Foreign on the Fourth

Today marks the third time that I have been in active use of my passport on the Fourth of July.  I've celebrated Independence Day in Kenya (2002), Germany (2011), and now South Korea (2013).  On one hand each of these experiences have reminded me of the value of the freedoms and opportunities which I have as an American and on the other hand has made me truly realize that there is an amazing human spirit and overall interconnectedness among people which transcends nationalism and politically defined borders.  So to my family and friends who will be celebrating today..."Happy Fourth of July!!"

Overnight we stopped in the city of Daegu, South Korea's third largest city (behind Seoul and Busan).  While there were no defined study tour objectives, we did have time last night so as to explore.  One of the things that we have noticed about Korean cities is that there are almost no single-family detached houses.  All over the place, including the suburbs and even rural areas, you see high rise condominium buildings.  We've been told that the ideal for a Korean family is to own a condo.  We've joked amongst each other about these condo complexes all looking the same and parallels have been made to our suburban "Levittown" areas.  Instead of little boxes on the hillside all made out of tickey-tackey like we see, you have high rise buildings on the outskirts all made out of tickey-tackey.  So even without an official agenda, other than a hotel stay, in Daegu we have reflected upon Korean urban life.

Final Preparations

In less than 21-hours I board my flight to Los Angeles so as to join about 25% of the rest of the group of 40 teachers then heading on to Seoul, South Korea.  The full group of 40 (others flying in from Chicago and New York) will meet at the airport in Seoul.

So today I spend my final moments of preparation.  I have errands to run and a lesson plan to finalize.  I finished all of my laundry early last week before a very fast paced trip to Indiana and Michigan, so this evening I'll have a little bit of ironing and packing to do: one or two suitcases??...I'll figure that out tonight.

Otherwise...I'm ready to go.  I'm excited to say "goodbye for now Oklahoma and 인사말 한국 (greetings Korea)!"  Let's do this!!!  My passport is READY for some remote road roaming.

National Passport Day

How many times have you been sitting on your couch watching a TV game show (i.e. Who Wants to be  a Millionaire? or Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader?) and wondered why many contestants have a very limited knowledge of peoples, places, and circumstances outside of the United States.  Both from within the U.S. and from many within the international community there is a strong feeling that people within the U.S. just don't know enough about our neighbors (near or far) on this planet.  In a recent article titled "Catch Up, America!", Samara Green, a high school senior in Maryland, gives a great commentary on why the U.S. educational system needs to clearly embed within its curriculum a greater focus on Global Education.  This focus is, of course, the major element of the Teachers for Global Classrooms program in which I am currently participating.

• Update (added March 15, 2012): Here is an article written in India critquing the geographic literacy of Indians.

Regardless of how global in nature the education was that you received while growing up, it is never to late to learn about about the rest of the world.  As adults, one of the best ways that we can learn in person about the rest of the world is by taking the opportunity to physically travel to other lands; to literally roam the roads of lands remote.  After all, as Mark Twain once declared, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness".

Today, March 10, is being observed as National Passport Day in the United States.  It is estimated that only about 30% of Americans actually posses a passport.  And much of the reason for why this has increased within the past 3 to 4 years is due to the requirements to posses one to cross in to Canada or Mexico.

For source of this image, click here

A wonderful result that can come from the initiative of this day (and the much larger emphasis of gaining a passport) is that when people 1) get out of their comfort zones, 2) gain the appropriate documentation for international travel, and 3) actually make the effort to visit other countries is that the overall lack of understanding will give way to increased cultural knowledge.  As we develop a greater understanding of peoples in other locations we improve our abilities to interact with them.  As globalization increases each day, it becomes more and more imperative that we improve our ability to interact with others.  The long term success of so many aspects of life depend upon successful interaction with others.

So, in the spirit of National Passport Day, even though it might be too late to accomplish it today, please make every effort acquire a passport.  And once you do, then you can join me in person for a chance in the near future to roam the roads of land remote.