practising for my IELTS

Question:
some people believe that visitors to other countries should follow local customs and behavior. Others disagree and think that the host country should welcome cultural differences.

Discuss both views and give your opinions.

Answer:

The fascination of people and travel have long been established, with Columbus trying to sail to the East to get to India but instead founded the United states of America. Nowadays, as travel by air gets cheaper, the accessibility of people to various countries have increased. This has allowed, at times, integration of different cultures or a clash of social behavior.

Some countries welcome visitors as it provides economic sense as these visitors bring along with them money to spend and a different perspective of cultures. However, visitors should keep in mind that not all the countries are as open to their culture as some other countries. You cannot be topless at a beach in certain countries as nudity is considered a blasphemy and immoral. As a visitor, you should learn to respect other's people culture and their values as that was what attracted them to the place in the first place.

For the locals, they should realize that the world is becoming more connected in more ways than they can imagine. With high speed internet connections, global positioning system and cheap travel it has become almost impossible for them to keep their minds closed towards other culture existence. Countries like indonesia, thailand and singapore have long open their doors to visitors to the their countries. They are able to accept these visitors as they know that they provide economic boost and thus create jobs that the locals much needed. Even then, they are able to retain their own cultures for example in bali indonesia, these visitors are awed by the traditional dance of the balinese people and they bring back their experiences to their home country. For these host countries, they are able to learn from the visitors as they bring in new technology, new business opportunities for the nation.

Overall, in my opinion, a host country should be able to welcome visitors to their land keeping in mind that they are able to educate its visitors of the traditions and cultures its country offers. For visitors, they can bring their cultures along with them to the countries but they must have a sense of responsibility and sensitivity towards the local customs. They must think that if they do not wish to be offended in their countries with a clash of cultures, they should not too offend the people of the countries they visit.