* * Loving to travel

I love to travel. I’ve been to 43 states and 14 foreign countries on 3 continents. And the list of places I still want to go is long.

When I give presentations on my recent trip to Bolivia, people often express curiosity about what would make me want to go there. Bolivia is the poorest country in South America, and I think many people here are wary of the poverty and perceived despair. However, both elation and despair are fleeting and widespread emotions of people around the globe. No place is free from strife, turmoil, or pain just as no place is free from joy. How people deal with issues and emotions is a function of their culture, something I find endlessly interesting. There are few places on earth I wouldn’t at some time wish to visit, although I am partial to mountainous, sparsely populated places. I like to see how people interact with the land.

Yesterday I was in a dentists’ chair with a hygienist rooting through my teeth. She asked me if I’d done anything interesting over the summer, I said, “I spent five weeks in Bolivia.” She admitted she had no idea even where it was. “Do you know what continent it’s on?” I asked. “Same one as Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Columbia, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay…” She had no idea. I said, “Do you know what continent England, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain are on?” She didn’t. “How about India, China, Japan, Thailand, and most of Russia?” Yes, she guessed, they’re in Asia.

I asked if she’d ever left the United States and she said she hadn’t. I assumed that she had further never lived in a religious or ethnic minority. I’m guessing most Americans never have.

My upbringing was different and I have always lived in a religious minority. I’m hopeful this has made me more tolerant and perhaps more curious. Somehow I think it would be a better world if everyone could travel, see how others live, and be part of a minority at some point in their lives.