Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Learning Through Immersion

As a world traveler and observer of human nature, Trevor Noah understands the power of immersive experiences. By embedding himself in local cultures around the globe, he gains firsthand knowledge that informs his comedy and worldview.

Noah recognizes that true learning happens through lived experience, not academic study alone. As he quips during one of his standup routines, “Traveling the world is the best education you can get.” During his travels, Noah opens himself up to new people, perspectives, and ways of life. Though an outsider, he tries to see a place through local eyes.

This immersive approach teaches Noah invaluable lessons. When visiting India, for example, he gains insight into the country’s complex dynamics through conversations with everyday citizens. As an American traveling abroad once remarked to him, “I have learned more about India in the past week than I have in the past five years of watching CNN.”

Direct experience also helps Noah pinpoint the universal human threads that bind us across cultures. As he observes during a sketch on The Daily Show, “People everywhere want the same basic things - good health, a little money in their pocket, and to not be murdered.” Recognizing our shared humanity despite outward differences is a key takeaway from Noah’s travels.

At the same time, immersion reveals the nuances that make each place unique. The vibrancy of Cape Town, the spiritual aura of India, the refinement of Paris - Noah discovers that the spirit of a locale goes beyond surface impressions. Long-term exposure allows him to soak up the subtleties that tourists often overlook.

By diving deep into local contexts, Noah gains knowledge that would be impossible to attain from the outside looking in. As he explains, “When you travel, you open yourself up to new information that you otherwise would not get.” Direct experience fuels his pointed observations about politics, society, and culture.

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Laughter Bridges Cultural Divides

As a comedian, Trevor Noah understands the power of laughter to bring people together across cultures. Though the particulars of comedy differ across the globe, Noah recognizes that humor itself is a universal language. As he observes, “Laughter is one of the very few things that unites people regardless of where they're from.” During his travels, Noah uses comedy to break down barriers and find common ground with diverse audiences.

Though making crowds chuckle comes naturally to him, Noah realizes that comedy requires understanding cultural contexts. What cracks people up in one place may not translate elsewhere. “Humor is so local,” he notes. “What a South African finds funny is not what an American finds funny is not what a Tanzanian finds funny.” Before a show abroad, Noah makes a point of absorbing the local vibes so he can riff on shared cultural references.

Noah also tailors his jokes to resonate with specific audiences while remaining authentic to his own comedic voice. As he explains, “Great comedy comes from a place of understanding what makes people laugh, but being true to yourself at the same time.” Though Noah adjusts his material when performing internationally, he resists the urge to simply pander. His own perspective shines through.

By getting international crowds laughing together, Noah helps them recognize their shared humanity. As an Indian heckler once yelled during one of his shows, “You’re not just a South African anymore! You’re an Indian!” Laughter erases “us” versus “them” divisions.

Other comedians echo Noah’s experience. Russell Peters, who pioneered cross-cultural comedy, highlights how humor can reveal common ground, noting that “Most people are very similar - we all love to laugh, we all love our families, and we all want the same things out of life.”

Meanwhile, Danish comedian Sofie Hagen uses humor to tackle tricky topics like immigration in front of multicultural audiences. She says, “Comedy can help people listen to each other instead of judging...it really can change and open hearts and minds.”

But humor can also fall flat or cause offense if not handled skillfully. As Noah cautions, “Comedy brings people together only when the comedian takes the time to understand the people they’re attempting to bring together.” He stresses that connecting cultures through laughter requires work.

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Airport Routines Keep Him Grounded

For a jet-setting comedian like Trevor Noah, the constant travel can be disorienting. Airports become a second home. But Noah has developed certain rituals to stay grounded amidst the chaos of perpetual motion. Maintaining these small routines brings comfort on the road.

Before boarding, Noah stops at an airport lounge to decompress. This oasis of calm allows him to relax and get into a creative headspace before a flight. Noah avoids processing last-minute logistics during this time, instead reading or jotting down jokes in his notebook. Without the demands of travel weighing on him, he can recharge his mental batteries.

Noah also never rushes to his gate. He understands that stressing about missing a flight only ruins the journey. After checking in, he grabs a coffee and watches streams of harried passengers sprint by. Noah remains unfazed. He knows he’ll get there when he gets there. This mindset keeps airports from becoming a source of anxiety.

Inflight, Noah follows set routines to make flights feel familiar. He always requests an aisle seat and asks for orange juice once in the air. Mid-flight, he'll watch episodes of Seal Team or Modern Family saved on his tablet. Simple habits like listening to the same playlists each trip maintain a sense of continuity amidst constant movement.

Upon arrival, Noah gives himself time to adjust to a new place. He recommends avoiding important meetings or events right after touching down, instead suggesting travelers take a walk or nap. Noah allows his body to override what the clock dictates, tuning into when he naturally feels tired or awake. This flexibility minimizes jet lag's disruptive effects.

Comedy peers like Russell Peters and Chris Rock have similar airport rituals. Rock brings a kettlebell on the road to exercise in hotel gyms. Peters does transcendental meditation to unwind pre-flight. Maintaining routines boosts mental wellbeing for comics living out of suitcases.

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Discovering Local Gems Off the Beaten Path

Far from tourist traps and hotspots, hidden local gems offer an authentic look at a destination. Though outside guidebooks and itineraries, these under-the-radar spots reveal a place's soul. For Trevor Noah, avoiding the beaten path leads to memorable and unexpected experiences.

Noah makes a point to chat with everyday people like taxi drivers, who provide local intel for getting off the grid. Drivers tip him off about their favorite restaurants, bars, and sights around town. He may not end up at Michelin-starred establishments, but hole-in-the-wall eateries offer a true taste of place. As Noah says, "Some of the best food I've had in my travels has come from little joints only the locals seem to know about."

When exploring cities, Noah shuns crowded squares and boulevards for hidden side streets and alleys. In European capitals, fruit markets, used book stalls, and other small businesses thrum with everyday life. Watching locals haggle and chat transports Noah straight into their world.

Venturing into diverse neighborhoods also provides windows into vibrant subcultures. In LA, Noah head to artsy Venice Beach rather than the chaotic Hollywood Walk of Fame to experience the laidback lifestyle. Neighborhood joints like Intelligentsia Coffee and Abbot's Habit burger offer gems without tourist mobs.

Noah loves discovering places that even locals rarely experience. In Cape Town, he rode the rickety cable car up forgotten Platteklip Gorge. At the top, he found beautiful vistas and local students chasing lizards, worlds away from the congested V&A Waterfront. After an arduous hike through the bush, Noah stumbled upon an unfrequented vineyard producing delicious Syrah. Following the unknown path led to these hidden prizes.

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - South African Cuisine Connects Him to Home

Though he travels the world for comedy, Trevor Noah stays connected to his South African roots through the local cuisine. As he told Conan O’Brien, “South African food has a very specific taste profile to me that I don’t find anywhere else.” The comforting flavors of home cooking help offset the disruption of constant travel.

Traditional South African dishes like bobotie, bunny chow, and chakalaka offer a sensory trip back to Noah’s childhood. As he describes, the curries, stews, and grilled meats “immediately take me back to being a kid, and having that smell wafting through the house.” South African chefs overseas rely on pungent spices like coriander, allspice, and nutmeg to conjure the tastes of home while abroad.

Biltong, the South African take on beef jerky, serves as Noah’s ideal airplane snack. The salty, dried meat provides a protein punch during long transatlantic flights while reminding Noah of South African braais (barbecues). Biltong’s portability makes it the perfect travel companion.

Some of Noah’s favorite memories involve sharing South African food with friends from different backgrounds. At a dinner party in New York, he cooked up traditional chakalaka, pap (maize porridge), and boerewors sausage to give guests a taste of home cooking. Their delighted reactions to new flavors brought Noah joy. As Noah puts it, “There’s an immense pleasure and even pride in exposing people to your native food and culture.”

Fellow South African comedian Trevor Gumbi agrees that local cuisine provides comfort on the road, telling Taste Magazine that eating biltong and droëwors (dried sausage) helps him deal with touring fatigue. “When I need a taste of home, those two things immediately take me back,” he said.

However, some comics find that constantly eating foreign cuisine expands their palates. Russell Peters told Mashed that the wide variety of global fare he tried while touring made him more open-minded about food. After eating crispy tarantulas in Cambodia, for example, Peters realized that different cultures have unique culinary perspectives.

Still, many South African performers consider local flavors a must while traveling abroad. TV host Bonang Matheba told True Love Magazine that she always packs chakalaka sauce and rooibos tea to stay nourished on long trips: “A taste of home goes a long way when you miss Mzansi!”

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Constant Motion Inspires Fresh Material

As a comedian, constant travel provides Trevor Noah with a wellspring of fresh material. The ever-changing stimuli of life on the road immerses Noah in new experiences that fire his creative synapses. Jokes spring forth organically from his encounters in varied locales.

Noah compares his perpetual motion to a conveyor belt delivering food for his comedy. As he told Jimmy Fallon, “Travel gives me new material, new thoughts, new things to bounce off of.” The sights, sounds, and people encountered during transit sparks observational humor in Noah’s brain.

Jetting between several cities per week exposes Noah to a kaleidoscope of human experiences. A morning might find him chatting with laid-back surfers in Santa Monica. Come evening, he’s mingling with high-powered CEOs at a Manhattan gala. The whiplash between disparate worlds fuels incisive cultural commentary.

Meanwhile, the fatigue and frustrations of travel generate hilarious riffs on the absurdities of modern life. Endless security lines, cramped plane seats, and jet lag all offer fodder for jokes grounded in shared frustrations. As Noah quips during a stand-up routine about the horrors of economy class travel, “The seats are designed by Satan himself.”

Fellow comic Hasan Minhaj agrees that a life on the move sparks new creative directions, telling Interview Magazine that travel shakes him out of his habits and mindset. “Discomfort is good for the comedy,” he emphasizes, even if physically taxing.

Legendary comedian and director Jerry Seinfeld is also a big believer that steady travel begets better material. He told Success Magazine that exploring new places battle-tests his jokes and ultimately makes them funnier. “The more worlds I can interpret the material through, the stronger it gets,” he notes.

However, some artists caution that perpetual motion can also scatter focus. Comedian Jim Gaffigan told Rolling Stone that performing on the road made it harder to cultivate fresh material, noting that “New York energizes me comedically.” He relies on his home base to provide stability for honing new jokes.

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Balancing Work and Wanderlust

For traveling comedians like Trevor Noah, balancing a busy work schedule with the urge to explore poses an ongoing challenge. The need to globe-trot for professional engagements competes with the desire to wander freely and soak up experiences at an unhurried pace. Reconciling these competing forces requires discipline.

Noah understands that although travel fuels his comedy, he can't abandon professional obligations entirely to indulge his wanderlust. Constantly chasing the next adventure would sabotage his career. During stretches of intense work like preparations for The Daily Show, Noah has to limit excursions. “Sometimes you've just got to hunker down in one place and grind it out to get the job done,” he told NPR’s Fresh Air.

Still, Noah values maintaining flexibility in his schedule when possible. He'll bookend work trips with extra days to explore sights, telling Conan O'Brien: "If I'm traveling somewhere for shows, I try to pad a little extra time to look around." After appearances in Australia, for example, he tacked on a few days to drive the Great Ocean Road and take in the stunning coastal scenery.

Noah also maximizes chances to wander on work trips themselves. In sprawling cities, he'll extend hotel stays over weekends to escape his hotel and sample local life. A stint performing in Singapore provided ample opportunity to discover hole-in-the-wall hawker stalls for affordable, delicious regional specialties.

Even on short trips, Noah tries to experience the essence of a place, once telling Jimmy Kimmel: "I'm a firm believer that you can get the vibe of a country in 48 hours if you really try." He'll chat up everyone - from hotel staff to taxi drivers - to uncover local secrets and hidden gems during brief windows of time.

Fellow South African comedian Trevor Gumbi faces similar dilemmas balancing professional demands with his innate curiosity. He tries to schedule North American tours in segments, telling the Globe and Mail that "I'll work for a couple of weeks then take off a week or so to recharge and see the sites." Build in respite between stretches of performances.

Russell Peters grapples with the same challenge. He told the South China Morning Post: “I’m constantly battling my work ethic and personal enjoyment." To indulge his urge to explore while working, Peters will arrive in cities days before shows to wander and find adventures.

Trevor Noah on Globetrotting for Comedy, South African Cuisine, and Life on the Road - Lessons from Living Out of a Suitcase

As a comedian constantly on the move, Trevor Noah knows a thing or two about living out of a suitcase. Though glamorous in theory, perpetual life on the road comes with its share of challenges. However, Noah has gleaned wisdom over the years about how to make transit living tolerable and even pleasant. From packing strategies to maintaining balance, his lessons learned help keep other frequent flyers sane.

First, Noah emphasizes the importance of packing light. Dragging massive suitcases through airports and hotel lobbies creates unnecessary hassle. As he told Jimmy Kimmel, "When you're living out of a bag, you want to make life easy for yourself." He limits himself to essentials that mix and match, allowing him to dress sharply with minimal garments.

Comedy legend Jerry Seinfeld agrees, telling Lifehacker his packing strategy is "as little as possible. I have it down to a science." Limiting wardrobe choices streamlines preparing for endless flights.

Both Noah and Seinfeld talk about bringing clothing items that multitask. Noah travels with versatile blazers that dress up outfits for evening shows but also work with jeans for daytime exploring. Seinfeld recommends dress shirts that forgo creasing so they can get jammed in a duffel without fuss. Wrinkle-resistant and multifunctional clothes make packing simpler.

Besides efficient packing, Noah says maintaining healthy routines on the road is essential. He stresses sticking to consistent sleep schedules, avoiding indulgent comfort food, and exercising even when hotels lack proper gyms. Regularity provides stability amidst chaos.

Fellow comedian Hasan Minhaj agrees, telling GQ he forces himself to follow set workout and sleep habits. He packs running shoes and portable exercise resistance bands to stay active in hotel rooms. Setting rules provides discipline.

Finally, Noah talks about the importance of designating sanctuaries on the road to momentarily escape transit life. Though he's constantly moving, Noah will spend a few extra nights in cities he loves, like Los Angeles or Melbourne, just to unwind and feel settled. Familiar places provide comforting touchstones.

Russell Peters has a similar approach, returning to his Hawaii home for weeks between long stints on tour. He told the Travel Channel that the island's laidback vibe replenishes him after grueling stretches in unfamiliar places living out of suitcases. Anchoring to a known location restores balance.