Link Friday

{Former Tunisian President Ben Ali- photo courtesy of Elisha Gentle}

The New York Times posted an interesting article about traveling during chaotic world events. It made me think back on the many trips I'd taken to Tunisia before President Ben Ali fled. One is left to wonder if tourism in the country will ever return to normal but signs don't point to a quick recovery, as many more unemployed Tunisians are now fleeing to Sicily in rickety boats in desperation.  Hoards of tourists used to swarm Tunisia's beaches every summer, while facing the ubiquitous Ben Ali portraits hanging in their hotel lobby, yet with the corrupt dictator now gone, the hotels will be far emptier this summer. I remember the stories my mother told me of the Buddhist statues she visited in Afghanistan during her high school graduation trip from India before they were ever destroyed.  I do think, as the article's author concedes, that sometimes one should heed the government's travel warnings.  His overall message, however, is one of encouragement to travel during these "turbulent times" as a way of becoming truly enlightened. What do you think?