Marilyn at the Plitvice National Park in Croatia
Enjoy Marilyn’s work at Intelligent Travel. Follow @Marilyn_Res
- - -
“The world is a beautiful place, go out and see it.”
How did your love of travel start?
I guess in college when I went to live and work in Antwerp one summer, and when my job was over I traveled down the Rhine and through the Black Forest to Switzerland, went hiking in the Alps and then explored along the Loire, staying in hostels.
When I say…travel, what’s the first thought that comes to mind?
Airport. Passport.
You’ve been the Chief Researcher at National Geographic Traveler Magazine for 10 years, what’s one of your favorite travel stories that you’ve covered?
One of my very favorites is “Bus to Antarctica” by Andrew Evans, that was published in our September 2010 issue: http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/bus-to-antarctica/trip-essay-traveler/
It’s about Andrew’s quest to travel by public buses from National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, DC to the tip of South America, in order to board a boat to Antarctica, tweeting and blogging all the way.
It was fun to work on because I’d been in on it from the beginning, when Andrew first proposed the crazy scheme to our editor Keith Bellows and he (amazingly) agreed. It was a tremendously exciting project, and I followed Andrew’s tweets through some pretty hair-raising adventures, not all of which made it into the magazine story.
Thinking back to the person you were 10 years ago, in what ways has travel and being part of National Geographic Traveler changed you?
Working at Traveler has greatly expanded my knowledge about places and has made me insanely hungry to go out and explore more.
Favorite travel book?
I am absolutely floored by Freya Stark’s books, especially “The Valleys of the Assassins”, about traveling in Persia on foot as a single woman in the 1930s.
We included it in our Ultimate Travel Library, which has many other great travel narratives:
http://traveler.nationalgeographic.com/travel-books/intro-text
I also enjoyed “The Orchid Thief” by Susan Orleans, who I think is a terrific travel writer.
In your experience, what qualities/characteristics make a good travel writer?
Someone who is curious, observant, adventurous, and humble. Who does a lot of background reading before going on a trip. Who has a story idea in mind before going, even if that story idea doesn’t pan out. Who takes the time to talk to people. And who loves telling stories. And as a fact checker, I really appreciate a writer who takes good notes and tells the truth!
You’re a very active twitter user. What do you think about Twitter? Specifically, the impact it has on the news and journalism?
When it comes to breaking news, I usually find out about it on Twitter before I read it in the paper or hear it on the radio. It’s an incredibly fast and handy tool for finding out information on the ground.
If you could tell the whole world one thing - - What would you tell them?
The world is a beautiful place, go out and see it.
The Uyuni salt flat in Bolivia.
Taken by Andrew Evans for his “Bus to Antarctica” story.
Mike & Jürgen in Bolivia.
Read Mike & Jürgen’s blog. Follow @for91days
- - -
“It gives us four locations in a year, which is enough to be exciting, but not overwhelming.”
You’ve just arrived in Cochabamba, Bolivia - initial thoughts & feelings?
The city feels a lot more affluent than other places we’ve visited in Bolivia — clean streets with wide sidewalks, nice houses and a lot of expensive cars. Not too many tourists make it to Cochabamba, which is surprising, since it’s fairly huge. It’s known as Bolivia’s breadbasket, with its best food and most markets — on our first day, we got lunch in a marketplace. An incredible plate of meatballs, pasta, rice and potatoes. All the carbohydrates you could ever need, for 15 Bolivianos (€1,50).
“We’ve lived in quite a few countries, but I don’t think we’ve ever encountered such compelling faces as in Bolivia.” Can you elaborate on this?
The trials and tribulations of life are etched into the indigenous people’s faces here. Most of them have been hard at work since childhood, often in dangerous professions such as mining, and their faces are weathered and rough. At the same time, there’s an exuberance, or possibly defiance, that comes across in their eyes. Also, there’s a lot of variety in the faces of La Paz — in La Paz, you see rich whites of Spanish descent walking their dogs past criollo (mixed-heritage) businessmen and indigenous Aymara women in traditional dress selling sweets.
When did you two fall in love with travel?
Mike: My family moved around a lot when I was young, and I probably got infected with restlessness during childhood.
Jürgen fled a future career in insurance by moving to the States as an au pair — a sudden decision which surprised everyone, including himself.
When we met in Boston, we immediately recognized in each other the love of travel, and embarked on a lot of adventures — China, biking through Scotland, exploring Lanzarote, Christmas in Moscow. The more we see and do, the more addicted to traveling we become!
You move to a new city, once every 91 days. How did you decide on 3 months?
Three months felt like the right amount of time to really get to know a place, and also not get bored by it. It gives us four locations in a year, which is enough to be exciting, but not overwhelming. Also, it’s useful in terms of Visas, which are often 3 months in length.
When choosing your next place to live 3 months in, what things do you consider?
There are definitely practical matters (such as our account balances!) that come into consideration. We choose Asturias first, because we were already in Spain, and it was an easy place to start. Likewise, since we were already in South America, Bolivia felt like an easy jump after Buenos Aires. Weather, too, is a big consideration… we want to avoid cold winters as much as possible. But mostly, we go for places that have captured our imagination, for whatever reason. Buenos Aires had always had a strong pull on me, for example, and I knew we’d go there during our first year.
You’re 6’6”. In what ways does your height make your travels a bit different, compared to someone who’s 5’6”?
Jürgen: Well, living in Bolivia is tough!! Mike is 5’11”, and even he feels like a giant here. I don’t know how many times I’ve hit my head, and there are times when I’ve refused to get onto a bus because it’s too tight. Also, I tend to cause a commotion in countries where being so tall is rare. In general, though, it’s not something that causes a lot of stress — I’ve lived my whole life at this altitude and am used to dealing with things.
What’s one of your absolute favorite travel memories?
Mike: Ice skating in Moscow’s Gorki Park the day after Christmas is something I’ll never forget.
Jürgen: The Lucha Libre fight here in Bolivia was crazy — I’ve never been a fan of wrestling, but I just had a blast here. The image of La Loca throwing a chair into the crowd will never leave my mind.
What’s an interesting meal you’ve eaten while traveling?
Mike: Just the other day, I ate cow tongue. I mean: the whole tongue. It was delicious, as long as I closed my eyes and didn’t think about a cow licking the inside of my mouth.
Jürgen: Chef Jerome’s Old School Diner in Savannah, GA! That was such a great experience, not just the food (all fried, of course), but being able to meet the Chef and hear his stories.
James in the Philippines
Read James’ blog. Follow @JourneyingJames.
- - -
“Think of secret lagoons, unexplored coves, sparkling turquoise waters, fine white sand, spectacular limestone karst, fresh seafood and lovely people.”
You’ve been backpacking all over the Philippines. What are some things that make the Philippines special to you?
Well, obviously, it’s my home country. Other than that, I think it’s an underrated Southeast Asian destination.
One of your goals is to write a book called Backpacking the Philippines: The Cheapest way possible.
Without giving away all your budgeting secrets, what are some ways you’ve managed to save money while traveling the Philippines?
Yes, and maybe a travel show someday! Who knows?! I always do couchsurfing, the absence of it; I bring my hammock where I sleep. I just ask some locals where I can set it up. Food is very cheap here in the Philippines, a dollar is enough for a meal.
When and how did your love of travel start?
It started when I was on my college years; I’m always drawn on the small Philippine map that I bought. I always say to myself, that someday I will be traveling the country. I also have a map of Asia, so maybe that’s my next destination.
What’s one of your absolute favorite places in the whole world to visit? Why?
Abroad, I would say it’s the Angkor Wat Complex in Cambodia. It was magical and the temples really turn to gold during sunset. Scenic is an understatement.
Here in the Philippines, hands down, Palawan! Think of secret lagoons, unexplored coves, sparkling turquoise waters, fine white sand, spectacular limestone karst, fresh seafood and lovely people - these things are just a fraction of what you can experience in El Nido.
What’s the most delicious thing you’ve eaten while traveling? What were the ingredients?
Oh, there’s a lot! I guess I always love fresh seafood. We “kinilaw” in the Philippines where the fresh catch, usually fish is de-boned and soaked in vinegar with spices like chili, pepper, garlic, onion, calamansi and salt.
What would you say to someone who’s thinking about visiting the Philippines for their next adventure?
C’mon over! You are very welcome here. Choose from any of our 7,107 islands. If I have time, I can even show you around. Choose your adventure (except for snowboarding)! Water sports? Mountain Hiking? Diving? Our beaches are out-of-this-world!
Salamat po ng marami! (thank you very much)
James in El Nido.
Robert in La Paz, Bolivia
Read Robert’s blog. Follow @leavyrdailyhell.
- - -
“Well to me, photography is about what I see more than what is there. So if someone looks at a photograph of mine and his comments even hint at what I was going for when I captured the photo, I know I hit the mark.”
You’ve visited and documented more than 30 countries since 2005. If you were able to spend 2 weeks in one of those 30 countries, which one would you choose?
That’s an extremely difficult question! This would be all expenses paid or not?
All expenses paid : )
Brazil then, definitely. Although Brazil isn’t my very favorite of the countries I’ve visited, I would love more time to enjoy it without dealing with its exorbitant costs. Brazil was more expensive than anywhere else in Latin America by a long shot and as an independent traveler, high costs limit what you can see and how much you can do.
With two free weeks there, I could much more easily gain an understanding of the country than I could on my own, at this stage.
What are some things you would do/see during those 2 weeks?
Well, I would head up to Salvador along the northeastern coast, somewhere I didn’t get visit the previous time due to logistics. I’d also head to the Amazon Basin, having already gotten Rio and São Paulo out of the way. If I had time I’d probably also visit the capital of Brasilia, known to be one of the best-planned cities in the world thanks to its having been built mid 20th century.
When and where did the travel bug bite you?
As an adult, it happened the first time I was in India, in March of 2009. The U.S. was still reeling from the first stages of the recession and being unemployed myself (I traveled there on savings I luckily had), I was reeling too. In any case, I often climbed up onto a cliff face at the north end of Palolem Beach in Goa state. One night I climbed up there, and something about the rhythm of the tides coming in made all the imagined bullshit of the real world fade away the whole time I was watching and listening.
Wow…must have been a moment you will always remember.
Yeah! It was very profound. It calmed and comforted me in a way even my closest loved ones couldn’t.
Although I’d taken a few trips to Europe before then, it wasn’t until I started craving conscious serenity and transcendence that I knew I needed to roam the world.
But to be honest I flew on a plane before my second birthday and had lived in four houses by the time I was 10, so I’ve been wanderlusting almost my whole life.
In addition to being a travel writer, you are also a photographer. What is your favorite subject to photograph?
That’s difficult because as anyone can see viewing my photos, I photograph just about everything. But if I had to narrow it down, it would be people and children, specifically. While adults tend to put on a “Facebook” face and be super aware when they’re being photographed — more so in the developed world but increasingly in other countries — children are generally more expressive and real and often not even conscious of the camera. I practice photography to capture the present moment as accurately as possible, and human children are by far the most present and conscious creatures in the world.
Right before you take a photo, what are you usually thinking?
Well, it depends. If I am shooting a landscape or something that is otherwise still-life, I’m extremely conscious of the composition, how I’m framing the shot and the lighting aspects of the shot. If someone or something is moving past me, I think about what shutter speed, aperture and ISO settings I should use, very haphazardly adjust them and get immediately to capturing the subject, knowing that I can always tweak technical problems, but I can never re-capture something once it’s already passed.
So I guess the long answer to the short question is: “What am I photographing and how long do I have to photograph it?”
“I can never re-capture something once it’s already passed.” A good thought on really living..
What to you makes a photograph special?
Well to me, photography is about what I see more than what is there. So if someone looks at a photograph of mine and his comments even hint at what I was going for when I captured the photo, I know I hit the mark. I also have a soft spot for photos that portray motion, emotion and ordinary people living their daily lives.
Best meal you enjoyed while traveling?
You are a tough interviewer! The 33-course, home-cooked dinner extravaganza I enjoyed at Yu’s Family Kitchen in Chengdu, China, without a doubt. Although individual meals I’ve had may have been tastier or more enjoyable, I have never experienced anything of such a spectacular scale elsewhere, food or otherwise. Selections included both traditional Chinese fare like Peking Duck and regional Sichuan specialties, as well as Yu’s signature puff-pastry-and-pork “paintbrushes,” which were delightful. It was difficult for my dining companion and I to even walk to the taxi waiting area, but totally worth it.
I could see why!
Yeah, it was uncomfortable. I imagined it was what a pregnant woman must feel like.
What were the desserts like? As far as ingredients?
Very much like the main courses — a mix of traditional Chinese elements as well as some Western. I was pretty dazed by the time dessert rolled around — I was drinking tea, mostly — but I do remember a red bean dish and one with cold, white rice and a sweet, colorless gel on top.
The desserts certainly weren’t as show stopping as the mains — and they probably don’t spend as much time on them knowing most people will be too full to enjoy them
What’s a travel memory that you have, that to you is a good example of why you love to travel?
I visited Israel in September 2010 and I’m not going to lie: It was a terrifying experience. I will leave my personal politics out of this interview, but let’s just say that I felt pretty attacked as a solo, male, non-Jewish traveler, being held up by the border and questioned almost everywhere. To make matters worse I got to Jerusalem so late at night that the hostel I’d booked was closed for the night and I couldn’t find any others with open reception. So, I took to the streets and began taking photos. After a few hours of that I found a spot to sit near Jaffa Street, the city’s main road, and got to writing. A young woman passed by me a few times and eventually came back and asked me what someone like me was doing on the streets. I half-expected her to report me to the police but instead, she invited me to her and her boyfriend’s apartment, made me a ridiculous quantity of food and allowed me to shower, all while telling me about her life and how she views the world. If it hadn’t been for this girl, whose name was Nilly, I’d have written Israel off entirely. This situation illustrates one of the most important lessons I’ve learned on the road: travel is about individual experiences more than it is grand trips. And more about people than about governments, ideology or borders, something I also learned while traveling through Israel’s neighboring Arab states, favorite targets of the American media.
What would you say to someone who really has a passion for photography and is just getting started?
Buy a DSL-R. The camera you use isn’t everything, but being able to shoot in manual mode gives you a level of control over photographs a point and shoot never will, which allows you to impose your perception onto your subject — and hopefully onto your viewers. Beyond that, I’d say photograph everything and take your camera everywhere. Don’t be afraid to photograph people as they pass by and even if they’re not looking. Learn photography by photographing and you will gain an intuitive knowledge of what actually makes photos good, rather than what the textbook consensus on what a good photo is.
Don’t get delusional and think everything you shoot is good, but don’t be afraid to show off your best shots. Learn to differentiate quickly and easily between good and bad shots. And to drive the point home: Take as many photos as possible of anything and everything you see.
How you portray something is way, way more important than what you’re portraying.
A good photographer should be able to make a piece of white paper look interesting.
Robert in Singapore.
Anna & Dave at the 10,000km mark
Visit Anna & Dave at “permacyclists”. Follow @permacyclists.
- - -
”We came around a bend in the thick of the forest and Dave saw ahead of him Anna stopped and mumbling something and pointing at the side of the road and there it was! A gorilla! One of the 300 or so left in wild! It was unbelievable.”
Church bells are ringing in Guadalajara, it must be 9:00…
Yup! : )
Thanks so much for letting me chat with you this evening.
Your about us page says that you two met in Mongolia. That “We were on the same plane from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar and we fell in love when, across ten rows of sleeping Mongolians, 35,000 feet above the Gobi desert, we made eye-contact and smiled.”
Who approached who and what did they say? : )
so, we made eye contact on the plane, and smiled at each other - I (Dave) smiled at Anna and she smiled back.
Then at baggage claim I was looking all around to find the cute blonde, and I didn’t see her. i saw her backpack go around the carousel and then disappear though, and then finally I spotted her in the corner, reading her Lonely Planet…
I went over and talked to her and asked her if she knew where she was going - I didn’t.
So I talked to her first, but what I later learned was that she was faking reading her LP so that I would talk to her.
Anna knew exactly where she was going and was just pretending to stall for time.
So I spoke first, but only thanks to her ruse…
lol! That is too cute.
Yeah, it’s a funny story, we forget it sometimes.
I don’t know if you’ve seen the movie “Before Sunrise”?
Nope! Should I netflix it?
It’s a couple who meet on a train and then spend the night in Vienna wandering the city talking. He is American (Ethan Hawke) and she is French and when we got back everyone made us see that movie.
it’s okay, nothing exceptional, but they are in Vienna, where we lived after we first met, so it’s a funny film for us to see. And it is eerily similar to our own story…
You spent 16 months cycling through twelve countries – How did cycling vs. driving a car or taking public transportation, change your overall travel experience?
Tremendously! There is nothing like cycling and we could go on for hours about what makes it so great. In general though, you are traveling on the same level as the local people - especially in Africa where few people can afford private cars.
And so people are much more open to you and approach you and since they generally think what you’re doing is totally crazy they’re curious and ask lots of questions.
And then also, when you’re cycling you’re limited to how far you can pedal in one day -100km maximum for us really - and so you stop where you need to stop, not where the guidebook says to stop.
As a result, you spend a lot of time in areas where tourists usually never go - and for good reason of course, there’s nothing “to see” there. But what you realize pretty quickly is that “nothing to see” doesn’t mean anything, there are people living there, it’s their whole universe, and most travelers miss it totally.
Anyway, if you haven’t cycled somewhere, you don’t know it really, that’s our feeling on travel!
Did you meet other cyclists?
We only met 5 other cyclists in our whole 16 months in Africa.
There are lots out there in other parts of the world, but Africa isn’t so popular in the cycling crowd.
But the ones we met were very hardcore - three of them had done over 100,000km, one of them had been living on his bike for 9 years at that point.
Oh my goodness..just finished an hour run and am feeling like a slacker…
An hour run is hard! Cycling is easy compared to running! And besides, no one starts out saying you will bike a billion kilometers.
Every day you just make it to the next village and soon you find it’s a bit easier, the hills aren’t so steep, and you roll along.
And then you realize you’ve had 6 hours of exercise, you’ve been outside all day, and that in the space of 24 hours you’ve had the best and worst moments of your life.
Must of been incredible.
it’s incredible, yeah, totally.
You must of worked up an appetite!
oh yes, we ate a TON!
Favorite meal you enjoyed?
In Mozambique, they make a stew of casava leaves, coconut milk, peanuts, and sometimes shrimp. and it’s served with “sima” which is a sort of hard maize meal cake (like a thick polenta), which is a staple all through eastern and southern africa.
Matapa it’s called! it’s delicious, best food we had the whole trip
A big part of what you two are doing while traveling is trying to understand issues facing the world right now and then trying to make a difference - - In your opinion, what is a big problem, that most people aren’t really aware of?
Hm, interesting question…
Anna thinks that most people don’t really appreciate the degree of the destruction of the environment. This is what struck us most in Africa, seeing that in the least developed continent, where you would think things would be relatively preserved, that still the forests were being cut down, the fields were becoming deserts. And then you realize, once you know what to look for - once you know what a healthy ecosystem is and what an unhealthy one is - you see it everywhere. The planet is sick, and most of us live lives that are so divorced from nature that we dont realize it. For us, this was the biggest revelation of our time in Africa. (Dave agrees - like a good husband).
The environmental destruction we saw there is present everywhere, in every continent, we just need to learn how to see it. Traveling through the southern US you see kudzu growing everywhere, and there is a massive drought now in texas, and the list goes on and on. It’s not just Africa, it’s everywhere…
What’s a phrase that you learnt in Africa and used quite a bit?
There are a few phrases we picked up that we still use actually. One is Mzungu, which is a Kiswahili word to refer to foreigners and white people in general. You hear this constantly in the parts of Africa where we were. “Mzungu how are you!” is like the national anthem in some countries. We got used to it though, and now we say Mzungu all the time, which is nice since most other people don’t understand it.
The other phrase is “pole pole” which is also Kiswahili and which means “slowly slowly.” It’s something people will say whenever you need to be careful, or just to say there is no need to rush. Pole pole is for us such the African approach to life - work hard, take things seriously, but no need to rush, things will happen as they happen, when they happen. A great mantra for travelers!
How is traveling as a couple different than traveling by yourself?
We have both traveled independently, in fact we were traveling alone when we met. Since then though, it’s been mostly traveling together. I think we couldn’t say one is always better than the other, but they work for different phases of life. When we were younger and wanted to go out and see the world and sort of “find ourselves” I think traveling alone made more sense, it’s more intense and pushes you in a more personal way. Now though that we’re older and our interests are more in understanding the political / environmental situations of the countries we’re visiting (and especially now that we’re meeting and filming environmental organizations on our way down to Rio), it’s much easier to be in a couple. It gives you someone to talk to about what you’re seeing, a sounding board for ideas and the like. It also makes traveling for long periods easier in general - we’re each other’s family, so we’re always home when we’re together, so it’s not so bad to be on the road for 16 months, or now 20 months. It’s like that song: “Home is wherever I’m with you…”
What is one travel memory from your time in Africa, that’s particularly special to you?
A memory that is particularly special to us… There are so many! Every day, especially when you’re cycling, is so intense that there are moments of bliss and moments of horror sandwiched together.
There are many people who offered us hospitality and kindness along the way out of nothing but the warmth of their hearts, and we remember each of them with such fondness and gratitude. I suppose though that if there was a sort of “epic” moment that we will never forget, it was in Uganda, biking on the worst road ever through the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. This is where Uganda’s gorillas are, and tourists come and pay about $1,000 all together to see them, which is way beyond the kind of budget we have. We thought we would take the public road across the park just to see the tropical forest though, which is spectacular. Everyone we met assured us that we wouldn’t see the gorillas of course, they are so few, and they would be on the other side of the mountains at this time of year, and on and on. Some people who lived there had only seen them once in their lives, so we assumed we wouldn’t and just went to bike through the park. But the roads are atrocious and the local people, who know that tourists spend more money than they will see in their lives just to spend 45 minutes with a gorilla, were not very welcoming, chasing us and grabbing at our bags and demanding money. It was the hardest cycling of the trip, though the forest was so beautiful that the moments we were thick in it we forgot all the difficulties. It was raining too of course, it always is at such moments.
Anyway, on the second day, we came around a bend in the thick of the forest and Dave saw ahead of him Anna stopped and mumbling something and pointing at the side of the road and there it was! A gorilla! One of the 300 or so left in wild! It was unbelievable.
We parked our bikes farther on and watched from a distance and took some photos. There was one by the road, and then another up in the hillside above us, and another we could hear downhill a ways. They were all grunting to each other and eating leaves. It was amazing, and we were alone there with them until the park rangers came and shooed us on - Mzungu can’t see gorillas without paying $1,000 it turns out.
We didn’t mind though, it was such an incredible experience.
Dave & Anna at the southernmost point of Africa
Isle of Skye, Scotland
Read Shannon’s blog “A Little Adrift”. Follow @ShannonRTW on twitter.
- - -
“But I had only two months left on my lease and I thought to myself “is this TRULY where I want to be. Not just for another year on the lease, but in my life, am I doing something I love passionately enough to stay.” And the answer was no”
Hi Shannon! Thank you for letting me chat with you about your travels today. : )
You’re most welcome! Looking forward to it :)
Reading over your blog, one of the posts that really jumped out at me was the post where you talk about why you started traveling when you were 24 in May of 2008 - can you tell me a bit about that moment?
Sure! I was living in Los Angeles at the time, and I had been there for nearly two years.
But I had only two months left on my lease and I thought to myself “is this TRULY where I want to be. Not just for another year on the lease, but in my life, am I doing something I love passionately enough to stay.”
And the answer was no - although I loved acting, I had always wanted to travel, I was miserable living with all of the traffic in LA.
I was in some debt from the expenses living in the city, and I already had an internet based job so I made a VERY snap decision after reading the Lost Girls blog to buy a one-way ticket and leave.
I bought the ticket the same week I had my breakdown/revelation.
What did your friends and family think?
My best friend out in LA egged me on, and then hugged me when I *freaked out* 20 minutes later that I had actually bought a one-way ticket!
My dad has always been very supportive, and although he had his reservations about my safety, and that sort of thing, he was on board the whole way.
I joke that he’s been my personal assistant as well, I am very fortunate that I am allowed to stay at home between travels, he collects my mail, and handles things when I do something stupid like lose my US debit card : )
lol - I’m sure the post ticket purchase freak out is very common. : )
Oh yes, I think especially if you do it spontaneously like that. A bit terrifying! I still had a whole apartment in LA, no plan, and hadn’t told a soul besides my friend about the plan when I booked it!
Very cool - your dad sounds really awesome.
He is wonderful. : )
Thinking back to the person you were in 2008 and who you are today, how has traveling changed you?
I have more time to listen to people. On the road I’ve learned everyone has a story, it’s unique to them, they have hardships, love, and losses. And that’s easy to say and easy to dismiss, but really think about that, and when I lived it on the road, meeting other people, it took me further out of my own bubble of self-obsession (which I think we all possess to an extent).
I was very busy with *my* career in LA, now even though I’m further away, in some ways I’m more connected with the people back home because I listen to them more.
Couple that with a LOT more patience and a complete belief in my ability to survive on my own wits, which I know because it’s been tested, and I am stronger and more confident now.
What advice would you give to folks who feel the same way as you did in 2008, who are saying “this is not my life”?
If you truly want change, you can live life however you choose. A hiker on the Appalachian trail is quoted as having said something along the lines of “All you need to know is it can be done.” He said this in reference to how he travels with nearly nothing, but it goes wider than that. I can’t tell you HOW to do it, but it can be done, I did, others have found a way to travel, or change their life in some meaningful way, and knowing it can be done is the battle. The fun part is figuring out how it’s going to work best for you!
Which place in the world could you see yourself living in for awhile?
Thailand. I was just living there this spring and I hope to head back there in the fall. Also, foreigners are allowed to buy land in Guatemala, and I’ve always thought that would be an amazingly lovely place to have a getaway house at some point!
Thailand comes up often as a place many travers would love to live. Why do you think that is?
The quality of life! You can live very well for a small sum of money, and yet you don’t have to trade any of the Western conveniences you enjoy. Thailand has US speed internet in many places, grocery stores, and a is *relatively* stable politically, so it’s a good bet. A lot of expats are my age, but also retirees head there too.
I did a Thailand Cost of Living breakdown that went viral a few months ago because people were amazed by the value and the lifestyle you can live there.
I’ve heard that folks in Thailand are incredibly welcoming and friendly.
Thailand bills itself as the “Land of a Thousand Smiles” and it really is true.
Favorite meal while traveling?
Favorite meals get a hat tip to India. I loved nearly every single meal I ate all seven weeks in the country. It was like an orgy of delicious foodiness and I salivate at the thought.
What kind of ingredients were in a typical meal you enjoyed in India?
curries with paneer are a win every time. I’m a sucker for palak paneer, which is finely ground spinach with paneer chunks served with deliciously warm garlic nann to scoop the goopy dish into your mouth.
Oh wow… : )
So tasty!
Sounds like it!
For my last question today…if you could tell the whole world one thing, what would you say?
Do what that you love, the thing that makes you smile to consider, your heart beat a little fast to think about. Do that and be happy.
It sounds like you’ve done exactly that. : )
Thank you so much for your time this morning!
Thank you too! Good luck with this new site, :) If there is ever anything I can do to help as well, let me know.
Connemara, Ireland.
