To some minds, all change is ruin, but they are not to be taken seriously. To be sure, this process is well under way, and it is a worldwide phenomenon. I bought some hand-woven fabric from a Hmong woman in Northern Laos. When I handed her the money, she smiled and thanked me. If I had ruined her, she tolerated it with stunning tact and grace.
Some people think it noble to travel rough.
They stay in guesthouses with either a squat toilet or nothing, sleep in sheets crawling with bloodsucking parasites, bathe in cold rivers early in the morning, flirt with malaria, cholera, and the host of foul demons that plague our systems. One can interpret the whole of scientific history as the expression of humankind's drive to make life easier. Hot showers make me feel good. Air-conditioned coach buses are nice. Ditto for cold beer.