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Parents around the world dream of heading out to see the world with their children. They’ll spend their days exploring the deserts of the Egyptian pyramids or gaze upon the dusty rose colored Taj Majal under a full moon. They’ll travel on buses, planes, trains, and donkey carts. But on bicycle? Exploring the world with kids on bikes?

My husband and I have cycled over 21,000 miles through 12 different countries with our 12 year old twin boys and have discovered that traveling on bicycles with children is the best way to travel.

When traveling on buses or other motorized vehicle, you tend to hop from one city to the next, and skip over the small villages. The bike forces you to get off the beaten track and spend time in the small villages – and therefore you get to know the country better. In the villages, you’ll see life as it really is and will learn more about a country from the country folk rather than city folk. In today’s world, cities are becoming more and more generic, while it’s the villages that have retained the character of the country. Traveling on bicycle allows you get out of the city and get to know the country.

Motorized vehicles encase you in steel and glass and isolate you from Mother Nature. Traveling on bicycle without the protective layer of your vehicle around you, you’ll be more in touch with nature. You’ll feel the wind in your hair and rain on your cheeks. You’ll grind up hills using muscle power only, so will truly understand what those hills are. You’ll feel the effect of altitude on temperature as you climb into the mountains.

But more than that, by touring on bicycles, children learn important life lessons that will carry them through life. They learn to persevere through hardships – knowing they will come out victorious on the other side. They learn there are times when only through teamwork can you achieve your goal. They learn that sometimes, the only thing you can do is put one foot in front of the other, set your sights on making it through the next 60 seconds, and forge ahead.

Yes, kids can learn these things in other ways, but traveling on bike is not only more effective, but more fun!

Nancy Sathre-Vogel has been bicycling with children for more years than she cares to think about. She is now cycling from Alaska to Argentina with her sons as they attempt to become the youngest people in the world to pedal the entire Pan American Highway.. You can get a unique content version of this article from the Uber Article Directory.