Archive for the 'Fellow Travelers' Category

On Conversation

Jeff July 22nd, 2008

I’m following both my mom and Theresa’s recommendations and am currently reading Dark Star Safari by Paul Theroux. Its a great book, a relatively easy read filled with the adventure, difficulty, and aura of travel. What I keep getting from it though, is the myriad encounters he has with locals. How easily he meets people wherever he is, and manages over the course of a few drinks to pull out a captivating life story. He does this over and over. Now, naturally, a fair amount of this is because he is the storyteller and this is his narrative;  I’m sure there were many very boring stories and uninteresting people he has blessed us not to write about.

But when I think about how I want our trip to go, that is it—seemingly constantly falling into interesting scenarios, going out of our way to meet what turn out to be fascinating people, having a keen eye for who is trustworthy and worth our time. And while our one week in Egypt says all these things are bound to happen in spades, I can’t help but worry about it.

So let’s have a conversation about these conversations. Obviously the discussion depends drastically on who you are and where in the world you are, but tell us what you think. Do you find yourself easily talking to locals? Do they talk to you first/annoyingly barrage you? Where are the friendliest people? The coldest? Do you have to force yourself to make the effort to talk to new people? Are you as outgoing when you are already traveling with people you know? Is your personality different abroad versus at home? Share your thoughts.

This is your chance!

Jeff April 6th, 2008

Ok, guys, this is it. Now that I’m back state-side, the time has come to start planning an itinerary more specific than “we will be on this continent …” So what we need to know from all of you in internet-land is when and where you want to meet us for some adventure. Consider this an open invitation. We love having visitors and on the trip I’m sure we’ll be itching for the company. If you’ve been inspired by somewhere we’re planning on going and want to meet us there, let us know and we’ll try to fit it in our schedule (the general dates listed below are non-negotiable). If you want to read more on generally where we want to go, we’ve outlined it in our posts on:

Africa (Aug 2009 - Oct 2009)

Southeast Asia (Apr 2009 - June 2009)

South America (Nov 2008 - Mar 2009)

Nepal and Northern India (July 2009) - no post yet but consider us open to anything in the area.

So let’s have ‘em! (Greg, your previous four posts on the subject have already reserved you a spot for Machu Picchu … but when exactly?)

Your Turn

Theresa March 18th, 2008

For the past few months, Jeff and I have been sharing with you our thoughts about our upcoming trip, frequently focusing on all the places we want to go and the sites we want to see. Now it’s your turn. If you’re reading this, please leave a comment listing the top three places you would like to travel in your lifetime. It can be a faraway exotic land difficult to reach. It can be an awesome national park not far from your home. It doesn’t matter to us, so long as it’s where you’d like to go. You can supply reasons if you like, but feel free to just list them if you’d prefer. Maybe you’ll inspire us or a fellow reader. It is a big world out there after all.

Then after you post your three places, take a minute to consider why you’re not making plans to take one of these trips (unless, of course, you already are). As far as I’m aware, this is the only life we get and there are no guarantees. Carpe Diem!

(Seriously, post your three places. Don’t just read and move on to another site. Read, click the comment button, and share your list. We want to know where you, our readers, dream of going. Please? And thank you.)

A Note from a Friend

Theresa November 4th, 2007

Today, I received a postcard in the mail from my friend Joyce, who along with her husband Jack, is currently on a Round the World trip. As the postcard shows, they were recently in Peru, visiting the famed Machu Picchu, a destination firmly anchored on our must-see list. Joyce and Jack have had a pretty crazy year. Joyce graduated with her master’s degree in June, they were married in September, and they left on their trip in October. It doesn’t get a lot more exciting than that.


Earlier this year, I got a phone call from Joyce. She was contemplating what she wanted to do post-graduation and said that Jack had suggested that they spend some time traveling. She wasn’t sure what she thought about this but knew I was the one person who wouldn’t think they were absolutely nuts for even considering it. Of course, I was all for it and spent the entire conversation cheerleading for travel. After all, I’d been planning a similar trip since at least 2005 when Jeff and I got married, but actually for much longer than that. I think we first discussed it as we were graduating college, and I was heading off to Greece and Jeff off to grad school in DC. This is a trip a long, long time in the making.

Anyhow, in the end, Joyce didn’t need a lot of convincing, and they’re now out seeing the world (with much, much less planning time than we’ve had!). If you want to read about their travels, you can visit Joyce’s blog or Jack’s blog. They haven’t posted a lot so far, but I’m hopeful that things will pick up at some point. I know I’m anxious to hear about their adventures.

For now, I’ll take the postcards. Though our itinerary will differ greatly from their’s, we are visiting some of the same places, so it’s fun to hear their impressions of places we will be soon. And while I know I’m too much of a planner to have done the trip with the relatively little amount of planning they were able to squeeze in between finishing up school and planning a wedding, it just goes to show that there’s no right or wrong way to do a RTW trip. It’s all about your style, your goals, and your dreams.

Have you started planning your trip yet?