On gifts and cultural exchange

There was also a lot of information and displays at the discover center about all the cargo that Lewis & Clark took with them: 60,000 lbs worth!! It was all they thought they would need for survival and trading for 30 people for two years. Can you imagine the months that the leaders spent deciding what to take, compiling lists, calculating needed quanitities to venture into a place they knew little about except that there would be no opportunity to resupply? Or what it took for the enlisted men to pole all that weight upriver against the strong current, unload and load it again each time camp was set up and torn down, set it out to dry out after a boat was swamped?

I was interested to see this display about gift exchange and cross-cultural interpretation of "theft" on both sides.  How we need to show respect and active listening skills when we meet new people that we don't understand!