“Home keeping youth ever have homely wits”, says William Shakespeare.
Traveling aboard has always been considered as a necessary part of one’s education. In olden days young men of noble families were sent aboard after completing their academic career.
Sheikh Saadi and Ibn-i-Batuta traveled over the continents of Asia and Africa for sake of gaining first hand knowledge. Marco Polo came to china all the way from Venice for same purpose.
Nothing else broadens our vision, knowledge and experience as much as traveling does. That is why foreign and inland tours are arranged by government.
Visits to historical places, factories museums and other cities serve the same purpose. We can learn a lot of useful things about agriculture, industrial production and trade by visiting foreign lands. We can gain useful knowledge by watching the mechanized farming in Russia, dairy-farming in Denmark, printing in U.S.A. and fashions in Paris. We can bring fresh ideas to our country which might be profitably introduced here.
Traveling help us in building our personality and character. One has to face hardships in the course of journey, and becomes a seasoned man of the world.
A traveler meets all sorts; of people and he has to deal with them accordingly.
He is able to read their character from their faces. A traveler learns about new customs, new traditions, new habits, new kinds of foods, new dresses and new ways of life. A teacher can learn new practical ways of teaching if he travels other places and other countries.
Traders can benefit most from traveling. They can discover new markets for their products and goods.
In the past Arabs were very successful traders because of the fact that they were travelers. Even today industrialists send their agents to different countries in order to find out the marketing possibilities there. Trade delegates visits different countries and establish trading relations.
Tourist bureaus have been established to develop tourism. As a result hoteliering has become a highly paying industry. With an alert mind and open eyes a travel is all knowledge and sound education. It is always wiser to read books and gain knowledge through them about country, its people, its ways of life and its historical monuments before one decides to visit a country. He can learn much by discussion and talk with the people there and a guide is really an asset.
The easiest and best way of learning a foreign language is to live among people who speak that language. The process of language learning that extends to years can be completed in months. Besides the correct pronunciation, intonation and modulation can be learnt only in this way. And this is possible only through traveling. Colleges arrange botanical tours for plant collection. In this way students are provided with practical knowledge of plants and herbs.
Thus we may conclude that the importance of traveling has always been realized. In these days of cheap, easy and comfortable means of travel one should spend money on traveling. And our educationists as well as our, social institutions should give due importance to it and it should be made a part of college curriculum. 
Written By: Syed Faiz Mujtaba
