Pam's blog

For Independence Day: Solo Travelers!

2009-07-02T15:52:04-05:00

During my first trip to Disney World in 2005, I had dinner at Chefs de France, which I was a little nervous about (there’s no bartop dining here, and I wasn’t sure if the restaurant would be filled with couples and families). As it turned out, it was one of the best solo dining experiences I had at Disney World, and the food was divine.-- Solo Friendly

Have you ever traveled alone? It's been some time since I've done a true solo trip -- I got married and my husband loves to travel, and while I typically find time to wander off on my own on work-related travels, it feels like it doesn't quite count if you run into people you know everywhere -- my trip to Austin for SxSW comes to mind. I used to love traveling alone, the quiet, the bravada, the sense of accomplishment everything brings, from pitching the tent to eating dinner in a crowded restaurant.

It takes time to settle into solo travel. For those who are thinking of taking their first trip alone, I want you to know that at the beginning of every trip I’m a bit nervous. At home I rarely go to clubs, restaurants, museums, festivals… alone. I don’t need to. My friends are at hand. But solo travel demands that I break routines and do things differently. Fortunately, I’m quite happy with my own company and content to sit back and people watch.-- Solo Traveler

As a woman with wanderlust I cannot describe to them the adventure and the joy of a solo journey, of the experiences, exaltation and satisfaction I encounter on a daily basis when I am away from home. It is the four Es – empowering, exciting, enlightening and energizing. If those qualities are foreign to anyone it is because they cannot be conveyed by words but must be accomplished by a spirit whose soul is touched by the people she encounters along life’s journey.--Travel Dreams and Moonbeams

To be honest, I simply prefer to be alone. When you travel solo you can do whatever you want, whenever you want. If you want to ‘take a day off’ and do nothing but update your blog or laze the day away at a café with a cappuccino and a book then that’s what you should do. There is no one to debate with or tell you why you shouldn’t be doing what you’re perfectly happy doing. And it’s not because I don’t like people (well, sometimes I don’t). The beauty of it all is that you can meet people whenever you want to…or not. If you want alone time, it’s yours for the taking. But if you want to meet others, there are no shortages of places or ideas on how (and it doesn’t have to involve sitting at a bar all alone trying to meet someone). It is really a freedom that no one can really understand until you experience it yourself. Do it. I dare you.--Fear of Flying Solo: How a Single Girl Can Travel the World

Remember when you were in the car as a kid and Dad had to stop for coffee, Mom wanted to stop a few miles later for food and then a few minutes later your brother had to pee. You were the one whining and rolling your eyes in the back seat, crying "C,mon, we are never gonna get there!!" You can avoid all of that by going alone. Stop at a cafe if your feet hurt, leave the museum early if you are bored, take 50 pictures in the park without your traveling companions pacing back and forth crying "Aren't you done yet? How many pictures of the park do you really need?"--My Melange

That's just the tip of the iceberg of solo women travelbloggers -- you can find lots more by searching for "solo travel." There's loads of inspiration and good advice -- but if you've got recommended reads and resources, please leave them in the comments.

Travel: It's Different for Girls

2009-06-25T08:40:25-05:00

I confess, I got a little irritated when I clicked through to read this post on Travelblogs: Do Solo Female Travellers have it Easier than Guys Travelling Alone? I sputtered over the title alone -- I couldn't decide if it was a joke or not. Solo female travelers having it easier than guys? On what planet?! Then it turns out the answer to the question is... written by a guy. Um. Uh. Yeah. How would he know? Did he go in drag to find out? Did he interview a series women travelers? Nope, it's just one guys take on how we girls have it easy.

Getting hotel / hostel discounts:

I’ve seen the price drop - or full bookings disappear - for women who batter an eyelash at the male receptionist with a petite smile. Even when dealing with female receptionists, women can get a bargain because of female solidarity.

Yes, yes, yes. The hot chick gets a break. Okay then. Can we consider that this is about more how attractive and/or charming a traveler is and perhaps not about their gender?

The response to the guy's POV goes right for the gut:

...it is undeniable that it is safer to travel alone as man than as a woman in this crazy world. As a woman by my lonesome, I tend to spend a bit more to stay in a central location or somewhere well lit, and don’t drink much if I don’t know the crowd. Seems like common sense, but many a guy I meet thinks far less of the consequences of a dark alley encounter than I do.

On a related note, the Frugal Travel this post recently: Q&A With Beth Whitman, a Woman’s Perspective on Solo Travel. (Side note, I know Beth, she's a friend and neighbor.)

One of the things that comes up often is that when a woman is in a situation that’s a little bit scary, she says, “I knew something was wrong, but I didn’t want to offend him” or “I didn’t know how to get out of the situation.” Look, there’s going to be some countries that just aren’t going to be appropriate for hitchhiking. Do a bit of research — go to the Lonely Planet forums. If someone stops and you don’t feel right about it, don’t get in the car. That’s just the bottom line.

I feel like the real meat in this conversation is in the comments, though. Just one example:

I find it interesting that when asked “Were there ever times when you wished, “Oh God, I wish I was a man in this situation?”” Whitman replies “no”….but then only a few questions later, she acknowledges that traveling in the Middle East would be inherently difficult as a female.

Maybe I am just oversensitive to creepy staring, unwanted advances by men, or several–thankfully thwarted–attempts at either pickpocketing or blatantly grabbing my purse (no doubt because the assumption is that as a woman, I wouldn’t resist). Yet these are just a sampling of behaviors I have encountered both abroad and here in the US, even in “safe” areas. Whitman seems to have had friendlier travels and paints a rosy picture, but from my vantage point, the world in general is still not that kind to women, and females should always have their guards set to high, traveling or not.

As a person who's taken public transit in Cairo, I'm inclined to agree. I could not sit on the beach by myself in Tel Aviv -- the constant harassment men who refused to believe that I was there alone to read my book was enough to chase me off the sand. I've been a lot of places where I'm transparent -- I slid through Asia while the tall blonde Texan in our group was the object of constant staring. But in Sweden where the dominant population is oh so much taller and blonder than I, not so much so -- as a (admittedly much younger) female, Sweden was nearly as bad as Tel Aviv. I can say with great certainty that yes, I have wished at times that I were a man.

You do need to consider your options -- I'm not going to Saudi or any nation where women have to wear the veil. I certainly would not expect to travel peacefully and solo there. I'm not walking alone at night through unknown neighborhoods -- and some of them I'm not walking through alone during the day. I dress extremely modestly and it's not just because my thighs are more than 40 years old. Should I find myself in Cairo again, there is no way I am taking the bus.

But I also think that being female is absolutely NO excuse for staying home.By way of inspiration, here's a World Hum post:Ten Inspirational Women Travelers.

No, we likely wouldn’t publish a list of 10 inspirational male travelers. But men and women experience travel differently and face different obstacles in making travel a part of their lives, so let’s recognize a few women who have blazed the trail.

You go, girl.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View. Photo? Me, Wendy Perrin, and Sheila Scarborugh, three traveling women, at SxSW.

New in the Travel Blogroll

2009-06-22T10:26:28-05:00

I love love love fishing through the blogroll to find new-to-me reads,to see what other travelers are up to, to see pictures of far away places, to learn that yet another person has lost her heart to a foreigner and is wading through the trials of expat life (you have my heartfelt sympathies). Here are a handful of new reads that I've enjoyed.

Travel Tales and Commuting Woes is by a blogger/photogger in Bombay. I loved this shot of the terraced hillside in Shimla and oh, hmmmm, I can't decide where else to point you, there are some nice visual treats in there, best you poke around on your own.

I'm on a road trip to Chicago (huh, go figure) later this summer, so I was delighted to find Iowa Girl Eats. People keep telling us that Iowa is a huge bore, but it looks like a person can be inspired by food in the heartland. Good news for those of us passing through.

American Stories Now is for the writer and reader in you. This is my kind of stuff. There are a lot of small stories, interactions with people while the writer is out in the world. It's not your classic travel narrative -- we went here, we did this -- and I like it all the more for that.

Did I mention I'm doing a road trip? That's why I'm a sucker for a road trip blog, though hey, what happens to them when the road trip is over? Never mind that. Tag along with these happy travelers on Snapshot Chronicles. It's a family travel adventure across the US.

Finally, how's about a little travel porn? No, not like that. I mean travel porn as in "Good lord, look at the color of the water!" What kind of sainted life must I lead to be reborn in the tropics? A-hem Sugar Apple will help you with that traveling sin of envy. Good lord, will you look at the color of that water?

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

Pilot Dies in Flight, Plane Lands Safely

2009-06-18T11:39:25-05:00

The pilot of a Continental Airlines jetliner died midflight on Thursday morning as the plane, carrying 247 passengers, was en route to Newark from Brussels, the authorities said.

Two first officers took control of the plane, a Boeing 777, which landed safely at 11:47 a.m. at Newark Liberty International Airport.

Julie King, a spokeswoman for Continental, said the captain “died in flight, apparently of natural causes.” He was 61 years old, had 21 years of service with Continental and was based in Newark, she said, adding that his family had been notified. --City Room/NY Times

Apparently the flight turned around, headed back to Newark, and landed safely. There were plenty of crew on board to manage the aircraft.

Via Today in the Sky, a pointer to Ask the Pilot and this quote:

'this is a highly unfortunate event, obviously, for the captain and his family … it's really a non-issue … from a safety standpoint." He says "a transoceanic flight, such as Brussels to Newark, on which crewmembers take scheduled rest brakes, would have been carrying a minimum of three pilots -- a captain and two first officers, one of whom would be designated a ‘relief’ first officer. … Long and short, when this flight touches down at Newark, there will be two pilots at the controls -- exactly as there would be normally."

The incident certainly leaves travelers feeling weirdly unsettled, but it's important to understand that this wasn't a safety issue -- the flight wasn't in any danger.

I'll be back to update and post related links as they come in.

Travelers on Iran

2009-06-15T09:08:58-05:00

For a lot of us, Iran is no man's land. We'll never make it beyond that border because we're women, because we're Americans, because, most importantly, we're afraid. Afraid we won't be able to get out again, afraid we'll surrender our rights in customs, afraid that the crazy rhetoric of the Iranian government reflects what's going on in the heads of Iranian nationals. We're right, but we're also oh so wrong.

There are a handful of intrepid travelers who defy the zeitgeist and head for Iran. Earlier this year I followed the adventures of The Little Travelers with great fascination.

The most common question I've been asked before coming is, "Do you need to wear a burka?" The answer is no. We are not in Afghanistan. In Iran we do have to abide by Islamic dress code, which is hands and face may show. Most women wear modern western style clothing with a hejab, or head scarf covering their hair. A shirt or coat should hit mid thigh and hide any womanly curvage. The big sister turned 9 a few months ago so she is now subject to this law but all have assured us that it will not be enforced. The little sister can go scarfless. --Iran Diary, The Little Travelers

I also used to read Tori's View from Iran -- she's an American and was living there -- she now writes about Iranian news and politics from outside the country but there's lots in her archives from inside.

Iran is far from monolithic or doomed… It is diverse and delightful and filled with people who are unbelievably welcoming. Can you imagine Iranians traveling to America or Europe and being met with sincere kindness by 99.9% of the people they run across? Yet, when I travel Iran, I *am* met with kindness. Yes me. An American. I tell everyone who asks that I am American. Yes I do. I tell everyone. I tell the Revolutionary Guards and the soldiers and the police and the school girls and their mothers and brothers and fathers and friends. I tell cab drivers and business men and oil execs and refugees. Everywhere I go, I am met with kindness. When Iranians say to me, “It’s your government we hate, not you.” I say, “The government represents me. I may not have voted for it, but you must hold me and other Americans responsible for its actions.” Yes. They should, but they don’t. View from (Outside) Iran

For a look at what you're missing by not going to Iran, check out Simon and Isabella's photos of Persopolis. These two travelers traveled Iran by bicycle -- their blog posts includes special advice for women cyclists needing to observe Iran's strict dress codes. And they again tell stories of hospitality

As we entered Mashhad after 90km of hard wet cycling we were soaked and couldn’t get through to Saeed who we were going to stay with, his mobile number wasn’t working. We stopped on the street and were almost immediately greeted by a smiling man who ushered us into his workshop, sat us around a fire, made us cups of delicious tea and then lent us a mobile phone to ring our few contacts in Mashhad. His son Majid spoke good English and helped us out and we had a great time sitting in the workshop with the employees (one fanatical Manchester United supporter among them!)--deCadence

Travel guru Rick Steves went to Iran and has been on a bit of a crusade with his new book, Travel as a Political Act. I heard Steves speak about his travels and he couldn't get the words out of his mouth fast enough, such was his enthusiasm. There's a series of video podcasts on Steves' site.

Many years back I was in Italy visiting with a friend, she had a German neighbor in to visit. The man was in his 60s, as a boy he'd lived in Eugene, Oregon, where his parents were professors at the University of Oregon. He had fond memories of the place. I asked him if he intended to go back to visit. He looked at me with complete distaste. "No," he said, "I am not too impressed with the Americans these days." I was deeply hurt. "You must not mistake the people for the government," I responded, with all the sugar I could muster, but I also got up and walked away from this guest, opting to spend the rest of the afternoon in the garden.

Travelers to Iran remind us that there is so much more to it than we can see from the outside. I don't know that the fates will send me to see the crumbling ruins at Persopolis but I'm thankful for those that are brave enough to find out what Iran is really like.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

North Korea for Travelers? Uh, Sort Of.

2009-06-08T09:51:37-05:00

From Observation Post 5 we looked across to Kijodong, a village in the North Korean side of the DMZ. In this case the word “village” is used in the loosest possible way – while there are buildings, the world’s tallest flagpole flying a ridiculously large flag and speakers broadcasting propaganda to anyone unfortunate enough to be within hearing distance there are no actual residents. The flag is 31m long, weighs about 300kg and takes 50-60 people to raise and lower.-- Four Oceans

Travelers to South Korea often go to the DMZ to get a peek across the border in to the empire to the north. It sounds like a weird scene, with a lot of what you can see from the South Korean vantage point engineered for your viewing or hearing pleasure.

A few travelers make it in to North Korea.

...what increasingly drew attention of us all were ever more frequent groups of local people, same as the first one under that pine tree, sitting around, eating, drinking and, believe it or not, having fun. Of course, why wouldn't they have fun? But then again, we had all arrived in North Korea, each with our own baggage of prejudices, and some of them certainly held that notion that North Koreans were living in such an authoritarian society where everyone possibly spied on everyone else, so much so that at the end of the day entire population ended up scared shitless. Everyone except the Big Brother, Kim Jong Il, that is. And by extension, having fun out in the open would be like letting your guard down and exposing yourself and whatever vulnerabilities you had to whoever might consider exploiting them as opportune. That's what most of us thought. -- World Through My Eyes

Want to be one of them?

Visitors would do well to heed the warnings and advisories about travel to North Korea posted on the U.S. State Dept. website, among them: your hotel room and phone conversations may be bugged; you can't take pictures of anything without permission; you can't pay for anything by credit card or personal check; you can't bring anything resembling pornography into the country; you can't take the subway or buy a bike; it's illegal to dis ruler Kim Jong-il; if you develop a medical problem, you should avoid surgery (because "functioning x-ray facilities are not generally available"); and if you run afoul of the many eccentric, arbitrary laws of the DPRK, you're on your own, as America has no diplomatic relations with the North (you would have to cry to the people at the Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang, a "U.S. protecting power"). --A Wholly Unauthorized Guide to North Korea

Anti-US feeling is certainly present: DPRK state media recently reported that increasing numbers of citizens are visiting the USS Pueblo spy patrol boat, captured in January 1968, to express anger at the new hard-line attitude being taken by President George W. Bush’s administration. Regardless, the day when a US liaison office is set up in Pyongyang may not be so far away.--Holiday Fu

Inviting, no? Apparently the show stopper sight is the Mass Games.There's some video on Little Seouls that is kind of crazy making -- note that the background is human powered...

...composed of 15,000 or more individuals each holding a coloured placard. The mosaic changes with the music.-- Little Seouls

But there's no telling what your accommodation will be like:

The rooms are all recently refurbished, and ours has two clean single beds, a nice warm Korean-style heated floor, a view onto the snowy hillside, a TV and a modern bathroom. But as with the hotel in Kaesong, there is a complete absence of running water. Glenn had the bright idea of filling the toilet cistern with water from the full bath, so that at least we could flush it properly. Unfortunately he soon discovered that the toilet wasn't even plumbed in, as the water ran straight out of the back of the toilet and onto the floor. It seems that there has never been running water in this hotel. We tried the TV. It worked, in that you could switch it on, but it displayed nothing but static. Last Known Location

So, being watched at every corner, having your entire experience scripted, and the edge of risk didn't deter you and you still want to go? Start here with the Wikitravel page on North Korea.

Visiting North Korea is a bureaucratic nightmare, and your every move will be monitored by your guides. There are those who have called for a boycott on tourism to North Korea, due to human rights abuses in the country or how tourism may help finance the government. There is no official free enterprise activity in North Korea, and all tourist facilities are state-owned so the money goes directly to the government of North Korea. Others cite the possible benefits of Westerners engaging with North Korean citizens, particularly in a positive, friendly manner (i.e., contrary to the stereotypes of Westerners presented by internal propaganda) — although your guides will generally do their best to stop you from actually meeting any ordinary citizens. Ordinary North Koreans are forbidden to interact with you without authorization from the government. Regardless of political beliefs, North Korea is generally acknowledged to be a unique place to visit. The traveller must make his or her own mind up about the rights and wrongs of visiting the country. --North Korea

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

Follow Up: Bloggers on the Air France Crash

2009-06-04T08:45:41-05:00

It's only been a few days, but the conspiracy theorists have the Air France crash in their radar. I'm not going to post any of those links here -- you're on your own if you want to pursue that line of thinking. The only real news is that crews are finding bits and pieces of airplane debris. Here are a few more links on the crash.

Flyaway Cafe posted her condolences here and a post about the critical black box that everyone is so eager to find here.

Xeni Jardin has a clip on Boing Boing that also discusses the work of finding the black box.

Gawker posted a story about bomb threats recently received by the Airlines. This was in Argentina, not Brazil.

On the Huffington Post, there's an article that details the debris that was found and the data that the research crews have to work with.

If you're feeling incredibly paranoid and/or are getting on a flight soon, you might want to check out this post on FoxNomad that tells you how to increase your odds of surviving a crash. For the record, I couldn't read it through, I got too freaked out by the idea of boarding every flight mentally prepared for it to go down.

Passenger lists and obituaries for those lost are starting to appear in the press. Reading about those who were killed in the crash drives home how awful and tragic this event is. Again, my heart goes out to the family and friends of those lost in this terrible event.

Air France Flight "Missing"

2009-06-01T09:22:13-05:00

Update, 1230PST: With still no signs of the missing plane, the news remains bleak. The Guardian posts subtitled footage of the Air France statement to the press here.

Reuters (and any number of services) reports this morning that an Air France flight is "missing" over the Atlantic:

Air France said the airliner sent an automatic message reporting an electrical fault at 0214 GMT, roughly 15 minutes after the plane flew through a stormy area with strong turbulence.

The Guardian posts a map with that shows the route the plane is to have taken and the location at which the flight went missing.

Brazilian air force officials told the Associated Press a search was under way near the island of Fernando de Noronha, about 1,500 miles north-east of Rio, but an Air France source was quoted as saying that there was "no hope" for those on board.

An Air France press release provides little additional information. The CEO of Air France held a press conference at DeGaulle airport:

A visibly shaken chief executive officer of Air France has told a press conference at Charles de Gaulle airport the company and nation are in mourning.

Pierre-Henri Gourgeon said Air France flight AF447 had reported “the failure of several onboard computer systems” after flying through an area of “extreme turbulence” prior to air traffic controllers loosing contact with it.

According to Mr Gourgeon, the aircraft sent out an automatically generated alert that the onboard systems had failed, leading to speculation it had been struck by lightning.

A search is currently underway.

According to a report from Reuters, Brazilian authorities said that the island’s airstrip is now at the center of the search: “planes had taken off from the island of Fernando de Noronha off Brazil’s northeast coast to look for the Air France jet.”

I mourn not just for those lost, but for those waiting at the airport for more news and the family and friends of all those in transit.

I'll update more news comes in.

On Separate Vacations

2009-05-28T09:07:41-05:00

Going separate ways as a couple is often read as a prelude to separation (which has its own pressures), but it doesn’t have to be. In fact, many experts agree that taking separate vacations as a couple, within certain guidelines, can actually help to enhance the relationship and allow each partner to keep it in perspective. --Divine Caroline

I'm a fiercely independent person, so the idea of taking off without my spouse for a bit is really no big deal, neither one of us has our confidence or commitment undermined by a few days apart. I trust my mate completely when it comes to matters of fidelity and as much as I love to travel, I love to come home too. Different destinations? Not really a problem. But it's important to plan your separate vacations together so no one feels out of the loop or resents being left behind.

The important thing is to understand the meaning of the different preferences. Why does one want to take only shared vacations? Is it a lack of trust, or simply a desire to share as much as possible with the spouse? Many individuals have grown up with the tradition that marriage means the two people become "one" and ought to share everything, including vacations. Others may feel left out and lonely if a spouse wants to travel without them. --Family Wisdom

You want the support of your partner when you're skipping out solo.

He told me that he knows how much I abhor winter and insisted that I go find a good flight deal and get myself to the sunshine. Less than a week later I was on the plane and headed for what turned out to be the best solo vacation of my life. I honestly do not think that those four days could have been any better than they were. -- Work It Mom

Vacation style is as good a reason as any to take your trip separately:

But not everyone enjoys sipping fruity drinks on a beach and doing nothing for hours on end. In that case, you can either compromise and try to find something that you both can enjoy. Or, you can do what more and more families seem to be doing and take your time off separately.-- Parent Dish

If everything is cool on the home front, a separate vacation isn't a threat. There's lot of great advice about working through your separate vacation plans in this Today/MSNBC article:

A committed monogamous relationship shouldn’t mean giving up who you are or your independent activities: career, friends, interests or all previous traditions (ski trip with the guys, shopping in the city with the ladies). A successful marriage or monogamous relationship does entail the willingness to make some sacrifices in an effort to accommodate the other person.-- Today/MSNBC

I headed off to Austin for a week earlier this year. I invited my mate, but he declined, knowing that the stuff I was going for wasn't his scene. He declined a whirlwind trip to New York, too, for the same reason, plus, the expense of that just didn't make sense. We agreed that these were the right choices. But we went together to Oregon and Hawaii (who turns down Hawaii, anyway?) and enjoyed ourselves together. I'd say that the key is to make separate vacations an addition to your travel schedule, not an either/or thing. Sure, time apart is a fine thing when everyone has worked together to plan for it. But time together? You need that too.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

Traveling with Friends

2009-05-21T21:55:08-05:00

Two friends joined us on our recent trip to Hawaii. We're all under-employed, we've all known each other for some time, and when we started talking Hawaii, one of them had this to say: If I don't get a beach vacation soon, I'm going to have to kill someone. (The someone was very specific, and he did make himself available for the beach vacation, saving everyone from character references and prison time and claims of insanity. A-hem, I digress, as usual.) I've traveled with one of these friends before; we had a great time on a weekend up in Vancouver, Canada, so I was fairly confident that we could all travel together. And apart from some picky eating issues and a minor airport meltdown,things worked out swimmingly.

Traveling with friends is tricky, I've had it go very badly when all signs pointed to it going perfectly, I've had it go perfectly when my sense was that it wasn't going to work. I've traveled with friends in Alaska and Costa Rica and Spain and Washington State and Vietnam. The destination doesn't determine if it's going to work, only the chemistry does. And planning, good planning. Here are a few posts with great advice about how to travel with friends.

Wet Noodle Posse posts on traveling with your gal pals.

Before you head to the airport or get in the car for your girls’ weekend, establish how you’ll handle meals. How many meals will you eat in your rental? How many dinners out? Will you split the grocery bill, or should everyone get their own food? Who’s going to the grocery store when you arrive and what’s on that list? My friends and I usually shop together and split the bill. I bring a few things necessary to my existence that I don’t expect them to chip in for, but I am happy to share—coffee. I like to grind my own dark roast beans. Communication is important—especially if some friends have to watch their pennies more than others.

Travel Muse has a great post on how to "Stay Sane While Traveling With Friends" that includes this piece of advice and more:

Plan alone time. Even though you’re traveling with people you like, everyone needs some time to themselves to decompress from the group. Make sure you plan for alone time on a daily basis.

I also liked this post on Divine Caroline:

Take a trial trip.A short-term practice round such as a weekend road trip might help you recognize whether you’ll be compatible travel partners. Spending time together without your everyday concerns and comforts will give you a chance to see how patient and compatible you are with each other. You may discover whether or not your prospective partner is able to get through trip delays and brief misunderstandings without getting distressed. Though temporarily stressful, those are the situations that can usually make the best stories.

On our trip, we did really well when we had clear goals for the day and a schedule to follow. We also allowed for days when we split up and did things separately -- one day we got an extra car, one day the husband and I stayed in while our friends took off for the better part of the day. A few times we had a late start -- we're early people, our pals get going late -- but we were able to take everything in stride. I'd say the most difficult thing we had to deal with was our vegan pal, but it was very clear that it was about him, not about us, and it would not have been a big deal if we'd abandoned him to go eat on our own -- we agreed upon that early on. We worked out our budget and our accommodation needs before hand, so there was no tension around too expensive or not enough bathrooms.

But I've had travel kill friendships, too; it's a sad truth. I traveled once with a guy who turned our trip into a race, once with a woman who decided that everyone was against her. And once, after I'd been traveling alone for many months, I had a friend join me for two weeks and her style completely conflicted with mine -- and because I'd been alone so long, I couldn't let go. That friendship was saved, but I won't travel with her again. You want to get all that stuff on the table before you start your engines -- pace, goals, budget, budget, budget, so that your memories won't be of a broken friendship. Do it right, and you'll have what we have now, a hilarious group photo of four good friends standing in front of a weird facsimile of the Easter Island heads. And a desire to do it all over again. If it works out, the benefits are unbeatable.

You've Got Mail: The Joy of Postcards

2009-05-18T19:11:24-05:00

I have two postcards sitting on my desk -- they're from a junk shop in
Aberdeen, Washington and they show workers in the pineapple fields and
canning factories on Oahu. They have spidery text on the back in
Italian and stamps that, to my delight, have polar bears on them. They
were sent in the early 60s to someone sick at home -- "Hope you're
feeling better, having a lovely time, see you soon..."

It might seem weird to buy postcards from someone else, but along with
my fetish for maps and ancient guidebooks, postcards scratch my itch
for travel to places in a different time, even if it's not my trip. I
like reaching back several decades to see what a complete stranger
scrawled on a 4X6 piece of cardboard about a place I've been. I'm
particularly partial to postcards of Hawaii and Austria, places I have
a more than passing connection to.

Flickr has a swell Vintage Postcards pool, if you'd like to squander your afternoon clicking through hand tinted images of places long gone.
On A Canadian Family, this post introduces a bunch of postcard bloggers - who knew?
Cupcakes and Curry shows a piece of art that includes a vintage postcard of the Taj Mahal, it's a lovely piece of collage work.
TravelPostcard is devoted to... you guessed it. Lay Hoon in Malaysia is showing us the world through her mailbox.
In case you're wondering, the art of collecting postcards is called "Deltiology" -- and it's also the name of a blog devoted the the same.

I've been better about sending postcards lately -- I've been asking my
Twitter contacts who wants one when I come across them -- I've mailed
them off to the Czech Republic and Texas and maybe even to you, who
knows. I know that I love getting them and that the feeling of getting
a postcard is only HALF the joy of sending a little slice of a place of
to a friend or not yet friend who isn't there with you.

Traveling? Sure, email is great and updating your blog is awesome, but take ten, spend a buck or two, and make someone's day.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

Supermarket Souvenirs

2009-05-14T10:00:11-05:00

When my pals M&A were getting ready to leave Austria after they'd spent their winter vacation with us (this was in my expat days), they spent a good deal of time poking around the supermarket to find things to bring home to their kids. Their choices seemed comical at the time -- toothpaste, bath salts, maybe even a box of cereal, items that you could absolutely get at home -- but they weren't off the mark. The foreign language, the new tastes and smells, the exotic packaging, this was stuff that was useful but came very clearly from Somewhere Else. The kids went nuts. My same friends once brought me an inflight magazine from Asia because the English translation was so hilariously bad, they knew it would send me in to hysterics. They were right, of course, and that souvenir was way better than a "My friend went to Shanghai" t-shirt.

It is easy to be suckered into Italian ceramics, Chinese brocaded fabrics, Czech handmade lace, only to discover that it was all made somewhere other than where you are and available for the same price at the Pier One or Cost Plus or whatever import store is near you. Globalization, baby, it's messed up your souvenir shopping. That's why the supermarket is such a great place to get souvenirs - it's the last bastion of localism.

Budget Travel has an oldie-but-goodie slideshow: Budget Travel Magazine Supermarket Souvenirs if you're looking for inspiration.

Viator's blog posts some additional photos of odd, extremely local purchases.

Eileen Smith's post on Boots N All has some terrific examples of supermarket souvenirs -- I love the squid shaped squid, though I'm not sure I'd foist that on anyone, much less risk it exploding in my luggage.

Saving Money in Real Life suggests you buy edible souvenirs -- fine advice, who doesn't like to get yummy treats from elsewhere -- but I'd add that you'll avoid a little heartbreak by making sure you can carry it through customs.

Nifty Thrifty also gives supermarkets the thumbs up -- get cool stuff, save money, and what ARE "super slutty socks"?

Save money, buy cool stuff you can't get elsewhere, win over those who didn't get to tag along with you, and maybe even support a small local business...A big win, all around. Now, who's going to get those packages of Hula Noodles we got in Hawaii?

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

New in the BlogHer Travel Blogroll

2009-05-11T11:05:33-05:00

It's been a while since I've crawled through the new additions to the BlogHer travel blogroll - here's a few new-to-me blogs that caught my eye this morning.

Hooray for Claudine -- she's off to Korea and will be blogging about her experience there as an English teacher on Korea-Diva. I like it a lot when bloggers post about the preparation for their adventures -- it makes their experiences seem all the more real when you read about their homework as they get ready to make the big leap.

I've been reading Kate's All Over the Place for a while now -- she's a fine writer and has a real sense of adventure. Her strong voice takes you with her wherever she goes.

Escape is full of weird little travel related stories, etiquette tips, and news bites, the sort of stuff I might call travel ephemera. I like.

Bindi Girl is travel writer Erin Reese's blog - she posts notes about gear, bits of Indian culture, links to her travel work elsewhere - among other things. it should generate a healthy serving of envy in those who wish they were India bound.

Finally, though it's hardly the last blog in there, Trekker Tots is a family travel blog with destination reviews that focus on what's there for you and your kids.

There's lots more in there, and if you've recently added YOUR blog to the blogroll, post a link in the comments wouldja? I'd love to check it out.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

Those Big Ticket Souvenirs

2009-05-07T10:14:27-05:00

I dropped a packet on a new ukulele in a music store on Kauai. I had been kicking myself for not buying one the first time I was there, this time, I was not going to let it get away. I knew going in it would be expensive, I'd budgeted for it, but it was still a big purchase for a person without a day job. Luckily, it came with a sturdy hard shell case and a uke fits in the overhead bins on a plane. No problem. I did end up having to pay to check my bag, to my extreme annoyance, but that's what happens when you sacrifice your carry on space to passion.

Usually, anything I buy while traveling has to fit in my luggage. I'll leave stuff behind (preferably at a good cause, NOT dumped for the hotel maids to sort) in order to make space. But what happens if the item is crazy fragile or just too big to carry around on the rest of your trip? The year I met my husband, I remember spending rather a lot of time in the post office while I shipped home those Aboriginal Australian painted canvases and he packed a few pieces of rather fragile artist's glass. And in Cambodia, we had to pick up an new duffle bag so those shadow puppets could make it home safe.

Via Laura Morelli's blog, I found her article for USA Today on how to ship your souvenirs home. It's full of great advice on how to get that awkward thing home.

I asked Twitter if anyone had ever gone crazy and had to ship stuff home -- Travel Savvy Kayt bought too many paintings in China, The Travel Bee bought Murano glass in Venice, and Nancy Brown had to ship chocolate home from Switzerland.

What crazy thing did you buy that you had to ship or make special arrangements to get home with you? How did you manage? Did it arrive safe? Did you dodge import taxes? Any regrets? Share in the comments, please.

And me, I'm delighted with my new uke.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.

On Unplugging When You Travel

2009-05-03T20:20:27-05:00

The place we're staying has no in-unit Internet. Oh, the horrors! In fact, while yesterday the wifi seemed to work seemlessly, today, it's down and I'm in a stuffy room with a broken fan just off the bar. I had to wait the better part of the day -- the bar was locked tight this morning. I paced. I wandered. I tried three times to connect to the uncooperative wifi. And I gave up. We went to town, had lunch. I walked on the beach. I took a nap and read my book. I talked to my travel companions. I played my ukulele. And still, when I could finally get access to this less than luxurious business center, guess where I went, instead of back to the beach to watch the gathering swells. Yeah, you got that right. I'm pathetic.

If you follow the travelsphere, you didn't miss the big fat Twitter controversy stirred up by Rolf Potts over at World Hum. You also didn't miss Jessica's elegant response on BootsNAll. You might know, if you read me at all, that I LOVE TWITTER, even more so after my wonderful Hawaii contacts on Twitter invited me to two events [vanity link], one a lunch with technonerds, the other a cocktail hour with more PR/tourism types. I'm totally delighted that I was plugged in while in Waikiki -- without being connected, it would have made it all that much harder to... well, connect.

I do think I need to unplug more when I'm traveling. It's a tough compromise, though. Since I blog about travel and use the web to connect with fellow travelers, the Internet has become a critical part of my travel experience. Our current situation is a nice compromise. All the amenities are here, they're just not in our room. We have no phone, no TV, no wifi. We do have an absolutely breathtaking view of the Pacific and when I locked the door behind me to closet myself in this muggy little office, surfers were gathering in the growing waves. I'm keenly aware that what I should be doing is sitting on the balcony, drinking something tall and cold, eating a little more pineapple, and leaving all this technology and connectivity for the time -- too soon in the future -- when I can't hear the surf.

Treehugger has a nice post up about a couple who unplugged from their "real life" -- they're not sissies like me who can't go a day without checking their mail.
This Uptake post includes unplugging as one of the ways to truly relax when you're on holiday.
Location Independent Professional reminds digital nomads that we, too, need to get off the grid now and then.

Pam blogs about travel and other adventures at Nerd's Eye View.