Travellers

Because of Australia's physical isolation, overseas travel has always been difficult and time consuming.
It has been a recent development for Australians to travel as much as they do today.
Isolation and our multicultural society mean that we travel to other countries for

• Business


• Education


• Holidays


• Employment

Can you think of any other reasons for overseas travel?

• To experience other cultures, food, religions, languages


• To take a break from study, work


• To meet people


• To see the world


• To discover new places


• To discover new YOU

Australians and overseas Chart

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0Ag49uC7znRugdGhETHBTMDJub25lWDY3VklmYmp5MGc&hl=en&authkey=COyynYAG

According to the Australians and overseas Chart, the most popular purpose for travelling overseas is "Holiday & visiting people".

The chart aslo shows that the most popular destination for Australian travellers is New Zealand. This is because NZ is closed to Australia, it's only a few hours away by plane. If you have only a few days, there is enough time to go to NZ to get away from crowds, to enjoy the nature and experience the local culture. Besides, Australia has a lot of business dealings with NZ, so company representatives need to go to NZ for business purposes or attending conferences.

The five most popular destinations (without taking 'other' into account) for business and conference are:

1. New Zealand
2. USA
3. Singapore
4. United Kingdom
5. Hong Kong

Whereas the five least popular destinations are:

1. Other
2. Middle East, North Africa
3. Italy
4. Other Africa
5. Philippines

Reason for the most popular (NZ) - it is the closest neighbour among the top five.

Reason for the least popular (Other) - I assume they are some third world countries or somewhere we have never heard of. Thus there is nothing to trade.

Have you been overseas? Where & why you travelled?

Yes, I have been to a few places in Asia. The one place that I go every year is Macau because my grandparents live there.

Macau is a small peninsula and is the most densely populated region in the world. It is also known as Las Vegas of the East. There are Casinos everywhere. They are all Art Deco buildings, which are very beautiful in the day but are extremely spectacular at night with all the display of lights that they put on. The lights glimmer all night, with the reflection in the water, you wonder whether you are in the wonderland. I went to the dragon laser show last year, it was just fantastic. I especially like the food there, they are sort of fusion food, Portuguese and Chinese. Yum,Yum.... Macau is a fun place to visit. I enjoy it every single time. Not to mention being spoiled by my grandparents..............


What are some of the benefits of overseas travel and visiting foreign countries? Do we benefit by experiencing other cultures? In what way?

Overseas travel is a fascinating way to discover the world, travel opens your eyes and your minds. It will change your view. No one place is the same, every country has much to offer, different sceneries, cultures, languages and food.
By experiencing other cultures will help us to understand, respect and appreciate the cultural diversity of the world. This will make us a better person and ultimately a better world.