"The Highway Don't Care"

Journal 2 – Does Roughing It demonstrate a pre-interstate treatment of Primeau’s idea that “Americans have treated the highway as sacred space”? (1) Why or why not?

Driving on the highway has always been exciting for me because you get to experience so many different kinds of people from the United States. I feel like some people are constantly living in a bubble and not willing to immerse themselves into another way of life. While I was reading Roughing It, I noticed how Twain’s narration made it seem like the smallest things made him the happiest on his journey; “we saw the first specimen of an animal known familiarly over two thousand miles of mountain and desert” (Twain 13). I think this is a good example of how Roughing It allows travelers to realize things that they would not usually be excited and aware of. Twain wrote a whole few pages about this rabbit and described it with a very detailed description. I do not think that many people would be writing about a rabbit if they were not roughing it; they would be discussing the different museums and sites they experienced. Twain makes it clear that on his journey it was the little things that made the trip the best part.

            I think one of my favorite things about traveling is meeting new people and seeing the way they act compared to me. In Roughing It Twain describes many encounters he had with other people. I thought the funniest part was when he talked about the women who joined him in his journey and would not shut up. He stated that “…we suffered, suffered, suffered! She went on, hour after hour, till I was sorry I ever opened the mosquito question and gave her a start” (Twain 9). Meeting people is the best part about traveling and it allows you to learn and hear so many different adventures. Listening to the stories from other cultures can also help you realize and understand things in so many different perspectives.

            Twain describes how being from the city and traveling on the country road is a whole different experience. I have never been a city girl and I love traveling for miles and miles and understanding new things. Twain describes the luxury of being away from the city stating “… we felt that there was only one complete and satisfying happiness in the world, and we had found it” (Twain 12). Being away from the city makes you realize how simple life can be and we do not constantly have to be an in rush to go somewhere or constantly be doing something. I am not saying that loving the city is a bad thing because I like going to a big city every once in a while, but I think it is so important to expand your horizons and visit new places. Just like Primeau states, “Getting away is a chance at a new start, a special time to discover self and country…” (Primeau1). Traveling on the road can be such a great experience because you can appreciate the small things, meet some amazing people, and see what different places have to offer!

            

Gaudium et Spes

Many people dread reading Gaudium et Spes because they think it is boring and very lengthy. Even though there is some truth to this, there is some importance to reading it for our travel writing class. Gaudium helps teach people how to deal with difficulties in our society and be accepting of other cultures. In Gaudium it states that people need to “satisfy the right of all to a human and social culture in conformity with the dignity of the human person without any discrimination of race, sex, nation, religion or social condition” (Gaudium 60). I have not traveled very much, but I believe the best part about traveling is learning new cultures. Gaudium is asking people to not be judgmental or stereotypical of other backgrounds. How are we supposed to immerse in other cultures if we are constantly judging them? I think it is crucial to embrace other societies or religions to understand other people’s viewpoints. People must be open to try their best to conform to other cultures while their away. It is kind of like you get a few days or weeks to be a whole new person and experience so many new adventures. Sure it might be scary at first but I think it will be worth it in the end!

I feel like you only have one life to live and traveling helps make us experience so many great things. In Gaudium it talks about how important traveling is “Everything must be done to make everyone conscious of the right to culture and the duty he has of developing himself culturally and of helping others” (Gaudium 60). This quote made me think of the video we watched called “Faithful Travel” because he went to many countries to try and help people with his strong faith. I really think this quote fits in well to our travel writing class because it emphasizes the significance of traveling. For me traveling is not all about just visiting certain museums, or getting your tan on. I think traveling is a way to develop a person’s diversity. It may even be helpful to learn new cultures because our country and becoming more and more diverse. I remember in one of my classes my sociology professor told us in 2050 Caucasians will be the minority. Eventually we are going to have to accept other cultures into our lives. Not everyone is going to white, Christians, and English speaking. Traveling is so important and Gaudium expresses this many ways because it states to be diverse and accepting of other cultures.