Long after the adrenaline rush had worn off from flying through the canopies on “Superman,” one of Mexico’s longest and fastest zip lines, the image of the Fisher Price shopping cart and toys inside a dilapidated dwelling we passed on the way there remained. There were no doors on the house, allowing me to see inside as we drove past. The floors were made of dirt. The children were soiled and didn’t have shoes on, yet they wore big smiles on their faces and waved to us as we drove by. My kids had the same toys and the same smiles, but geography made our family very different from this one. They lived in poverty, earning the same amount of pesos in an entire day that I would later drop on a froyo for an afternoon snack. It was humbling, to say the least.
Rich or poor, young or old, the people make the place everywhere I’ve traveled. Sure, the architecture was amazing in Rome. But it’s the boisterous butcher in the small shop in Bellagio who made us laugh and the 80-year-old woman who walked the steep steps in the lakeside town every day, stopping to chat with us on her way to get groceries, I remember best. It’s the third-generation Zimbabwean who spent weeks away from his family at a time to take us on safari and share his love of the land with us. These people inspired me to do more while on vacation. Give back and kick back with these ideas.
Continue reading “People Make the Place: 5 Ways to Give Back When Traveling”
