The urge to explore the unknown, experience novelty, test oneself in unfamiliar surroundings appears to be part of the genetic coding of the human. In the contemporary context, however, it is increasingly difficult to satisfy this primordial impulse without both aggravating the ecological problems and socio-economic inequities that threaten to overwhelm the planet. Paradise in a Package One of the most seductive kinds of vacations, especially for those who live in cold climates, is the tropical paradise. Not only are the health benefits of subjecting one's body to such sudden, short-term climate changes questionable, but also, soon or later, one must begin to examine the conditions of one's daily life at home, in an effort to find out what makes fleeing from them seem necessary. Creating a sustainable lifestyle, in harmony with the seasons of your home place, is a far more compassionate solution to your problems than running off to Margaritaville.
Big bucks are at stake here.
More money is exported from one country to another by tourism each year than is generated by the oil or weapons industries. This sets up a complex dynamic in which you, who work hard for your money back home, temporarily become member of the wealthy and leisured class. To assume this unfamiliar role, in strange surroundings, where one does not speak the language, is extremely stressful. Although tourism is seen as a powerful tool for economic development all over the world, little of the money involved actually reaches the pockets of the local people. More often than not, those who were poor and powerless before the construction of tourist facilities stay that way.