Hitchhiking is an option for the courageous that will almost always guarantee an adventure of some sort but have you ever considered taking it to the air? Your hitchhiking possiblities could be instantly expanded. In Ed Buryn's Vagabonding in America he briefly mentions hitchhiking in airplanes. Hitching in this fashion would definitely give you the...

I've always kept a journal since I was twelve, but I didn't have a travel journal until this year. Now that I have one, I'm surprised how I ever traveled without it. If you're a traveler but don't really keep a journal, it wouldn't hurt to consider it. It's true that writing on a blank...

Nobody likes to be told that the thing they love, in this case traveling, is a "planet-threatening plague." But that's exactly what journalist and author Elizabeth Becker writes in a recent Washington Post Op/Ed piece : "global tourism today is not only a major industry -- it's nothing short of a planet-threatening plague." It's a...

I spend a lot of time deciding where to eat when I travel. I like to find spots where the average local eats, that are not filled with tourists, and that are cheap. I never follow guidebooks; if it's in a guidebook, I rather not go there. I think I have a good eye for...

Everyone has seen them, some of us have even been them -- those poor travelers with their noses so buried in a guidebook they hardly seem aware of their surroundings. For most of us, the guidebook is an indispensable travel tool, but over-reliance on the guidebook can be hindrance as much as a help. While...

French – the language of love. Actually, when the sexiest phrase that comes can come out of someone’s mouth is “j'ai un chien appelé Pongo” - maybe not so much. The beauty of travelling the world is that you can intentionally and unintentionally further your language skills so much quicker than back in the Motherland....

When deciding to take an extended stay in a country, a ‘working holiday', it can sometimes become a story of ‘different place, same boredom'. It means going from a weekday job in your home country to probably a more tedious method of employment in your adopted country (on lower pay). There are ways to cure...

The excellent documentary TV series PBS Frontline recently did a feature called Sick Around the World . In the program, veteran journalist T. R. Reid travels to five countries to find out how they launched universal health care. It's available for viewing online. I found the program to be pretty balanced, in that it did...

Ready to travel but worried about maintaining your vegetarian diet while also maintaining a non-offensive position? It's easier than many make it out to be, especially if you handle it all with a sense of humor. Once in Korea I tried to order a vegetarian meal of rice and vegetables. I received (with a proud...

Dave Freeman, co-author of "100 Things to Do Before You Die: Travel Events You Just Can't Miss" passed away after a fall in his home this week . From the book: "This life is a short journey. Make sure you fill it with the most fun and visit the coolest places on earth before you...

Airlines loath raising prices, and rising fuel costs are driving them to employ some creative ways to pry money out of your pocket without actually raise the fares. The cornerstone of their new strategy is fees and, quite frankly, things are getting out of hand. Want to check two bags? That'll cost you up to...

Travelers today have it easy. Sure vagabonds around the world strike out for the farthest corners of the earth, but in general our trips are pretty safe compared to those of times past. Consider the fearless Greek traveler Odysseus. He sets out after the Trojan War with a group of, depending on how you count...

Linked to my previous entry, relating to safety while travelling, my current head cold and runny nose has me holed up in my bedroom, craving sleep, but pondering health abroad. As with most topics involving travelling, for the most part keeping healthy is down to common sense. Get your jabs, eat cooked-through food, keep clean...

As ever, and with good reason, the state of our world and how we destroy it is high on the international agenda. The Bird’s Nest strikes me as somewhat of an oxymoron in a city that is plagued by a dense smog; a symbol of recreation and nature in a home of industrial fervour. The...

One of the most frustrating things I hear on the road is when veteran travelers tell me, "Oh, this place was so much better 10 years ago." Or 20 years ago, whenever. It's like they want to make me feel that I arrived too late and they already grabbed all the cool local experiences for...

"Music is the universal language of mankind." -Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Human emotions bursting from unfamiliar instruments and unknown words flowing forth with passion. An unknown language but still the music speaks and everything is innately understood. Tap your toes and feel the beat throughout your body as the music consumes you and you become the...

Many travelers love quoting (or misquoting) Kurt Vonnegut's line about how peculiar travel suggestions are dancing lessons from God. In a way, the urge to arrive at an unusual destination or to embark on an unlikely journey is similar to dancing lessons. You're not sure about your steps at first, but if you flow with...

In a recent article for SFGate, John de Graaf concludes that American's need more vacation time . He calls for an increase (presumably a federal mandate) in paid vacation time, from two weeks a year to three weeks a year. As those of you who've read the Vagabonding book know, another travel writer, Joe Robinson,...

I travel only with a backpack, and have never locked it. Ever. Nor have a ever been bothered about it because if I lose anything it will be some clothes and perhaps a pair of shoes, no big deal. Besides, my backpack has 3 zips -- I refuse to have 3 locks and keys; and...

As the world becomes smaller, is travelling tending towards becoming obsolete? Popular reasons for an extended period of vagabonding usually boil down to discovering more about other cultures, and finding out about yourself. The self-discovery part is still very much alive, but surely one day there is just going to be a global mish-mash of...