Rant

RANT In

The other day I read a comment about travel in the "Adventure Travel" community. It basically said that 'I have no interest to venture outside my own borders'. The comment has been rattling around in my head since then. I'm thinking, then WHY are you here, being part of this community?

This isn't the first time I've heard this before. It just makes me wonder why? Mostly, I can speculate it's due to fear. Fear of the unknown, fear of not being in control, and fear of change. The comment was then followed up by some sort of justification ‘There is enough interesting this to see in my own country’. And, although I can agree that there are plenty of amazing places to see, I don’t think that is the point. My friend, Austin Vince, said it best; ‘If you're not venturing into ‘Ooga Booga land’, then all you are doing is riding and camping” It’s hard not to sound judgmental. But, I’m also not so naive to think that everyone should share my sentiments. I also realize that I have yet to push my own comfort levels.

For me, the ‘places’ are nothing more than points of interest that guide you from one unknown to the next. For me, adventure travel is connecting and sharing with people from other cultures you don’t understand and breaking down the barriers of ignorance. When you do this, you and those people become more enriched, more understanding, and hopefully, more tolerant. And, the more tolerant we become, the better the world we live in.

I encourage you, step out of the green zone. It’s pretty amazing out here.

RANT Out