PEOPLE TO PEOPLE - STUDENTS

Passport to Knowledge

International travel helps Brooke Higdon learn the diversity of other societies

By Patrice Stewart
DAILY Staff Writer
pstewart@decaturdaily.com · 340-2446

It can be hard for parents to decide when a son or daughter is ready to face the world alone, or even with a group of other students.

But Mike and Robin Higdon of Decatur weren't too worried about sending their 14-year-old daughter, Brooke, off to China. They knew they had prepared her well, and she would know what to do if, perhaps, a wandering rickshaw driver in Beijing made her late enough that her tour bus left without her (which it did).

The Higdons know that travel can be as educational — or perhaps more so — than the classroom. Visiting Versailles is far better than studying a stuffy-sounding treaty in a history text. Seeing London through Shakespeare's eyes may be more eye-opening than a literature class.

DAILY Photo by Jonathan Palmer
Brooke Higdon returned from a People to People International trip to China with souvenirs that included cloisonne vases, miniature warriors and a jade bracelet.

That's why they took her to Japan when she was 9, to Paris and London at 11, and celebrated her 13th birthday in New York City. By then she had begun eyeing brochures for People to People International trips. But she had already been to many of the scheduled countries, aided by family vacations and her dad's business travel for his job as European manager for Applied Precision, a scientific research instrumentation company.

So when People to People planned a summer trip, "Gateways to China," her parents said yes to Brooke heading off to see Beijing, a city preparing for the 2008 Olympics, Shanghai and more. The Higdons narrowly missed visiting China about three years ago, so for Brooke, it was fun to see somewhere her parents haven't been, even though she didn't know anyone on the trip, including teens from across North Alabama.

Her parents have taken her younger siblings on overseas trips, too, but only one at a time. Bryn, 12, went to France and Italy, while Braxton, 9, went to France.

While they knew Brooke would be closely supervised, they took comfort in the fact that she already knew a lot about airports from traveling with them, and this trip would be more structured than their family travel.

"We told her some basic stuff, such as when you're going out in Beijing, pick up a card from the hotel with its address, and be able to give it to a taxi driver if necessary," said Mike. "And guess what happened? She and another girl did get separated from the group at the end of their rickshaw ride." Mike had activated her cell phone for international use before she left, but it didn't work.

The busload of students left without the last two girls, but chaperones were making their routine count as it drove away. Each of the 32 students had a number to call out, but Brooke was No. 23, so the bus had gone a fair distance when she was missed. She and the other girl stayed by the rickshaws, and the bus soon came back.

"I was actually OK with this trip, because she has traveled overseas with us several times and she's really mature for her age, so I thought she was ready. Plus Brooke is a people person and likes opportunities to meet new people," said her mom. But she and Mike told their daughter she would have to earn about half of the approximately $7,000 the trip would cost.

Robin, office manager for Parents and Children Together, helped Brooke put together a cookbook that included chopstick etiquette, phrases and dynasties, as well as recipes from Cadie Palmer, a former teacher, and Jennifer Pigott Warth, a family friend. Both are now living and working in China. She sold her copies at $20 each.

In the cookbook, "From the River City to the Great Wall," printed by a Tennessee company, Brooke's foreword cites the support of her parents, "who have provided opportunities for international endeavors and who have inspired and encouraged me to understand the diversity of every society."