“GT” Travel World

Travel with “Good Tour­ism” (scroll down for posts). Learn about spe­cial places, people to meet, and things to do from tour­ism insiders keen to show­case our plan­et’s good, bet­ter, best.

There are count­less reas­ons why good travel is a reward­ing and enrich­ing exper­i­ence. Here are just a few:

  • Cul­tur­al expos­ure: Trav­el­ling provides the oppor­tun­ity to exper­i­ence new cul­tures and ways of life, from tast­ing new foods to learn­ing about dif­fer­ent tra­di­tions and cus­toms. This can broaden your per­spect­ive and help you under­stand and appre­ci­ate the diversity of our world.
  • Per­son­al growth: Trav­el­ling can be a trans­form­at­ive exper­i­ence that helps you grow as a per­son. It can chal­lenge your com­fort zone, build resi­li­ence, and teach you new skills. It can also help you gain con­fid­ence and inde­pend­ence as you nav­ig­ate new envir­on­ments and situations.
  • Bond­ing with oth­ers: Trav­el­ling with friends or fam­ily can be a bond­ing exper­i­ence that strengthens rela­tion­ships and cre­ates last­ing memor­ies. It can also be a way to meet new people and make new friends from around the world.
  • Adven­ture and explor­a­tion: Trav­el­ling allows you to explore new places and try new activ­it­ies, from hik­ing to ski­ing to scuba diving. It can be an adven­ture-filled jour­ney that provides a sense of excite­ment and exhilaration.
  • Relax­a­tion and escape: Trav­el­ling can be a way to escape the stresses of every­day life and unwind in a new envir­on­ment. Wheth­er you’re loun­ging on a trop­ic­al beach or explor­ing a peace­ful moun­tain vil­lage, trav­el­ling can offer a sense of relax­a­tion and rejuvenation.
  • Learn­ing oppor­tun­it­ies: Trav­el­ling provides oppor­tun­it­ies for edu­ca­tion and learn­ing, from vis­it­ing his­tor­ic land­marks to attend­ing cul­tur­al events. It can be a way to expand your know­ledge and gain a deep­er under­stand­ing of the world.

Over­all, trav­el­ling offers a wide range of bene­fits, from per­son­al growth and cul­tur­al expos­ure to adven­ture and explor­a­tion. Wheth­er you’re trav­el­ling to a nearby des­tin­a­tion or embark­ing on a jour­ney around the world, the exper­i­ence of good travel is one that is sure to enrich your life in count­less ways.

American cultural geographer picks three favourite places to go in Greater Tokyo

March 21, 2024

Places to go in Greater Tokyo include Showa Kinen Koen. Pic by Norikio Yamamoto (CC0) via Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/purple-flowers-near-green-trees-and-river-during-daytime-7pjnQXsjqw0

Tour­ist web­sites list no short­age of “things to see and do” in Japan that are no doubt all worth it. But after vis­it­ing Japan — most often Tokyo — annu­ally over the last 20 years, I have made a per­son­al list of recom­mend­a­tions — places to go in Great­er Tokyo — that don’t always appear on these websites. 

Read More American cultural geographer picks three favourite places to go in Greater Tokyo

Postcard from Vietnam: Guided by young people through Hanoi’s Old Quarter

and November 16, 2023

Postcard from Vietnam: Guided by young people through Hanoi’s Old Quarter. The authors and their guides. Background image by Frida Aguilar Estrada (CC0) via Unsplash. https://unsplash.com/photos/woman-carrying-woven-tray-and-white-pail-while-walking-on-wet-market-PEgu_IdF1BM

Arriv­ing in a new des­tin­a­tion, trav­el­lers often scramble to get their bear­ings. One can read a map, identi­fy key land­marks, get a vant­age from some­place high such as a moun­tain or tall build­ing or, if one is for­tu­nate enough, meet a loc­al who will help them. Ori­ent­ing one­self is most chal­len­ging in large cit­ies, par­tic­u­larly those […]

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Postcard from Rwanda: Ubumuntu

September 1, 2023

Postcard from Rwanda: Ubumuntu

The Kigali Gen­o­cide Memori­al is … … affect­ing. Today was the first day of a 10-day famil­i­ar­isa­tion tour of the coun­try hos­ted by the Rwanda Devel­op­ment Board (RDB). I am in Rwanda at the invit­a­tion of RDB, as well as “GT” Part­ners Red Rocks Rwanda and Red Rocks Ini­ti­at­ive for Sus­tain­able Devel­op­ment. I will try to reg­u­larly post travel impressions […]

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Postcard from Rwanda: A banana beer moment

August 26, 2023
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Red Rocks Cultural Festival 2023 at the Red Rocks Cultural Center, Musanze, Rwanda

The Red Rocks Cul­tur­al Fest­iv­al is a very relaxed affair. There are no mad­ding crowds nor tour guide flags to make you feel like you’re part of a machine. Over the five days of the Fest­iv­al, there are sched­uled activ­it­ies that are free to join.  Or you can show up at Red Rocks Cul­tur­al Cen­ter independently, […]

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Postcard from Rwanda: First impressions

August 25, 2023

Postcard from Rwanda ... Emma Raissa ISHEJA, Community Guide, Red Rocks Initiative for Sustainable Development Rwanda with an artwork by Ken

It’s tidy. Singa­­pore-level spot­less. Com­munit­ies get togeth­er on the last Sat­urday of every month to pick up rub­bish. Even the pop­u­lar Pres­id­ent, Paul Kagame, joins in when he can, I’m told. As do oth­er lead­ers. I arrived on the Thursday before the last Sat­urday in August and there seemed to be very little to pick up. […]

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Experience the ‘far side’ of Chitwan National Park, Nepal

October 27, 2022

Experience Chitwan National Park's far side on an open-hood jungle safari Picture Courtesy Community Homestay Network

Between waves of the pan­dem­ic, in 2021 I had the oppor­tun­ity to travel around Nepal’s Chit­wan Nation­al Park.  Known for its diverse wild­life, lush forests, and as one of the best places for bird watch­ing in Nepal, Chit­wan Nation­al Park is a fam­ous des­tin­a­tion for domest­ic and inter­na­tion­al trav­el­lers keen to explore Nepal’s flat plains.  Located […]

Read More Experience the ‘far side’ of Chitwan National Park, Nepal