The part of Iyer's essay that resonated the most with me was when he stated that traveling is learning "more about the world than our newspapers will accommodate". In particular, I was reminded of my trip to Pakistan in 2014. Everyone I knew asked me, 'why are you going?', 'aren't you scared?', or 'isn't it dangerous?'. I was prepared to see my vision of a third world country: small, dilapidated housing, unpaved streets, cramped buildings, and busy marketplaces. I was not prepared to see a clean, safe city with expensive houses and modern kitchens, personal drivers, and normal shopping malls. Everything I had learned from the media about the country my parents are from was so misguided and misinformed. I felt ashamed of how I saw this home-country, and I was disappointed in how it was portrayed in the American media. If I had not traveled to Pakistan, I never would have discovered how wrongfully it was depicted, and I would have carried on my own assumptions about the country.
I also identified with Iyer when he said that he travels "in large part in search of hardship--both [his] own...and others'". I always learn so much about my own privilege when I visit other countries. I see all the difficulties others go through and it makes me appreciate all the things in my life, all of the things I neglect. It makes me want to be more optimistic and positive in my own life. I have seen the people in the craziest circumstances when I travel (for example a quadriplegic, homeless man who remained resilient in his will to live). After seeing others' hardships, I appreciate where I come from more and remember that I am blessed to live the life I lead.
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