizza toppings to pets’ outfits, you certainly won’t be short of inspiration. Even as a beginner, it’s the perfect place to focus your ideas and discover your potential through fashion sketching and planning the colours and links between pieces in your own collection. You can even learn how trends are instigated and some of the tricks of marketing a new collection as part of a summer school in fashion design. Give the Instituto Marangoni a try – founded in 1935, it’s one of the world’s best, and as well as summer schools in various aspects of fashion and product design, they also offer year-long course and degrees for those who want to progress further. You can do their courses in English, but they run Italian language courses alongside their main programmes for those who want to stay longer, or just get further into the spirit of the experience! Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user Peter Duhon
	Italian, Neapolitan Cuisine and Pizza Arts, Crafts & Cookery in Naples, Italy The Italian language may have originated in Rome, but pizza was most definitely invented in Naples, so what better place could there be to learn a little of both? But America’s favourite food – cheesy, doughy and the gastric equivalent of a blocked u-bend – is a million miles from the light, crisp, ingredient-savvy concoctions for which Naples is so famed. Their unique, mildly smoky flavour is brought about by the traditional wood-burning ovens in which they are cooked at searing hot temperatures, and Neapolitan toppings (for example the popular ‘pizza marinara’, so well known in the UK) don’t always include cheese and tomato paste. The mysterious, gravity-defying technique used to make the base is perhaps the hardest part of all, involving flour so fine that it could be mistaken for talcum powder and a regulation ‘3mm or under’ thickness in order to comply with the Associazione Ver Pizza Napoletana regulations! And then comes the most important part: eating it as soon as it comes out of the oven. Casatiello breads, pastiera cheesecake, sfogliatelle pastries and bite-sized, honeyed struffoli all come from Naples too, as do Italy’s most famous mozzarella and the gorgeously sweet Piennolo tomatoes which grows on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius. One way to plunge into this foodie heaven is with Language Courses Abroad on a two-week course in Neapolitan cuisine. You’ll have to make your tongue work for the experience by learning Italian at the same time – so you’ll be able to pronounce what you’re eating as well as cook it! You’ll learn (and live, if you choose) with local Neapolitan families, and there will be plenty of time for excursions to Pompeii, Vesuvius, Capri and other nearby places of interest, during which you can test your Italian phrases. If you’d like to get really seriously into the spirit of the land of pizza, combining an Italian language course with professional pizza-making lessons, you could take on their challenge of an eight-week course, followed by eleven weeks of work experience in a real Neapolitan pizzeria! Review by larapiegeler Photo by flickr user krisdecurtis
	Mosaic Making Arts, Crafts & Cookery in Aquitaine Southwest, France If you like the idea of expanding your DIY skills set in an artistic direction, or would simply like to explore your creative abilities, then perhaps a course in mosaic-making is for you. It is a simple idea with an illustrious history, particularly in ancient, wealthy societies and religious art. Italy and Greece have a number of well-preserved examples of which they are proud, particularly in Christian edifices such as the baptistery at Florence, and the geometric designs for which Islamic art is so famed, such as those in the Alhambra, have been imitated for centuries. It's a technique open to very modern interpretation too, and once you know the basics – how to cut and shape the tesserae, lay them with proper directional flow and grout them – then the rest is all about your personal preference and desire to experiment. For a residential mosaic-making course in an inspirational environment, take a look at the option offered by Angie Weston: her studio is located in Riberac, set deep in the Dordogne countryside, and she accepts applicants of all ages and experience levels. Review by larapiegeler Photo by Angie Weston
	Vercors Massif Mountains in Grenoble, France The Vercors Massif is not high but is spectacularly scenic. Towering limestone walls protect the upper reaches of this pre-alpine plateau cut with deep canyons and gorges. In some respects it resembles a European version of Venezuela's "Lost World." Several of the world's deepest caves are located here, as well as beautiful show caves such as the Grotte Choranche. The nearby Grotte Bournillion has the largest cave entrance in Europe. There are many scenic drives in the region; one road improbably winds through the dark narrow gorge known as the Grands Goulets, while the Combe Laval drive with its precipitous roadside drops is about the closest you can get to feeling like you are flying in your car. Review by Mike Lyvers Photo by Mike Lyvers
	Botanical Illustration Arts, Crafts & Cookery in Lake District, United Kingdom A perfect way to fine-tune your artistic abilities within a specific genre or develop a new skill to complement a hobby or interest, this is a six-day residential course run at the grand, evocative Higham Hall – a picturesque Gothic mansion set in vast, idyllic gardens more than fit for their purpose of providing subjects for your work! You'll begin with observation exercises and work on perfecting your line drawings, before studying composition, colour theory and technique, and investigating the structure of plants to help you produce work that's scientifically accurate as well as beautiful. Numerous other arts-based courses are also available at Higham Hall, running from a single day up to a week in length. Review by larapiegeler Photo by larapiegeler
	Learn to prepare seafood at Billingsgate Arts, Crafts & Cookery in London, United Kingdom These days, many people lack the skills to prepare a whole fish or lobster. However, there is something deeply satisfying about creating a meal from scratch - not to mention the health benefits and reassurance of knowing what the ingredients started out life as in these times of nutritionally questionable, highly processed foods. Billingsgate Seafood Training School, located in the famous market in London’s Docklands, teaches both intrepid amateurs and seasoned professionals the secrets of handling seafood. Learn to treat a fish right (from gutting to filleting then cooking), never again to mix-up a male (white) mussel with a female (orange) and to pick out the freshest catch (bright eyed, firm of flesh and not too smelly). There are a wide-variety of classes to suit all skills and interests, and even courses for parents to bring their kids in on the fun. Lessons are rounded off in the best possible manner - with lunch. Review by Zhern Majoe Photo by flickr user acme

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