- Hong Kong
- Cambodia
- Phnom Penh
- Takeo
- Siem Reap
- India
- New Delhi
- Agra
- Mumbai
- Mauritius
- Namibia
- Windhoek
- Swakopmund
- Sesriem
- Okaukuejo
"So why not Europe or something like that?" Here's a question I've gotten several dozen times over the last several months (the majority of which coming from my wife). Why such "off-the-beaten-path" locations for the family "vacation?"
America's an exceptional country. 236 years ago, our founders laid the foundation for a system of government that was able to fully harness human ingenuity and the entrepreneurial spirit. The result is more than 2 centuries of phenomenal growth and prosperity enabling us to grow into the economic superpower we are today. The downside is that with this success and the size and location of our country, one can live their entire life with the false impression that American culture is the only "normal" culture, and the inability to identify with people in other cultures. When 9/11 occurred we were glued to the TV because we saw our fellow Americans in such a perilous situation. But how many people felt the same way when they saw the Mumbai terrorist attacks on 26/11? I think for many, the natural reaction is "hmm crazy stuff over there" and then we continue on with our day without a second thought. We don't have the empathy that we do for those that we relate to in the culture that we're used to.
I know I certainly had that perception of tragic events in other countries. 9/11 opened my eyes a little to a view of how situations in the rest of the world can impact us here. Still however, when I saw human suffering in other parts of the world, it may as well have been occurring on a different planet. It only took 2 and half weeks of travelling to some areas that were extremely different culturally than where I was from to change all that. It takes only a very little amount of time meeting and talking to people in other countries to realize, no matter what they look like, no matter what they sound like, no matter what they dress like, there's a lot more we have in common than that on which we differ. The attacks on Mumbai in 2008 were the first major world event after I returned where suddenly, it wasn't a "3rd world country" on the other side of the world, it may as well have been my friends and neighbors that I saw on the TV.
I view the world entirely differently now than I did prior to my trip. My hope is that through this trip, it will be the same eye-opening experience for my girls, that it will change the lens through which they view the rest of their lives---that they realize that when one of us suffers in this world, we all suffer. And when one person in this world triumphs, we all triumph. Regardless of the continent upon which they sit. On this trip, we will be visting some of the most amazing testaments to beauty and human inginuity, and we will be visiting sites of some of the worst chapters of human history. I expect this trip, will be physically, and emotionally exhausting for all of us, and will be something that we will each still talk about when we are 80 years old.
So how did we pick each of these locations? Most important was security. Each place we are visiting is generally safer than the US when it comes to violent and petty crime, and has no civil unrest (or if there is it is isolated far from where we are visiting). Secondly, since we are visiting many countries, I wanted to minimize difficulty of communication (as this makes the planning much easier by elminating the potential of adverse situations that could arise).
- Hong Kong was easy: Natalie's brother and his wife lives there, and its an obvious stopover to Southeast Asia.
- Cambodia and Angkor Wat was a destinaton that Natalie and I had discussed an interest in visting quite a while back.
- India was a given. The Taj Mahal is about the most fantastic building I could ever imagine seeing. Additionally, the culture and environment of daily life there is so entirely different than it is in the US, it becomes an excellent second reference point between which all other culture's and societies begin to make more sense.
Kalyssa had a blast with this and though she had about 8 countries she wanted to go to, Mauritius quickly rose to the top.
Alexandra wasn't as enthusiastic but ultimately became very interested in Chile or Belize. Unfortunately, with the way the rest of the trip was laying out, time (not to mention money) made South America very difficult to get to. (But I PROMISE that we will visit one of these, perhaps for graduation.....).
- Namibia became our final choice, as their tourism website (http://www.namibiatourism.com.na/) boasted phenomenal landscapes and sceneries, and would allow us a taste of mainland Africa. What sealed the deal was when we learned that 50% of Namibians are Lutheran (due to the influx of Germans in the 1800s)--- since we are Lutheran.
Special thanks to:
for great service in organizing this trip!
