Thanks for your thoughtful reply, Heidi. I have long thought that safety (or lack thereof) is primarily internal. And the externals are not always what one supposes. My daughters have traveled and lived abroad extensively–Europe, Russia, Latin America, Cuba, a little bit in the Middle East. They feel most at risk in the U.S., with its absolutely crazy gun culture not to mention rape culture.

We just got back from a 5 week trip to Europe. Many friends commented that they wouldn’t go there now; our original plans were to spend 3 weeks in Turkey and we changed that time to Vienna, Austria because of the recent terrorist bombings there. But when I read books set long ago, in any part of the planet, I read about random acts of violence and death.

So where are we safe? I think it has to be cultivated from the inside out, along with keeping current on the State Department’s warnings .

Very thoughtful and wise words, Wendy. I certainly wouldn’t put Syria–or Iraq or Pakistan or Afghanistan on my travel itinerary either! It’s very sad how the hot spots keep increasing. My daughter’s high school track coach leads a small group of students on an in-depth tour of several European and one Middle Eastern country every other year. Syria and Lebanon used to be OK, and my daughter went to Egypt. I don’t think the most recent tours have hit any of those countries. Although come to think of it, all of the participants were most at risk not from violence erupting but from the coach’s driving! I am glad you were not in the wrong place at the wrong time a few weeks ago!