Questions of the Day

When I was eleven years old, my family went to Europe for a month. It was a very fast-paced trip. We went to Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. We once got lost and ended up in far western Austria.

Years later, my parents explained to me why they had gone to the great expense of the trip: they wanted me to have the mind-broadening experience of traveling in a foreign country. They themselves had lived in South America for two years before I was born, and my father had worked for months at a time in western Europe. These were experiences that expanded Mom and Dad's cultural awareness, and they felt that it was important for me to acquire them as well. I'm glad that they did.

Except for excursions to northern Mexico, it is financially unlikely that I shall ever again travel abroad. So I'm glad that I was able to encounter other cultures in their native environments. I want my children to have this, too.

Does international travel play a role in the education of your children?

If you could take your children anywhere in the world for a week, all expenses paid, where would you go?

Photo: NASA