With the Pride Festival going on in Vancouver at the beginning of August, I got to thinking about how attitudes to sexuality differ across the world. For this topic, I am by no means an expert, and can only go on the research I have conducted and the experience of varying attitudes that I have...

I was strolling through the Page One bookstore in Taipei 101 when I saw the book Who's Your City? by Richard Florida. Partly intended as a rebuttal to Thomas Friedman's book "The World is Flat," Florida argues that where we live has become an even more important decision in the age of globalization. Despite ever-faster...

"Smell is a potent wizard that transports us across thousands of miles and all the years we have lived. The odors of fruits waft me to my southern home, to my childhood frolics in the peach orchard. Other odors, instantaneous and fleeting, cause my heart to dilate joyously or contract with remembered grief. Even as...

I'm not the first to say that airplane food, especially for coach passengers, is dreadful. Although the meat tastes like cardboard and the mashed potatoes have the consistency of glue, you have to admit that you get a little excited when the meal carts come along. (The meal carts are here! Hey, why are those...

I was thumbing through the backlog of vagablogging.net entries to make sure I didn't post about something someone else had already covered when I stumbled across Aaron Hotfelder's post asking what sort of mementos and keepsakes people like to bring back from their trips. The comments on that piece generated responses like passport stamps, Christmas...

When you travel, do you prefer to stay off the beaten path or get lost in a crowd? Although I'm not a country girl, I feel most at home in smaller, isolated hamlets (think the lesser-known Greek Islands) rather than big bustling metropolises (think Los Angeles or Buenos Aires). Big City Pros: - Always a...

Different travellers decide to up and see the world at different stages in their lives. Poke your head around any hostel lounge in the world and you might see a wide-eyed student, taking a year before university, a middle-aged veteran of South African safaris, London bar hopping and sushi in Tokyo, and maybe a 25...

When choosing your first vagabonding destination what is better, something to ease you in on an extended trip away from home, or something that stuns and shocks you into a new way of thinking? Both have their advantages. In the predominantly English speaking parts of the world, it is easy for an English, Australian, Canadian...

While “pop music” is a dirty word among the hipster set, it's hard to escape because it's well, popular. Now that I live in Taiwan, the center of the Mandopop universe, the music is everywhere: in department stores, metro stations and restaurants. The local pop stars grace the covers of magazines in convenience stores and...

Returning to Kansas after being in Asia for two years was intensely interesting. And overwhelming. And mind-boggling. At home but feeling like I prematurely left the womb, in shock, sitting back behind an obscure mask, observing the life I used to live, smiling on the inside at the absurdity of much of it. How was...

Like pairing fine wine with food, finding the best book to read during a trip is an art. Wandering bibliophiles know what I mean - books may not make or break your travels, but having the right one on hand can enhance your experiences. It's a little obvious, but you can start with a book...

When I spend any length of time somewhere — whether it's two months in Paris or an hour at the side of the road waiting on a bus — I can't help but wonder, "what would it be like to live here forever?" Giving that question a bit of thought almost always leads to the...

I was in Ibiza last weekend; we partied until 3am (yup, I'm getting old! :) and headed to the airport for an 8am flight. With 5 hours to kill, we tried to get some sleep on the airport benches. It was horrible. We hardly got any sleep and my back and neck are still in...

When I first mentioned my new position at vagablogging.net to some friends several of them looked at me rather quizzically and said, "what do you know about vagabonding? You're married." It wasn't exactly the response I was looking for, but I realized that, in the general public's mind, "vagabonding" is synonymous with single. Even among...

One of the hardest parts about being a vagabonder in the first place is the expense of traveling itself. Getting there is actually pretty easy, so long as you prioritize plane tickets over paella, but the costs of buying new shampoo, finding socks, or paying for apartments can add up to a lot, even in...

It doesn’t matter which country you travel in, you can never take safety too seriously. Almost everyone is aware of vaccinations that are often needed for changing continents; political unrest in countries is also often widely reported in the media (such as in Zimbabwe at the moment, or in Kenya over the past few months,...

Hi everyone, Here it is, my first post on the (in)famous Vagablogging.net! Hope you all enjoy what I have to say, and I'd love to hear what you think about everything! So, with niceties out of the way; keeping a diary/blog/journal is a great way to remember your travels. Although it can be sometimes tedious,...

Our most recent "call for writers" elicited dozens of excellent submissions. But in the end, there could be only six. Here's some background info about our six new Vagabloggers: Graham Reid - A Graduate Journalist from England, Graham has spent the past year traveling around North America, including an epic East-to-West Coast bus trip. Graham's...

One of the best parts of traveling to unknown lands is meeting people from a culture that is not your own. However, it is inevitable that I look out for people from my country, whether I want to hang out with them or not, I will always (if even on a subsconcious level) look out...

Want to write for Vagablogging? We're looking for one dedicated individual to post once or twice a week about any vagabonding-related topic of their choice, from travel gear to destinations to literature. The ideal writer will be familiar with Rolf's book Vagabonding and/or the philosophy behind it. Though the position is unpaid, it really is...