How well do you know your country (in terms of travel)

Canada
February 18, 2009 12:36am CST
My question for you is: Do you really know the country you live in? Please let me explain. I do not mean know the history of the country or any such thing as that. I mean do you know your country as far as travelling goes? I am Canadian and I can proudly say that I have been all over Canada to bask in all of its glory and natural beauty. I have been to British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Prince Edward Island. I have yet to visit Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, and any of the territories. However, I can still say that I have visited a large majority of Canada and that I "know" my country. I realize that there are a lot of people in the world, especially in larger countries like Canada and the United States, that have not seen much of their country. I understand that many Canadians and Americans have barely been outside of their own town or city, let alone province or state. Do you feel you know your country well in terms of travelling? :)
4 people like this
13 responses
• Netherlands
21 Feb 09
I am originally from Los Angeles and I have been to each and every state at Least 2 times and many states more. When I was growing up my parents would always plan a special 2 week vacation in which we would drive to where ever we were going and take in the sites along the way there and on coming back home we would always take a different route and take in different sites coming home. So it is not that I Flew over these places but got up close and personal with them. I also have traveled extensively around my adopted country of Holland by auto and train so I know pretty much what the hidden treasures of this country are also. I have also traveled around Mexico and Belgium quite a bit and some around France. I think it is such a shame when some people have never been out of their home town, there is such a big World out there just waiting to be seen! ;)
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Wow! That is very nice that you have been to all the states, and even more than once greeneyedlady! I am very envious of you :) I would love to have the same opportunity some day. It seems like your parents were very kind with you, and Im sure that you had a lot of fun as a family on those trips. I totally agree with you about people not even leaving their towns. That really is a shame, I understand that in parts of America that can be quite common and probably in parts of Canada as well. Thanks for your response!
1 person likes this
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Ahaha. Well breaking your ankle is not much fun!! ;) Sorry to hear that. How did you manage to do that? And would you like to tell me other mishaps that happened to you? Im sure there must be lots of embaressing moments there haha ^^
1 person likes this
• Netherlands
27 Feb 09
Most of the vacations were fun, there were a couple though that I could have done without! Like the time I broke my ankle on one, fell off of a hammock on one, (don't ask)!, and a couple of other mishaps! ;)
@ElicBxn (63233)
• United States
23 Feb 09
I live in the United States, and that's a lot of territory to cover. I have been in 30 or 31 of the states, but really only visited about half that. Heck, even all of Texas is hard to see and I've lived here most of my life!. Texas is a thousand miles from Orange to El Paso and from the top of the Panhandle to Brownsville - obviously it isn't square, but it is big! After all, El Paso is closer to Phoenix than it is Austin, and in a different time zone! I have been to California a couple of times, Washington state a couple of times, Colorado more than a couple, Tennessee 3 times, NJ, well, I was born there and we returned many a summer to visit for a few weeks. I just drove thru the north west tip of Georgia, we didn't really stop in Alabama, spent a night in Mississippi, went to Mammouth Cave in Kentucky and Lexington Horse Park.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Wow! Well first of all, it sounds like you had a lot of funny with your recent trip around the states. Secondly, you have been to quite a number of states it would seem. That is great to hear! Lastly, I would love to go to Texas some day. There seems to be a lot of things to do there, especially since it is such a vast state! The province in Canada that I live in, Ontario, is similar in size, even though it might be bigger. It takes about 16 hours to go from where I live to the north west border of Ontario. It takes about 3 hours to drive from here to the Ontario/New York border. It takes about 4 hours to drive from here to the Ontario/Michigan border. So if you do the math, it takes around 20 hours to drive from the north west border of Ontario to the south west point of it. Im sure Texas is something similar to that, and as you said it is 1000 miles from Orange to El Paso. Sorry if I bored you with this response hehe. Thanks for your time! :)
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63233)
• United States
27 Feb 09
my last outta state trip was a 5 day fly into New Jersey in 2007... my last outta town trip was a weekend trip to Houston in Dec, before that, an over night trip to Tyler Texas to see Jeff Dunham in May... no, the other visits were all quite some time ago, before my trip to NJ in 07, the last time I was out of state was to fly to England in 03.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Ooh ok I see. When you say 5 day fly to New Jersey, you really mean that you were there for 5 days not that the flight itself took 5 days right? Hehe :P Or did you mean that the flight was 5 hours long? And how was your England trip? That would be a cool place to visit!
1 person likes this
@malsun (1528)
• United States
4 Mar 09
I am from India but I live in the US now. I have travelled extensively in India and I am traveling in the US too. So I would say that I am trying to know my country and not only that but the world. There are so many places I want to see. Just waiting for the megamillion jackpot to set me on my world tour!!
• Canada
4 Mar 09
Cool cool :) Haha yeah, just waiting for the lotto win eh ;) I agree with you there hehe. Winning the lottery has an endless amount of possibilities..! :o
@vicky30 (4766)
• India
19 Feb 09
I don't know my country so well in travelling.But i know the best places we can see in our country.In my native place there is a beach marina.It is a very long beach.It also has hot eatables to eat and shopping.Then comes a theme park kishkinta.The rides are very good and it is situated in a calm place.Then in kerala there is the backwaters.There you can stay in houseboats.You can also fish and enjoy the food in hotels there.Then there is a place in south.The sweet halwa over there is verytasty and made in pure ghee.Also in the north there are places like the taj mahal we can visit.Also we can visit jammu and kashmir for the snow and nice weather.We can shop for wollen items there.Also kolkatta is a very good place to eat.There is also place in eat india.The people over there have chinese looks in their face.
@vicky30 (4766)
• India
2 Mar 09
They look like chinese people but they are not from china.They are from India.
• Canada
3 Mar 09
Aha! Ok thats what I thought you meant :) That is kind of funny
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Ahah. Yes, I would love to visit India some day! Isnt Kerala kind of the rich part of India? Atleast that is what I have heard, that its a lot more well off than other parts of India. I learned that in a class I took last year, called Canadian and World Issues: A Geographical View or something like that haha. I dont know the exact name of the course, but it was along those lines. Anyways, thanks for that information. And when you say the people in East India have Chinese looks in their face .. You mean that they actually look Chinese? Are they originally from China then?!
1 person likes this
• China
27 Feb 09
I travelled to some places in my country. There are still a lot of intresting places for me to discover. So here I would say I actually do not know much about my country. And I really hope to do much travelling in my spare time.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Aha! Im sure there are always lots of places to discover for anyone, regardless of how much they have travelled! :) Well I hope that you get the chance to do some more travelling in your future! Good luck :)
@sinokirin (900)
• China
27 Feb 09
Travel,to me,would be a big problem. First of all, have no time. My job is busy all years, no that much time to travel around. Second, less of money, now I must pay for the house-loan to the bank every month. But I am so young,so believe I would travel all my country one day .
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Ooh sorry to hear that! :( I hope that you can get time off of work to go and do some travelling some time. Also, sorry to hear about your money shortage. I am sure you will be able to do some travelling when you are older, and save up money for it! :) Good luck friend!
@alokn99 (5717)
• India
18 Feb 09
The answer to your question is that would say that i hardly know the country that i live in. I am from India and all though i can say that i have been in all the directions, there seems to be so much that i do not would like to know about and experience. The scenic beauty, the different cultural traditions,the historical places, the food, the weather and of course the people. Even if i did start on a journey now, i do not think a lifetime would be enough for me to really get to know my country in the way i would like to.
• Canada
18 Feb 09
Well, to me it seems that you do know your country of India quite well. I see what you mean though, it would take a lifetime or many lifetimes to completely get to know your country because Im sure there are so many things to do there, and it is still fairly big. I feel that way about Canada as well, especially since it is the second biggest country in the world! :P But I still feel like I know my country well.
@maximax8 (31053)
• United Kingdom
18 Feb 09
When I was younger I was too busy jetting off abroad to be aware very much of travel opportunities in my home country. I know that the transport system in the capital city, London, is excellent. It has buses, underground trains, the docklands light rail service, suburban trains and taxis. There are intercity trains and the fare system is complicated. I know that accommodation choices vary from guest houses, hotels, campsites and youth hostels. The top sights are varied and include London, Bath spa, historic York and the beautiful Lake District. There is a coastline that is lovely to go to in the summer months. I have been to about 50 different countries so far in my life time. I love traveling, overseas is often better value for traveling than my own country.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Wow, it sounds like you know a lot about England. That is unfortunate that you have missed out on travel opportunities there. I would love to go to England some day. A lot of my family is from there actually. And you say you have been to about 50 countries!? That is amazing! I am very envious of you, that must be very nice :) I love to travel as well and I agree that overseas travel is better. Atleast it always seems to be better. Of course there are always fun things to do and see in ones own country!
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
18 Feb 09
I live in Denmark and I would say that I know my country very well. I have lived in more than one part of the country and I have travelled around as a tourist in most of the other areas. I have lived in/worked in or visited the northern, the central and the southern part of the peninsula, the island Funen, the island Zealand, the islands Lolland and Falster and the island Bornholm. I have also visited quite a lot of the small islands. In a couple of months I am going to visit the northern part of Zealand and that is one of the few part of the country that I have never visited before.
• Canada
18 Feb 09
That is very cool! I have also lived in another part of Canada. I live on the east part of Canada right now. I used to live on the west part. On the west part, there are many mountains and praries with lots of farms and things. On the east, there are also lots of farms but there are a TON of lakes! It is a very different country depending on what part you go to :) Well I hope you have fun seeing the northern part of Zealand. Thank you for sharing your story with me, I find that interesting :)
@mermaidivy (15395)
• United States
18 Feb 09
I live in Hong Kong, China but I have only been to some places in China so I am not very familiar with my country as in travel. I know where are the famous spots in Hong Kong to travel though.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Ooh thats cool. Hong Kong seems like a nice place :) China is also a very large country, and it would be hard to travel to all the different places unless you have lots of time and money. I would like to go to China some day to see the Great Wall of China, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, and other places. Since Hong Kong is fairly small, Im sure there arent that many famous spots to see there. Please correct me if I am wrong though! Im sure there are many nice and cool things there, but maybe not that many. Thank you
@ank_47 (1959)
• India
18 Feb 09
i am an indian and india is too vast country and i like it most because of the unity every people have . and we have different cultures, religions . India has become a popular tourist destination with thousands of people visiting the different parts of India each year. It has much to offer to travelers and tourists. It is a land of hills, rivers, plateaus, plains, beaches, deltas and deserts. It also houses many luxurious hotels and resorts to cater to its booming travel and tourism industry. India offers a luxury travel to its travelers and tourists. Cruise from picturesque nature sites to the architectural wealth in this beautiful land. Almost all the cities in India have some or the other attractions. Like a rainbow that colours the infinite sky, India paints the world with her magical hues. India is a dream holiday that rewards every traveller with her endless tourist attractions. To explore India is to discover a land gifted with everything that makes up for a perfect travel packages. A land with a long and deep historical past, and accordingly, a wide variety of customs, communities, religions, and ideologies, India is a favorite choice of many travelers. Several foreign invasions and influences have resulted in various artistic and structural depictions, suggestive of the respective influences. These depictions comprise the various tourist places in India, which are, in turn, some of the prime reasons for the advent of thousands of tourists to this country of universal appeal. Owing to the variety that the country of India exudes in terms of climate, culture, topography, cuisine, art and architecture, you will have at your disposal a number of tourist places in India deserving a visit or two. To the north lie the states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Leh, Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir and northern West Bengal which are just the right places to be in to fulfill adventure quests. The Himalayas to the north are ideal destinations for trekkers and mountaineers. Trudge through the rough terrain of the steep ranges amidst green and pristine valleys. The backwaters of Kerala are some of the other natural tourist attractions in India that lure one and all. The cultural quests in the country of India will open up wide-ranging options, offering an array of different architectural styles. The states of Delhi, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Gujarat are the perfect choices in North India while Madurai, Tirupati and Chennai are the main centers of temple architecture in South India. The various fine and elaborate architectural and artistic specimens, bearing the Mughal and Hindu styles of art, are of utmost pleasure for genuine art connoisseurs. The Taj Mahal, the Red Fort, Agra Fort, the Bulund Darwaza, the Hawa Mahal etc are some of the remarkable instance of Mughal architecture. On the other hand, the Ajanta and Ellora Caves, temples of Khajuraho and Konark, Madurai and Tirupati etc are examples of Hindu architecture. The churches of Goa are again instances of Portuguese art and culture, offering a wide range of choices on a tour to India. Beaches – exotic, serene, fascinating, and tranquil – you get all kinds of beaches in India along its eastern and western coasts. Goa beaches are extremely vibrant, vivid and exotic, exuding an air of imposing vivacity. The cool breeze blowing through the swaying palms, the golden sands and the crystal clear waters will appeal to your senses. Chennai beaches are the same but the Puri beaches are more on the lines of tranquility. Make a trip of the various tourist places in India on your India tour and you will know the huge variety that the country offers, in the various forms and shapes. India culture is like the Indian food, rich and diverse. Rivers, seas, mountains and deserts create an interesting puzzle that makes India Travel an unforgettable experiance. India has tremendous variations in topography and climate from the desert regions of Rajasthan to the scenic hill stations, green valleys of Himachal, the rain forests of the North East, the extensive sun-drenched beaches, the wild sanctuaries. u can come to our india at any time u want ,if u are planning at any time. so make a tour to india sometime.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Well thank you for that information on India. I read it about a week ago or so and found it useful. I would definatly LOVE to visit India some day. It is one of those places on my list that I would like to go to before I die. It proabably will be a long time from now when I actually get the chance to go to India, though.
@Lore2009 (7378)
• United States
19 Feb 09
I'm from the US and I know NOTHING of my country as far as travel, which I am ashamed of. As soon as I save some more money, my plan is to rent an RV and check out each and every state. I would love to see it all in another perspective... I feel like I have the least in to say anything about other's countries (which I rarely do anyway) when I don't know my own myself.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Aw, sorry to hear that Lore :( I really like the sounds of your plan though! That would be an epic journey to travel across America in an RV, taking in the sights and sounds of each unique state. That would be very nice. I would like to do something similar as well, some sort of a road trip through United States and Canada. It would be very fun :)
@bubbletush (1332)
• Philippines
18 Feb 09
i travel within the bounds of our country (Philippines) as much as I can. I prioritize travel opportunities within the country over travel abroad. Good thing, our flag carrier, Philippine Airlines provides package tours that are really reasonably priced. I usually travel at least 3 times a year and make it a point not to go to a place i have already been so that i will be able to visit more new places.
• Canada
27 Feb 09
Ah, very nice! I have a few friends who are from the Philippines :) I would love to go there some day as well. I know there is nice, hot weather there and Im sure there are many things to do and see since there are a vast amount of islands! I agree with trying not to go to the same place, in order to see newer places. That is a good idea, unless theres a place that you really enjoy and you would like to go back to. Thanks for your response