Framing the issue / Photo Zara

I came across a wonderful article in the May/June 2008 issue of Psychology Today about the authentic self.

It discussed the North American obsession with self awareness, and whether or not there is a “true” self that determines enjoyment in life. “A hunger for authenticity guides us in every age and aspect of life,” says the author Karen Wright. “It drives our explorations of work, relationships, play, and prayer.”

I began to think about authenticity in terms of travelling, and how we can be more genuine and respectful on our journeys.

Most travelers want to “realize” something about the places they visit; they also hope to discover more about themselves. However, when we blindly dispense our “true beliefs” for the sake of adaptation, does this “respectfulness” compromise our personal integrity?

The saying goes, “When in Rome do as the Romans do.” Many of us agree with this statement.

Part of travelling is reaching into ourselves and changing our long-held ideas. In choosing a different place, we are required to leave ourselves open to experimentation with new social rules.

Gender Discrimination

While I believe we should respect the local etiquette when abroad, there are times when this issue becomes more complex than just “adapting” our minds and behavior.

In abiding by the new program, many travelers often feel confused and distressed. They wonder if they are doing the “right thing” by adhering to certain practices which may go against their core values.

For example, in cultures where I have been encouraged to cover up every hint of flesh or risk being seen by some as “culturally insensitive,” or worse, harassed or raped, I have often wondered: has accepting “social norms” compromised my belief in women’s equality, a goal that people around the world are fighting for?

The reaction I often hear from others is, “Well, it’s part of their culture to do (this, that, or the other oppressive thing).”

In analyzing this reaction, I have felt that some rules are less reflective of any “authentic” culture than they are of patriarchal dominance. This is not something that I feel comfortable indulging in psychologically, for the sake of not offending people in power.

In India, a site called Blank Noise dedicates itself to the topic of sexual harassment.

The owners believe that gender discrimination is wrong, regardless of what a woman might (or might not) be wearing. This may come to a surprise to many North Americans, who view India as being “more oppressive” than Western cultures, as if it is written in the Indian Constitution that women must be held down.

What Are We Defending

Photo arimoore

This begs the question: When we defend a practice as “culture”, do we even know what we are talking about, or is this a concept that our minds have invented?

When we respect a country’s values as being “authentic”, without any analysis as to who or what is defining them, we must ask ourselves who we are defending.

North America is particularly “inauthentic.” Politicians and even many citizens call it “free” when in fact it is like any other region, never completely emancipated; historically, we also have committed many wrongs in the area of human rights, and continue to do so.

Though I am philosophically part of Canada, I am also part of its diversity. If a traveler to my country pointed out that Native people were being treated badly, for example, I would agree with them.

I would never expect them to “respectfully” agree with the dominant Canadian perspective that oppression is over, for our culture is as well-acquainted with inequity as it is with revolution.

Pick Your Battles

I have met some travelers that have tried to adjust, in every way imaginable, to a new country.

They say they agree with every new rule, but don’t realize that in doing so, they are reproducing inequity. They are culture shocked, afraid of “disrespecting” people, or just unaware. They haven’t taken the time to ask themselves the question, “According to what I know, is this new concept in the spirit of justice?”

I am not suggesting that we go out and fight other countries’ battles for them. We are not “the liberated West”, destined to save anyone, as our own people rot in various levels of despair.

However, we should stand by the positive changes that justice-oriented people abroad are trying to make by not passively accepting other’s inequities under the mask of “respect” or “culture”.

The human psyche is fluid and liable to transformation. With traveling comes a huge responsibility to decide what changes for ourselves might mean to others as well; we need not buy plane tickets for the purpose of buttering national egos.

In search of knowledge, the “authentic” and respectful traveler looks from within, before deciding which way to go.

What are your thoughts about defending cultural norms abroad? Share your thoughts in the comments!

A wise Indian man once said to me, “Perfection is a rare and sporadic event.” For travelers especially, this rings true.

From a traveler’s perspective, every foreign country is a chance for something to go ridiculously, horribly amok.

For example, in Southwest China, where I began my career as a teacher, nothing seemed to work – not traffic, nor washing machines, bank machines, or even the rhythms of night or day.

Even at 3 in the morning someone was always putting up a building or knocking one down, accompanied by the rhythmic beat of karaoke tunes and firecrackers.

I felt like I might die of sleep deprivation, but the constant noise didn’t appear to ruffle the majority of celebratory, happy-go-lucky, ever-industrious Chinese folk.

In Thailand, no matter how dysfunctional things got – whether it be rampant sex tourism, a heat wave, a flood, or a staff of misbehaving English instructors, the general Thai reaction was always “mai pen rai”, or in English, simply, “don’t worry about it.”

As Murphy’s Law states, “Anything that can go wrong, will go wrong.” The Thais seemed to feel that the best way to deal with adversity was simply to shrug, smile and carry on.

Stop, Chat, Have Some Tea

Here in India, my biggest complaint is that by Western standards nothing seems to happen quickly. My oh my, how serene Asia seems to be, and how pent up and frustrated are the Westerners!

Indian time to Westerner seems to move at the pace of a clogged coffee machine, gurgling its way to the eventual finish line. Small tasks, such as picking up some fruit at the market or getting a shirt dry-cleaned, take what feels like ten light-years to accomplish.

One reason for this slow pace is the fact that absolutely everyone wants to talk to you: neighbors, friends, acquaintances, and curious locals alike. Talking, in this culture of relaxed extroverts, is an urgent and important matter.

People of all sorts stop you in the street and ask you about your day. They want to know what you are doing, where you are going, what you bought, and whether or not you want to come over for coffee, attend a wedding in Nepal, go ballroom dancing, or just sit in the sun.

As a recovering Type A personality and privacy-obsessed Westerner, for whom everything must be done with great efficiency and individual discretion, this is a difficult situation to accept.

Yet, in its loud, arthritic movements, India is teaching me to appreciate the divine. The divine, unlike perfection, is not so rare or sporadic.

Divinity In Humanity

Divinity is to be in the moment, to see the big picture, to lay back and feel the gloriousness of our daily interactions with people and nature, to ponder the connection of all things and find a place for one’s self within the mystery.

Divinity is simply love for one’s life, for another’s, or for the miraculousness in which the world works, in whatever haphazard way.

I appreciate Indian people in that they are able to more successfully balance “to do” lists with the nurturing of family, friends, and community, in a way that most Westerners can not.

While it is ridiculous to reinforce the cliché that “the East” is somehow inherently “calmer” and “more friendly” or “more spiritual” than the West, or that we are somehow very “different” from each other, certainly there are some variances in cultural values, social approaches and priorities.

When East meets West, the two cultures collide with the force of the Big Bang, and a new world is created. Indians like to know their neighbors, and Westerners like to put up fences. Part of this difference is due to simple demographics, but the overarching fact is that Asian people value relationships in a different way than people in my homeland.

The Purpose Of Life

Relationships within the community, in India, are close to the central purpose of life. In fact, they are the essence of existence, and thus, the essence of the divine.

Here, it is incomprehensible to ignore those around you. It would be like rejecting the possibility of a valued friendship or social connection.

Back home in Canada, we are slower to warm up to others. It’s not that we don’t like friends or neighbors, but that we wish to perform our social interactions on a more individualized level.

At the same time, we have also produced a culture of fear with respect to those we do not know, and our way of dealing with that fear is, unfortunately, contrary to our divine human nature. Fear can prevent us from building alliances of care and love.

If we live next door to a criminal, or someone who instills in us a sense of danger, that is seen as that person’s individual problem. At no point do we act as a community to help this person improve the quality of their life, and therefore, our own.

The offending person is seen as the responsibility of a psychiatrist, the government, or their friends or family, if they are lucky enough to have them.

It Takes A Village

In Asia, people and their problems are seen as things which can be worked through via the community. To be isolated from one’s friends and family is seen as a great tragedy, and a failure of our human potential to maintain important relationships.

I have noticed that even when things go wrong in Asia, problems are mostly taken in stride. People and relationships are not expected to be perfect, but they are expected to be amicable.

This is the lesson that “East” can teach the “West” if we are willing to listen. “The West” has made more progress in nurturing the individual psyche and bill of rights, but it has yet to integrate this respect for individuals within the undeniable whole.

I have now learned that if someone wants to stop us in the street to know our name (or even our personal business), then let them – it might slow us down, but in the long run, it will speed us up in creating the kind of world we want to live in.

Taking The Time To Foster Humanity

Knowing ourselves and our communities, and seeing them in unison, is the first step in fostering humanity, and thus, the divine world spirit.

While the world is full of disaster and grief, it is also full of beauty. Fear, isolation, and rigidity serve no one, and in the midst of chaos, two heads (or 8 billion) are better than one.

Why not allow our international world to simmer with the warmth of our combined strengths?

Instead of trying to convince ourselves that “East” and “West” are as far apart in ideology as they are in geography, we would do better to drop the cultural insecurity and embark on the journey of understanding together.

There is no divide between “East” and “West” except the one we create for ourselves. Our international world is not an excuse to promote ideas of perceived “cultural purity”, but rather an opportunity to know more and share the wonder of divinity together. For both hemispheres, this is a lesson to grow on.

With the goal of divinity, our world might never be perfect, but at least it will be united.

Your thoughts are welcome. Please leave a comment below!

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

The photograph on the front of the paper, showing the perpetrators piled up on top of the women, instilled in me a sense of outrage that I have not felt since I was in Thailand, and was assaulted by a mototaxi driver as I attempted to go to a job interview alone.

During the awful experience in Thailand, just like the assault on the women in Mumbai, passersby simply stood and watched, unsure of how to react, perhaps afraid to get involved.

When I made a complaint to police, freshly emerged from the scuffle with torn clothes, it was my behavior that was questioned. The police wanted to know what I had done to encourage the assault. Seeing that “boys will be boys,” they assumed I had done something to warrant the violence.

I was simply told not to travel alone again, and they considered the issue solved, for it was seen to be my problem, and not the driver’s, unrelated to the wider social hostility towards independent women.

“She Had It Coming”

The public reaction to the women being mobbed in Mumbai contained similar sentiments. While The Hindustan Times responded to the incident by publishing an article on violence against women, many people who they spoke to as part of the piece felt that the women somehow deserved the attack because they had been drinking, were dressed in provocative clothing, and were out late at night.

Such incidences of sexual harassment, and reactions to them, are not uncommon, and violence against women is still a major problem.

It is not that men, too, do not suffer acts of aggression, however the problem of violence against women comes in a specific context. While it has always been accepted that men will travel alone, women are still fighting their way through the 21st century amidst the notion that they are, by being independent and female, open to abuse.

The question is, as women, what can we do to speak back to this violence and protect ourselves while traveling?

Women everywhere are victims and at the same time catalysts for change. Men can also be helpful in eradicating the violence, by supporting women in their struggle to be free. While it is true that the male presence deters many violent incidents from happening, sadly, even the women who were mobbed in Mumbai were in the company of their boyfriends.

What To Do?

In cultures where it is not acceptable for women to show skin, we might do ourselves some good by covering up. Observing local norms of dress is as much an act of respect as taking off one’s shoes before entering a temple.

However, we should not fool ourselves into thinking that we will be safer in a sari than we would be in shorts and a T-shirt, and no one is right to say that a woman dressed ‘provocatively’ is asking for violence.

If we abide by this theory, then we are saying that no woman wearing a burqa has ever been raped.

Sex Or Power?

There is also the misguided perception that men perpetrate violence against women because of sexual frustration, particularly in cultures where sex before marriage is taboo.

In this case, then women, having sexual urges as well, would be as ravenous. As well, married men, who can be assumed to have at least some access to regular sex, would never harass women. This is not the case, which signifies to me that sexual harassment is less about sex, and more about power.

Given this predicament, perhaps women could work to resist violence by claiming some of it back.

In Canada, many of my female friends carry pepper spray, or take self-defense courses so that they may fend off any unwanted attention. Some do not walk after dark, but some do, hoping that “looking confident” will be enough to discourage violence.

Resist!

Here where I live now in India, I have read about many women who are resisting abuse in similar fashions.

An Indian women’s blogging site, called Blank Noise, collects the views of women who are determined to secure their free place in the world, particularly as it relates to street harassment. One woman, Annie Zaidi, asserts that the first step in eradicating violence against women is not tolerating it. She writes:

I WILL NOT ACCEPT IT. I will not stop buying “provocative” clothes…I will not make unwanted rules for myself. I will crush the beast where I see it. With a stare, with a slur, with a scream, with a camera…I will take my rights as a citizen and nothing less.

Perhaps then, when we travel alone, we should use our cameras, not only to capture the beauty of the horizon, but also to document the unspeakable acts of a few men who think they have power over us.

When we put a lens in front of someone’s face and call harassment a crime, we are putting a name to the problem of female abuse everywhere, and bringing it out in the open where it can be mediated.

Fight Or Flight?

A topic that many women debate is the “fight or flight” reaction, which comes at the height of a trauma.

When confronted by the mototaxi driver, I found myself, at five foot three, instinctually swinging at my attacker like The Terminator. This was effective in fending off what could have been a possible rape. I had a friend in Canada who, in South America, managed to overtake three attackers in a park.

While not every woman gets the “fight” reaction, and for some, it may present even further danger, certainly we are capable of kicking butt.

Should instinct, our greatest weapon, tell us to “flee” an attack, a functioning cell phone is invaluable, as is being in an area in which other people are reachable.

Staying in a busy neighborhood, and traveling in groups, sometimes helps us to escape attack when we are not able to fight on our own, but the most important thing women can do to protect themselves is to listen to their inner voice.

Mr. Nice Guy?

One problem in distinguishing our risk of danger is that often, men who want to attack women are nice to them first. They attempt a cheerful dialogue, or a few drinks and a chat.

I meet many a woman who confess that they “feel like a bitch” if they express their discomfort in circumstances where the man appears to be friendly.

We need not be paranoid in meeting strangers, but if we get that feeling of “something being off” we must trust ourselves and respond accordingly.

Here in India, where street harassment is common, sometimes the line, “Excuse me, but did I ask for this conversation?” or, “I’m just fine by myself here!” manages to ward off unwanted attention.

I might sound like a bitch, but if I’m getting a negative feeling from someone, chances are it’s warranted, and even if it isn’t, I’ll never see them again.

Also, in many countries, there are crisis centers, often mentioned in travel guides, which could be of service. Even putting a notice on the hostel bulletin board about any dangerous acquaintances might be effective in protecting other women.

“Oops, Gotta Run!”

It’s common on the road for women to meet handsome strangers, who at some point turn out to be creeps.

A simple arrangement for someone, even a hostel-mate, to call midway into the evening, could prove a wonderful opportunity for escape. We can easily tell the offending bloke that our “friend” is “having an emergency” and make our speedy exit. It’s the oldest trick in the book.

We should be less wary of wounding someone’s ego, and more concerned about our internal alarm system, which is telling us that there is danger ahead. Even if we have to feign a semi-psychotic episode (”I forgot to take my meds. Gotta run!”) it’s best to just leave the scene.

Traveling is about as “safe” as anything else we do, however some people in the world have yet to catch up with the independent lives that many women now lead.

Women should not be fearful of venturing out, but they should be prepared to confront the problem of violence. Silence is not a weapon: our minds and our voices are.

We do not ask to be violated, we ask for violence against women to stop.

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

“Beat Me And Break Me” and “Fallen Flower” Photos by Ryan Libre.

Your thoughts are important! Let’s start a conversation below.

She was my favorite professor, although you never knew when the light was on, off, or just catastrophically-flickering as in Poltergeist.

Full of prophecies which would make a Buddha cry, she managed to turn my reality upside down like milk in a butter-making jar, shaking me from solid form, into a frothing mixture of wild ideas, random plans of action, and, well, “mental diversity.”

I am forever grateful.

This is because with the help of Edward Soja, she divided the world into three parts: one of reality, another of imagination, and something else she simply called, “real-and-imagined life”, a sort of hybrid of the two.

Initially, I concluded that she was either on drugs, or completely barking mad, until the third class, when, finally, I got it. With her help, all of my travel experiences, particularly my last four years as an expat, have become real-and-imagined journeys of the mind.

My life has happily gone from black-and-white into complete Kodachrome chaos, with all of my thoughts, in all their diversity, blinking and flashing like Asian lights in one big mutating rainbow.

The Real World

Allow me to explain. Edward Soja, in rambling on about Los Angeles and Foucault in a completely convoluted book you never want to read, called Journeys to Los Angeles and Other Real-And Imagined Places, proposed the idea that what we think about our reality is just as important as how it’s seen in “the real world”, a space coded with (often unfair) social and political ideas.

As the products of this whirlwind, we exist in an inner-outer predicament, where our own thoughts are as crucial as the rules imposed upon us. We have the power to think, and make the required changes, like fashion designers with a pair of scissors and an idea for a great pair of pants.

In layman’s terms, any positive change in the world comes from realizing that there are some things you can alter, and some things you can’t. Pants will always be pants, like travel will always be travel – both are uplifting and oppressive at the same time.

As living, breathing, thinking people of this world, we are, however, in the grand position to reinvent a few things.

In 2003 I began my four years in Chongqing, China, where I was introduced to the vocation of English-selling, or in “real world” terms, English teaching. I spent a full twelve hours a day in crass amounts of pollution and construction dust on the brink of the Yangtze river demonstrating to Chinese children everywhere in the city, that my language and culture was a product to be sold.

Some people would call it colonization, or just global economics. What better product to sell to an upcoming global superpower? In fact, in every speech I had to make for the company during my unpaid after-hours appearances as an English peddler on TV stations and radio, I had to repeat the words, “China Superpower”.

I couldn’t help but ask myself, after five years in a social justice program at university, what the hell was I doing? Making money? Having a cultural experience? Or having an out-of-body medical experience?

From Punk to Police

My lungs were so filled with coal dust, I could hardly keep myself out of the hospital and off the antibiotics the nurses gave me time and time again, just to make sure that my immune system would never, ever return.

Looking back, I loved China. It’s hard to believe, but even in those moments of pulse-crushing, heavy, oppressiveness, I saw at least some value in what I was doing, for myself and for others.

During my time there, for example, I had the opportunity to explore the New Wave Metal punk scene, in which Chinese youth were dispersing the counter-culture spirit of an emerging generation while rejecting the gaze of communist eyes.

Even young women, layered angry voices on top of “The People’s Republic”, pounding out the sounds of punk-rock rebellion with second-hand drums in abandoned warehouses, in the city that never slept (or just slept with one eye open).

Young men took Nirvana’s grunge fury and made it their own, beer-belching their way to imagined stardom. If complacency was the image that the West (or the Chinese government itself) wanted to imagine for a fast-developing China, this reality did not fit the mold.

At work I met many people who were afraid to talk about Chinese politics. I did not even attempt to start a political conversation with them the whole time I was there, for fear that it would endanger one of my friends, coworkers, or acquaintances. Instead, I let them come to me if they had something to say.

At one point, the communist police searched our apartments on the premise of “maintaining safety”. We were interviewed on the spot about what websites we were accessing, why, and whether or not we were religious, and if so, to which group we belonged.

There was never any explanation given for this inquisition. Yet, beneath this curtain of regulation, there were plenty of unregulated moments.

People went on with their lives, making miracles in study, business, and family life. One of my Chinese coworkers, who wanted to become a UN representative, provided me with a thoughtful conversation about how as “women of the moon”, we have a special power to shake up the forces that be, not by bowing to them, but by nurturing the world.

Revolutionary Dreams

Thoughts like that, which seemed to jump out of nowhere, must have come from somewhere, lurking like revolutionary dreams in the underbelly of a repressed society.

And what better way to prepare yourself for a revolution, than to speak the language of your oppressors? Armed with Chinese and English, ambassadors for a New China, the willing adults, became empowered to more fully speak their minds.

I helped them, but they did most of the work.

One of the fastest pathways to change is to make oneself able to be heard. I hope that one day this happens full-circle, for those who wish to escape the gloom of any kind of slavery, whether in China, Canada, or elsewhere in the world. First, we must be able to understand each other.

Travel then, is about moving towards understanding, or at least it should be. We leave many gratuitous marks on the planet, wherever we may go, whether it is through our stubborn attitudes, the waste we make, or in the people we sometimes force our language and culture upon.

Travel can be good and travel bad, but I know that in my real-and-imagined life, my experiences attempt to interact with, and redirect, the rip tide of forces that govern us. In this sense, the spirit of people, and the spirit of travel, need not be lost on anyone.

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

I have just woken my driver from sleep with a desperate howl: “Move it! We’re gonna be late!” This hysteria, I think, is mostly unheard of in the temporary home of the Buddhist Tibetan government in exile…how very un-zen of me.

Caffeine crisis and tardiness aside, I am on my way to meet a most remarkable person, Ms. Rinchen Khandu Choegyal, who is rumoured to be the Dalai Llama’s sister-in-law.

I am less concerned with her family ties, however, than I am with the woman she is in her own right. As the first president of the Tibetan Women’s association, with a strong background in activism, she is a role model for people everywhere, and for the Tibetan cause generally.

I arrive at her residence, and within a few minutes, she comes out with a fiery radiance I didn’t expect. I had thought she might be bored with interview questions, or at least as sleepy as me.

After drinking a hot cup of java, I’m awake enough to I know that Ms. Choegyal is just the kind of person that the world needs more of – warm, well-spoken, strong and sincere. For this reason, I take care with her words, because she herself is so concentrated. I want as a journalist, and as someone concerned with Tibet, to get her message right.

Remembering A Home

She begins by providing a brief history of the Tibetan government, and of the difficulties that the Tibetan people continue to grapple with, while nevertheless maintaining a strong community in Dharamsala.

To her, the goal of Tibetans to return to their homeland is a primary issue- in her own words: “We will never give up, and our generations will carry it on”. She projects the determination of a warrior who requires no spears; her voice has weight, without giving away to anger and resentment, even in discussing the Chinese government.

Her views on China are ones of peace and perspective. She makes a vast distinction between regular Chinese people, and the current regime of China, which continues to oppress the idea of a free Tibet.

She defines the Chinese-Tibetan relationship as “a difficult struggle”, but adds, “We don’t want to segregate them”. She strongly promotes international friendship and understanding as a solution to the Tibetan ordeal, which, once over, will benefit all nations, including China itself.

I then ask her about India, and if she thinks it is a good place for Tibetans to live. Her reply of gratitude towards the Indian government, for providing Dharamsala and MacLeod Ganj as a refuge, for “allowing [the Tibetans] to struggle on their own”.

While she views India as a “wonderful place”, she feels it is at the same time important to recognize why Tibetans came to India in the first place. Her greatest wish is for those in exile, to return home, with the resources and freedom to carry on their traditions and beliefs.

The Human Community

At no point in the conversation, does she ever disconnect Tibetan people from the rest of the world. Perhaps this is what I admire most about her.

The goal of Tibetan people, while a fight, is in no way isolated from the rest of the human community, in all its diversity. On an earth, which sees daily outbursts of violence, and where fundamentalism of all strains has become an increasingly common and poor negotiating strategy, one can conclude that our true power comes through understanding and tolerance.

While Choegyal does not define Buddhism as the only way to nurture these qualities, she does suggest that she is “deeply impressed by Buddhism”, and that “it teaches [one] to live happily”. For the children of Tibetan culture, she locates it as “their birthright”, and hopes that they can learn about it, so that they may learn to care about other people.

She hopes that 3rd generation Tibetans growing up in India, will hold onto their roots, and continue to strive for an independent Tibet so that they may one day go back. While she has great respect for India, emphasizing its cultural, religious, and human ties to Tibet, she says, “Within this, our people have worked very hard”.

Most accurately speaking, after forty plus years in exile, this means we should probably expect more to be happening with Tibet. It’s not that the Tibetans have stopped fighting. Rather, the international community must put more pressure on China, so that they may reconsider their current stance, and return Tibet to its people.

A Time For Pressure

One wonders about the mindset of the international community, which has recently spent more time clapping its hands at the coming Olympics in Beijing, than they have holding the Chinese government responsible for assuring and maintaining human rights.

I am not suggesting that other countries do not violate human rights, or that we should isolate China, however, the voices of the Tibetan people, which speak for peace everywhere, must not only be heard, but listened to.

This requires compassionate action from all ends, and not just sympathy. In the words of the Dalai Llama himself, “To be genuine, compassion must be based on respect for the other, and on the realization that others have the right to be happy and overcome suffering, just like you”.

With this thought, as part of a global force, we might more fully accept the challenge of Tibet’s autonomy.

While many individuals, Tibetan and otherwise, are currently working for justice, the struggle is not yet finished. We must continue to pressure our leaders, for bolder negotiations regarding this issue, and for human rights far and wide.

While the dream of Tibet’s freedom has yet to be fulfilled, this does not mean it is impossible, and the onus is on us all, to make it happen.

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

Ever since I began traveling solo at age 19, I’ve been told the same thing over and over: traveling alone as a woman is dangerous.

Many people speak as if I’m inviting violence upon myself, as if it would be my fault if something happened, as if we live in a world that is populated only by creeps and muggers.

I always explain that danger is a fact of everyday life wherever we live, and that an autonomous woman is safer than one who depends on others for protection, because she is self-assured.

Traveling has given me a take-charge attitude that makes anyone with bad intentions less likely to mess with me. Furthermore, it has enriched me, taught me how to support myself in difficult situations and cope with things on my own.

Traveling solo I suppose, is one of the ultimate challenges for a woman, and that is part of the reason why I enjoy it so much.

A Dose Of Inspiration

Growing up, some of my greatest role models were fictional traveling men. I became a traveler in spirit during the days of The Littlest Hobo, a movie and TV show about a traveling dog. When my grade six teacher read us Jules Verne’s Around the World in Eighty Days, I was surprised to learn that there were not just traveling canines, but traveling people as well.

While I did not experience any latent colonial longings, I wanted to ride an elephant, not just My Little Pony. I loved Indiana Jones movies, and as a teenager, Jack Kerouac and the Beat Generation inspired a yearning within me that could not be stifled by one read through On the Road.

Then Easyrider arrived, with all its hippie kitsch – that movie was my inspiration to go to New Orleans, although sadly I didn’t travel by motorcycle.

It was a while before I learned about women who traveled, because in my conservative town in Canada, I didn’t know any.

Women Travel Too?

People in my neighborhood took trips because they had money and could afford a cruise, not because they were hungry for a big adventure. Recently, I read about Dar Robertson, in 2006’s The Best Travel Writing: True Stories From Around the World, and she has since become my hero.

In her story, “Sahara Unveiled”, she recounts her trip to Morocco and Algeria in which, dressed as a man, on her fifth week of solo backpacking across Africa, she drives illegally across the border into Algeria, gets caught in a sandstorm, and is later saved by strangers, a group of gentle Tuareg men.

She recounts her story with the voice of a woman in touch with her instincts, moved by the thrill of discovery and the kindness of her fellow human beings. She writes, “I was here…I was not afraid…I was ready for the next challenge”.

While some people might think what Robertson did was foolish (and it’s true she took risks), she is a role model for traveling women everywhere, simply because she had faith in her own instincts and capabilities.

Instinct is our center. It functions as a personal alarm system that tells us when we are safe, and when we are in danger. Women are so used to being told what to do, and being led around, that they sometimes forget it’s their own voice that counts. Women with a taste for adventure do themselves well to get in touch with that inner instinct.

While our fears of being hurt, raped or even killed are real, we are never safe all the time, anywhere in the world. A woman who stays in her house with all the lights on might cut her risk of violence on the street, but as well, she will block herself off from the great fountain of experiences that awaits her.

Staying Safe

How can women stay safe when traveling abroad?

Firstly, I believe we should do what our parents and the Lonely Planet both advise. We all know that it’s a bad idea to walk alone at night, to flash our jewelry and large sums of money, to show off our underwear in conservative countries (or even North America, with the exception of New Orleans), or reach for more than a couple of bottles of beer, especially when we’re hanging out with “strange boys”, as my mother likes to call them.

While doing any of these things would never justify a mugging, rape or worse, a murder, it’s plain to see that using common sense is no different from wearing sunscreen – if you don’t want to get burned, take basic precautions. Just remember that it’s a lot more fun to take a small risk than it is to stay at home.

Secondly, and perhaps most importantly, we should simply do what we want.

With our heads up and our eyes wide open, grounding ourselves in our natural ability to make decisions and lead ourselves, we will become wiser, stronger, and better able to protect ourselves as we navigate the globe.

The potential for violence that surrounds us will begin to disappear when we nurture our own independence in the same way we care for our families and loved ones. By staying true to ourselves, we will find adventure on the road and get home safe and sound.

While women who choose not to travel deserve their own applause, so do the courageous women who reach out for the grand and sometimes uncertain joys of travel. The world is our oyster, and we deserve support and encouragement for taking the bold steps we do.

What are your most memorable experiences as a female solo traveler? Share your thoughts below!

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

She also provided an invitation for language exchange and a smile, which can only be described as the Cheshire cat’s official welcome to Asia.

Cats are lucky in Taiwan, I’d heard, and I now believe this to be true – along with the idea that relationships proceed a lot more quickly when you speak each other’s languages.

Nearly two years later, I know Christine not only as my student, but a friend and teacher of Chinese language and culture.

She has deepened my interest in all things Chinese, and provided me with helpful language instruction.

I think that East and West are now colliding into one big social and cultural melting pot, in which we cease to be strangers.

We are quickly becoming a global village in which businesspeople and tourists alike must learn to communicate better. For Westerners, learning Chinese is the first step in opening the doors to the wild, wonderful land that Asia is.

My teacher and I would now like to offer some helpful hints.

Studying Chinese: A Teacher’s Perspective

As someone who places great value in making international friends, it is my hope that more foreigners will learn something about the intriguing history and culture of China, Taiwan, and other Chinese-speaking countries.

Firstly, Chinese language is most accessible to foreigners through first learning Pinyin, the English spelling of Chinese sounds.

There are many types to choose from, including Taiwan Tongyong Pinyin and Hanyu Pinyin. Taiwan Tongyong Pinyin uses English letters to represent Taiwanese symols. The pronunciation follows the national language of Taiwan, Taiwanese, and is only used in Taiwan.

In contrast, Hanyu Pinyin uses English letters to represent Chinese symbols, but the pronunciation follows the Chinese used in Mainland China, which is a little different from Taiwanese, and is popularly used worldwide.

One problem with Pinyin, however, is that the sounds sometimes don’t directly translate into the sounds of the characters- they are more of a rough phonetic guide.

I suggest that foreigners first begin with Pinyin, and then gradually move on to learning the Taiwanese or Chinese characters to fine-tune their pronunciation.

Tradition versus Communist Chinese

Secondly, it is important to explore the various benefits and drawbacks of choosing to learn either the (original) traditional Chinese characters used by Taiwan, or the so-called “simplified characters” instituted by the communist government of China.

While it is recommended that students of Chinese learn both, newcomers to the language will usually pick one or the other to learn first. The simplified characters are easier to work with during the initial stages of learning Chinese.

However, only the traditional characters can truly demonstrate the beauty and history of the language as it evolved through time.

Original Chinese characters have their beginnings in hieroglyphs, and have developed over the years. For example, the modern character for “wooden” represents a tree’s shape, and the character for “forest” depicts what looks like three trees.

This illustrates how Chinese is a system of associations. For this reason, foreigners may find the evolution of Chinese characters to be extremely interesting.

University or Private Study

Finally, the student of Chinese must decide on their method of learning, that is, whether they would like to study at a university, private language school, or on their own.

The opportunity for Chinese language learning is becoming more and more accessible at several Chinese and Taiwanese universities, where some teachers are learning English as well, to better communicate with students.

Students should take care to find a qualified teacher with standard pronunciation skills for example, the Beijing dialect, so that they can be well-understood.

Several interesting books and websites are also available for self-study. Two course books, Practical Audio-Visual Chinese, published by National Taiwan Normal University, and Far East Everyday Chinese, are very popular in Taiwan, and come with corresponding tapes or CDs.

Essential characters can also be downloaded from the internet on the Taiwanese website, Fun With Chinese Learning. This sight also offers many unique insights into the language.

Studying Chinese: A Student’s Perspective

When undertaking any Asian language program, particularly Chinese, students should know that the language and script revolves around the concept of connectivity.

Spoken Chinese cannot be separated from art, politics, literature, or history. It is most exciting to combine Chinese language studies with one of the above subjects, to see how the language evolved throughout the ages, and to experience the many facets of Chinese-based cultures.

Students might, for example, integrate their Chinese language learning with a tea ceremony, or martial arts, both traditionally practiced in all Chinese-based cultures.

A student open to these experiences will no doubt make many Chinese friends to converse with, and will feel as if they have been blessed with the culture as well as the chance to learn the language.

The Chinese and Taiwanese are amongst the most welcoming people I have ever met. Most of my spoken Chinese has resulted from my many amazing relationships with Native speakers.

There are also over 150,000 characters to learn. However, many of them are not used in modern-day times, so don’t worry! Try to take the language one step at a time, without getting overwhelmed.

I myself began with Hanyu Pinyin, and then moved on to Chinese calligraphy, to help me remember the characters, and learn how they are used as part of a sentence or poem. If you are a visual person, the many opportunities to learn Chinese through traditional art forms, will absolutely delight you.

With these tips, we wish you luck on your journey, and whether you choose to study on your own, or attend a formal program, we hope you enjoy the process of learning.

While English is today an important language, Chinese language, history and culture continues to be a fascinating discipline, which remains at the forefront of our changing world.

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

Dr. Christine Yue Juan is a professor in Tainan, Taiwan, where she teaches Chinese history, culture and literature. She is also a well-known calligrapher in Taiwan, and learns English in her spare time. She has a great interest in bringing Chinese and Taiwanese culture to foreigners.

Every year, tourists flock to Southeast Asia, in hopes of netting the tropical ocean dream.

Khaosan Road, Bangkok’s backpacker coconut cream pie, proves that not only can you sleep for three dollars a night, but you can also be anyone you want in Paradise.

For some, this means picking up dreadlocks while exiting Watson’s pharmacy, and wearing more tie-dye than would fit in the back of a VW van.

For others, however, it means purchasing sexual services from a woman, man, or even a child, and imagining themselves as Love Gods.

One can smell a lot of things on Khaosan Road- patchouli, pineapples, Pad Thai, and as well, the more pungent odor of sex tourism- the question is, whether or not it’s all about peace, love and happiness.

Sex tourism, present throughout the world, is particularly prevalent in South East Asia, where the connected problems of human trafficking, AIDS, and poverty, continue to flourish and claim lives at unprecedented rates.

The Choice To Sell

Sex tourists, defined as “those who travel to a country for the sole purpose of having sex” see it as an opportunity, or even an entitlement, to have sex available for less money than they would pay at home.

They perceive that those involved in the industry are making a choice to sell their services.

Some even say they are “helping” sex workers, as other available labor, particularly for women, generally yields a lower profit. Sex tourists tend not to differentiate between buying groceries, and going to the brothel to buy sex- both provide someone with economic sustenance.

It is also true that some sex workers tend not to distinguish between sex work and other work, which may or may not be any less exploitative- the difference, is in the body parts used.

We Westerners, products of Christian influence, have moralized sex, unlike in some other countries, including some Southeast Asian nations, where it is seen in more neutral terms.

Many sex workers wish to provide services without judgment or police interference, and continue to fight for better protection within the industry.

A Critical Eye

As an English teacher in Thailand for over a year, I had the opportunity of having a closer look at the sex industry in Southeast Asia.

I felt that sex tourists, and brothel-goers in general, radiated a patriarchal sense of entitlement which, in the case of the foreigners, would not be acceptable, or even possible, back home.

Honestly speaking, women who envision a grand life for themselves and their children are not lined up for extra-curricular sex with some (excuse the cliché) foul-mannered, overweight, middle-aged, married, balding alcoholic- only the most vulnerable are really up for this job.

Many sex tourists, who wouldn’t even be eligible for a date back in Germany, Canada, Australia, or wherever else they come from, find solace in the fact that their money buys their egos back, at the expense of someone else’s health or happiness.

The gratification is not in the sex (for even the married ones have it right up there lying in the bed) but in the fact that they have monetary power, and society supports the idea that money can buy you anything, including a beautiful woman or girl.

This ideology reeks with dehumanization and confirms that men are mere providers of money, and women are subject to its rule. There is also plenty of gay sex-tourism, in which (mostly young) boys are exploited in the same way as women.

Sex tourism, then, is a tragedy, for both the sex workers, who don’t always choose to be there, and for the men who pay them.

A Forced Profession

I do not mean to say that sex tourism, or sex work, for that matter, is a black and white issue, and for those sex workers who love their jobs, I am no one to judge their choices or their profession.

However, we can’t ignore the fact that many people are smuggled and then forced into the trade, either by lack of any other option, or by pimps, or even by their family members, who may be desperate for a piece of the profit.

As well, the risk factors for sex workers are very high, and many succumb to AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases. Those who seek out sexual services, particularly those who are married or in other relationships, risk the lives of their partners when they return home.

While awareness and prevention is the key to preventing these unfortunate outcomes, it is a reality that many wives, girlfriends, and boyfriends still become infected with these diseases, due to the irresponsibility of their loved ones.

Some say that sex tourism is about sex, but I think it’s about power and opportunism. I am not sure we are reaching our human potential, as tourists and ambassadors of our nations, by contributing to additional social gaps in the world.

While it is true that sex workers make more money than working in the market, there are other, more effective ways to improve the lives of people, besides buying sex from them.

For those women, men and children who are trafficked, or bound to the trade by economic desperation, it seems hopelessly unfair that they should have to sacrifice the most personal areas of their bodies for the sake of someone’s vacation, ego, or fantasy whim.

Perhaps as tourists, and as people, before we depart, we might care to ponder not only others’ choices, but also our own, and what we want to make of them.

Emily Hansen is a travel writer and teacher based in Shimla, India, where she is working on a book about her experiences as an expat. Her native land is Canada, and she has traveled to over 30 countries, and has lived in six, including Germany, China, Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and now, India.

What’s your view on sex tourism? Please share in the comments.