15 years after 9/11, a visitor reminds us how travel has the power to transform

The anniversary of 9/11 always reminds me of America’s terrible losses, but it also reminds me, in the wake of the grounding of aircraft, of what we gained: a renewed appreciation for our freedom to travel.

Has the world become a more contentious place in the intervening years? Sometimes it seems that way, but without the benefit of a look back through time’s long tunnel, I can’t know for certain.

What I do know is that travel remains one of the ways that can help us back off from ascribing a national character to people. This happens whenever I look at old photos of my father’s German parents and think them dour, which doesn’t take long to morph into thinking that this must be the Teutonic character.

But if I consider them as individuals, I imagine I’d be dour too, having left a homeland I would never see again, having lost children to diseases that now can be cured, having endured the Great Depression in a country that may not have seemed so great at times. And probably most of all, I would probably look super-dour having to hold completely still for the camera.

Reader Irene DeBlasio of Studio City created an even more vivid picture for me in a note she sent to the Los Angeles Times’ Travel section. I share it with you with her permission as a reminder of the power of those chance encounters.

Here is her story:

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“I recently returned from a one-week trip to London with my grown grandchildren (ages 22 and 24). My husband, Edward, and I had lived in a flat on Flood Street in Chelsea for one year in 1968. Edward worked as the head writer for a TV series called ‘Strange Report’ with Sir Anthony Quayle at Pinewood Studios.

“Before Edward died in February 2015, I had promised him I would take our grandchildren abroad to visit Chelsea.

“I was able to fulfill the promise in mid-August. We had connecting rooms at the Rembrandt Hotel in Kensington, just a few blocks from Harrods.

“While my grandchildren visited Stonehenge, I wandered around Chelsea, my old neighborhood. I walked along Flood Street. (I hadn’t realized how narrow it was.)

“I was amazed by the gentrification, including the pretty townhouses with green village squares. Now, nearly every street had a welcoming patch of green. I walked along historic Cheyne Walk and the lovely Chelsea Embankment as I recalled wonderful times.

“When I turned to walk along King’s Road, I saw a group of hijab-clad women taking tea at an outdoor cafe. How I wished I could take a photograph of the 10 lovely faces. I knew they would decline my request, but I stopped to chat with them.

“The older woman seated at the head of the table looked up at me and asked, ‘Are you American?’ I nodded and said yes.

“She immediately followed with, ‘You know, we love Americans. We love you. You are generous and kind. It’s your government we hate.’

I chuckled a bit and explained that sometimes we’re not pleased with our government either. One of the other women spoke up and explained, ‘Your government is bombing in Syria and killing children.’

“To which I answered, ‘Bashar al Assad has been killing his own people as well. The whole situation is tragic.’

“The older woman pulled a huge bouquet of yellow roses from a shopping bag and handed it to me.

“ ‘We want you to have this. Please take it.’

“I explained I would be returning home to Los Angeles the next day. Then, she yanked out one yellow rose, kissed it and gave it to me, ‘Here — take just one.’

“I was so touched by this brief encounter that after we all hugged, I ran to catch my bus and began to cry. It was such a sweet moment.”

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The transformation of hearts and minds is borne of just such moments. It reminds me that meeting the people who populate the earth is perhaps far more important than checking another monument off your “must-see” list.

May your road lead you always in those directions.

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