[CivicBlues]

Originally Posted by Acajack

Personally, I am definitely more like you than Wave, but I don't see the need to be so harsh and judgemental.

People are allowed to have their own preferences and interests, and there are multiple ways to be a learned individual.

Travel is definitely one of the best ones, though I also know a number of extremely well-travelled people who are total rubes.

A member of my wife's family had opportunities to travel that many of us could only dream of, but almost never took advantage of them. This was a person who liked to be at home, in their "stuff", in a familiar environment.

Yes, this was one of the most worldly, learned people I know, speaking French, English and German and some classical Latin and Greek. They could talk about the history, politics and culture of most any country, with knowledge gleaned from books, documentaries and, in later life, the Internet.

I'd also add that with the democratization of air travel in particular, being well-travelled around the world is less and less a mark of sophistication.

I still travel quite a bit internationally, and from what I have observed a lot of what people do these days is "photo op" and "selfie" travel, as opposed to immersing themselves in the local culture even a tiny bit. They do the tour, get the picture and then retreat back to the Marriott.

Stuff like seeing a Foo Fighters concert in an ancient Roman arena in Verona seems like what a lot of people have in mind when they think of travelling abroad these days.

Apologies to Wave46 if I came across a bit bellicose. No offence intended either to anyone who doesn't feel the need to travel. I rather thought I was commenting on the statement that "I travel and will travel - but only to places in N. America and Europe because I can't be bothered to learn about other cultures". At which point, this is a totally arbitrary exercise. I (and likely most of us) would ultimately feel much more familiar and at home in Singapore (which in Asia) than at a small village in Albania (which is in Europe). But because the former destination resides in a great big "other" continent, I'm going to write it off and go to the latter? Ridiculous!