The Octopus of Aid | editorial

"How far that little candle throw his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world."

The Merchant of Venice, v, 1

The octopus of international aid. Such a huge battle. I am generally liberal, while my partner often waxes conservative. We both have been raised to recognize that we live in an imperfect world, and that we should help if we can. But how do we help? Whom do we help? Why should we help? That last question is truthfully the ultimate question. Why are there budgets for international aid? Perhaps the West feels satisfied when it assists the less fortunate. Perhaps it helps the economy in the long run. I suspect it provides temporary relief from a mutated strain of survivor's guilt. The best aid is teaching someone to resent dependence, though, and I don't see this happening much today. The problems quickly seem to mutate.

Kaleidoscope Africa | editorial

"He cannot be a perfect man,
Not being tried and tutored in the world."

Two Gentlemen of Verona, i, 3

Africa is, without a doubt, the most compelling continent in the public imagination - and sometimes because it is so misunderstood. Its many peoples only appear in the current Western spotlight as victims of gruesome tragedies. There is always an epidemic, war, genocide, or famine to keep us wide-eyed. People who travel there by choice are always given particularly teary goodbyes, as though they will only come back with superviruses, battle stories, completely new personalities - or maybe not at all.

Even the word "Africa" represents something false. I rarely hear "North American" used to describe a Hollywood movie, nor have I ever thought of fish and chips as a European dish. It is perfectly acceptable, though, to listen to African music, to volunteer in Africa, to eat at an African restaurant, to walk past African street vendors. We understand our own specifics but generalize our distant neighbors.

There are thousands of possible experiences to have on the African continent. The regional differences, national differences, urban/rural differences, and the differences between villages provide infinite variety.

Travel Chatter | Editorial

"Prosperity be thy page!"
Coriolanus, i, 5

If the greatest human challenge is interacting with foreign people, then the second greatest challenge must be telling your own people about foreign travel. No one enjoys too many vacation photos or too many meaningful anecdotes. If your trapped audience hasn't seen the place in person, there is little for them to relate to. If they have, they prefer their own stories to yours.

Listening to someone else's travel chatter won't help you unless it's spectacular enough for you to endure beyond politeness. You have to fall in love with that expansion, with that desire for more exposure to the strange and unusual. And if you're telling the tale, you must be spectacular enough to make someone else fall in love.

We look more outward than ever. Barnes and Noble has an increasingly large travel section. ABC Carpet and Home, with its embroidered textiles, ornate tiles, and beaded lampshades, looks like Istanbul's Grand Bazaar. Study abroad is up. Peace Corps recruitment is up. The economy is slow. It's time to go.