The years I’ve spent traveling and living abroad have made a radical impact on my world-view and shaped me into who I am today: someone who strives to make the world a better place.
I don’t hesitate to say that this is a common occurrence, and if you’re reading Brave New Traveler, you already subscribe to the belief that travel results in a deeper understanding of our global situation.
We all know skiing can be very expensive. Even those of us who live in Colorado ski towns often have to scramble around to secure reasonable prices on our own turf. Some destinations have reputations that lure families and groups with incredibly affordable deals.
However, some of the more famous resorts, like Aspen, have the opposite reputation. It is considered glamorous and glitzy and the prices reflect it. It’s at the end of the road and can be difficult to get to, as well. But Aspen does offer some of the absolutely best skiing in the entire world and everyone who skis owes it to themselves to splurge on a ski vacation in Aspen at least once.
When I left college with a degree in journalism I found myself saturated in theory, but lacking in practical and applicable knowledge.
I will always be learning about how to become a better travel journalist.
I’m no expert, but one of the great things about journalism is that there are no experts; the best travel journalists are curious, engaged people who are always ready to learn something new.
Tags: The, Quick, And, Dirty, Guide, Successful, Travel, JournalismI rarely make a trip that’s anywhere near the water without taking a boat ride of some sort. There’s no substitute for cruising on a paddle wheeler across Lake Tahoe, paddling a sea kayak in Baja or casting over the rail on fishing party boat at the Jersey Shore.
If you’re anything like me, you’ll love Destin, Florida, where you can enjoy boating of all kinds. In fact, in Destin you could go from one unique boat trip to another from dawn until dusk.
Tags: Destin, Cruises, for, Everyone
One of my favorite singers, Robbie Williams, complains in one of his songs that love is getting too cynical, while passion is just physical.
Each of us has a different experience related to both love and passion. If we look carefully at what is happening in the world around us at this moment, and especially in the Western hemisphere, one can conclude that the concept of love is undergoing serious changes.
Tags: Can, Your, Grandparents, Teach, You, About, LoveWhen Walt Disney decided to build a theme park on swamp land in central Florida, he was probably the only one who had a clear vision of what the future would bring. What started out as a theme park plunked down in the middle of nowhere just a generation ago has now grown into one of the most visited and most celebrated family resorts in the world. And it shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon!
Yes, it can be crowded. So if that’s a problem for you, be careful to choose a time to visit when most kids are in school. However, there’s not really an off-season in Orlando anymore. It has become a 4 season destination.
Tags: Orlando, Florida, Vacation
Many of my best travel experiences have been shared with local people who have invited me into their lives.
Singing Russian drinking songs with my cabin-mates in Siberia. Playing cards until dawn on an overnight train across China.Relaxing on an isolated beach with a fisherman in Panama.
These moments, when you actually step off the tourist trail and enter into the reality of the place you are visiting, are the much talked about, yet ever elusive goals of many travelers.
Tags: Essential, Items, Pack, You, Want, Meet, The, Locals
It’s that wonderful time now when I round up my favourite links from around the web.
Thanks to Valentine’s Day, love is in the air this week from Bondi to Bangkok, and some of them were shouting their love from cabbage patches?
Listen to some tips on travel photography in this podcast from Ryan Libre.
Want one of Marmot’s sweet, new softshell jackets? Wend Magazine is having an online contest - all you have to do is email them a photo of you or a friend wearing a piece of Marmot gear and doing any human-powered, outdoor adventure.
Tags: BNT, Best, the, Week
Knowing ourselves and our communities, and seeing them in unison, is the first step in fostering the divine world spirit.
A wise Indian man once said to me, “Perfection is a rare and sporadic event.” For travelers especially, this rings true.
From a traveler’s perspective, every foreign country is a chance for something to go ridiculously, horribly amok.
Tags: Divine, Inspiration, How, Travel, Teaches, Appreciate, Humanity
If you happen to be traveling from London on Eurostar and poke your head into first class, you’ll probably see Mark Smith in Seat 61.
He’ll be reading a copy of T.E. Lawrence or enjoying the unspoiled (and unobstructed) scenery with his wife, Nicolette, and their year-old son, Nathaniel.
While he claims they live as an “ordinary family” in Buckinghamshire, Mark (a career railway man) is anything but ordinary to the 400,000 people a month who visit his website, The Man in Seat 61 where he outlines his favorite routes for train and ferry travel.
Tags: Interview, The, Man, Seat, The, Joys, Green, Travel