With a passport filled with stamps and an unquenchable thirst to see the world, a traveler finds his home with no address.

A sign in the Stuttgart airport states, “Travel somewhere new every year,” a proclamation that rings true with globetrotters who thrive in unknown areas and strive to see as much of the world as they can in their lifetime.

Traveling opens doors to experiencing new levels of culture. From seeing Turkey’s most desolate communities, the Berlin Wall and Morocco, travelers get a firsthand view of what history books were written about.

Traveling around the world is not simply a step out of the comfort zone; it is an entire leap. Navigating through the uncharted territory of new countries is a challenging endeavor but also one of the most rewarding.

Scarier than most milestones such as going to college or getting married, many Americans let travel misconceptions consume them and continue to list flying as one of their biggest fears. However, according to a USA Today article, flying is much safer than driving with 1.27 deaths and 80 injuries per 100 miles driving compared to the zero deaths and almost no injures of flying the same distance. Even without scientific research to back it up, people still consider driving to be a safer mode of transportation than flying.

If Americans are not afraid of flying, they usually are afraid about being unable to communicate because of language barriers. In reality, even if the same language is not spoken, there still are a vast amount of similarities between two nations. Traveling proves, despite all the differences, we have much more in common than most people originally think.

The people who stay sheltered in the same city and state their entire life have no idea how much they are missing. There is an entire world they could go explore the minute they stop letting their fear control them. Traveling can be scary, but the minute that fear is conquered there is an endless world of delicious food, amazing people and beautiful scenery to be discovered.

Traveling is one of the best ways to experience other cultures. Not only will it look good on resumes, but traveling expands minds and allows people to grow. It also introduces people to new environments while allowing them to change their perspectives about cultures and make their own judgments based on their observations.

The world is as big as people make it. A plane can take travelers anywhere in the world, so pack a suitcase, get a stamp and see it for yourself.

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