Travel

Traveling is an element of human nature that allows one to explore other cultures, languages, beliefs, and values. When one travels to another place, whether it be a city five miles away or a large country thousands of miles from home, a person begins to understand themselves better. They are constantly placed in situations outside their comfort zone, allowing the traveler to use their skills and knowledge to evaluate and discover solutions. This is why traveling is important, because it allows humans to explore both their outside world and themselves.

To me, the best way to travel is with an open mind. By having an open mind about a new place, the traveler can take everything in and absorb the culture, traditions and activities. An open mind eliminates the snap judgments that one can make when they first encounter a situation outside their comfort zone.

I think the best places to travel to are places where one has a certain fear or is uncomfortable in the setting because it allows the traveler to explore why one has these unpleasant fears. By placing yourself in a country or city that you have fears or prejudices towards, you can discover elements about yourself you didn’t know and begin to dissolve the stereotypes you perceive.

When traveling I think one should travel by experiencing the culture as the locals do. For example one should participate in activities that are part of a foreign culture or eat foods that are not served in their homeland. This will allow the traveler to complete goals, such as discovering new things about oneself and dissolving stereotypes, because they are actually participating and viewing life as a local would.

A.) http://www.world66.com/about/company_overview
World 66 is a travel resource site written by travelers themselves from all over the world. The site is broken down by continent, country, and city. You can search for a specific city or area and find hundreds of reviews written by people who have traveled there. You can also just search by country and click around until you found a place that sounds interesting. This site is great because it allows for past travelers to tell future travelers what they loved about a place and what they didn’t like about it.

B.) This is a picture of my sorority sisters and I at Old Man’s Cave in Hocking Hills. I put this up because I believe not only is it important to explore countries outside your comfort zone but, it is also just as important to explore places near your home. By doing this you learn interesting facts about your area and get to experience all that the town can offer.