The speaker, a Mexican-American, shares his personal story of feeling stuck between two cultures and finding his calling as a traveler. He believes that travel is essential to the human experience and that it can help break down stereotypes and misconceptions. The speaker cites statistics on how few Americans travel abroad and attributes this to three main reasons: work, money, and fear.
He argues that the glorification of being busy and the emphasis on making money and accumulating possessions are misguided and that travel can be more enriching than material goods. The speaker also notes that fear, often fueled by media, is an obstacle to travel, but that the vast majority of travelers do not encounter problems.
The speaker shares his own experiences traveling in Mexico and how it helped him appreciate the country and its people. He encourages the audience to make thoughtful choices and consider traveling to new places, rather than sticking to familiar destinations. He also emphasizes that travel is accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds and that it can be a transformative experience.
Ultimately, the speaker urges the audience to make a promise to themselves to travel to a place they have always wanted to visit, and to prioritize experiences over material possessions.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The speaker was born in Mexico City in the summer of 1975.
2. The speaker's family immigrated to the United States when they were around five years old.
3. They settled in San Diego, where the speaker grew up.
4. The speaker felt stuck between two worlds and didn't feel fully Mexican or American.
5. The speaker was influenced by the media's portrayal of Mexicans as criminals, lazy, or narco-traffickers.
6. The speaker's cousins in Mexico would call them a "gringo" and imply that they were uncultured or arrogant.
7. The speaker was drawn to travel from a young age and read biographies of explorers and adventurers.
8. The speaker got a job with a British overland company and led trips in the United States.
9. The speaker saw all 50 states in the US over the course of a year.
10. Only 35% of Americans have passports.
11. In Oregon, around 40% of the population has passports, while in Mississippi, it's around 18%.
12. Only 30% of international travel goes outside of the US and Mexico.
13. Less than 10% of the US population leaves the continent in a given year.
14. The three main reasons people don't travel are work, money, and fear.
15. The average American takes only 15 days of vacation per year, down from 21 days in 2000.
16. The US has a culture of workaholism, with a glorification of being busy.
17. The idea of making money and accumulating wealth is more valued than having enriching experiences.
18. The concept of a "gap year" is not well-known in the US, but it's a common practice in other countries.
19. A study of people who took a gap year found that the top three outcomes were a better understanding of themselves, empathy towards others, and more context to choose their path in life.
20. The average American has over 30 outfits in their closet, compared to nine in 1930.
21. The US spends over $24 billion per year on storage, with over 2.3 billion square feet of storage space.
22. It's often less expensive to travel outside the US than within the country.
23. The speaker's wife and he took a six-month honeymoon to Nepal, India, and Thailand for around $4,000.
24. Travel has the power to break down stereotypes and myths.
25. The speaker met their wife in a campground in southern Mexico.
26. With an American passport, you can visit 174 countries without a visa or get a visa at the point of entry.
27. It's an extraordinary time to be a traveler, despite challenges in the world.