With this book, I am introducing the concept of globally aware travel to the general public. I’ve found that travelers are eager to understand how a region’s history fits into the broader human story, why people hold certain values and traditions, how culture and geography shape local foods and customs, why communities embrace different perspectives on major global issues, and how our own worldview influences what we experience when we travel. Exploring these questions—and many others—is at the heart of globally aware travel.
In my years as an educator, world historian, and traveler, I’ve seen how many engaged, curious lifelong learners long to see the world with fresh eyes, hear new perspectives, explore new ideas, and seek out authentic experiences. In response, I am introducing global awareness as a new focus for travel. Denise R. Ames
“Your journey lies before you and will be what you make it.”
Denise R. Ames
About the Book
Do your travels sometimes leave you wishing for a more authentic, meaningful experience? Do you ever wonder what lessons your journeys are trying to teach you? If you’re a culturally curious, engaged traveler seeking a deeper understanding of the world—and a lifelong learner eager to make the world your classroom—then read on. This book was written for you.
Burj Khalifa Hotel, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, photo Denise Ames
More About
Travel with New Eyes:
A Global Awareness Guide for Travelers
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FOR CULTURALLY CURIOUS TRAVELERS
I have written this book to offer culturally curious travelers meaningful ways to deepen their global awareness. In doing so, they can become better equipped to make informed decisions about the state of the world and to navigate these tumultuous and challenging times.
The Coast of Croatia, photo Denise Ames -
A NEW APPROACH: GLOBALLY AWARE TRAVEL
The travel industry provides a mind-boggling array of options to meet the diverse needs and tastes of today’s travelers. In response to this wide spectrum of choices, I am offering a new and distinctive approach: globally aware travel.
Abyaneh Village, Iran, photo Denise Ames -
GLOBAL AWARENESS ENHANCES TRAVELING
This book offers an overview of what I have come to understand as global awareness and the many ways it can enrich our travels. I am excited to share this meaningful and purposeful new focus with you. As an added bonus, throughout the book you’ll also find engaging vignettes from my own journeys.
Butcher in Naples, Italy, photo Denise Ames
Travel with New Eyes Chapter Summaries
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1. Global Awareness for Travelers: A New Focus of Travel
Lays out the case for globally aware travel as a new focus and explains why it offers a compelling approach to travel. It also compares globally aware travel with other travel styles.
Students in China, photo Denise Ames
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2. Path #1 A Holistic World History: Learning from the Past
This unique, holistic, “big picture,” approach to history organizes human development into five critical turning points or waves—Communal, Agricultural, Urban, Modern, and Global.
Children in Finland, photo Denise Ames
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3. Path #2 Five Worldviews: Different Ways We See the World
Will we ever get along? Exploring issues through the lens of five worldviews—indigenous, traditional, progressive, globalized, and transformative—helps us better understand others and ourselves
Women Weaving in Bahrain, photo Denise Ames
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4. Path #3 Cross-Cultural Awareness: Learning About and From Others
Are we all weird? This chapter looks at how cultures differ and what humans have in common, using a cross-cultural framework along with five other engaging, easy-to-understand approaches.
Mayan ruins in Belize,photo Denise Ames
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5. Path #4 Global Issues: A Primer for Travelers
Travelers may encounter—or wish to learn more about—five major global issues: environmental concerns, the global economy, political systems, social challenges, and belief systems.
Check point, Berlin, Germany, photo Denise Ames
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6. Path #5 Time Honored Insights: Integrating Wisdom of the Ages
Like the ancient philosophers, integrating time-honored insights—such as understanding, balancing, connecting, opening up, and laughing—into our travels can unlock profound wisdom.
Mosque in Iran, photo Denise Ames
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7. Path #6 Well-Being: Travel as a Journey of Discovery
Well-being refers to a good or satisfactory state of existence and operates both personally and globally. Travel can enhance our well-being by aligning us to our surroundings.
Village in France, photo Denise Ames
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8. Path #7 Travel as a Mythic Journey: Embarking Upon a Personal Quest
A mythic journey is a personal quest to gain deeper insights into our inner life and our broader purpose in the world. Travel can serve as a transformative and magical mythic journey.
Lebanon/Israel border, photo Denise Ames
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9. Path #8 Lessons from Travel: Applications for Our Daily Life
Travel has the power to teach us countless lessons—if we remain open to its magical insights. What lessons do you hope to learn from your journeys?
Bazaar in Shiraz, Iran, photo Denise Ames
About the Author…Dr. Denise R. Ames
Dr. Denise R. Ames’ diverse life experiences—including teaching, world travel, scholarly research, personal experiences, and reflection—have shaped her holistic approach, global perspective, balanced views, and cultural insights. She earned a doctorate in world history education and has taught extensively. In 2003, she founded the Center for Global Awareness, an educational nonprofit through which she has authored eleven books. CGA’s latest initiative—Global Awareness for Travelers (GATE)—reflects Dr. Ames’ passion for travel and her commitment to fostering global awareness.
Denise in a mosque in Bahrain
I have found that regardless of how I travel—whether by cruise ship, on a road trip, on an overseas tour, or while visiting family and friends—I am always drawn to understanding different cultures and their historical backgrounds. When I uncover the cultural clues hidden beneath the surface, I move closer to my goal of deeper cultural and historical insight. This desire is one of the reasons I wrote this book: to share my passion for travel and the cultural clues I have gathered over the years—clues that help illuminate cultural differences, reveal diverse historical contexts, and ultimately enhance global awareness..
Persepolis in Iran, photo Denise Ames
Even More About the Book
Incorporating the practice of global awareness into your itinerary and habits of mind can enhance your experiences and make your travels more memorable and life-changing.
Grandfather and grandson, China, photo Denise Ames
Globally aware travelers learn from people both similar to and different from themselves, explore significant global issues, consider multiple worldviews, examine layers of world history, and reflect on their inner well-being and their purpose in the world.
Denise crossing the border into US from Juarez, Mexico
My overall purpose in writing this book is to enhance travelers’ global awareness by deepening our understanding of our place in the wider world and our relationships with others.