Reflections

As I am waiting for my flight at Barcelona Airport, I have been thinking about what I saw and what I learnt in this trip. Over the course of this and the previous two trips in three consecutive years, I have visited many cities in Southern Europe – in France, Italy, Spain, and Greece. People everywhere have been extremely friendly and welcoming. Wherever I have visited, I have been treated warmly, with respect and politeness, with people eager to overcome the language barrier and help me. Most cities are extremely safe, and I have never been anxious even at late hours of the night.

This is a continent which has seen a lot of turmoil and loss in the early and middle twentieth century. Yet, it is refreshing to see the fervent brand of nationalism which was pre-dominant in the twentieth century gradually fade, and observe people becoming increasingly liberal and tolerant of each other. Regions which have fought bitter wars with each other in history now share a common border. People are increasingly multi-lingual. I have met students from Italy studying in Spain and Belgium, Germans studying in Spain, and the French studying in Greece. The increasing diversity of population is evident in most cities.

This is one of the most positive things as we have moved from a very bitter twentieth century to an equally dangerous twenty first century beset with enormous challenges in global terrorism. May we all broaden our vision and outlook so that we can accept each other, co-exist, and prosper. May we all become global citizens so that we can travel to any place on the earth as birds can, without national borders and barriers inhibiting us.