I understand this perspective but I feel like it's unnecessarily negative. I certainly agree with you that living in another country would be a unique and mind-

I understand this perspective but I feel like it's unnecessarily negative. I certainly agree with you that living in another country would be a unique and mind-expanding experience, but not everyone has this opportunity (or takes it when it is possible). When I was unencumbered by a family 20 years ago, traveling simply wasn't a priority for me. My focus was on getting by and trying to get a foothold in the tech industry. Now that I've got two kids and a high-pressure job, tourism is how I expose myself and my kids to other cultures and experiences. It is possible to do it right by keeping an open mind and not being "those people". I'll relate one anecdote. A couple of years ago we went to Panama and stayed in Panama City for a week before heading to the coast. While in the city we read about Amazon jungle tours. Not wanting to end up on a bus with a bunch of people, one night I headed out to a nearby square and started chatting up people with the limited but decent Spanish I've managed to learn over the past few years. I met a friendly restauranteur, explained that we wanted to head up to the jungle, and asked if he knew anyone who could take us. Next morning we all crammed into a pickup truck driven by an incredibly vivacious and chatty Panamanian woman (the restauranteur's cousin) and roared off to the jungle. The trip included memorable moments such as the part where a long, remote bridge was shut down to car traffic, forcing us to leave the truck by the side of the road and hike across in brutal heat. On arriving at the other side, seeing how exhausted my kids were, she told us to wait under a tree and took off. Twenty minutes later she rolled up in a minivan, which she had borrowed from a fellow Panamanian (a total stranger) who had agreed to lend it to us, free of charge, for the afternoon. She explained that she had a guardian angel that helped her arrange such things. We were tourists, 100%. But my whole family learned a lot from the experience.