What has travel taught you?
Jan 29th, 2004, 07:32 PM
#21
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 19
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Travel has taught me that there are too many people content with staying home in their "comfort space" that are missing out on a whole world out there, full of wonderful sights, people, and lifestyles. The rest of the world don't live like Americans, or live their lives around Americans.
Jan 30th, 2004, 06:37 PM
#22
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 1,432
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I've discovered that you can be perfectly happy without all the stuff (mostly junk) that we buy over here. Most people in other countries wouldn't even know what to do with most of our contraptions. One of my friends from Europe didn't even know what my dishwasher was! 
THE LESS JUNK YOU HAVE, THE MORE YOU DEPEND ON YOUR MIND FOR FULFILLMENT. The most interesting & intelligent conversations of my life have taken place in developing countries, with people who have about $100 in the bank.
We have created a real rat race for ourselves here in the US, and in order to keep up with the whirlwind pace, we "need" all these fancy contraptions to save time. What if we just slowed down, made less $, but decided that it doesn't matter, because we don't need 90% of the stuff we buy anyway. The most interesting & valuable things in life are the ones that are the least tangible, and you can't buy them at the mall. Most people on the earth do FINE without ever living in a McMansion.
So, let's make a mandatory siesta time, catch up on our sleep, and wake up with a new perspective on life. Ah, if all those CEOs & spoiled children would only be required to travel to a third world country!
THE LESS JUNK YOU HAVE, THE MORE YOU DEPEND ON YOUR MIND FOR FULFILLMENT. The most interesting & intelligent conversations of my life have taken place in developing countries, with people who have about $100 in the bank.We have created a real rat race for ourselves here in the US, and in order to keep up with the whirlwind pace, we "need" all these fancy contraptions to save time. What if we just slowed down, made less $, but decided that it doesn't matter, because we don't need 90% of the stuff we buy anyway. The most interesting & valuable things in life are the ones that are the least tangible, and you can't buy them at the mall. Most people on the earth do FINE without ever living in a McMansion.
So, let's make a mandatory siesta time, catch up on our sleep, and wake up with a new perspective on life. Ah, if all those CEOs & spoiled children would only be required to travel to a third world country!
Jan 30th, 2004, 07:20 PM
#24
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,352
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
My first travelling was to move from a small WHITE town in northern British Columbia to Guyana when I was nine.
We had tv and a phone at home. It took two years on the wait list to get a phone in Guyana.
My mother reminded me in later years about the time that I came home cycling from school and asked her why the guy passing me on his bigger bycicle said 'Move over whitey'.
Yes I learned a lot.
We had tv and a phone at home. It took two years on the wait list to get a phone in Guyana.
My mother reminded me in later years about the time that I came home cycling from school and asked her why the guy passing me on his bigger bycicle said 'Move over whitey'.
Yes I learned a lot.
Jan 31st, 2004, 02:21 AM
#27
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 62
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I was going to be glib and say, to watch my wallet. But I guess it has taught me that there are good and bad people wherever you go (but you do seem to get a higher concentration of the baduns around train stations!)
More importantly, it has taught me that you have to go to a place and experience it for yourself to form your own opinions. As someone posted on another thread, "one man's trash truly is another's treasure."
More importantly, it has taught me that you have to go to a place and experience it for yourself to form your own opinions. As someone posted on another thread, "one man's trash truly is another's treasure."
Jan 31st, 2004, 07:33 AM
#28
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 340
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Humility. I don't have all the answers. My way of doing things (quickly, efficiently) is not always best. I have come to love the less frantic way of life in Italy (where most of my travels have taken me) Things will get done, usually with less commotion and less anxiety, I've learned to be way more patient.
Jan 31st, 2004, 10:47 AM
#30
Join Date: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,079
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I have often pondered that question.
My own life is richer, and I have a lot of interesting friends who have a valid but different point of view.
When my son was an immature and a physically small 16 year old, he went with us to London. He had his driver's license, and he was starting to kick the traces a little bit about wanting to do his own thing. After some consultations with others in our traveling party, I let him go without us, but with some new friends, on an escorted commercial bus tour to Bath, Salisbury, and Stonehenge.
Later I let him ride the tube from the hotel to the wax museum without mom and dad. He had passed his oral exam and indicated he knew well which train to take and where to get on and off.
Anoher time we were standing on the tube platform at Earl's Court. There were people there from the far reaches of the Commonwealth, and English as we spoke it was a minority accent. My son looked around him in disbelief and finally said, "Look at all the foreigners." Well yes, he was standing between 2 of them.
Sure, I was concerned when he went off on his own. But everything turned out fine. The trip had a very maturing effect on him that was noticeable. His grandfather was so surprised at so much growth in such a short time that he asked me, "What did London do to David?"
I think it was a wake up call in some ways, a stimulus in others, and a good nperiod of growth in self reliance.
My own life is richer, and I have a lot of interesting friends who have a valid but different point of view.
When my son was an immature and a physically small 16 year old, he went with us to London. He had his driver's license, and he was starting to kick the traces a little bit about wanting to do his own thing. After some consultations with others in our traveling party, I let him go without us, but with some new friends, on an escorted commercial bus tour to Bath, Salisbury, and Stonehenge.
Later I let him ride the tube from the hotel to the wax museum without mom and dad. He had passed his oral exam and indicated he knew well which train to take and where to get on and off.
Anoher time we were standing on the tube platform at Earl's Court. There were people there from the far reaches of the Commonwealth, and English as we spoke it was a minority accent. My son looked around him in disbelief and finally said, "Look at all the foreigners." Well yes, he was standing between 2 of them.
Sure, I was concerned when he went off on his own. But everything turned out fine. The trip had a very maturing effect on him that was noticeable. His grandfather was so surprised at so much growth in such a short time that he asked me, "What did London do to David?"
I think it was a wake up call in some ways, a stimulus in others, and a good nperiod of growth in self reliance.
May 29th, 2004, 12:50 PM
#31
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 3,122
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Travel has taught me to look closely at the details...whether I am in my backyard or a shore far far away...beauty and wonderment is everywhere and in everything...and that wealth has nothing to do with money.
May 29th, 2004, 07:20 PM
#33
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 54
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
That some things are universal, like:
- pouty, sullen teenagers
- people talking baby-talk to their dogs
- guys hanging outside of shoe stores, looking bored, looking at their watches, waiting for (usually) a woman
- some of the least friendly people you'll meet, in any city, in any country, are often the mass transit workers
I've also learned that wine and ice cream (not together!) truly are gifts from the gods!
-Mark
- pouty, sullen teenagers
- people talking baby-talk to their dogs
- guys hanging outside of shoe stores, looking bored, looking at their watches, waiting for (usually) a woman
- some of the least friendly people you'll meet, in any city, in any country, are often the mass transit workers
I've also learned that wine and ice cream (not together!) truly are gifts from the gods!
-Mark
May 29th, 2004, 07:30 PM
#34
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 6,822
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Travel has taught me...
not to miss the fun of having pigeons eat from your hands for fear of pigeon poop!
(Okay, so that's just one example: what I hope travel has managed to teach is a wider appreciation of differences, a stronger sense of delight, and a deeper appreciation of this incredible creation.)
(And Portuguese cheese, Swiss chocolate, and Vietnamese bread.)
Plus the power of Zip-locs!
not to miss the fun of having pigeons eat from your hands for fear of pigeon poop!
(Okay, so that's just one example: what I hope travel has managed to teach is a wider appreciation of differences, a stronger sense of delight, and a deeper appreciation of this incredible creation.)
(And Portuguese cheese, Swiss chocolate, and Vietnamese bread.)
Plus the power of Zip-locs!
May 29th, 2004, 08:12 PM
#35
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 633
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
1) Beauty and kindness know no boundaries.
2) Simplicity -that as Americans, we take our comfort for granted. There are millions of people in the world who live WAY below our mean. And I can live with a lot less, too!
3)Patience -it would have taken me twice as long for the same growth had I stayed closer to home.
4)My problems (i.e.: nagging boss, people who double-park) that I experience day to day is NOTHING compared to the frustation of culture shock, food poisioning, and language barrier.
5) Smile is welcome anywhere.
6) I need to slow down, have more fun, and work less. OR I'd burnt out before I turn 30.
7) Home is sweet home -nothing beats the joy of sleeping in my own bed, uniterrupted, the first night home.
2) Simplicity -that as Americans, we take our comfort for granted. There are millions of people in the world who live WAY below our mean. And I can live with a lot less, too!
3)Patience -it would have taken me twice as long for the same growth had I stayed closer to home.
4)My problems (i.e.: nagging boss, people who double-park) that I experience day to day is NOTHING compared to the frustation of culture shock, food poisioning, and language barrier.
5) Smile is welcome anywhere.
6) I need to slow down, have more fun, and work less. OR I'd burnt out before I turn 30.
7) Home is sweet home -nothing beats the joy of sleeping in my own bed, uniterrupted, the first night home.
May 30th, 2004, 05:32 AM
#37
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 17,749
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
1--That the world is quite small. Things in far away places don't seem that far away anymore.
2--That here in the USA we don't always do everything just right...that each place has its own things that we could learn from...an example is the siestas that the Italaians take.
3--How fortunate we actually are.
4--To be much more open minded...such as, just because something is different or peoples attitudes are different does not mean they are wrong...they are just different and it is good to respect these differences.
2--That here in the USA we don't always do everything just right...that each place has its own things that we could learn from...an example is the siestas that the Italaians take.
3--How fortunate we actually are.
4--To be much more open minded...such as, just because something is different or peoples attitudes are different does not mean they are wrong...they are just different and it is good to respect these differences.
May 30th, 2004, 10:20 AM
#38
Join Date: Jan 2003
Posts: 1,181
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I haven't traveled all that much - my first trip out of the country was to France in 2000 - but that trip was such an eye opener that I vowed to see the rest of the world. I've traveled to Europe every year since then - England in 2001, Italy in 2002, Germany in 2003, and coming up this fall, Spain. Next year, we hope we'll visit China.
Travel has helped me to be more aware of the beauty of the world around me, to not just put my head down and charge ahead, goal oriented, following an itinerary, but to stop often to take in my surroundings and celebrate the moment. Truly. It's not just a cliche. (Perhaps I owe that new appreciation for my surroundings, wherever they may be, to the fact that I bought a digital camera before my trip to Italy, and so I stopped often to frame the beauty I saw and capture it in a photograph!)
It is difficult to put into words the impact the beauty of the countries I've seen has had on my soul and my heart. Driving through Normandy and down to the Loire, through fields of sunflowers, under that glorious light, feeling I could understand, in some limited way, what the impressionists were feeling and seeing when they painted.
Traveling has compelled me to learn more about history in a few short years than I did in all the years preceding that first trip. We always read up on the history of the countries we're seeing before we leave home and while we are traveling, because we want to understand what we are seeing in the context of the past.
Contrary to what others have posted, rather than teaching me to appreciate what I have at home, my travels have made me less smug about being American living in the beautiful Northwest. It's taught me how stunning and unique the rest of the world is, and how much citizens of other countries have that we need more of here in the U.S.
Hopefully, traveling is teaching me to listen and to develop more perspective about my country and my own way of life. I remember the conversation I had with a young Italian lawyer on a train ride from Venice to Florence. He talked about his experience living in Florida as a child while his father was working as an executive for an Italian company in the U.S., and his strongest memory was how compartmentalized and isolated people's lives were here, living in suburbs, far from their jobs, far from other family, spending so much time in cars rather than with each other. In Italy, he said, families live near each other in neighborhoods, where they interchange with each other constantly, and I could see that it was true. He was not being critical but was simply making an observation. It was a perspective I would likely not have gained had I not met and talked with him. He made me vow to keep family and friends closer to my heart.
Travel has helped me to be more aware of the beauty of the world around me, to not just put my head down and charge ahead, goal oriented, following an itinerary, but to stop often to take in my surroundings and celebrate the moment. Truly. It's not just a cliche. (Perhaps I owe that new appreciation for my surroundings, wherever they may be, to the fact that I bought a digital camera before my trip to Italy, and so I stopped often to frame the beauty I saw and capture it in a photograph!)
It is difficult to put into words the impact the beauty of the countries I've seen has had on my soul and my heart. Driving through Normandy and down to the Loire, through fields of sunflowers, under that glorious light, feeling I could understand, in some limited way, what the impressionists were feeling and seeing when they painted.
Traveling has compelled me to learn more about history in a few short years than I did in all the years preceding that first trip. We always read up on the history of the countries we're seeing before we leave home and while we are traveling, because we want to understand what we are seeing in the context of the past.
Contrary to what others have posted, rather than teaching me to appreciate what I have at home, my travels have made me less smug about being American living in the beautiful Northwest. It's taught me how stunning and unique the rest of the world is, and how much citizens of other countries have that we need more of here in the U.S.
Hopefully, traveling is teaching me to listen and to develop more perspective about my country and my own way of life. I remember the conversation I had with a young Italian lawyer on a train ride from Venice to Florence. He talked about his experience living in Florida as a child while his father was working as an executive for an Italian company in the U.S., and his strongest memory was how compartmentalized and isolated people's lives were here, living in suburbs, far from their jobs, far from other family, spending so much time in cars rather than with each other. In Italy, he said, families live near each other in neighborhoods, where they interchange with each other constantly, and I could see that it was true. He was not being critical but was simply making an observation. It was a perspective I would likely not have gained had I not met and talked with him. He made me vow to keep family and friends closer to my heart.
May 30th, 2004, 01:05 PM
#40
Travel is fatal to predudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, broad charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetation in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.
.....Mark Twain
.....Mark Twain
