Susan E. Greisen

One thing I’ve learned as a writer, our readers are interested in our qualifications. I never paid much attention or tallied how many countries I’ve traveled over my lifetime. However, when I wrote my first book, it was a question I was asked in my book proposal about what qualified me to write about living and traveling abroad. So, I sat down with the world map and started to plot out how many countries I visited and/or lived in. At the time of my book publication I had a total of 40 countries. And currently, I have a tally of 50 on 6 continents. It is not a brag, just a fact.

Unlike almost all of my previous travels, this time, I decided to take organized travel tours. I could end up spending months in planning these trips, which I didn’t want to do. So, I traveled with 8 to 12 tourists in 4 different groups with Overseas Adventure Travel (OAT). And I’m glad I did.

It was the best way to spend efficient time experiencing as much as possible. OAT integrates their tourists with the locals that includes visits to their homes, farms, schools, as well as cooking and dining with their familes. I loved that part. It was the closest thing to a Peace Corps experience in a short amount of time.

However, I sensed a difference between me and my fellow toursits. Only a handful had lived abroad, and those who had, served in the armed services and were in military housing. I, on the other hand, had lived in the village or towns where I worked – among the people. In my latter years of travel, I was less conscious about checking tourists spots off my bucket list. I wanted to experience the people and their culture like I did in the Peace Corps. Again, only a few select tourists in my groups were on board for that reason.

When there was an opportunity to sit and speak to a local (a guide, chef, mother, child, etc) instead of another tourist, their spouse or the white business owner, I took it. I have an uncanny comfort with people I don’t know. I didn’t care their about skin color, what clothes they wore, how they covered their head, or if a language barrier existed…we just communicated. Being an extreme extrovert and having a healthy curiosity helps with that.

There’s NO right or wrong regarding how or why we travel in the world. However, I think of myself as a global citizen rather than a professional traveler who checks off a bucket list. It is now my preference of travel. From my father’s famous words when asked why he wanted to go to a location unknown to him, he answered, “Because I’ve never seen it before.” I, too, want to go to new places. I want to continue to learn about the world and her people – to grow and understand. Doing so will help me gain empathy about areas and people unknown to me. I, in turn, can help others to appreciate and understand diversity.

How do you travel? I look forward to your comments.