Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
you don't enjoy a place, maybe you don't know enough about it. Seek the truth.
Recognize tourist traps. Give a culture the benefit of your open mind. See things as
different, but not better or worse. Any culture has plenty to share.
Of course, travel, like the world, is a series of hills and valleys. Be fanatically
positive and militantly optimistic. If something's not to your liking, change your
liking.
Travel can make you a happier American, as well as a citizen of the world.
Our Earth is home to seven billion equally precious people. It's humbling to travel
and find that other people don't have the “American Dream”—they have their own
dreams. Europeans like us, but with all due respect, they wouldn't trade passports.
Thoughtful travel engages us with the world. In tough economic times, it re-
minds us what is truly important. By broadening perspectives, travel teaches new
ways to measure quality of life.
Globetrotting destroys ethnocentricity, helping us understand and appreciate
other cultures. Rather than fear the diversity on this planet, celebrate it. Among
your most prized souvenirs will be the strands of different cultures you choose to
knit into your own character. The world is a cultural yarn shop, and Back Door trav-
elers are weaving the ultimate tapestry. Join in!
