The first was In Papua New Guinea, by Christina Dodd. This is the story of a British woman who makes her way across PNG, by horseback and by foot. With little information about the country, no map and only her senses and the goodwill of the people to guide her, she has incredible adventures and encounters with most everyone she meets.

I just finished Travelling Light by Robyn Davidson, one of my favorite travel writers. Robyn has, among other things, trekked across the Australian desert with a few camels in tow and spent months traveling with camel traders across the desert in Rajasthan. Travelling Light is a compilation of some of her stories about her travels as well as observations of Aboriginal life down under.

I’m now reading (for the second time) Tim Cahill’s Road Fever about his attempt at breaking the Guinness Book of World Record’s time for driving from the tip of South America to Alaska.

In all of these cases, I love that the authors’ experiences were saw raw, so natural and that they were, in many respects, so unprepared for their adventures. Without access to a gazillion bits of information, they had to do what research they could through books and do their social networking by phone and snail mail.

Early Travels
These books remind me of my first real journey when, in 1987, I took a semester off from college, packed up my car and drove across the country for 3 months visiting friends who were attending universities across the U.S. That’s also when I discovered youth hostels and began meeting people from around the world for the first time.

I remember hand writing a letter that outlined my potential route, photocopying it and mailing it to everyone I knew so that they could expect my arrival at some point during those 3 months. If they weren’t home when I arrived (no one had cell phones let alone email), I stayed in the local youth hostel or moved on to the next city.

That trip was what got me hooked on travel. It was the excitement of the unexpected. The slight nervousness of knocking on the door of someone whom I’d met briefly 6 months earlier. Would they answer the door? Would they find me an annoyance to deal with? Or embrace the chance to host this crazy solo traveler from New Jersey making her way to California.

During that trip, I saw my first sunset on the Pacific Ocean (I felt compelled to clap after such a performance!); I celebrated my 21st birthday at the Pigeon Point Lighthouse hostel in Pescadero, California; I “flew” a twin-engine prop plane in Texas when the pilot took a small group of us from a hostel up for a thrill ride and allowed each of us to handle the controls; I also spent a lot of nights on friends’ couches (and many hungover mornings there, too

I miss those days (well, not the hangovers). I miss not planning. I miss the unexpected, the mystery of what’s next. And I miss not having the pressure of letting everyone know where I am, if not daily, then at least every few days.

You could argue that this kind of travel still exists if a person wanted it badly enough. One could set off relatively blindly on a journey without doing too much research. It’s possible to go off the grid, hop in a car and take a road trip. A person could disappear for months at a time in India and never “have” to check email or add a status update on Facebook.

But the reality is that few people (me included) are capable of doing this because of our addictions to our electronics and our false belief that we are truly “connected” to everyone in our network.

Some people may have the desire to go off the grid but pressure from family and friends is immense and it’s expected that you’ll keep everyone posted on your whereabouts. If you “disappear” for even a few days, loved ones worry because they know you “should” be able to check in from anywhere, so why didn’t you!!??

Some of the times that have been most precious to me of late have been when I was trekking in Bhutan or traveling through Papua New Guinea and had absolutely no access to email or cell phone service. It’s liberating to be forced into experiencing what’s right in front of you rather than being distracted by other people’s status updates a half a world away.

Look, I love researching for a destination and connecting with people in my network. Invaluable information can be found online, I’m not dismissing (or judging) that fact.

What I am saying is that I miss my old way of travel.

It’s not for me to say which way is “better,” but something’s definitely been lost in the art of travel in the last 10 years. I don’t expect newbies to travel to understand this. You can only grieve about it if you once experienced it. I just think it’s too bad that those who are just starting out will likely never know this purity of adventure.

Travel Well,

Beth

To start things off on the right foot, it’s a tradition for Jon and I to go out to eat on New Year’s Eve. Notebook in hand, we make plans for the new year. We spend a bit of time acknowledging how grateful we are for what we do have. This year was particularly poignant as we noted that so many people in this country are in dire financial trouble while we’ve created a life that includes jobs we are each passionate about (me: travel, Jon: technology).

Some of the plans we talk about during our December 31st dinners come to life while others don’t. Looking back at my plans from 2006 for example, those that I followed through on included writing a book, starting a tour business and going to India (which happened 5 times over since then). Those that didn’t work out so well included owning a Smart car and playing classical guitar better than my friend’s son (you still got me on that one, Harry).

Not one to spend too much time dwelling on the past, I’m invigorated by the start of something new. There’s so much promise and hope at the beginning. Whether it’s a new week, month, year, project or journey. And although it takes a lot of fortitude to keep picking myself up if plans don’t go as expected, there’s always a new way to look at a problem that gets me excited all over again.

So what’s in store this year? I have to admit that I’m equally pulled in 2 directions. I want to grow Wanderlust and Lipstick/WanderTours but I know I need to work less. I want to travel more but not as much for business (what happened to those monthly weekend getaways with Jon?). I want to have more free time but I also recognize that having structure is the only way to see something through.

What I do know is that today I’m looking at a fresh list of ideas for the year. None of these are impossible so I have no excuses . They include:

• Spending 1 day a week computer-free without checking my email on my iPhone.
• Doing 100 pushups/day (I started this over the summer and kept it up for 2 months – until my travel schedule got the better of me and I fell off the wagon).
• Completing a half marathon (likely over Thanksgiving weekend here in Seattle).
• Creating a will and a trust (something that Jon and I have been talking about doing for years).
• Filling the 9 tours that we’ve got scheduled for this year.
• Spending more time writing about/promoting indigenous rights (I have a great interest in indigenous cultures but haven’t managed to wrap my head around how to best help these under-recognized peoples).
• Getting back to my twice-weekly guitar lessons with my amazing teacher, Ian. And, perhaps, finally playing better than Harry!
• Drinking less coffee, more tea.
• Eating less sugar, more veggies.
• Doing less work, having more fun.

Throughout the year I’ll make lists, stick post-it notes on my whiteboard to organize the day’s priorities and tap out reminders to myself on my iPhone – all in attempt to keep myself on track.

What are your plans for 2012? Travel? Staying put? Getting a new job? Inquiring minds want to know…

Travel Well,

Beth

Photo credit:
Lotus: _virdi_

I had been to Vancouver numerous times before but it’s usually been in the off season – and by that I mean it was raining. This time, the weather cooperated a bit more and I realized just how walkable the city is.

The kickoff party for this travel blogging conference was held at the Vancouver Art Gallery. It was a brilliant location for the event. We occupied nearly the entire main floor. It gave us space to spread out, network and enjoy the open bar and food. It was loud however, and I found myself shouting just to be heard. Just as my voice was giving out, discovered an exhibit that was open, so I made my way out of the crowd and into the Gallery’s featured exhibit (through September 25) called The Colour of My Dreams: The Surrealist Revolution in Art.

While I walked into the exhibit area to get away from the crowds, I found myself stumbling into a dreamy (quiet) world of paintings by Salvador Dali, Max Ernst, Edith Rimmington and Andre Breton. I’m not a huge gallery person (though I did buy a membership this year to the Seattle Art Museum), but I was captivated with the collection (which includes 350 works in all).

I don’t recommend art exhibits lightly because they usually aren’t high on my own list, but see this exhibit if you find yourself in Vancouver!

The other highlight of the weekend was a culinary tour of Granville Island, led by a Executive Chef at the Pacific Institute of Culinary Arts, Julian Bond. We walked the island, learned about Vancouver’s growing Spot Prawn business, how the region is supporting sustainable fisheries and growers, and why “ripe on the vine” tomatoes aren’t. We visited Chef Julian’s favorite fruit and veggie stands and favorite deli, and even sampled cheeses, fig spread (and for some, prosciutto).

Chef Julian is so full of energy and enthusiasm for the culinary arts that I wanted to enroll in the professional program on the spot. (His description of how to best kill a lobster quickly turned me, a vegetarian, off to that idea, however.)

I stayed downtown at the Metropolitan Hotel. Though its website calls it a “luxury hotel,” the rooms are quite affordable, especially given its location. A few searches I did for summer dates resulted in about $230/night Canadian. The hotel is perfectly situated so that you can get to many activities and restaurants downtown without having to rely on taxis or public transportation. A good pair of walking shoes are all you’ll need.

This central location meant that I could walk back and forth to Granville Island with ease, to the convention center (where my conference was held) and also to many other attractions.

Want to read more about Vancouver? Each month, the Travel Blog Mob offers up a variety of insights on a given topic. If you’re interested in some other perspectives on the city, pop over to these other posts.

Spot Cool Stuff – 3 Cool & Affordable Places to Stay in Vancouver
Sharing Travel Experiences – A Photo Tour of Vancouver’s Granville Island
The Vacation Gals – Travel Bloggers Conference in Vancouver
Ciao Bambino – Things to do in Vancouver with Kids

Travel Well,

Beth

Photo Credit:
Vancouver Skyline: Tourism Vancouver
Vancouver Art Gallery – Camilo Arango

“Nobody trips over mountains. It is the small pebble that causes you to stumble. Pass all the pebbles in your path and you will find you have crossed the mountain.” ~Author Unknown

Want to know what my biggest fear was when I road my motorcycle from Seattle to Panama? It wasn’t the Mexican police. Or having my motorcycle stolen. It wasn’t being kidnapped (which most everyone I knew believed would happen to me). It was simply whether I’d be able to find a flat place to park the bike: at my hotel, at a rest stop or at a gas station. This is what kept me up at night while preparing for the trip. This was my “pebble.”

I had envisioned the bike tumbling over when the kickstand sank in the dirt. Or worse, that it would roll down a hill and tip over. Of all the things for me to focus on, I picked a tiny detail and let it petrify me.

I’m not sure that I’m unique. I think we all tend to enlarge potential issues when thinking about our travel plans, particularly if we’re planning something adventurous, off-the-beaten path. What if, what if, what if. Rarely are these what if’s insurmountable.

It’s often the little things that we sweat over which forces our travels to take on mythic proportions. But the reality is that we just need to put one foot in front of the other and make our way past each of those pebbles. And we all have different pebbles that block us. It could be finances, our job or, so often with women, the fear of whether we will be safe during a trip.

If you’re stumbling over pebbles and you can’t get up, consider a systematic approach to making your travel plans.

Visualize
Create the mental space to visualize your journey in all of its outrageous possibilities. What is your wildest dream destination or adventure? If you had all the money in the world and no limits to hold you back, where would you go? What would you do? How would you spend your precious travel time on this fantastic planet? Don’t let the what if’s get in the way.

I’m constantly keeping notebooks and pages of ideas whether it has to do with my travels, business or lifestyle. I will often come across a piece of paper, tucked in the back of a drawer or folded up in an old daybag. Written years earlier, I’m always amazed at how many of these “dreams” will have come true since writing these ideas down.

Don’t dismiss the power of putting pen to paper when it comes to making something happen for yourself.

The Obstacles
Make another list of your personal “pebbles.” What are those small items that you believe will get in the way of making your dream happen? Is it a family member’s voice in the back of your mind that says, “You can’t go there as a woman!” Is it your boss who won’t let you have time off? Is it because you feel you couldn’t possibly save enough cash for your trip?

Whatever the obstacle, when you make this journey your single point of concentration, you’ll find that nothing will stop you and the universe will make way for everything to work in your favor.

Get Planning
Of course, nothing will happen without a little elbow grease on your part. You can’t exactly leave everything in the hands of the universe.

While you’ve got that pen and paper out, start making a list of all the little (and often VERY fun) things you’ll need to do to set the wheels in motion. Search for flights. Window shop for your favorite travel items. Make a packing list. Start setting things aside that you’ll want to carry with you. Start your research and buy books about your destination.

Rather than making a mountain out of those pebbles, start chipping away at them one by one. Breaking them down into small chunks will make them easier to step over or brush aside.

What do you to get past the pebbles?

Travel Well!

Beth

Related links:
RTW and Long Term Travel
Unsafe Travels in Uncertain Times
What Constitutes a Dangerous Destination?
A Monk Walks onto a Plane

Photo Credit
Pebbles – Tim Green
Mountain – kiwinz

What stood out to me was that she was craving more information about long term travel. You know, those round-the-world trips that seem to be so trendy now that people have found themselves out of work, unable to find a job after college or simply looking for more meaning other than their 12-hour a day job in the tech world.

Anastasia was absolutely right. I didn’t touch on this type of travel much because when I wrote the first edition of this book 4+ years ago, there was little mainstream talk about long-term travel. My year-long trip in 1992 was an anomaly at the time to most Americans and Canadians (for which my book was primarily written). But I’m ecstatic to now hear about so many people, including WanderMom, that are in the middle of, just returning from or are working on details for long term travel, whether it’s a month, several months or a year away.

While Rolf Potts has done a great job for years at inspiring people to plan for long-term travel (from 6 weeks to 2 years), a few years ago I wouldn’t have said this was a big trend in travel. As a matter of fact, I can’t even find any statistics on this “trend” which makes me think it’s so not a trend as to be pre-trendy. (Anybody have stats on whether people are actually traveling for longer periods of time?)

Anecdotally, I can say that I’ve never heard so many people talk about long-term travel as I have since the economic downturn. Not to pick on her, but Anastasia, at 21, might be a little young to know that this is a recent phenomenon. And the fact that young people think this is the norm and that all travel guides should address this topic is a good sign that the world of travel is changing.

I recently met Warren and Betsy at a Seattle travel event. They launched Married with Luggage to share information and stories about their planned four-years of travel. They’ve sold their home and most everything in it. Early in their planning phase, they discovered that it’s actually cheaper to travel for an extended period of time rather than a short time because of the cost of flights and other modes of expensive transportation involved when you’re in a hurry. You know the adage, you either have time or money. While most of us travel with more money than time, Warren and Betsy have turned that on its head and decided to spend more time and less money.

But they aren’t the only ones…

Just in my circle (which admittedly might be unique), many people are taking off on a vagabonding trip. My friend, Dave, just returned from a bicycle trip from Seattle to the tip of South America. He upped and quit his tech job, sold his house and jumped on the bike. WanderMom is leaving at the end of the summer with her family on a worldwide tour with her husband and 2 young boys. Then there’s Gary at Everything Everywhere and NomadicMatt who are on seemingly non-ending journeys. And Johnny Jet, who by all appearances has a home but is always on the road.

What are your travel plans and have they changed in the last few years?

Travel Well!

Beth

Related links:
Unsafe Travels in Uncertain Times
What Constitutes a Dangerous Destination?
Getting Over Reverse Culture Shock
A Monk Walks onto a Plane
American Travel Ethos

Photo credit: Globe by Horia Varlan