A Few Observations about Europe and Vacationers
Over the past few weeks I shared with you our journey to the Mediterranean starting in Venice and ending in Barcelona with stops in Dubrovnik, Croatia, Santorini and Athens Greece, Naples and the Isle of Capri, Rome, Florence and Villefranche. To be certain it was an outstanding trip that had a great itinerary, fascinating and informative tours with incredible sights, a high quality ship and service and some really interesting and friendly travel mates we will stay in touch with. It was an unforgettable trip that was top notch all the way around. That being said though, there were a few things I found that were a bit troublesome. Admittedly, my views may seem harsh to some.
First, there is a worldwide epidemic of graffiti with the wanton defacing of property everywhere including historic buildings and antiquities. It is a sad commentary that the problem has reached the proportions it has. Communities throughout the world need to take aggressive steps to combat this problem. More can and should be done even if it includes new strategies directed at the people who are buying the spray paint used for the defacement. I don’t have the answer but I do know something has to be done. Irreparable damage is being done to ancient structures that harsh chemicals cannot be used to remove the graffiti without causing great damage. Graffiti now stains every neighborhood in every country.
A trip to Europe (and even other states in the US) helps you understand how lucky we are in Washington to have the protections in place for clean air and smoke free public facilities. Smoking is prevalent in Europe and the stench of smoke fouls the air both indoors and outdoors. Cigarette butts liter the ground everywhere from thoughtless smokers who think it is fine to just toss their butts down whether at the Vatican, the ruins of Pompeii, the Basilica at Montserrat or the sidewalks of virtually every city we visited. Cigarette smoking is the lethal scourge of modern society in my opinion and one only need to travel to other places to see its effects on the quality of life for people who just want to breathe clean air. The sad part is that our government still subsidizes the tobacco industry to export death and destruction of health.
There are some Americans who embarrass all of us with their boorish behavior. On the ship our tablemates were from Scotland and Canada. The fourth couple was from North Carolina. At first they seemed like a charming southern couple until he started talking. Suffice it to say, he was a right wing, redneck, homophobic racist that spewed offensive comments that were totally inappropriate. People from other countries get a very poor impression of Americans when they hear that kind of rubbish. I’m always leery when I hear someone start a statement with “I’m not a racist, but…”
The effects of war on the cultural and historic treasures of the world, the destruction of property and human life over centuries can lead one to conclude that wars are started by mean spirited, self-serving, mentally defective egomaniacal men whose lust for power and control or religious fanaticism leads entire countries into acts of criminality and inhumanity that breach any moral code reasonable people should live by. A leader’s rationalizations to inflict harm and destruction on others whether for race, religious, conquest, control or other demented reasons are a shameful commentary on mans neglect of other human beings. It is a stark reminder that these war mongers rise to power by the silence and neglect of decent people who don’t stand up to them, resist and speak out. There are many lessons in that for our modern world. History has clearly shown us the ravages of war but we haven’t learned much from it. We continue to let it happen over and over with generally the same result. Physical property of historical significance can be destroyed but never replaced. It may be replicated but it is not the real thing.