I think what you said about “adventure” travel is interesting. I agree we must be mindful about how we view ourselves when tromping through poor nations, and I also feel this is an issue of semantics to some degree. I think the term “adventure” can be interpreted in many different ways. For me, an adventure is getting on the bus every day and going to work in my home city. I open my eyes, heart, and mind to the world around me, and adventure ensues.

I feel the same way about my travels overseas. To me, every moment is an adventure, and if I travel mindfully, I see nothing wrong with describing those experiences as “adventures.” Yes, there are plenty of people who don’t do this with the best intentions, and/or who don’t appreciate/value what they’re seeing before them or experiencing every day. My hope as a writer is to inspire/educate/inform my readers to be more mindful and considerate of others, while also learning something about themselves and the world along the way.

Cheers! Molly

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This, more than anything, frustrates me. Many of these same people have traveled to developing countries, coming back with tales of poverty and simplicity. They’ll fly thousands of miles to see it, but they won’t turn down that block. There is a kind of romanticization of poverty in the third world of distant lands, but never of the third world that is in our own backyard.

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Just to clarify, I’ve always felt a little uneasy about hearing the term “adventure travel” used to describe travel in developing nations. For people who live in those places, life is not an adventure, and so it feels uncomfortable for us to describe visiting their environment as “adventure”. Jungle trekking, bungy jumping, etc., yes, that is adventurous. But I do think there are better words to describe what it means for us, who come from comfortable lives, when stepping into the world of others who are struggling for a short while. I just think we, as travellers and writers, should tread carefully with things like this. That is just my own opinion.
Cheers,
Marie

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I’m that girl who wrote the article Sarah linked to. I appreciate your insights and comments. To address Marie, the “adventure travel” part of our experience was 14 months through 27 countries, experience local cultures, doing some wild things, and living very unlike ourselves back in the States. I’m not sure what was meant by your comment, but we certainly didn’t do it a la Abercrombie and Kent. ???

I think adventure means different things to different people. My goal in writing that article was to inspire people to consider other ways of life outside the excess of opportunities we have here in the States, and to open their minds to other cultures and identities. It’s along the lines of the comment about people not wanting to travel to India because they can’t deal with all the poverty. Well, that’s unfortunately the state of much of the world today, so we have to look at those truths to better understand how we all relate to the problem/issues. We are all connected to one another through a thread of humanity. I believe countries like the U.S. need to pay more attention to this interconnectedness of all living beings.

The American Dream was something we aspired to and saved up for our entire adult lives. But it didn’t come true for us; meaning, we wanted a house but kept getting outbid. How attainable is that if we are hard-working people who can’t even afford to put our own roof over our heads? It was an eye-opener, and thus we chose to do something different with our money.

Whether you like my article or not isn’t important; the fact that we’re all discussing this IS. Keep the ideas and insights coming. Cheers!

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I don’t know that the trip itself is making me less materialistic, but the idea of wanting to travel for long stretches like this for the rest of my life means that my life back home has to be simple and easily packed up. And hundreds of books, dozens of shoes, and way too many clothes just doesn’t fit that kind of life.

So I think I’m less of a consumer now because of my need to be mobile. And while I don’t think I’ll always be this lean, I’m pretty sure I’ll never have as much stuff as I did 5 years ago. It just makes it too hard to live when you have all that stuff weighing you down.

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I was definitely much more materialistic before I left for China, and now it amazes everyone I still keep my clothes in my suitcase- I think it helps remind me that those few jeans and shirts are all I really need, and no more.

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Think about getting ready to travel. We try out many specialised backpacks, buy expensive hiking boots and high tech rain gear or quick dry travel clothing. There is an entire industry devoted to marketing to us, who believe we are leaving consumerism behind. And we often suck it up. Then you end up tramping up a Himalayan mountain with all your bells and whistles next to a porter who has been hired to carry three backpacks (and not by their perfectly adjusted, high-tech straps) while wearing an old woolen sweater and some flip flops. Some will notice this discrepancy and make adjustments to their lives upon returning home, and others will notice and take a “thank God I’m home so I can take an hour long shower when I want and buy, and eat all I want”, type attitude. Or they might give a, “Whew! At least I don’t have to live like that!” response and go on as before. Travel doesn’t change everyone for the better. But for some, being actually confronted with poverty can give us a shake. I have met many people who won’t travel to India because they “couldn’t deal with all the poverty”. So, you’d rather live in denial?

We don’t need to travel to learn about our level of consumerism, but travel certainly can give us a slap in the face! What’s done with it after that is up to the individual.

P.S. That article you linked to annoyed me, too. Their other annoying thing was talking about “adventure travel”. What’s the “adventure” part, again? Is that when you have to buy water in bottles?

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Absorbing knowledge from a less consumptive society isn’t something we are forced to do while traveling, instead it is a choice we make to view ourselves from a different angle, and you have obviously decided to do so. Good for you.

I only wish Molly in your linked article had learned as much. After all leaving a couple bags of clothes too bad for Salvation Army on the street for the homeless shows a lack of understanding of poverty, or maybe a reluctance to even take responsiblity for disposing of her consumptive habits. Homeless lack homes they have clothes.

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Problems we think as “large” don’t seem as dire anymore.

We learn to appreciate what we have a lot more.

But ultimately, it boils down to the individual and if they ‘truly’ take anything away from the experiences travel brings.

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