He's a Real Nowherian
Channel: LIVING SOCIOLOGY
Date: 2019-12-19

First Person, Plural on CFUV-fm, Victoria, BC 
Originally aired May 22, 2003

We spent the better part of the period between August 2000 and November 2001 in a motel somewhere in North America.  This vagabond life created memories and experiences that we carry with us and pull out to contemplate from time to time.  Our reflections of our, albeit limited, travels led us to appreciate the wonderful writings of Pico Iyer.  We connected immediately to being a "nowherian," a term he coined to describe those of us who don't quite fit into cultural categories.  His travelogues carry his readers beyond the places and scenery of where he has been to questions of culture, difference and sameness among human beings.  It is a hopeful voice in a world that seems hell bent on culture clashes.

The Victoria Literary Arts Festival gave us the perfect opportunity to meet and talk with this hopeful voice.  We met Mr. Iyer at the festival office and talked about travel, culture, writing and world tensions.  We found him to be both generous and gentle.  This week's episode contemplates the traveller as a sociological archetype and how the act of travelling and the promotion of tourism affect local cultures.

copyright: Carl Wilkerson and Pattie Thomas

http://sociologylegacy.pbworks.com/w/page/93446975/Episode%2043%20He's%20a%20Real%20Nowherian