USEUROPEAFRICAASIA 中文双语Français
Home / Culture

Who needs to talk when you can be a lemming

By Sandra Lee | China Daily | Updated: 2010-01-20 08:09

I just returned from a two-week tour of Europe. On my teacher's salary, I could never afford to travel there with Western tours so this was my third go at traveling with a Chinese tour. I have had a wonderful experience on every occasion. Besides the affordability, the truth is that I am a nervous traveler. Making all the reservations and connections is a nightmare for me, so I am ready to sacrifice autonomy for security.

Who needs to talk when you can be a lemming

This does, however, require that one develops the mentality of a lemming, that rodent notorious for following its leaders, even if it is over a cliff. In most aspects of my life, I am extremely independent. No one carries my purse and parcels. I have gone boldly into wildly different life changes, but when it comes to travel, show me a flag and I'll follow it. (I am very grateful, however, that wearing a group hat has gone out of favor. I might have drawn the line there.)

The group leaders were a bit nervous at first. Until they saw me at the airport they thought that Ms Lee was just another Chinese traveler. Furtive phone calls to the agency confirmed that I would, indeed, be one of their flock. I promised them that my not speaking Chinese was not a problem. I'd just go where they pointed. There was one little matter, however. I wouldn't be eating Chinese food with them. I would find an eatery nearby and enjoy local cuisine. It worked out fine. I'd find a bistro or caf nearby and we'd all be happily fed.

Who needs to talk when you can be a lemming

Today's Top News

Editor's picks

Most Viewed

Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349
FOLLOW US