Posts Tagged ‘Travel’
How to Be an Explorer
Loved writing this piece for GOOD: Make Room for Discovery: Five Simple Steps For Explorers
Magellan, Columbus, Da Gama, Amundsen, Cook, Eriksson, Lewis & Clark, Shackleton—all names synonymous with adventure and exploration. They circumnavigated the world, discovered continents and became the subjects of history books. There was an unknown, and it was meant to be explored.
In the modern age of the Internet, cell phones, and around-the-world air travel, that sense of the unknown has changed, but it certainly hasn’t disappeared. While there may not be entire continents up for grabs, modern day exploring is just as important as it was during the Age of Exploration, if not more so.
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Friday Photo: Simple Life in the French Countryside
There is beauty in simplicity. A glass bottle for water. A table in the sun. Weather worn chairs.
In the heart of the French Riviera, I’m taken to explore an organic farm. The earth tilled by horses, the rows of grapevines and olive trees soaking up the southern French sun. There’s a picnic table at the top of the hill, overlooking the valley that the house and farm sits on. Everything stops. The only sounds that of the chickens in the coop and the occasional goat. This is beautiful simple living.
Thoughts from Afghanistan: Afterword in Lewis & Clark Chronicle
After traveling to Afghanistan last fall, I was asked to write a piece for my college’s alumni magazine. I was honored to contribute to the Lewis & Clark Chronicle, and it was a good chance to dig deeper into a subject that continues to be at the forefront of my mind: women’s rights.
An excerpt:
“Remember that being a woman is different in Afghanistan.”
I was getting yet another opinion on my decision to travel to Afghanistan. The statement was said out of love, in an effort to remind me that I should be aware of my surroundings and behavior. Just because I was a strong, independent woman, I should be sure to remember to respect local culture. But it was also coming from someone who had never traveled to Afghanistan.
Biking in Paris
Everywhere I travel, I try to ride a bike. It’s one of those weird obsessions that I have; the need to discover everything on two wheels. Be it Afghanistan or Amsterdam, game on.
Here’s the thing about riding a bicycle in new places: it’s like learning how to ride a bike all over again. No matter how used to the bicycle you are – at home in Portland I don’t even own a car – discovering a new city on two wheels makes you fall in love with cycling all over again. It’s a challenge. Navigating streets you have never walked down before, learning the ins and outs of local bike culture, figuring out how traffic works. There’s a flow to cycling, and each city has its own variation.
Traveling to Eat: The Essentials
I am excited to be contributing to Food Republic, and kicking things off with a guide to traveling to eat – ie all the things you should keep in mind if you want your culinary travels to be interesting.
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“If you reject the food, ignore the customs, fear the religion and avoid the people, you might better stay at home.” – James Michener
Michener is right; if you can’t stomach the local fare, you’re not really traveling. Pulling us away from our local haunts, travel is a way to explore new destinations, and what better way to get to know a place than through its food culture? The added benefit of travel is that it allows you to indulge. You might skip out on that dessert at home, but hey, you’re in Greece… you have to try the baklava! And order that third beer.
If you’re a food lover at home, then traveling like one isn’t a difficult feat, but there are a few things to keep in mind to make sure you make the best of your foray into exotic palates.
1. Go off the beaten path
For those really looking for a culinary experience, you’re not going to get it sticking to the major thoroughfares. Take time to explore. Make sure you seek out just as many local dive joints as you do three-star Michelin places. And no matter how hungry you are, try to avoid eating in big chain restaurants.
Friday Photo: Colorful Kabul
The inside of Design Cafe in Kabul, Afghanistan, featuring the work of Rahim Walizada. A stark comparison to the dusty streets of the city outside.
My ten-part series on Afghanistan on Gadling kicks off today – learn more about traveling to Afghanistan here.
Bringing Travel into the Kitchen
My latest over on Foodie Underground:
A freakish commitment to perfecting a recipe picked up while abroad might seem off, but don’t we all have food obsessions when we return from voyages? We come back from our travels, whether near or far with stories of “have you ever heard of [insert odd local dish here]?” and “they had the most amazing [insert normal dish] but with [insert oddball ingredient that is representative of the place traveled to here]. I wish we had that here!”
Ask someone which bus line they rode most often during a trip and you’ll get a blank stare, but ask about the best local meal and you’ll be sure to be listening to an animated story for a minimum of seventeen minutes. Food is often one of the biggest takeaways when we travel, be it just a half hour from home or on the other side of the world. That roadside diner with the house special sauce can be just as exotic as sambusas on a street corner in Kabul. Through food we experience a culture a people and a place. We are forced to stop and take things in, listen to our senses. It’s no surprise that the result is memorable.
Read the rest here.
Kabul Bike Commute
A crisp Friday morning on the road passing Darulaman Palace, southwest of central Kabul. Men cruise by on their way to work, pedaling heavy steel frames, dodging potholes. Many faces are swathed in scarves to protect against the morning chill. A group of men gathers at the road that leads to the palace, crouching low to the ground to drink a glass of tea and exchange the morning news. Even in the midst of conflict there is normalcy.
Breaking Down Cultural Barriers with Food in Afghanistan
It should have come as no surprise that my favorite Dari word from nine intro language lessons would have been “lunch.”
The first step to traveling respectfully is to learn how to say “hello” “thank you” and “goodbye” in the local language. The second step is to learn a few things food related, because no matter where you are in the world, you are going to need to eat.
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