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Originally Posted by Torplexed
Perhaps I shouldn't talk since I've been to Europe five times and traveled a lot as a kid when my father was being stationed abroad in the Air Force.  However, I think a lot of may come down to the fact that geographically large countries (Russia, China, USA) tend to be insular countries. When the average citizen can travel several thousand miles in any direction and see the same language on the sign posts, the same restaurants, fast food joints, hotel chains and use the same currency and everything is convenient you tend to think that's the whole world and it's enough. In more crowded Europe with smaller nations and nation states you've had to live cheek by jowl with your neighbors and through history it's been in your best interests militarily and diplomatically to get out and find out what they are about. Plus, you have a culture of travel stemming from everything from Marco Polo to establishing colonies abroad. Here in American our culture of travel stems from Lewis and Clark...camping!  |
This is spot on.
I live in northern italy. In less than 200km I can be in France, Switzerland or Austria.
