The Experts

It's a funny thing about tourists - so many seem to come back to their natal abodes and cohorts as sudden experts on almost every aspect of the place they've visited, however briefly. Their friends and family gush and quiver with excitement and envy at every new tale told of the 'adventure'.

Well, a trip to a new place, exposure to a new culture, and a new geography, different politics, etc., is an adventure. It's a wonderful thing to do. But what can you learn about a place on a two or three week visit?

Damn little. That's the truth.

All the same, you're bound to hear rabid pontificating and lecturing from returning tourists who've ventured into unknown lands. It seems like it's the worst with Americans, but maybe it's just a more general phenomenon of tourism. It seems like it's worse with Americans because they are on average affluent enough to be frequent tourists.

This realization will only come to one after one has lived in a tourist destination, or a foreign land of some attraction, and had the opportunity to listen to the speeches of the returning touristas about that place.

Generally, they don't know their asses from a hole in the ground.

I lived in South Africa for 8 years and traveled widely in that time as a biologist scouring the bush for insects. I read and listened to the local news and literature extensively, I listened to the music, walked the streets, watched the cricket and rugby and soccer, enjoyed braais, drank in the pubs, drove the bloody dangerous roads endlessly, worked and taught and laughed with a wide cross-section of the society, got burglarized regularly, got paid in rands not dollars, paid taxes  - participated in every way as a member of South African society.

After all that time, I still don't know my ass from a hole in the ground. The history and culture and land is complex and it is likely that a foreigner will never really be in with it (South African tourists to the USA - you fall into this category too).

But there's something about Americans (USA Americans, that is). About 2-3 years after movng to SA an American couple came over to work on higher degrees. We had a few get-togethers. Within 6 months they were absolute experts on a vast array of aspects of South African life. It was astounding! They would go on and on, contradicting anything I tried to say from my own experience.

It was also absolute bullshit.

Fascinating phenomenon.

Be humble and honest, people. Life is much nicer that way.