all aboard, america!

Last weekend I took the train from Seattle to Portland to visit my family. My rationale was simple – gas is too pricey and I wanted to get some work done while in-transit. As always, the trip was a delight. Besides logging several hours of productive time from the comfort of my seat, I suffered no road rage and had some delightful views along one of my favorite sections of Puget Sound.

A day later I read that Amtrak was reporting record ridership in June and climbing. It made me feel good to think that the gas crisis may have some positive impacts on the way we move about the country. The train system in the United States has long been in jeopardy, which is really a shame. I’m both a sentimentalist and a romantic, but I love train travel and want to see it thrive.

If you are planning a trip in the States, the Amtrak route is appealing on many levels. Seats are roomy and comfortable, service is friendly and relatively punctual, and ticket prices will rival or beat the cost of most driving routes these days. Haven’t been on a train in awhile? Check out Amtrak’s site for an overview of their routes and amenities, and convenient online ticketing.

Next time I go to Portland I plan to take my bike on the train – only $5 more! A true car-free weekend sounds delightful.

I’ve long been aware of the fantastic community based travel organization Andaman Discoveries, and may admiration for their work has only grown over the years. If you are headed to Thailand and want a real cultural immersion and a chance to lend a hand helping communities along the Andaman coastline rebuild and rebound from the devastating tsunami, this is it!

These winners of the 2007 Virgin Holidays Responsible Tourism Award offer it all: eco-tours, cultural tours, interactive handicraft workshops, and volunteer placements, even for those with limited time. They also include special program for women, families and for “mature” travelers.

Eco-adventurers will love the tropical jungle hikes and paddling through the mangroves, and everyone benefits from a Thai translator, which allows you to truly engage with the people you encounter along the way. These guys can also bring you into small villages where you can mingle with the locals and buy traditional handicrafts from a community-run co-op.

If you’d like to pitch in on a volunteer project, Andaman Discoveries facilitates several; everything from helping conserve mangrove forests and develop nature trails to assisting with tutoring at the community center or taking part in the progressive waste management and recycling programs they support.

The Thai people are among the most friendly in the world, and any chance to immerse yourself more deeply in their culture is sure to be a highlight on anyone’s itinerary.

Photo by sun dazed / creativecommons.org

Maybe you caught the news report last week – in response to soaring oil prices, American Airlines announced last week that it will now be imposing charges on your FIRST checked bag. Ouch! This comes on the heels of new surcharges from several other airlines for a second checked bag, something we all took for granted when we flew the friendly skies till now.

As I reported in an earlier blog, packing light is the responsible way to travel right. It’s an extension of the tenets of simple living that translates beautifully into travel experiences that stress people and places, not stuff.

So here’s the new challenge: can you fit everything you need into one carry-on? No problem, says Doug Dyment, the packing guru who runs the website onebag.com. His website equips travelers with the tools they need to bring all the essentials for any country and climate in one single carry-on bag.

Among his top tips for packing in one bag:

Develop a master packing list and stick to it when you pack. Don’t fall prey to the “What if something comes up and I need this” syndrome that plagues last-minute packers in the heat the moment.

Don’t let any space go unused when you are packing. Remember that you can nestle things inside tennis shoes, for example.

Bring versatile items that can work in a variety of situations. Shoes that can be dressed up and dressed down, clothing that all follows the same general color scheme, and reversible items are all examples of this.

Choose efficient, effective luggage that you can make the most of while still fitting in the overhead compartment.

Check out Doug’s master packing list (over 100 items to fit in a carry-on?!) as well as his special “bundle wrapping” technique for clothing at www.onebag.com.

With the promise of warmer days on the horizon, as well as travel plans to tropical climes, my toes are itching for the freedom of a pair of flip-flops.

A few weeks ago at Seattle’s Green Fest, I came across THE ULTIMATE pair – a green traveler’s dream!

Simple shoes, who started out back in the day outfitting the feet of the skateboarding crowd, has recently turned their attention towards reducing the ecological footprint left by their shoes. As a result, pretty much their entire line is now made from a host of sustainable materials like hemp, recycled car tires, bamboo, jute, wool felt, cork and crepe.

The current object of my desires is Simple’s Women’s Toe Foo flip-flop. # These cute flip-flops are made of hemp and organic cotton, lined with bamboo and havea natural crepe outsole. Simple uses water-based cements to put the works together and even ships them out to you in a biodegradable bag.

Be sure to check out the entire Simple Green Toe line and explore Simple’s Greentoe-ology, which walks you through the innovative processes they are using to bring nature to your feet.

Now where’s my stimulus check?!

Is it really a surprise?

photo courtesy of sigurdas/creative commons

A recent study highlighted by Responsible Travel showed that over two-thirds of the people who book their popular “ethical holidays” online are women. Their take on the findings? They claim it shows that “women care more about the environment and social impact of their holiday decisions than men”.

While I’m not going to refute or defend the claim, I was encouraged to see another statistic from this study: of the women who booked, roughly one third booked to travel alone, highlighting the increase in independent and small group travel. Women are traveling solo around the world more than ever before.

Another 45% of the women in the survey booked holidays for two, which seems to show that in many cases the ladies are the decision-makers when it comes to vacation time. The general shift towards more responsible, meaningful choices in travel is perhaps just another reflection of our culture’s shift towards a more sustainable way of living.

Okay, raise your hand if you are as excited as I am for the arrival of the sweet days of spring!

The warmer days are sure to draw many of us out of our hibernation holes and onto backroads and trails. Whether you are day hiking just beyond the city limits, or doing a multi-day trek in some remote mountain range, consider these tips to limit your environmental footprint:

Give a hoot!
Litter is a widespread problem in most of the areas that hikers tread. Consider this: it is only since the arrival of non-biodegradable consumer items that the concept of litter has begun to take hold—before, everything was made from biodegradable materials or continuously recycled, and there was no waste. Streamers of used lavatory products and pop cans, plastic bottles, bags and containers on the trailside are a sad reflection on those who would call themselves mountain lovers. The solution is simple and summed up in the often used phrase, “pack it in, pack it out”.

Burn, baby, burn
On the trail, make sure you burn all of your toilet paper or carry it out to the trash cans at the trailhead. Keep a cigarette lighter or some matches in a plastic bag along with your packable toilet paper.

BYOW
Bring your reusable water bottle rather than a plastic one, so you aren’t tempted to shed it when it’s empty. If it’s a multi-day (or you’re a big drinker) consider bringing a water filter or iodine tablets and treating your own drinking water along the way. Mmm, there’s nothing quite like the taste of cold mountain spring water during a challenging hike.

Keep it clean
If you are bathing, washing clothes or washing up in a stream, make sure you use biodegradable soaps so as not to taint the water. Remember, there are animals and sometimes even communities of people downstream that depend on that water being clean!

No bushwacking
Avoid taking shortcuts on steep sections of trail: many others will follow your footsteps. Although your actions may seem minuscule, when several thousand hikers multiply them each year they become significant. Also avoid hiking along small animal runs you see cutting through the underbrush – they are the byways of smaller animals who cannot travel on the larger wildlife paths for risk of exposure to predators.

Mind the greenery
Watch where you tread so that you don’t squash precious plant life and disrupt fragile ecosystems. Also, tempting as it may be, it’s best to leave plants alone so that they can be enjoyed by other passers-by.

Check your pyromania
Yes, campfires are cool, but they should be regarded as a luxury. Don’t ever create a bonfire where a firepit does not already exist – fires create ugly scars on the ground that take years to fade away and eat up precious natural resources. Campers should always bring a stove and enough fuel to cook with.

Photo by Matt McGee / Creative Commons

A recent trip to Seattle’s southerly sister—Portland, OR —has me very excited about the green lodging options that have popped up like mushrooms all over the stomping grounds of my youth.

“Stumptown” (or Portland, OR as it is better known today) originally earned its’ nickname during the big boom days of the mid-1800’s, when the city was growing so fast that laborers hurriedly left tree stumps behind in newly-cut roads. Folks in this frontier town used to hop between stumps to cross the muddy bi-ways.

Today, the stumps are gone, the streets are paved and modern visitors do not have to pitch prospectors’ tents in the muck in order to catch a bit of shut-eye.

In fact, Portland’s thriving eco-conscious culture and a host of sustainably-minded businesses, make it the perfect destination to get your green on.

Looking to keep it green while sawing some logs in Stumptown? Check out these establishments:

•The Heathman Hotel, offers swanky downtown digs with a self-professed commitment to going green. Their Go Green Package includes a tree planted on guests’ behalf.

•Also downtown, the Hotel Vintage Plaza and the Hotel Monaco, offer chic boutique lodging with eco-friendly practices, such as comprehensive recycling programs, paperless check-in and parking discounts for drivers of hybrid cars.

•The hip Ace Hotel, a haven in the trendy Pearl District, is housed in a LEED certified building and outfitted with reclaimed and recycled materials, crafted by local artisans into a work of minimalist art. The Ace keeps pollution down by offering bicycle rentals as one of its amenities.

•Travelers on a backpacker’s budget should head to the Portland Hawthorne Hostel, where guests take refuge under a living green roof, and those arriving by bike are rewarded with a discounted rate.

•Even business travelers can enjoy an eco-stay in Portland, thanks to the Doubletree Hotel & Executive Meeting Center. Their lengthy brag book of eco-practices includes comprehensive recycling and food waste composting programs, as well as retrofits to power and water outlets that have decreased energy consumption by 32%.

First there was the original master, National Geographic Magazine, which has made armchair anthropologists of us common folk since 1888. In more recent years, Natl. Geo has expanded it’s coverage through additional periodicals such as Traveler and Adventure. This month, National Geographic launches a timely new glossy – The Green Guide.

Green Guide started as a faxable newsletter in the early nineties and then expanded to a website in 2002. Recently NG decided to extend its reach with the addition of a full-fledged print-edition of the magazine, in the hopes of reaching the most people with their instructions and inspiration to help care for the planet.

While green travel is an obvious arena to be covered within its pages, the Green Guide also brings a simpler, more pragmatic set of tips and talk to the table. This month’s premier edition (which premieres today on newsstands across the nation) includes articles on greening your car, saving money while saving the planet and reducing your carbon footprint. It is truly intended as a DIY guide for the average consumer to empower them to help save the planet.

True to their word, the print-edition of Green Guide is Forest Stewardship Council certified, using a percentage of post-consumer recycled paper and sustainably-sourced ink. As another option, Green Guide offers an online digital subscription option as well, which is tree-free and user-friendly with active hyper-links within it’s e-pages.

photo by Rev. Santino/Creative Commons

Not to be left in the dust of the 1970’s, the San Francisco-based Green Tortoise company has recently adopted some forward-thinking eco-initiatives to reflect the conscientious nature of their travelers.

Not familiar with the Tortoise? Sometimes referred to as a “counter-culture” bus line, Green Tortoise operates unique, affordable communal-style bus tours of the U.S. (primarily along the west coast), as well as dipping down into Mexico and Central America. Their trips appeal to the younger, independent backpacker set who are ready to sleep in a bunk on the bus, share communal vegetarian meals at rest stops and get to know their fellow adventurers.

The folks at Green Tortoise will be the first to point out that their attitudes have always been shaped around environmental sensitivity—after all, a GT sleeper coach averages over 200 passenger miles per gallon on most trips, removing up to 36 cars from the road at once.

But in 2007, Green Tortoise made the switch to naturally-sourced biodiesel for as much of their bus fleet as possible.They also have built carbon offsets into their trip fees, which they subsidize 50% of for their guests, through a partnership with carbonfund.org.

The Green Tortoise is also a member of the Co-op America Business Network, which recognizing them as a “business that operates in a way to solve, rather than cause, both environmental and social problems.”

New to the GT line-up: bus trips to several national parks like Zion and Yellowstone as well as popular fairs and festivals like Burning Man and Mardi Gras.

Read the full schedule at www.greentortoise.com.

photo by Netream/creative commons

Those of us who travel with a purpose, who voyage seeking a journey that goes deeper than the proverbial surface streets, are often guided by our hearts more than our heads. In the cacophony of noises that fill the air of every place in the world, there is a sound that rises above them all, a constant language to which all human ears are tuned. That is the language of the heart, music.

Exploring the local music scene when you travel is a great way to feel the pulse of a village, a city or even a nation. Whether or not you actually like what you hear is secondary; listening to local tunes is a destination’s secret confessional session. You don’t have to speak the local dialect to hear the message of their music – there is an emotional landscape painted in every beat.

Here are a few tips to let music infuse your travel and make it more meaningful:

1. Catch a variety of live performances
Check the local listings wherever you travel for opportunities to see live music, and opt for the both the grand opera house experience as well as the alley-side bar gig. This allows you to share in live art with the locals, experiencing what they value and being with them at play. The music itself, tangible as it is being created before you, becomes a part of the tapestry of your travel memories.

2. Go dancing
There is a giddy freedom that comes with shakin’ your booty among strangers! At a small beach party in Thailand one New Year’s Eve, I spent an evening dancing to techno with a delighted Thai grandma. Though I had stumbled through a few Thai phrases with her over the weeks I had lived in her neighborhood, so much more was communicated between us through the smiles and laughter that we shared on the dance floor. The willingness to give up your inhibitions and bust a move connects people instantly.

3. Buy local music to bring home
I always try to bring a couple of CDs home from every trip, so that when I go through my photos at home I can add this auditory element to enhance my memories. Sharing international music with audiophiles at home provides them with a great window into another culture.

4. Consider traveling with an instrument
A good friend spent months backpacking across several countries with a small Martin backpacker’s guitar. He was an instant hit in every village he wandered into! People approached him often to sing and to listen, and as an intimidatingly tall westerner he found that the instrument disarmed him in some way. If guitar’s not your thing, consider something smaller, such as a harmonica, flute or mini hand drum like a dumbek. Check out the selection of instruments from around the world at Lark in the Morning.

5. Use technology to capture the music of a place
Many of today’s travelers are using things like mp3 players or mini-disc recorders to capture audio “snapshots” of their travels. My partner and I have captured the sounds of street performers, impromptu children’s serenades, Buddhist monks chanting and even the blaring Thai pop that punctuates bus rides all over Asia with a mini-disc recorder and a small microphone.

Stay in touch with the world music scene and let the music move your suitcase at Anne Stewart’s Travel Tracks blog here on the Wanderlust and Lipstick site!