“In the long history of modern tourism one element is striking. The main tourist attraction tends to be those other tourists. We devote a lot of time and energy to observing and commenting on fellow travelers. At the beach or the café on the piazza we turn into amateur vacation sociologists. In the evening we will share our observations with our companion(s): “Did you see that German couple? Those Canadians were really…” This habit seems … Read more »

One of the major questions many travelers ask as they’re dreaming and planning for a RTW trip or any kind of long-term travel is, “How much money will I need?” For many, that is answered in terms of how much money the traveler needs to save before setting off on a trip, during which they won’t be making any income. That’s not the only option, however.

Most of us can point to examples of people … Read more »

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a slideshow is worth a novel. Nomadz.nu, a partnership of two Belgian women, created this excellent presentation: Don’t be rich, live rich – one year on the road – the good and the bad.  This would work well as an “orientation” film for new vagabonders ready to head out into the wider world.

The whole thing is … Read more »

The lure of the exotic is strong for travelers, but we may often forget that the exotic is here at home as well. I recently returned from a 42-mile hike in Rocky Mountain National Park—one of countless National Parks that I had not yet visited—and now I have a new appreciation for trails.

It can be hard to turn off the endless chattering in your brain … Read more »

James Clark

https://www.nomadicnotes.com

Age: 39

Hometown: Melbourne, Australia

Quote: “ For me, I have created my dream lifestyle. I get to travel around the world while working on a business I love.”

Bethlehem, Palestine

On Sunday, CBS’s 60 Minutes aired film footage of San Francisco in 1906. The footage, taken by a camera attached to a cable car going down Market Street, is less than 12 minutes long, and it is mesmerizing in a way a still photo cannot be. We see bodies moving, faces moving, … Read more »

“Riding in a commercial jetliner simply isn’t traveling, as far as I’m concerned. It’s teleporting from point A to point B. You spend the entire time in the air just waiting to land, and afterward you speak of the flight only if it’s to complain about the turbulence or the snoring of the dude who sat next to you. The trip itself is nothing. A blank. A means of skipping ahead instead of wading through. … Read more »

Let’s face it: most archaeology work can be quite boring, compared to the Indiana Jones fantasy. You’re more likely to be dusting off pottery than exploring lost cities.  However, sometimes reality can trump fiction.

The New York Times had this incredible news: Beneath a Temple in Southern India, a Treasure Trove of Staggering Riches. As a routine matter, a court ordered … Read more »

Years ago, I used to be the major planner on my trips. I’d do extensive research of the area I planned to visit, complete with restaurant reviews, entertainment schedules and seasonal activities. When my feet touched the ground in my destination, I intended to know exactly what I was going to do.

Skip forward to the present day, and I’ve changed a lot. I still do … Read more »

“Coming back from [a trip overseas] means re-entering a world you have known and lived in, but doing so without feeling the charm you might expect at returning to a former life. You had left that world behind in the hope it might be thoroughly transformed in your absence, but nothing of the sort has occurred. It got along quite nicely without you and it adjusts quite smoothly to your return. People and things conspire … Read more »