Traveling is an incredible way to truly connect with others around the world. There is no better way to experience new cultures, traditions, people, and food than by experiencing it in person. Choosing connection through travel can also be a great bonding experience with your family as you make new memories together.
Let's take a closer look at the benefits of traveling and how it can help you make deeper connections with your family and others around the world.
Connecting with the World
Traveling around his country—and beyond—is a favorite pastime of JaKobi Burton, a mechanical engineer who lives in the Midwestern United States. So far, he’s visited 44 of the 50 states in the U.S. and a couple of other countries. His destinations have been as varied as Iceland and the Navajo Nation.
“Visiting new places gets me outside of the ‘bubble’ I live in,” he says. “Being in an unfamiliar place can be a little uncomfortable, but it’s also oddly freeing. I can try something new, see how people live, taste new food, and see the world from a different angle.”
JaKobi feels that an attitude of humility has helped him to be a more respectful traveler. “I try to learn basic sentences in other languages so I can greet people properly in their own space,” he says. “After all, I’m the visitor and this is their home. Even if I speak their language badly, they can see I’ve made an effort to bridge the language gap.”
Another great benefit that JaKobi has experienced while traveling is that he has found himself more willing to do things that he wouldn’t typically choose at home. He’s tried country line dancing in the Western United States, and he’s stayed up far later than his usual bedtime to experience Iceland’s nightlife. These may not become new habits, but he says that’s not the point.
“Traveling has broadened my horizons and allowed me to understand that the world is so diverse,” he says. “It’s given me a new sense of perspective. There are so many different people and so many different ways of living. My way of living isn’t the only way. There are so many ways to be human.”
Connecting with Children
Traveling with children can be challenging, but it also has a lot of benefits. Children who travel often become more adaptable, empathetic, and respectful about cultural differences. Parents or other traveling companions can enjoy helping young loved ones encounter new things. Sharing the unique experiences of travel can also deepen bonds with children.
That’s what Heather Nickerson discovered when she took her daughter to London. “We spent a week exploring the city and experiencing all the sights, sounds, and pomp and circumstance that one can only find there,” says Heather, who is from Washington, D.C., United States.
Heather, the CEO of Artifcts.com, believes so deeply in the value of memories that she’s built a company around preserving them. She knew the trip would bring back her own happy memories of studying in London as a graduate student. But she was surprised at the impact of creating new memories with her daughter, who was only 5 years old at the time.
“I was able to see London through her eyes, and she was able to finally visualize all the places and stories I had told her about from my time in the city,” says Heather. “From riding the double decker buses past Big Ben and Trafalgar Square to the changing of the Guard to high tea. She took in every detail and every now and then will say, ‘Remember when...’ about our time together. If you were to ask her today, it is still one of her all-time favorite trips, and I have to say it is one of mine, too.”
Connecting with the Past
When Penny Walters of Bristol, England travels, she enjoys learning more about events and places of the past. But some of her most meaningful travel has been in search of her own history.
“I was adopted,” says Penny, a speaker for the global RootsTech Connect event and author of the book, The Psychology of Searching. “Having been fragmented from biological family, I feel that’s why I’m always looking for connections, and I don’t mind how far I have to travel to find them.”
Penny, who describes herself as “very English,” found out through DNA testing that her biological parents were Welsh and Irish. “One of my DNA matches in America gave me his family tree, and I was able to find my direct ancestor’s place on it, so suddenly I learned my relatives trace directly back to Ireland. Soon afterwards, I got on the airplane to Cork. I went and sat on the doorstep of my family who fled the famine.”
During that trip to Ireland, she felt unexplainably drawn to an out-of-the-way coastline, where boats sat derelict in an estuary. “When I got home, I researched where I’d been and discovered that’s where my County Kerry ancestors came from,” she says. “That’s where they picked oysters.”
Because she was adopted, Penny didn't have a lifetime of being told who she was and where she was from. There were no stories, framed photos, or places on the map that belonged to her. She has had to create her own origin story entirely from discoveries she has made about her family history. Traveling to where her ancestors lived has helped her construct that sense of heritage more deeply. “It feeds my yearning spirit, teaches me who I am, and connects me to those who came before me.”
Choose Connection at RootsTech
You can discover more ways to connect with others at RootsTech.org. This virtual family history conference has free content available year long. See how you can choose connection by visiting RootsTech.org!
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