Rolf’s Authors@Google talk in New York

Earlier this month, while passing through New York, I had an opportunity to speak about Vagabonding and long-term travel at the Google office in midtown Manhattan. Google has since posted a video of this presentation at YouTube, and it’s a nice encapsulation of my typical book-tour subject matter (including a high-school graduation picture of me in a mullet and Cosby-Show sweater, which at be found at 08:50).

In the interest of making this video easier to navigate (especially for those without an hour to spare), I’ve broken down the presentation by theme as follows:

00:00 – 01:10: Introduction by Alexander Newman
01:10 – 02:30: Rolf explains the concept of vagabonding
02:30 – 08:20: Rolf reads Chapter One of Vagabonding
08:20 – 18:12: Rolf shares slides of his own international travels
18:12 – 20:05: Q&A – Travel insurance and preparing for emergencies
20:05 – 21:55: Q&A – Overcoming the language barrier abroad
21:55 – 23:20: Q&A – Dealing with anti-Americanism abroad
23:20 – 26:55: Q&A – Is it even possible to avoid being a “tourist”?
26:55 – 29:00: Q&A – The ethics of traveling in poor countries
29:00 – 31:10: Q&A – The challenges of coming home
31:10 – 32:32: Q&A – Managing funds while on the road
32:32 – 33:55: Q&A – Using local economies for transportation, etc.
33:55 – 36:05: Q&A – How to be a travel writer
36:05 – 37:40: Q&A – Traveling solo
37:40 – 39:28: Q&A – Advice for women traveling solo
39:28 – 41:20: Q&A – Where in the world has Rolf not traveled?
41:20 – 43:08: Q&A – Protecting yourself against crime on the road
43:08 – 44:30: Q&A – How to avoid getting in the guidebook rut
44:30 – 46:05: Q&A – Attachment to specific people and places on the road
46:05 – 48:08: Q&A – Bad experiences on the road
48:08 – 51:10: Q&A – Making time for travel (vacations v. sabbaticals v. quitting)
51:10 – 52:50: Q&A – What to pack, packing light
52:50 – 54:40: Q&A – Staying motivated to travel; not getting jaded
54:40 – 56:20: Q&A – Dealing with the prospect of running out of money
56:20 – 56:35: Closing remarks and wrap-up

Feel free fast-forward to the topic that interests you most. For more information on my book, Vagabonding.net contains reviews, resources, and travel information.