A WALK THROUGH BEAUTY & HISTORY IN ITALY

I come home with excess baggage every time I travel.

- MILLET M. MANANQUIL

That baggage is called envy. Nation-envy.

In Japan, I feel so envious when I see cleanliness, respect and patriotism as the Japanese way of life. In Thailand, I see how the people are proud of what they have and they develop these fully for tourists to appreciate.

Having just come from a trip to the provincial side of Italy, I felt so envious of what I saw.

People so proud of their culture, history and heritage, they do their best to preserve these.

They keep these nice and clean for both domestic and foreign tourists. During my 10-day trip, I saw nary a piece of garbage on the streets.

Why are Philippine roads strewn with snack wrappers and rivers polluted with flotsam and jetsam? Is it because of poverty which results in lack of education? A New York Times writer has a better term for this: cultural poverty.