Keeping in mind Wilde’s notion that there are no “bad” or “good” travel destinations, that there are just travelers who are tedious and travelers who are charming, I have identified three different types of traveler.
The first is the all-too-well-known “Liberty Fry.” These people are presumably Americans visiting a foreign country and wear their hometown on their sleeves, with no regard to the country they are visiting. For instance, they find much of nothing to glean and appreciate in another country’s culture and way of life. They anticipate in finding their home within the visiting country. When they realize that this is not the case, they don’t understand and try to enforce their normative ways of life. The Liberty Fry is usually meant to describe a visitor from the United States. In a sense I’d say that it’s almost an “Americanizing” spirit; the traveler feels entitled to his/her normative way of life back at home in America, and doesn’t understand why foreigners – specifically those in the visited country – do not aspire to have his/her way of life since they view it as the comfortable “ideal.”
Another type of traveler is what I like to call the “Taking Rick Steves to Another Level” traveler. This kind of traveler is overly prepared and is on another extreme than the Liberty Fry. Before embarking on their destination, they have what they are going to do and where they are going to go down to scientific increments of time. This includes purchasing tickets ahead of time for museums and events, even when reservations are not required, but just for the sole reason of skipping the long lines and “knowing everything there is to know.” They prepare things so that no unexpected surprises can arise. Everything is orderly and perfectly organized to combat the fear of going abroad to an unknown environment. With this kind of traveler, I think that they miss out on the natural flow of everyday life in the culture they are visiting. Overall I feel that you would learn more through accidental incidents when abroad instead of planned increments of time.
The third and final type of traveler is the “Beginner.” The Beginner is the exact opposite of the “Taking Rick Steves to Another Level” and the “Liberty Fry” travelers. This kind looks at the prospect of traveling to a foreign country as exciting and full of adventure. Nothing is planned with this kind, it is looked upon as a clean slate. They are not nervous or have any apprehension about not knowing what to expect. In contrast, it invigorates them further. They are the essence of the term “go with the flow.” While abroad, they can keep home in mind, but only as a companion to the new, fascinating culture that they are immersing themselves in.
When reflecting on the above three types of travelers, I wish to be the Beginner. I would have to say that it would be in my directional nature to lean towards the “Taking Rick Steves to Another Level” traveler with my compulsory, organized way of being. I believe that the excitement of traveling abroad and the case of the ‘travel bug’ is derived from that uncomfortable unknown of the surroundings you have never stepped foot in. Yes there are many guide books and websites that inform anyone of anything nowadays, but it is only through physically being somewhere and experiencing something that we can truly know what it is like in our subjective points of view. Places are concrete things that do not move or change over time, however our perceptions and opinions are individually so diverse. This individual definition and want to make sense of our surroundings compels us to bite on that uncomfortable excitement of the unknown, and addictively pursue it.
Phase 2:
I guess this picture exemplifies the touristy, borderline "Liberty Fry" in me. We're all posing with our delicious Esterina ice creams. Other than that, I think I did my best to avoid coming across as ridiculously tourist-like.
Reflecting on my three types of traveler – the Liberty Fry, Taking Rick Steves to Another Level and The Beginner – I have witnessed some in others and in myself along the trip.
A prime example of the Liberty Fry was this Southern family a group of us ran into first on the Paris Metro. I remember standing with a group of other Paris-goers on the Metro, clinging to the metal poles for support, when a family of four got on. I could tell that the family was American by their way of dress (plaid, jeans, boots, etc.) Overhearing our group speaking not only English, but American English, the other American man loudly commented loudly in a Southern accent, “My, we got some good ‘ol American sweat on here!” At first consideration this statement was just an exclamation of a nice surprise to find other Americans with a shared cultural identity on a busy Paris Metro. Following this comment he asked if there were any good BBQ places in Paris that we knew of and how he missed it and did not understand how Parisians have not adapted American BBQ. It was a completely serious question and declarative statement. Coincidentally, the following day at Sante Chapelle we saw the Southern BBQ man in the nave of the church.
An example of the Taking Rick Steves to Another Level traveler is my Dad. No, he was obviously not on the France trip but he was the inspiration for my second traveler category. I have traveled with him twice to Italy and from what I can recall, the entire trip was planned out literally a year in advance. Purchasing plane tickets that early and/or checking out guide books a la Rick Steves may be understandable, but to the point of reserving tickets when they are not necessary (i.e. for churches, museums, etc.) and making itemized lists and daily schedules months in advance is the definition of unsurprised structure. Even while we were in Italy everything went as according to schedule; there was no leeway to just walk down the next Via and see where we ended up on the cobbled streets. In my Dad’s favor, a major positive thing of his extensive planning abilities was that we really did not encounter any serious or even minor problems during our month-long stays both times. Everything was at ease in regards to getting in to places efficiently and concretely, no second-guessing however exhausting it was to be on a nonstop schedule.
During my stay in France, I would classify myself of being the Beginner traveler with a twist. That is, the Beginner with more structure. Granted we had everything nicely planned out for us through the program of where to go, what to do and what was to be expected, but there was still enough freedom to develop and recognize your own travel type while on the trip. As I mentioned in Activity 1, my family and friends continually asked me what I thought Paris would be like before I embarked on the trip. Instead rearing extreme anxiety from the thought of it, I was calm in my realization that I had no idea what to expect and was ok with the obscurity that makes a foreign country simply foreign. Beyond accepting the unknown, I was excited about it, and continued to be so throughout the trip whenever we had to meet the group somewhere new or planning a weekend trip, its own separate adventure. I think that it is sometimes easy to forget that the area around where you’re staying (i.e. the Citadines) is an area to be explored, too, beyond the daily tourist-directed places. Exploring around the upbeat Bastille area, I discovered so many little shops and streets I never would have known had I taken a direct route and vision each day. Adopting an open-minded, “Beginner” view of traveling enabled me to fully enjoy my surroundings and to be continually surprised.
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