Where to go - a month abroad?
 

I have had a crazy idea brewing for a while. I would like to have my wife and kids spend about a month in a foreign country with the purpose of opening my children's perspective to being world citizens. I will fly over and get them started but I don't see missing any more than two weeks of work max. My children are 7, 11, and 13 and typical short-attention, electronic addicted American kids.

This would be in Summer. I want the country to speak a language that is not English. The country must be first-world enough that we can obtain medical care if needed. Clean drinking water would be nice. Cheaper is better. It can't be "too foreign" so that the shock overwhelms them - for example - China would be phenomenal but I think it would be too much. This doesn't have to be the only month abroad either, perhaps a first trip is sort of painless (Europe) and another trip later is more daring (Taiwan?)

My wife is worried about finding things to do with my children. I argue that they need to figure it out on their own. Of course, I won't be there when they are whining - she points out.

Current locations that we have kicked around:

Paris - lots of entertaining distractions, easy to live there as an American. Not so foreign.
Barcelona - less entertaining than Paris, still a wonderful city. (understand this is not Mexican Spanish)
Budapest - Not certain. Wife picked it out from research.

My wife prefers a city. I prefer more rural. Wife will be with the kids. Wife wins. We won't have a car. Trying to keep this simple on purpose.

I guess we are drawn to Europe as we have traveled there previously but Central / South America is not out of the question and has the big advantage of speaking Spanish. We just don't know anything about it.

So I turn this to PPOT. Any suggestions?

Thanks,
Larry

Crete?

One of my favorite places on earth......Croatia.
Very inexpensive, the Adriatic is like a big swimming pool, incredible food and lots of history.
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That was the first place that popped into my mind when I saw the question (I've been pondering a similar trip).

Quito , Ecuador.
Awesome place. Major capitol city, driving distance from the Amazon, rain forests, take a boat to the Galapagos, hiking, trails, beautiful architecture, fantastic history, great place.

Russia, no question about it.

And any of the Greek islands. Mykonos is beautiful and has a wonderful night life... Lots of Germans tourists. ;)
The mainland is worth a look to. Athens is interesting but Thessaloniki in the North is wonderful and close to Turkey.

Lots and lots to see and American friendly... In fact friendly to most visiting foreigners.

I know and American family personally that go every year. I've been 4 times. Love the place.

You won't be disappointed, It beautiful.

My opinion is colored by the fact that I am thinking in terms of places I haven't been!

We did this twice as a family, both times when I was between assignments and I could get 30 days of leave. We did Western Europe and the British Isles. We also did the USA and Canada.

All good. However, the place(s) I really want to see have been mentioned: Russia (Estonia, etc. as well) and Croatia (and environs). I have never been in that region or the world but I am making plans!

Fantastic place... If you like blondes and Vodka ;)

Red Square is worth the trip alone. The bars are crazy. The people are stand offish but when you get to now them they're great.

The war memorials had me in awe. I felt a deep respect for the Russian people. Just don't get dragged into a political debate with them.

You should really think about Southern Europe... Spain, France, Italy and Greece... Cyprus is wonderful and steeped in history.

Concur...but my kids are grown and I have been there already! Wife as well.

I'm half Spanish so I spent a lot of time there as a kid.

Given the ages of your kids I'd say England as the base. It is English speaking but it is not the US. They won't be overwhelmed but there is tons of history everywhere. And France is only a train ride away from London.

I vote for any Mediterranean part of Spain/France/Italy. Pick a medium sized town near Barcelona/Nice/Florence and let your family enjoy the weather and the historical sights.

This will be the easiest for your family since they will be able to communicate in English with almost anyone.

If you are thinking about Spain you may want to consider Valencia or Malaga as alternatives to Barcelona. PM me if you want to discuss options in Spain and I will be glad to help.

I was just looking at a map. Croatia has an incredible coastline. Bosnia really got screwed out of their coast!

Paris.
Would be my choice.

I agree with Paris or somewhere near Paris. Barcelona and Budapest are both nice but Paris is....a league apart if not above.

Great idea. Travel rocks.

I love Paris, but a city with the Champs-Élysées, Louis Vuiton, et al is not the broadening experience you seem to be seeking. Croatia could be a good fit; but I'd also support Central/South America as a stepping stone to seeing how the other 80% live. You need to be someplace where English isn't commonly spoken, as it is not in most of the world.

Paris rocks, but ain't cheap. There is a lot of culture and history to absorb, but it won't count much towards learning how other people live.

When I was 11-12 we camp-toured throughout Europe and North Africa, and the most eye opening places we visited in terms of gaining a broader view of how people live were Morroco and Turkey. We had lunch in the clay house of a Berber family. I gave a small model car to one of the kids, and the look of delight on his face was something I remember 40 years on.

But, you need close access to modern facilities, so that may be outside your comfort zone a bit. Look for historic areas in economically depressed countries. Spain would be great.

Monetvideo and Buenos Aires, a flop of SoCal, we are 30 degrees north and they are 30 degrees south, Pacific to Atlantic, similar weather, not as expensive as it used to be,