IN-PERSON: Learning. Life. Work

Abstract

Cultural diversity is a prevalent and increasingly visible aspect of modern society. The world has become more interconnected than ever before due to migration, trade, and modern technologies, resulting in more frequent encounters between people from different cultures. Unfortunately, these encounters do not always lead to mutual understanding. In fact, organized tourism often reinforces prejudices and stereotypes. The aim of this paper is to reflect on the function of travel as a unique educational opportunity for intercultural encounters and human connection. Some case studies suggest possible ways of using travel education from an anthropological perspective to re-establish mutual understanding, empathy and appreciation of cultural diversity. It is not only a question of rediscovering travel to exotic and faraway places in search of something special, a sense of life or a lost home, but also a re-discovery of travel through experiences such as the 19th century flânerie, in places that are familiar to us, such as our own landscapes and cities. This is an attempt to recover the wonder of the ‘familiar’, becoming in turn an unexpected rediscovery of the ‘near’ elsewhere.