Travel Thoughts – “At Home” Abroad
Line BreakAuthor: Kathryn Frengs (137 Articles)
Travelfusion's Social Media Officer, I manage all of our online marketing and presence on Twitter, Facebook, our blog and more. I love my job!
We’ve touched upon the subject before in previous posts, but today I am doing a lot of reflection about what travel means to me and wondering what it means to others. Do you travel to get completely away from what you know, or are there some creature comforts that are important for you to have when you go away? With globalisation, internet and the huge amount of information available to travellers, sometimes it feels like it’s possible to see the same things everywhere you go.
Take the mass export of American restaurants, for example. In 2001, I had the opportunity to take a trip to Beijing, China. Though I had toured Europe previously and been to Mexico and Canada many times, this trip to Beijing was the furthest from my “comfort zone” that I had ever been. Imagine my shock when I stumbled upon the all-too-familiar green awning of Starbucks whilst sightseeing in a local Beijing neighbourhood! Since my trip, I understand that Starbucks has opened and subsequently closed a location at Beijing’s famous and historic Forbidden City, which dates back to the 1400’s.
Photo credit: dearbarbie
When is enough enough? Do you find these “familiar” sites comforting when you are travelling or do you head out to dine with the locals and shy away from any chain restaurants? The news that McDonald’s is planning to open a restaurant in the food court at the Louvre in Paris shocked many this past fall and critics decried the juxtaposition of Botticelli and Big Macs. However, with a Virgin Megastore and newly opened Apple Store in the same Louvre shopping centre, is McDonald’s any worse? Also, the French apparently are the second biggest consumers of McDonald’s per capita, behind only the United States, so is this opening entirely appropriate?
Photo credit: Bruno Girin
I know when I’m travelling, I’m hoping for some exposure to local culture, customs and cuisine. That’s not to say that I don’t sometimes queue for some typical tourist attractions like Michelangelo’s David in Florence or the Buda Castle in Budapest, but I do hope for an authentic experience dining-wise and stop short of meals in McDonald’s in a new city. I was definitely put off by my Starbucks experience in China and am a bit sad to see these types of places dotting historical sites in most all of the countries I’ve visited since. I will admit though that I have ordered and sampled a Diet Coke in pretty much every city I’ve visited – I guess we all have our vices!
Photo credit: bunnicula
I’m curious to know what others think about feeling at home whilst travelling abroad. Are there certain things that you need to have that you would also have at home? Do you go for a 100% authentic experience and stay away from all familiar products? Or, do McDonald’s and other fast-food chains offer you a nice home away from home that make all those scary menus written in a foreign language disappear as quickly as you can say “I’ll have fries with that?”
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