While I don't think American youths getting drunk is the norm, that sort of thing does seem to occur often on college campuses, mostly the ivy league colleges. Going places etc like you described above is my idea of fun. Please note my restraint on talking about the various immature and dumb things (like eating Tide pods and snorting condoms) American youths do in their spare time.

It tickles me that so many American and British college kids come to Thailand to teach, but spend their spare time and money getting drunk and doing drugs at western bars with kids from their homelands.

I give them props for being adventurous enough to come here, but staying wasted, hanging only with fellow expats, eating only at western restaurants, and visiting only tourist resorts seems to me like they are missing the point of traveling to Thailand.

there are many different young people

I had to disagree on terms that when I used to go around the Mediterranean sea... Where ever I went... I found British, Irish, Scottish everywhere in the Med. To the point I used to ask them "Who the hell is in England?" Smiling they will say... tourists, foreigners. Lotsa fun memories of the Britts still trying to own the Med Sea. But what young people don't have is money, In Crete, the waiters in all the bars where over 80% from the UK. You have to work and be creative to travel. But many young are just too lazy to pay for their own adventures. I remember in my college days... my friends (5 females I had to say), decided to go live in Mexico City for a year. I was the only one without the resources... I said... Hell no... you girls are females... you ran out of money, you can shack with a guy that will love to have a 'Rican GF. I am a dude. I go for the summer... but not for a year. They stayed for a year and 2 of the girls ended being roommates with a previous college GF of mine they met over there. I freaked out when I saw the pictures... It is a Fucking Small World after all. I am in L.A. on a concert and here it is a guy that used to be a bartender in San Juan. ADVENTURE!!!

All different kinds of young folks out there ya know ...

Still young, still don't have a desire to drink or party. I'm an anomaly. I like genuine adventures as long as it doesn't bother my introverted self too much. Never too much to appear reckless.

Im really old and I love adventures (Not the getting extremly drunk kind)

I love to travel as does my wife of 42 years and we’ve been to many places in the world including the Great Wall of China, Germany, The Czech Republic, Italy, Hong Kong and New Zealand. We also do quite a bit of traveling in the US in our travel trailer and are planning on taking a trip with 2 of the older grandsons aged 7 and 5 this summer. That one might be quite a trip!

Do what you want when you're young, be it travelling or getting completely drunk. You're going to spend the rest of your life working to the point of exhaustion so you can afford the bills/mortgage/rent/offspring/new roof/replacement bathroom/petrol/kids' college/holidays/bigger house/new car/things you can't even imagine until you think you've caught up and then another expense arrives, so what the hell - make the most of whatever you want to do.

It's about the same as when I was younger..

I never did the adventures, I was too serious about like and too desperate to keep a job and roof over my head. My kids on the other hand go anywhere and everywhere. Fly across the weorld with almost no notice to catch up with a friend. Personally, I can't see the merit in it. But as they say, I am a boring old fart.