Are Americans Allergic to Traveling Abroad?

“Are Americans allergic to traveling abroad?” I asked Poonam, an immigrant from Nepal, who states that such a notion is “ridiculous”. Nepal has suffered lately due to a despotic ruler. The newspapers have recently reported that the king has cut off Nepal from the rest of the world by closing airports and shutting down communication. Poonam’s father owns a resort in Nepal, and his family has struggled to keep business open through these tough times.

“How do you explain that only 15% of Americans have passports to travel abroad? Is it because we are lazy?” Poonam furthers that Americans are not lazy or allergic to traveling. He points out that Americans do not have the time to travel abroad. The strength of our economy is based on the working class. He points out that most employees only receive one to two weeks of vacation. In Nepal if he were to take a vacation, his employer would give him one to two months off so that he can travel and enjoy himself. He explains that to travel to Nepal, it takes two days to