‘are travellers sli? Travel, when you think about it, 1s largely setts pursuit. ts all vot me, ne me, Plaoes | can go to, peopl can mee, things can ee, food | canny, my buck It experiences. Are you asel-ansorhe traveller? Lets lock at some common scenarios, slaniog with be plight of the waver sexing Wo dsr ‘something unique, al —— - ‘Your it eaton ito bm the quid book, egadless of he fact that ts probaly the way you ound ou about too. Andis te, that book n your tend hs a itt answer fo. Gut rs a simplistic ‘otlon. nan ae of mass tourism, cttesicacker grapevines, of inet ad ellos, ts ineveble at what wes once a rsting adie wl te seating wih ints belong, You can dea iti bleme atte local, to. Wihot theirs, Uhatahich sero offend yeu would nes. Thy lie the money ‘ad they vai-rore—atheuch bathed blame them ota. tout ash spent at beach tes ans wen shops can esse poverty ad als ve standards, woul be ssh Wo begrudge the foals ter ctanoe a eter [3 Hones, eer accept place sis event does ive up fo our expectations, oF ao ese he trapp ngs of progress are ‘ho otensive or your sensibltes. Dot blame te quid tks, the tenet, Tp Adgor. on blame your low tures. And cently dort bizme the locals frying to grove cvs — tha vow be te eg of setisiess. 4 ‘They say moray makes the wold go round. So haw do you spend ou td-2med cash on olay? De you Shoo lal? you sly, land shop n places omnes by local, yur money wil sty inthe ‘community and help generate obs. Foreign-owned resorts ol chs may oe hgh ve of como and ext facts, bu ny Til of wat yoo pay actual icMes down inthe local econo, eres bee neeby, do you ely needa saimming poo!? 5 ‘st but rot east whare moneys cnncemad, bargin fairy. Saving an ra dlr on that -sti or souvent il hardy rae a etn yr bug, satin make hoe dans ia ha slr Once as disuse ta wness asharefu| change in vrich a wel-ed ‘origne haze had to gta novel oy fo ess than Mal pice, The ‘ing? Fity measly certs. Adding nuit in, taste about About me Im Jach and Fe gat ene passion in te tral, Wherever my tnaching job allows, fm on tenet plana (or bus, otra...) anew adventure, Hee, lke ta share my experiences and perhaps inspire you to tke the plunge and go ofthe beaten path. So grab your camera, pack you sense of adventure and bing an open ming. ito his companions. He fet great bacause ted put one ove onthe locas, Do be ha person! 6] People say thers something about andog 2 han that its voluntourism above the averace travel experiance, But think hers stilan element of stishness evento he noble volurters wo hep build homes or teach ato chien. You do these things cause makes you fe! good, not ust because youre Kind, gving soul. The ownsideto al his acoauil however. that olulouism saclay ule expensive. Mos companies tal omarise volunteer igs wil charge you plemy fore ererence— on far more hen twos st yout just ws those courtiesion your oan. [7 ‘Well tha it Some of you wil disagree wit my views, bl tm up fr 4 good dete, Sard your cormenks and let know your though ‘re youaselsh waveler? Nomi eo nd eae oe es (a 4, n‘You are going to read a blog post. Seven paragraphs have been removed from the post. Choose from the paragraphs AH the one which fits exch gap (1 ~7). There is one extra paragraph which you do rot need to use ‘A Maybe you're not the kind of traveller who thinks hell is other people. Maybe you're happy 10 discover and share the world with others. That’s commendable. But while you're rooming the planet, think about your personal impact on the people and the places around you. Ara you contributing in positive ways thet can be of benefit to others, er are you exacerbating problems? Are you causing harm to eat sofich needs? B You get :o.an oxotic destination expecting to find an untouched anc! unspoilt paracise, 2 secluded fantasyland just for you, far from the well-worn tourist path ...and the place is eling with other travellers. There are loud and obnoxious backpackers, huge speakers thumping out the most amful dance music, and tour buses spewing their human eargo, © One last thing before I get off my soapbox: voluntourism. It's @ novel concept, and, to those whose idea of travel is a secluded resort and a day spe, a somewhat frightening one. The idea is simple’ asa traveller from the first world, you're usually in a far more privileged position than those who lve in the countries you're visiting. But, rather than just comfort yourself wth the knowledge that your money is helping their ecoromy, why not do something tangible to help out, even for just a few days? D There is also something imperialistic about not allowing ~ or wanting — less developed counties to develop along the lines of our own cultures, After a recent tip to Nepal, a member of our group was complaining about locals in a village, and how the place was spoilt because there was an internet eafé. | couldn't believe my ears. Why can't these Nepalese people enjoy the web if they so choose? E Stay calm and don't get angry if you think you've been charged a bit mare for your transport, hotel or food. Perhaps i's just an honest mistake. Try to point out the discrepancy in 2 polite and respectul way, and dont accuse anyone of dishonesty. Yes, its your hard-eamed cash, but don't assume people want to rob you of it just because they have less. F Be careful about what you're buying, too. In countries with lax environmental regulations, or where authorities turn a blind eye to illegal trade, its not dificult to find products made from endangered species such as shell, coral and certain woods. It never falls to shock me when | hear of anyone buying ivory products, like carvings or Jewellery And then there's medicine made from parts of endangored animals. Oon't even think about t! The tiger population in Asia has been drastically reduced, and for what? Some crackpot cure that doasn't work, G_ Isn't this concept of an exclusive paradise selfish? Not only that, but the arrogance implictin itis astonishing too. Without wishing to state the obvious, the second you dacide to go to a place because tisparaclse, you are part cof the problem. The blaring speakers, international sport on big screen TVs, karaoke, fish and chips ~ it's all there bbocause it's what the tourists want H_ Yes, that’ right — you pay the organisation to go and work for free. The meney is supposed to go into the commun ty, but often, shady operators pocket the profits As if that wasn't bad enough, volunteers could be taking jobs from locals. Think about it. there's free labour, i.e. you, why would anyone employ a local? That's probably what | find most disturbing about the whole concept. its Not ethical or resporsibe, and in my humble opinion, oest avoided.