The problem with travel

I've previously reflected on travel on my other blog with the post traveling with a critical perspective. The insights I gained from my own travel and observing others has seeped into some of my published articles and particularly at the recent Leadership Educators' Institute (LEI) conference.

Rick Steves' insights on travel reinforce the insights I've gained through the privilege of travel. The New York Times podcast should be viewed by anyone preparing for travel as a way to inspire courage and curiosity.

Observing travel of others, and reflecting on my own decisions revealed an evolving understanding of what travel can mean. My travel started where Steves says most people start - the safe environs of Europe. However, as he says, the more transformational travel experiences were to settings that were very different than his (and my) cultural background in the West. Two of my best stretch-travel experiences were with my youngest daughter, Darbi, when we traveled to Morocco and the second was with Diane when we were guided through the Kerala region of India with Sha as our personal guide. Steves' characterization of travel pilgrimage is so important - seeking to engage with reality by being immersed in things we never expected. As an illustration of his point, some of my favorite travel experiences have involved getting lost or stumbling into a musical event that was not anticipated.

Steves advised travelers to skip all the crowded destinations where tourists clamor to the same spots for their FaceBook and Instagram shots. These are the commercialized places that are typically void of any real historical artifacts. He advised finding a way to put yourself in the places where there are real people and engaging with them in direct human encounter.

While I don't judge others' motivations or experience in travel, I've come to the belief that any travel in the future for me will be shaped by intention, preparation and a critical perspective. In order to achieve that, I've committed to travel that signals curiosity and humility, preserves natural resources, and adds to, rather than detracting from, the welfare of local people and preserves culture.