How to educate a child while traveling

When families first announce their plans for extended travel, many of them are hit with repeated questions about their child’s education. Too often, the parents of traveling kids are seen as selfish. Adults feeding their own desires at the expense of their child’s education and “normal” school experience.

The reality is that most traveling parents have thought long and hard about what their child’s education will look like on the road. The vast majority are … Read more »

Posted by | Comments (2)  | March 12, 2015
Category: Family Travel

Giving free travel talks—a great way to share the knowledge and ignite others’ travel dreams

As travelers, we often find ourselves talking to friends and strangers alike at parties, at work, wherever, about travel and how to do it right. We evangelize for travel, extolling its opportunities and benefits. We often go on at length about the magic of our favorite places, the addictive high that comes from filling up a passport book, and the thrill of crossing a new border and making new connections. We also find ourselves giving … Read more »

Posted by | Comments Off on Giving free travel talks—a great way to share the knowledge and ignite others’ travel dreams  | March 8, 2015
Category: Adventure Travel, Expat Life, General, Notes from the collective travel mind, Solo Travel, Vagabonding Advice, Youth Travel

Around the world on a shoestring

IMG_1853

Whenever anyone asks me why I still travel on a shoestring at the ripe old age of 38, I usually tell them about the time I learned how to play the bagpipes in Havana.

Granted, I could probably relate a more typical story about the joys of budget travel – some tidy parable of money saved and experiences gained – but when I mention learning … Read more »

Posted by | Comments Off on Around the world on a shoestring  | March 7, 2015
Category: North America, Vagabonding Advice

Rent vs hotel life

Have you ever taken a look at your utility bills and just wondered if you should ditch your lease, pick up some travel expenses and call it a wash?

Well, my husband and I are recording every single expense as we travel, just so that we can do an experiment of that nature.

I’ve picked a pretty average month to demonstrate what our costs have been with travel so that we can compare them to … Read more »

Posted by | Comments Off on Rent vs hotel life  | March 5, 2015
Category: General, Hostels/Hotels

Vagabonding Field Report: Phnom Penh, Cambodia

This tightly compacted city holds some of Cambodia’s best food and most tragic history. Without knowing its past of civil war and genocide, you would think Cambodians and Phnom Penhers in particular were just really friendly people. Once you learn their history and realize that everyone you see was affected by the notorious Khmer Rouge in the 1970s in one way or another, then you know they’re more than just friendly; they’re admirable. Visiting Phnom Penh is … Read more »

Posted by | Comments Off on Vagabonding Field Report: Phnom Penh, Cambodia  | March 4, 2015
Category: Asia, General, Vagabonding Field Reports

Travelers tend to fetishize an impossible notion of authenticity

“Once globalization and development have homogenized and sanitized the world – quite often for the best – it will no longer be possible for even the most self-indulgent and romantic among us to maintain the illusion that what we are doing is anything other than not-particularly-glorified tourism. If all the classic elements of backpacker stories have gradually become clichés, we might as well pause to acknowledge that they were surprisingly fun clichés while they lasted. … Read more »

Posted by | Comments (2)  | March 2, 2015
Category: Travel Quote of the Day

Top 5 language translation apps

100_5941

You’re standing in a train station, staring at two signs. Back and forth your head swivels. Likely the words on these signs are the end destination points of the train line.

But they could be anything. The language printed on the signs is complete gibberish to your eyes. In fact, it doesn’t even look like a language — these swooping, artistic curves and flat-topped characters.

Read more »

Posted by | Comments (1)  | March 1, 2015
Category: Travel Gear