Thread: Are you a travel snob?

I have been fortunate to travel a fair bit, mostly at my employers expense. I have also been a tourist, mostly at my expense.

Travel definitely broadens the mind. Other people can be fun and annoying iequal measure, but that rings true back home as well. Living somewhere gives the opportunity to immerse yourself in their culture, and if you listen to people,you can learn a lot about them, and their country.

Visiting somewhere as a tourist is a different experience. I went to Egypt once. Saw the great pyramids and the sphinx at Giza, and the museum in Cairo. Never spoke to a single Egyptian.

I lived in both Cambodia and the Philippines for brief periods. Learned a lot about the places mostly from talking to different people. The people you meet will generally reflect the circles you choose to move in. Ask the gent. Apparently he knows about such things.
I have met some folk who seem to have a limited outlook, until you get to know and understand them. Mixing with intelligent, well educated people is only useful if you listen, and you have good bullshit filters.

A little sightseeing can be interesting, but people are much more important when it comes to cultural understanding.

I commend the words of ‘Desiderata’ written by American author Max Ehrmann in 1927, if you desire a more balanced perspective.