Day 3

At Doi Suthep this morning, Shaeba and I sat at one of the corners of the temple, talking. We observed that the temple was a very sacred place to the local Thai people. There was this particular scene that we observed, where the local thai people entered one of the temples kneeling, and remained very quiet while solemnly saying their prayers. When they left the hall still kneeling, and a group of western tourists walked into the temple and spoke, relatively loudly, as they stood and looked around. Shaeba and I both felt that the Asian tourists, on the other hand, were much more aware and was respectful to the customs of this religious site. In comparison the western tourists we saw seemed ignorant to how sacred these rituals or religious places were to the people.

I honestly felt a little annoyed at first and felt that these tourists were behaving in a very disrespectful manner. I felt, in some sense, these western tourists were “intruding”, undermining the sacredness of the temple that the Asian community was trying to protect.

In retrospect, I realised that I held an in-group—out-group bias. It occurred to me that these tourists were not ill-intentioned. We Asian tourists have a greater awareness of the cultures in our region, and our understanding allowed us to act with decorum and propriety in these places. Western tourists on the other hand have extremely different cultures back home, and they simply do not know what is appropriate behaviour.

This led me to realise that only through travel that they may be exposed to and understand the Asian culture, and only then will they be sensitised to our customs and conventions. Similarly, we as Asians may be very ignorant of the cultures abroad.

I realised the importance of tolerance. An increase in mobility through advancements in air-travel, and ease of access to different countries with greater diplomatic relations has made it so much easier to travel. Eventually, this increase in travel will foster greater understanding amongst the different peoples of the world about all the other cultures that are co-existing in this global community. This awareness, understanding and appreciation will ultimately see the rise of the global citizen. I am not sure if I am being naive in having such a vision, but I really like it.

We are at a stage where we are learning. The ‘ills’ that we observe are necessary evils for this process that is ultimately building a global community that I believe will be rooted in respect and appreciation. I think that as hosts we should show tolerance and welcome travellers with courtesy and warmth, and as guests we should enter a place with humility, an open-mind and respect.