These reflective questions in my travel diary will immerse you to new realms

A doodle essay with lots of reflection exercises

Dear friends,

We all need a bit of creative distraction and reflection these days.

I love doodling and diary keeping.

I have recently come across my old diary and I wanted to share it with you.

In this diary, I have reflected on cities that inspire me.

I have also put down some random memories that elevated me four years ago.

Are you ready?

Let us start!

It feels very refreshing when you come across your old diaries.

You are almost transported back in time and you go back to those days.

It is like time travel.

It is a privilege.

So, here are the first two questions for you to reflect on:

1. Remember your happiest days in the last couple of months. Write about these days. Can you draw or doodle your memories of these days?

2. What are the patterns about these days? What was different about these days? What did you do differently? Why did you feel so happy? Write down the common patterns about these days.

Please respond to these questions now — it would take just 2–3 minutes.

In the pages above, I also reminded myself of some core principles in my life.

I used these pages as pages of inspiration.

What would you write in your diary to remind yourself of your core principles?

How would you inspire yourself?

Now: Please try to write or create a page like the ones above.

As you see, my city diary starts with London.

I have started with some doodles about the city of London — a city where I have lived in for a couple of years in my life.

I do have a special connection with London in my life.

On each page, I have tried to put down these connections and memories of that city in my life.

In the next page, I have formulated two reflective questions for you as a reader:

1. Which cities and places inspire you? Why?

2. Think of some experiences and activities that you look forward to doing in these cities or places? Try to form up an itinerary.

Please respond to these questions now (2–3 minutes).

Norwich is the city that I am currently living and working in.

It is a lovely medieval city in East England — far away from the hustle and bustle of London.

I work at UEA; which is a fascinating and inspiring university.

Here are the next set of reflective questions for you:

1. Do you explore the city that you are living in?

When was the last time you chased adventures like a tourist in this city?

2. What are your top activities? Top spots?

How do you revitalise and refresh yourself in your city?

The next city in my diary is Istanbul.

I attended university in Istanbul and did my masters there as well.

I lived there for 7 years between 1996–2003.

I remember Istanbul with a fond sense of nostalgia.

So, I placed my Istanbul memories on this page.

Let’s now continue with the next set of reflective questions for you:

1. Think about the spaces and places that you feel alive.

Where do you thrive? Why?

2. Listen to your heart. Nourish your spirit.

When was the last time that you felt at peace with yourself?

What were you doing?

On this page, I have put my Montreal years and memories.

I did my PhD at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec.

I lived in Montreal between 2003 and 2010.

Those were difficult times, but I learned tremendously during these years in my life.

I was fortunate to meet Dr. Emine Sarigollu during my time at McGill; who provided me excellent mentorship.

I learned how to be a scholar, how to do research, how to teach, how to write, and more.

Here are the next set of reflective questions for you:

1. Think about your learning and growth as a person.

Which period in your life was most transformational? Why?

2. When did you feel most challenged in your life? Why?

How did you overcome the challenges?

What did you learn?

Please respond quickly and we will then go on to the next page:)

When my wife Sertac continued her masters at University of Toronto, we moved to Toronto.

We lived in Toronto for one year during 2010.

During that year, I was applying for academic jobs. It was a period of great transition and uncertainty in my life.

So, the reflective questions below are about anxiety and uncertainty:

1. Which period in your life was marked by transition, uncertainty, stress, and failure?

2. How did you keep your sanity?

Which practices/activities helped you?

On this page, I did a flashback to the years between 1989 and 1996.

During that time, I was granted a scholarship to continue my studies at SYAL (Sirri Yircali Anatolian High School) in Balikesir.

I was still 10 years old when I got separated from my family and started staying in a student dormitary in Balikesir.

This period was marked by great difficulties, growth, and learning in my life.

I was still a kid trying to find my way in the world.

I had to leave my family, sacrifice, live by myself, learn study skills, learn English, develop my work discipline, and survive in the midst of very poor conditions in the state dormitory.

I developed great friendships during this period — those were bittersweet times.

So, here are the next set of reflective questions for you:

1. When did you first establish your life away from your family?

How did you manage this?

2. Which period in your life was characterised by transformation?

Your transition from ‘caterpillar’ to ‘butterfly’?

On this page, I revisit and remember my visits to New York City.

We used to go to New York whenever we could when we were living in Canada.

I remember being excited and overwhelmed each time I visited New York.

I love New York so much that I try to create opportunities to visit this great city again.

I attended a creativity workshop in New York in 2019 June, and loved the experience.

You can read my creativity workshop diary in this post here.

So, here are your reflective questions:

1. What is your top dream that you want to realise and implement?

How can you make it come true?

2. Imagine you followed your dreams, took risks, went for adventure, and reached for stars.

Write the headlines for the news article featuring your success story below.

The next page is a tribute to Paris.

We love visiting Paris at every opportunity.

In particular, we loved taking the fast train from London to Paris.

Paris is a city that dazzles you with its beauty and its arts.

So, the next set of reflective questions are centred on creativity:

1. In which spaces and contexts can you unleash your own creativity?

2. From which fields can you borrow ideas and inspiration for your job or tasks you are involved in?

Think of diverse ideas and fields.

List them below and create fresh ideas beyond borders.

The next page is devoted to Amsterdam — a city which we love visiting.

There are direct flights from Norwich to Amsterdam; which means we can travel to Amsterdam in just 45 minutes.

Amsterdam is a relaxing and refreshing city for us — ideal for a weekend escape.

Here are the reflective questions:

1. What are some of your favourite spots or places that you prefer for holiday?

How do you unwind?

2. Which hobbies and activities do you prefer to energise and revitalise yourself?

Make a plan to put them in action.

The next page is dedicated to Athens.

Athens has a special place in our hearts.

We love visiting Greece and Greek islands in our summer holidays.

I have put my Athens memories onto this page.

Here are the next set of reflective questions, inspired by Athens:

1. What patterns can you learn from ancient civilisations on virtuous and sustainable living?

2. How can you enrich your life through good food, good music, good culture, and good friends?

The last page is about Beirut.

We visited Beirut during late 2015 and we were struck by the beauty and the chaos of this amazing city.

Beirut has a unique texture and quality to it which is hard to describe.

You need to witness it and wander along its streets, mazes, stairs, and cafes to feel it.

We loved getting lost in the city and discovering its diverse neighbourhoods.

So the last set of reflective questions are as follows:

1. How can you navigate chaos and complexity?

How can you thrive in turbulence?

2. What can you learn from diverse cultures and religions?

What are your tips for living together in harmony?

Unfortunately, my diary ends here.

I wish I continued these pages as I visited other cities including Marrakesh, Rome, Budapest, Prague, Cairo, Skopje, and many more.

It is a great feeling to come back and refresh your memories through a diary like this.

Before we finish this piece, here is your exercise, if you are willing to give it a go:

Exercise: Your Reflective Diary of Travel and Favourite Cities

Buy a notebook and diary dedicated to your travel and the cities that you visited or lived in.

On each page, reflect on what makes that city special for you.

Try to remember your favourite places, organisations, people, or city spots.

Try to doodle or draw some of the city’s icons.

Try to record some of your memories related to this city.

In the next page, create a few questions that will help you continue your reflective journey.

Try to formulate questions or reflections inspired that city.

Perhaps you have learned something new in that city, or you were inspired somehow.

Record your reflections and questions.

Feel free to write more, refresh your memories, revisit your favourite places, and reflect on your learning in relation to that city.

It is a simple, but great exercise.

Enjoy.

Sincere regards;

Fahri

Fahri Karakas is the author of Self-making Studio. You can explore more here.