Working in groups, middle schoolers plan, take, and document a trip around the world in 1896 using World's Transportation Commission. This collection presents documentary evidence concerning the role of technology at the turn of the twentieth century and raises questions about European and American views of the world during the fin de siecle. These activities require students to penetrate the Western point of view at the turn of the twentieth century and to explore Western perceptions and misperceptions of the non-Western world during the same time period.