So here I am in the train ride from Amsterdam to Berlin. The timing now is 6:58am sharp. I am looking like a complete zombie. Everyone in the train is asleep and I happen to be one of the very few still up and alert in a mood of writing my blog readers an update about my epic journey in Europe. The train ride is scheduled for 7 hours and I know I have long hours ahead of me until I reach Berlin. I just spend little over two days in Amsterdam and the stay was simply awesome.
Well before I continue typing up this blog, I just want to ask that you please bear some patience with me here with some inevitable typos and mistakes in this post as I am completely sleep deprived and my body hates me for walking all around Amsterdam like non-stop.
The aim behind this post is to share what traveling really means to me and why I think everyone should do it. For me traveling is not a simple get-away from work where I will be finding myself chillaxing in restaurants and cafe shops. Traveling is a learning process where I learn to co-exist with people of different culture, language, and race. Through traveling I learn to build tolerance to differences, I stop judging practices that are of different from my own. I also show appreciation to numerous empires and art via traveling.
A taste of food and networking are a must to do whenever I see myself in a different country. Food, language, music are some of the few features that unite nations.
Growing up in America, I have been fortunate enough to have been exposed to new methods, ideas from diverse sources, and social and political philosophies of the world, which nevertheless have relevance to Kurdistan. However, I have faced considerable cultural barriers that prevented me from utilizing the maximum potential of these experiences and educations. Some Kurds think that no matter how many years they reside in the U.S., they will still feel like outsiders to some extend and will never fully be a part of any Western culture. So, many of these Kurds shut all the doors. On the other hand, there are American-assimilated Kurds who highly admire American culture. Their admiration causes them to become too immersed with the American practices and values, and become completely acculturated.
To break the cultural barrier, youth should be encouraged to travel abroad, learn other languages, write about their experiences and understand both Kurdish and foreign life-styles. Kurdish youth need to learn to utilize culture as a formula to achievements and investments in their own futures. Traveling to other countries and learning the language, there are opportunities for communicating with youth from other successful societies. Through travel, youth are able to collect new talents and skills during their time abroad; ideally, they can in turn create opportunities for their peers in Kurdistan.
Okay so now that I have filled you in with an update, I feel far greater. I think I will hit the play button on my ipod touch and perhaps take a nap like everyone else in the train. I ask that you remain in peace until we reconnect again.
Au Revior
Helene
