International Trips That Will Make You Say, ‘Wow, America Is Terrible!’

Japan

Oh, Japan! Mount Fuji, Tokyo, and Arashiyama are just a few of the locations you may want to explore during a visit to this storied, influential East Asian country. While you’re there, don’t shy away from trying new things, like reflecting on the fact that Japan is known for its large middle class, equal income distribution, and low incarceration rate, whereas the US ranks among the highest of developed countries for income inequality and has the highest incarceration rate in the world and has a carceral system that is historically rooted and currently invested in imprisoning black and brown people and maintaining white heteropatriarchy! Your journey to Japan will have you saying, “Good lord, American exceptionalism is a lie!”