Report from Asia--The Old American

I am in an interesting demographic position on this trip: the old American. First, Americans don't travel. Why is this? Just before I left I talked to a friend of mine who just got back from 3 months in Central America. He found it remarkable (and cool) that so few of the backpackers were Americans. There's even less here. I would say that maybe 2-3% of backpackers down here are Americans. I'm not really complaining--so many Americans are loud and obnoxious and not very interested in the world.

But why is it so different from Europe and Australia? And for that matter, why it is so starkly different from Canada, where it seems like at least 10% of the travellers are from? What is it about American culture that makes us so uninterested in the world? When Americans travel, even young, smart Americans think of going to a beach at Cancun, paying $125 a night for a hotel, getting fucked up drunk on the beach, and waking up at noon the next day. Some of that behavior happens here too--but it's so far away from home and it's happening for a fraction of the cost. Trust me, you get some boorish Euros here. But in the US, these people wouldn't get more exotic with their boorishness than the main ave in Juarez. Here you can stay in a place for like $8 a night, hang out with cool people, see great things, and have a wonderful time. I just don't get why more Americans don't find this an interesting option.

But there is another interesting phenomenon at work too. I am an old man here. When I look in the log books at hotels, I see that there is hardly anybody above the age of 30. Even in Europe, something happens at about the age of 28 that ends people's travels like this. Euros in their 30s and older still seem to travel but they want more amenities and to pay higher prices for the same thing. Why? Are they enjoying their experience more than I am? It's not like I'm staying in some shithole and even when I have to, which has happened once or twice, it's kind of fun.

Maybe I am just an odd duck (OK, we all know this is true). Maybe I am perenially going to be crabby like an old man but basically irresponsible like I was 22. So I'll never really fit into my age group. But it's really sad that I am all of 32 and I am older than 90-95% of other backpackers in southeast Asia.