Why can't people have interests? We all like certain activities, programming languages, etc. -- can't we think certain cultures are interesting too? My (WASP)

Why can't people have interests? We all like certain activities, programming languages, etc. -- can't we think certain cultures are interesting too? My (WASP) uncle learned Japanese and moved to Tokyo because of a personal interest in that specific culture. I'm happy for him, glad he had a good experience. Should I now chastise him for not doing that with other cultures? This `personal interest == bigotry` attitude is a problem.