American boys in Italy, Part I

Elk Grove News Podcasts

By Dan Schmitt |

In 1867, Mark Twain journeyed a year throughout Europe, northern Africa, and the Middle East. During his travels, Twain wrote a collection of letters which were later to become one of his more important books, The Innocents Abroad. Towards the end of the book, Twain mused about the value of travel with these words, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

Like Twain, I had come to value travel early in my adult life. During my teaching career, I must have told my social science students a thousand times, “Travel is the best education in the world. By experiencing first-hand other cultures, you’ll come to better understand your own. And, during your travels, you will be exposed to cultural experiences that will simultaneously perplex and enlighten you.”

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