If you haven't travelled you don't know jack...

Who's Jack?

Perhaps from a pommy point of view there's not as much to be gained from travelling, but from an Aussie who lived in Tasmania for 26 years, I'll happily admit I didn't know Jack before and I'm still trying to find Jack now. There's something abouit living in the middle of nowhere country (Australia) in the middle of nowhere state (Tasmania) that isolates you from the world where you feel like everything is a movie. I like being where it feels like stuff is actually happening now, even if I'm just as passive about it as I was before.

Sincerely,
Jack
 
I think it's true to say that you will be naive of the real world around you. You will be lacking a lot of cultural knowledge and experiences. You will be missing out on a lot of understanding how how the world is around you and what the world is around you. So I think you will have some ignorance, and me misinformed. Learning about stuff in a book is different to experiencing it first hand. However, it all comes down to the attitude of the person travelling. Some people will make no effort to learn about the country they are seeing, some will intergrate themselves completely. People are different.

I don't think you know "jack" - but certainly you will be at a loss IMO/IME. So many tiems I've been having to deal with people from other parts of the world, and having soem understanding of the culture and the way they work is vital in business, but also in forging new relationships. I am so thankful I've been around the world a few times over, I'm very very lucky. I'm not saying everyone can do it, and it's unfortunate, but that's just the way it is. However, I urge anyone to explore and get a chance to see the world, and learn about the world around them. I also urge those that can't travel to not dismiss other cultures or try as best they can to understand other cultures, parts of the world. However, it's so so very hard to do out of context. We learn from direct experiences, and they work better via direct context IME/IMO.

If not, then I urge such people to be open minded and not just repeat what they read in the papers until they have experienced what they are talking about. Then again you get idiots that travel and still spout the same nonsense anyway without really appreciating the culture they are visiting.

Direct experience is invaluable, as is immersing yourself in another part of the world - you can't beat it. It can be daunting, scary, and sometimes horrid. However, it can also be some of the most fantastic experiences of your life. Eitherway, no matter which experience you take away from it, you've learnt something, and if you can keep an open mind then you know you will be richer for it.
 
I think travel will enlighten those who are ignorant of other cultures, but that isn't to say that anyone who hasn't travelled is ignorant of other cultures. I've travelled a little bit but not a great deal, I've read a lot and I keep fairly up to date with things happening all over the world, and through various online games and stuff I've made friends all over the world, I consider my mind to be substantially more well travelled than myself.
 
Some of the most 'enlightened' people I know have never left their village.

I bet some of the people you met on your travels that had such an effect on you fit into the same category.

It's fun though.
 
I wouldn't say i'm travelled as such but have seen quite a lot of the world through holidays and i consider myself very lucky to have visited some of these places. I think this thread started very badly and should be about peoples views on travelling and the impact it can have on your lives.

I don't think travelling will give you a greater deal of knowledge as such considering knowledge can cover pretty much anything. I do however believe it will increase your knowledge of other cultures and understanding of people in that part of the world (providing you allow yourself to learn and be open minded). The experiences you can often have when learning about these cultures/people can leave a lasting impression on an individual and i personally feel my travelling as limited as it may be has certainly impacted me and my outlook on life. I would strongly recommend that people travel if they can even if it's once every couple of years for a week or two as there are many beautiful places out there to see and it would be a shame to isolate yourself away in one country away from the rest of the world when there's such wonders out there.
 
Rubbish to a degree - everyone is biased in someway. They travelled the world but will they pop down to old folks home for a chat or to the local ghetto to meet the chavs? Or just visit the sunny places with good pic opportunities?

Yes its easy to form prejudiced opinions about places and travelling to these places might tell you that yeah the people were actually nice but strange toilets!

But unless you speak the same language, worked and lived with the various cultures including going through some hard times with them your understanding is no better than someone using google.

An enlighted person is a rare thing and while travelling is good and highly recommended its not a prerequisite.
 
Freefaller said:
I think it's true to say that you will be naive of the real world around you. You will be lacking a lot of cultural knowledge and experiences. You will be missing out on a lot of understanding how how the world is around you and what the world is around you. So I think you will have some ignorance, and me misinformed. Learning about stuff in a book is different to experiencing it first hand. However, it all comes down to the attitude of the person travelling. Some people will make no effort to learn about the country they are seeing, some will intergrate themselves completely. People are different.

I don't think you know "jack" - but certainly you will be at a loss IMO/IME. So many tiems I've been having to deal with people from other parts of the world, and having soem understanding of the culture and the way they work is vital in business, but also in forging new relationships. I am so thankful I've been around the world a few times over, I'm very very lucky. I'm not saying everyone can do it, and it's unfortunate, but that's just the way it is. However, I urge anyone to explore and get a chance to see the world, and learn about the world around them. I also urge those that can't travel to not dismiss other cultures or try as best they can to understand other cultures, parts of the world. However, it's so so very hard to do out of context. We learn from direct experiences, and they work better via direct context IME/IMO.

If not, then I urge such people to be open minded and not just repeat what they read in the papers until they have experienced what they are talking about. Then again you get idiots that travel and still spout the same nonsense anyway without really appreciating the culture they are visiting.

Direct experience is invaluable, as is immersing yourself in another part of the world - you can't beat it. It can be daunting, scary, and sometimes horrid. However, it can also be some of the most fantastic experiences of your life. Eitherway, no matter which experience you take away from it, you've learnt something, and if you can keep an open mind then you know you will be richer for it.
Click to expand...

You've summed it up well for me. "Travelling" can entail anything from sitting in a hotel complex for a week to having a one-on-one with a Buddhist monk somewhere high in the clouds. So many people physically travel to other countries, but take with them much of their own culture and traditions. I have visited quite a few different nations but do not profess to always have the most high level understanding of their peoples, problems and perspectives. I am currently delving into Lucy Wadham's "The Secret Life of France", and believe that her perspective offers a deeper insight into French culture than the vast majority of people would obtain from staying there (unless they happened to speak the language very well themselves and/or had friends and family that had ties in the country).

I haven't been to Paris myself yet, and as much as I'd love to eye up the Mona Lisa in the Louvre or sample the wares of a fine pâtisserie, it won't really shed light on why the French value mathematics so highly, why public sector professions are revered in France or why de Gaulle chose to pursue an independent nuclear deterrent, will it? :)
 
A lot of people would be much more enlightened and improved by working at a homeless shelter or doing some other sort of useful voluntary work than they get by travelling.

Travelling is great, but it's no substitute for having intellectual curiosity and the nouse to come you own views on the world.
 
I've done a small amount of travelling, it's tricky with Epilepsy & a rucksack full of medication to cart around everywhere :) being a complete and utter medical disaster has actually given me an extremely positive view on life & makes you realise what's important

I would say that I learn the most when I decide to jump out of my comfort zone and do things that I wouldn't think I was capable of, or couldn't see myself doing, be it travelling or something closer to home, physical or mental.. Being uncomfortable and uncertain make me learn, adapt & think and act differently

As for travelling I guess the more places I visit which are totally foreign to my understanding of 'the way things work' , the more I realise just how little I know, maybe that adds some humility to my perspective on things.

I do love finding a hidden gem, somewhere you personally feel totally at home, that doesn't happen often, and obviously the likelyhood of random chance encounters bringing stories & experiences are increased when you have time on your hands & don't need to go out searching for them. You don't essentially have to travel the earth to have them though..
 
i disagree

travelling is certainly a great way to gain first hand knowledge and grow as a person, but if you haven't travelled a lot it doesn't mean you're a lesser person.
 
Tefal said:
No.

People who have travelled tend to be just as ill informed but holier than thou and think they're more informed :p
Click to expand...

Fenris said:
A well travelled moron is still a moron.
Click to expand...


i agree with these to a large degree. also of those people who have been travelling, how much of it was actually "experiencing the culture" and how much was getting wasted with fellow travellers? some of my friends went to south america, and granted they saw some good stuff but if you count experiencing the culture as taking coke with the locals then they were well immersed.
 
I think travelling can be very valuable experience and I've certainly enjoyed the periods I've spent outwith the UK but I would always try not to look down on someone or disregard their opinion just because they haven't travelled.

I can't imagine for myself never having visited other parts of the World and I suspect my life would be the poorer (although possibly economically richer) for not having done what I've done. However some people lead entirely fulfilling lives without travelling much (if at all), I'm certainly not going to say that's the wrong approach or that their opinion on matters is intrinsically worth less than mine for that reason - that diversity of approach is part of what makes the World so great and why I do enjoy travelling.
 
I've never travelled out of this country and have no intention of doing, I've no interest in holidays aboard. I don't even have a licence to drive and have no intention of doing that ether. I know a thing or two though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom