Most of the information here on The Educational Tourist website is about reading before visiting specific places, but this post is all about diversity that you can find anywhere – during your travels to far flung places or during local adventures to your grocery store, school, and church. Diversity is what the world is all about and helping children navigate that diversity in a positive way is a great way to set them up, and really to set us all up, for success!! What is Diversity, anyway? So what is diversity, really? How do we explain that to children? One of my favorite explanations is to u ..read more

The Greek Word No One Can Translate   In researching about Greece before our wonderful Greek adventure, I came across some information which didn’t seem to fit together. In spite of the financial crisis, the austerity measure, and one of the highest unemployment rates in Europe, Greece has one of the highest rates of self-reported happiness in the world. How is it that the people of Greece are so happy in the face of significant negative issues? Is it the religion? The Greeks are a religious group with – reporting that they consider their faith important. But, many countries are made up ..read more

5 Ways You Can Afford A Family Adventure by guest writer, Jane Sandwood Family vacations are incredibly important but can be expensive, with 74% of Americans entering debt just to experience their dream trip. If you are worried about the financial strain then you are not alone. Raising the funds for a trip can be difficult, but it’s worth it. Make a few sacrifices now so that your children can reap the incredible educational and personal growth benefits of travel. Soon you’ll be playing travel games and exploring the world, without worrying about the future debt burden. Fin ..read more

Seeing Art of  Comuna 13, San Javier, a neighborhood of Medellin What a treat to see such amazing street art! I may be a little biased because I love art in all forms but street art is a real treat. Larger than life and so full of color and interesting subject choices. It is always interesting and Comuna 13 is literally FULL of street art. Whether I love the art, hate it, or laugh at it, I’ve never met art that I wasn’t excited about seeing. No matter what, you can have some fun conversations about it! Ask the kids what they think. They always have an interesting perspective and will enjo ..read more

Monastiraki Square European Cities have wonderful squares – open areas where people gather to talk, eat, and visit. Houses in the city are often small so the squares are like living rooms where people spend time relaxing. These gathering places are fun to get a flavor of the city you came to visit. Get out and see what the locals see. Get a snack or a drink and sit a minute to look around and rest your tired traveling feet. Look around and listen. In this particular square in Athens, you’ll get an amazing view of the Acropolis which is especially cool at night. Why Monistraki Square was a su ..read more

Welcome to 2020! We know you have a lot of choices when it comes to travel blog to follow and we want to say a BIG thank you for choosing us. How many choices for travel blogs do you have? Millions and millions! So, out of millions of travel blogs, why choose The Educational Tourist? NO Fluff I can’t get over what I see in some other blogs. They shall remain nameless, here, because my mom said, “If you can’t say anything nice, then don’t say anything at all.” and frankly, I think that is good advice. However; you’ve seen those blogs. Crazy bait and switch headlines. Pages and pages of whiny ..read more

OPA – Let’s dance! Greek Folk Dancing Traveling is a way to experience all that life has to offer. We love to enjoy the music, the dance, the culture, and food! Knowing a little about what you are seeing is a great way to enjoy the experience even more – especially for children. Dance has long been an important part of the cultural fabric of Greece. The Greeks love to dance! Opa means, “Get up! Let’s dance!” Greek dances have been around for a long, long time! Plato, the ancient philosopher wrote about them. Imagine taking part in something with such history! Plato and Socrates agreed, “every ..read more

Comuna 13 Medellin, Colombia *sponsored post* Visiting the neighborhood of Comuna 13 in Medellin, Colombia was the experience I most looked forward to on our Colombian vacation in the summer of 2018. This spot was once the world’s most dangerous neighborhood and yet, by 2014 it was named the world’s most innovative city. I was so curious about how such an amazing transformation was possible! What happened there? Considering there are so many very dangerous parts of the world, what made this special? What did they try here that actually worked and why aren’t we trying it in other parts of ..read more

How to Save Up Enough Money to Travel Lots of people look at travel blogs and sigh – beautiful photos of lovely families smiling in far off locations. Then, they think, “That could never be me.” Those things are for ‘other’ people. We live vicariously through others by reading their blog posts and looking at their photos. Me, too. But, living your life is a choice. The full-time nomads – single people or families have made a choice. They choose to give up the home base stability of friends for the kids and soccer teams. They choose to give up a ‘regular’ job with benefits like insurance and r ..read more

Thinking of Starting a Travel Blog? Is starting a travel blog on your list of New Year’s Resolutions for 2021? Do you enjoy travel? Me, too! Enjoy reading about travel? Me, too! Have you considered starting a travel blog? Me, too! Sure! Why not! You just travel and write and then good things – no – GREAT things fall in your lap, right? Travel blogging looks SOOO easy! Anyone can do it! Should you just start a travel blog in 2021? Is it on your list of New Year’s resolutions? If you are considering starting a travel blog in 2021 as a part of your New Year’s Resolutions for 2021 you are in the ..read more