Why breaking bread with local residents helps break down cultural barriers
By Larry Kavanaugh of Rocklin, California, 9-time traveler, Vacation Ambassador
How often we come to love that which at first we feared.
When I began traveling with Grand Circle and OAT, I thought nothing sounded drearier than the home-hosted events offered on their trips: I didn’t relish sitting around a table “making nice” with the natives.
As it turns out, however, these have been among the most memorable experiences I’ve had in all my travels. I distinctly remember riding a camel in view of Egypt's Great Pyramids, and I’ll never forget staring at Greece's Parthenon in awe—but in retrospect, those were (despite the heat) cold, lifeless things, while the people we met through these home-hosted events were warm, full of life, and three-dimensional. And even though our hosts and we came from different cultures and spoke different languages, our facial expressions, handshakes, and shoulder pats quickly overcame the slight awkwardness and sluice-gates on language differences.
I compliment whoever came up with the idea of home-hosting and applaud the leadership of Grand Circle and OAT for recognizing the merit of these visits and sticking to it even if a few grumpy folks might have complained. These moments of interacting with people from another culture, of sharing their food and their space, will always hold a special place in my heart.
I know you are thinking: Of course, the hosts were cordial—they were being paid. And, I’m sure that is probably true. Still, making this cross-pollination happen is important and worthy even if it requires some cost. On my first trip with OAT in the ‘80s (the year, not my age), I remember we visited with a lady in Costa Rica who made us tortillas on an outdoor stove in her backyard. Among the chickens, and the occasional iguana, she clearly made her cakes with enthusiasm and pride. They were delicious and her smile was as gracious and warm as the subtropical air. I doubt she knew a word of English, but she certainly knew how to cook.
Other home visits in China and Turkey have been just as memorable and inspiring. In a little village in Turkey we were escorted with great dignity to a modest house where a woman lived with her daughter. From her home across the street, the aged grandmother soon appeared. We ate, drank wine, and pored over their photographs and albums. The happiness of sharing made the grandmother smile so broadly that I thought her face might crack.
So keep up the home-hosted visits, OAT and Grand Circle. They make your always wonderful trips more than just staring at stone monuments and viewing vistas. In a very real way they make the trips human—and help us understand that language differences and lines on maps are just artificial barriers that melt when good-hearted people share each other’s food and company.
Inspired by Larry's story? Learn more about the home-hosted visits we offer on our China & the Yangtze River and Crossroads of Turkey vacations.