MAKING TIME TO TRAVEL WITH LIKE-MINDED WOMEN IS AN IDEAL WAY TO BRING THE BALANCE OF MIND, BODY, AND SPIRIT BACK INTO OUR LIVES, SAYS VICTORIA UGARTE.

The core of any memorable travel experience is the connection that we develop with other people and cultures as we visit other lands. Travel obliges us to leave our comfort zone and progress into the unknown, allowing us to be receptive towards exploration and, ultimately, discovery. Apart from the joys of traveling with loved ones and family, women are increasingly recognising the benefits of traveling with each other.

The act of ‘connecting' is far more powerful for women than just communicating, engaging or even networking. It is all about discovering a common link and purpose, and finding out that you are on the same page mentally and emotionally. So why is the act of connecting to each other so important to women and what are the benefits?

A landmark UCLA study entitled, Female Responses To Stress: Tend and Befriend, Not Fight or Flight (review written in 2000 by S.E. Taylor, L.C. Klein, B.P. Lewis, T.L. Gruenewald, R.A.R Gurung, J.A. Updegraff) suggests that friendships between women are not only special, but they shape who the women are and who they are yet to be. Connecting with other women fills emotional gaps and counteracts the stress that most of us experience on a daily basis. In fact, this study suspects that women have a larger repertoire of responses than just ‘fight or flight'. Dr. L.C. Klein reports, "It seems that when the hormone oxytocin is released as part of the stress responses in a woman, it buffers the ‘fight or flight' response and encourages her to tend to children and gather with other women instead. When she actually engages in the tending or befriending, studies suggest that our bodies release more oxytocin, which further counters stress and produces a calming effect. This calming response does not occur in men." Dr. Klein adds, "Testosterone, which men produce in high levels when they're under stress, seems to reduce the effects of oxytocin... Eostrogen seems to enhance it". Therefore, it is safe to say that by connecting with other women provides the healing and nurturing needed to cope with the stresses of daily living, allowing women to live better.

Jen Dalitz, founder and ‘SheEO' of Sphinxx, inspiring motivational speaker, author and business consultant specialising in women in leadership, shares with us her enriching experience of connecting with other women through travel: "Ann and I have been friends for over 20 years, and two years ago, together with Ann's sister and cousin, we shared an unforgettable adventure to India. We visited palaces, forts, and embanked on a camel safari, and we had a ball! Our husbands remained at home. We all now live in different cities, but it is always fun when we catch up and reminisce about our travel adventures, especially when we come across colorful images of India. Sure, I could have done it on my own, but it would not have been the same as traveling and bonding with good friends."

Despite the fact that friendships with other women can be so beneficial, it is ironic that this is the first thing that women give up when they get busy with work and/or family. This is where setting time aside to travel with like-minded women can be invaluable. The benefits of travel, and how they can impact women traveling together, include the following:

Travel offers plenty of opportunity to silence the mind, which inevitably leads to insights.
We can silence the mind as we trek through mountains or a glorious countryside, gaze at a beautiful sunrise or sunset. Silence encourages our intuitive capacity, allowing us to reach new levels of awareness and insight. Recording the insights in a journal anchors our thoughts, and we can do this perfectly on our own. However, being able to share our thoughts and insights afterwards with other women can form the beginning of a gradual unfolding. For women, this can mean finding practical solutions to problems, or gaining valuable support when changing life directions at pivotal moments.

Lynette Palmen, founder and managing director for Women's Network Australia, offers a valuable insight from over 20 years experience of creating such an environment for women in business. "It's always important to remember that no matter how well you think people, customers or friends know each other, it's not until they are invited to be part of a circle that they feel comfortable enough to discuss and share what's currently happening in their lives - that's when the opportunities flow."

Travel gives us the opportunity to be touched by beauty.
Beauty is elusive, highly personal, its impact unpredictable, and yet it is as integral to our human survival as oxygen. It is healing, regenerative and uplifting as it allows us to put our pains and problems aside. It helps us to succeed in forgetting ourselves and becoming almost childlike. Through travel and exploring the world, we make ourselves available to experience beauty.

To be able to share these experiences with other women can be extremely powerful and beneficial, as experienced by Mary Gualtieri, NSW manager of the Kreitals Consulting Group. "On a routine business flight to Melbourne I found myself striking up a conversation with the lady seated next to me named Deborah Anthony. I found out that she conducted store and boutique tours in Paris, which was of great interest to me as I was the current head of Fashion Group International, Sydney at the time. In no time we were chatting like a couple of old girlfriends. This encounter prompted me some time later to attend a Fashion Group International function in Paris, where I had the opportunity to catch up with Deborah once again. She led me and my group on several wonderful tours of Paris, allowing us intimate and authentic glimpses of her beautiful city. I returned back to Sydney totally inspired and recharged."

Travel encourages us to grow.
The exploration of our world results in a far greater sensitivity to the struggles of human beings in general. Through this process, we begin to put our own lives into perspective. For women traveling together, this provides a perfect backdrop for shared thoughts, experiences and feelings. This creates a source of support and strength for many women who may not have this in their personal lives or in the workplace.

Travel fuels the imagination.
Without the limitations of our day-to-day lives, travel allows our minds to wander free and explore, without boundaries. Unobstructed by past experiences and without exclusions, being in the company of like-minded women can lead to very powerful brainstorming and sources of inspiration.

Travel fulfills our yearning for unity.
It is instinctive for human beings to seek union with larger units, as we wish to participate in something that we regard as being greater than our individual selves. Travel encourages a sense of unity with all beings everywhere as we acquire a sense that we all share in the same destiny. For women who may be single, or are going through a divorce or separation, traveling with a group of women may give them a sense of being a part of something greater, thus increasing a sense of solidarity and reducing any feelings of emptiness or isolation.

Lisa Hughes, co-founder and co-director of Love Being Woman comments on her and business partner Kristin Morgan's experience after having lived and worked overseas for 18 years. "From our years of traveling and meeting women from all over the world, we discovered that despite our different backgrounds, we connect through our common needs and aspirations as women. Travel truly provides personal growth and opens our minds and hearts to our fellow human beings."

As women, we have tended to downplay the importance of friendships with other women, perhaps viewing it as more as an indulgence. And yet the nurturing, strength and support that it can provide us in our everyday lives suggests that it is, in fact, vital for our wellbeing. Setting the time aside to travel with like-minded women is an ideal way to bring the balance of mind, body, and spirit back into our lives.

Source: Victoria Ugarte is the founder of Postcards From Millie is a boutique travel company that offers out of the ordinary and culturally authentic travel experiences for women. For more information visit www.postcardsfrommillie.com