Why we travel?
Outline
1.
Your travels
2.
Why travel?
3.
Why travel top 10
4.
Why should young people
travel?
5.
Why don't Americans
travel?
6.
Self-imposed Isolation
7.
Long way Round / Long
Way Down review
8.
A geographer's
perspective
Your travels
Growing up, my family
usually took a vacation over the summer.
These trips would consist of all six of us piling into our bright red
Suburban and driving somewhere in the US.
I’ve also flown to a few places and taken a couple trips with some
friends. My list consists of Colorado, Utah,
Wyoming, South Dakota, Texas, Florida, Illinois, Tennessee, Missouri, Iowa,
Minnesota, and Wisconsin.
Most of these were
family vacations, but Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Texas, Missouri, and
Colorado have all been trips with friends.
My sophomore year at UNL, I went on a ski trip in Breckenridge. It was the first time I had ever been skiing. My favorite part was seeing how in the winter
a town can transform into a huge, busting ski community full of excitement.
Amy Huberman tells her
friends that she began to travel to experience new cultures and truly feel how people
on the other side of world live. During
her travels, she soon finds out that the world isn’t all sunshine and
rainbows. In India she seen how much
poverty and filth exists in the country and she gets molested. She talks about how after these experiences,
her views on travel and the world have taken a downturn.
In China she has an
experience that makes her realize how fortunate she really is. She doesn’t seem to like the idea of a
Chinese amusement park, but her friend from China reminds her that Americans
can travel anywhere in the world they desire.
The Chinese people can only “get away” to these amusement parks within
their own country that serve as some sort of fantasy world to keep their people
happy. Amy then realizes how good she
really has it and how lucky she is to be from America
The top three reasons
for me would be it provides unforgettable moments, it teaches you about the
world, and it improves your language skills.
Provides unforgettable
moments- From my own perspective, some of my most vivid and unique memories are
from when I was travelling somewhere.
When I was hiking through a canyon in South Dakota, a mountain lion was
leaping across a small gap 50 feet above our heads. They are some of the most elusive creatures
in North America and even though I just got a glimpse of it, I remember the
sight like it happened yesterday.
Teaches you about the
world- During one of my trips to Chicago we went to the Chicago Museum of
Natural History. Although there are
museums here in Omaha, the museum in Chicago had completely different exhibits
that allowed me to learn about things that I wouldn’t have if I hadn’t gone to
Chicago. This serves as just a microcosm
of what happens when you travel pretty much anywhere in the world. Every single place can teach you something
that you won’t be able to learn anywhere else.
Improves your language
skills- I can’t speak from personal experience on this one, but I did take both
Spanish and French in high school and only learned a little. Language, much like everything in life is
something that is best learned while actually doing and experiencing it. Someone can tell you how to swim, but until
you actually jump into the water, none of what you have “learned” matters. I think learning a foreign language is the same
way. To truly learn how to speak and understand
someone, you need to immerse yourself in their country and culture.
Why should young people travel?
Her six reasons for why
young people should travel are:
1.
You’ll get out of your
comfort zone.
2.
Traveling builds
confidence.
3.
You will develop
cultural sensitivity.
4.
You can adapt to
globalization.
5.
Be immersed in a second
(or third) language.
6.
Infinite opportunities
to network.
These
are all pretty good reasons for why young people should travel. One I would add would be that travelling
creates a form of independence that many young people desire. When you are away from home and don’t have
your parents or school to lean on, you tend to become more resourceful and
aware of your surroundings.
There are probably
endless excuses and reasons why Americans tend not to travel as much as people
from other countries. The cost would be
a main one. It’s not like Europe where trains
run seamlessly between countries that smaller than a lot of US states. At the same time, the size of the US provides
many different places that people can travel without ever having to leave the
country. Also
the American work environment is also very strict on the amount of vacation
days someone can take.
Self-imposed Isolation?
I myself engage in a
form of self-imposed isolation. I have never
been anywhere outside the US. I have had
opportunities though. All three of the
colleges I’ve attended have some form of study abroad program. I always made up excuses such as “this will
cost too much” or “this wouldn’t be applicable to my major.” It is these weak excuses that have now left me
in a position of having yet to experience life in a different country.
Some of my friends have
done the same as I have, but others did go on those travel abroad programs and
it’s safe to say that I am jealous of the experiences they have had. Luckily it is still not too late for me to
travel to foreign countries and I plan on doing so not long after I graduate.
Long way Round / Long way Down review
Both of these series
were entertaining and provided a unique glimpse at the countries they
visited. Wallaston’s
review can be interpreted in different ways.
He seemed to not like how McGregor and Boorman have an entire crew with
them. This is understandable as it
contradicts their inspiration (Ted Simon) and how his trip was a solo trip that
in many ways was probably somewhat of a survival as it was to a trip across Africa. But at the same time these guys are going on
this as a form of entertainment. It is a
company and their end goal is to make a profit. That profit would never come if McGregor and Boorman
can’t continue their travels due to sickness, safety, or motorcycle malfunctions. I agree with Wallaston’s
points saying how the show wasn’t exactly “realistic” but you cant really expect a show like this to be a true travel
experience.
A Missing Geographic Perspective
The main thing about
their lack of knowledge in the geography department was the road
conditions. Even here in Omaha you can
come across and pothole that could swallow a Prius. After heavy rainfall county roads can be bumpy
rollercoaster rides. McGregor and Boorman
seemed unprepared and surprised at the road conditions. I’ve never travelled through Africa, but if I
did, I wouldn’t exactly expect it to be similar to I-80. They also travelled through countries that
should be considered not safe in terms of political conditions. Some of them in the middle of bloody civil
war conflicts where anything could happen.
I understand they were trying to recreate Simon’s trip, but they should
avoid putting themselves in any sort of life-threatening situations.
Submitted by Dan
Pavlik on 2/1/2019.