The wee atlas
  • Blog
  • About
  • Index

Reasons to Appreciate the First World Even More

8/6/2015

 
Sometimes you just don't appreciate what you have until you don't. I learned a lot about how infrastructure affects an area, and how the ordinary to these people seemed extraordinary to me. Didn't even realize I took so much for granted until I traveled through Vietnam and Myanmar for three weeks. New England's pot holes and bad Asian drivers in LA seem trivial after all the driving we saw and all the buses we rode. As sketchy as it seemed, street food vendors were quite clean, and no one got sick. Lots of half-finished buildings as folks would pour concrete while they had the money (particularly in Vietnam, where the concept of having a long-term plan was beyond them).  Although the Vietnam-American war had been over for many years, the Vietnamese have not quite gotten past its horrors. Myanmar suffered under the hands of the British and later, the Japanese. Both countries have people who have been through so much, and yet they were quite friendly (I would say even friendlier to white people than the Asian tourists).  I now truly appreciate that I grew up in America, not in war-ravaged third world countries.

Here are some of the things I appreciate a lot more:

Not having to weave through traffic with a passenger and stacks of goods.
Connectivity to the world, and being on the grid. (Sometimes it's hard to appreciate a remote island village when there's limited electricity.)
Boats that are seaworthy in bad weather and aren't fully laden with locals, groceries, fridges, or chickens
Not living life on the streets
Having a proper store and kitchen (though I will say that many of these setups were pretty amazing)
Refrigeration of raw meat....
Roads that are actually smooth and don't turn into mud when it rains
Buses that aren't sardine cans
Traffic lights/regular flow of moving vehicles

Comments are closed.

    Adela Wee

    Traveling the world since 1994. Taking notes about the places I've been so that friends and family can go there too!

    Archives

    January 2016
    December 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2014
    December 2012

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Asia
    Caves
    Europe
    Good Eats
    Nightmare
    North America
    Ocean
    Scenic
    Shopping
    Space
    Temples
    Tips
    Trains
    Transportation
    Worth Another Trip

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Blog
  • About
  • Index