Taking off Travel blog

JoAnna a junk in Halong Bay, Vietnam during a solo trip through the country.

Today we feature JoAnna Haugen of the eclectic Kaleidoscopic Wandering travel blog, who has been traveling her whole life.

JoAnna, what’s your travel background?

I’ve been traveling in some form and fashion my entire life. I began traveling with my dad on his business trips before I was three years old and could still fly free. Growing up, we actively explored the United States every summer with long road trips. I went abroad for the first time when I was a sophomore in high school to London, where I marched in the New Year’s Day parade with the high school band and played the French horn with a brass choir in Westminster Abbey. I’ve had a serious travel bug ever since, so I continue to trip around the United States and the world as opportunities arise.

What’s different about your blog or site?

My travel blog, Kaleidoscopic Wandering is not a travelogue or journal, so readers won’t find a blow-by-blow account of where I am and what I’m doing. Rather, it’s a collection of general travel advice and tips, information about specific sites culled from my travel experiences, contemplative essays, book reviews related to travel and interviews with interesting people.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

Knock on wood, I’ve always had decent luck with catching planes and getting where I need to be on time, but this past year I got stuck in Costa Rica when my plane broke down and it took me 48 extra hours to get home. As usual, there were a handful of people who flew through the roof when the flight was cancelled, but for the most part, everyone was really understanding and relaxed. There really isn’t much you can do when a flight is cancelled, so everyone else on the flight (including a baby and a dog) bonded over the situation. We had a huge happy hour at the hotel in San Jose with our flight attendants and held a talent show on the plane back to the United States.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

… a sarong or pashmina because I freeze on airplanes and always find a use for it!

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

I don’t have a mentor when it comes to travel blogging because I tend to do my own thing with little regard to what’s going on in the rest of the community. However, my travel heroes are my dad, who introduced me to travel as a kid, and Rick Steves, who I’ve admired since college. I own a ton of Rick Steves’ books and used to drive hours to attend his free travel classes in the Seattle area when I was in college.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

I’m enjoy checking out any destination I’ve never been before, but of particular interest right now is Ireland. My husband and I would really like to get there this year and bike around the country.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

My husband. I am the world’s worst planner when it comes to travel, and if it wasn’t for him, I’d never have reservations at hotels or plane tickets. He takes care of all the details for me because I just never get around to doing it myself.

Anything to add?

As much as I love to travel, I understand and appreciate why others aren’t as adventurous as I am, and that’s okay. There seems to be an ongoing discussion about forms of travel that are somehow more acceptable than others, and I just don’t think that’s necessary. I believe that any form of travel is legitimate, and no one deserves to be judged because they prefer certain destinations or travel styles.

Want to take part in this interview series? I’d love to feature as many travel bloggers as possible, so leave a comment on this post or contact me.

This week, Angela Petitt of Sabbatical Scapes is in the spotlight. Angie quit her corporate IT job two years ago to travel the world and changed her life forever. Here’s her story, including an unusual favorite travel planning tool!

Angie, what’s your travel background?

Although my parents always took us on trips growing up, I only traveled every now and again after high school. Then one day while in college, I saw a flyer for a trip to Israel. I knew I wanted to go. But how could I afford something like that? Thinking about the trip all that day, I happened to mention it to my brother. He candidly said – Why don’t you ask me for the money? I was floored and excited!! Long story short, that trip to Israel was only the beginning. (You can read more about the story behind the Israel adventure here.)

Fast forward to present day, I quit my corporate IT job 2 years ago to go on a sabbatical to travel. So far I have been to almost 30 countries during my sabbatical!!

My travels have led me to amazing destinations such as China, Siberia, Greece, Egypt, Israel, Panama, Honduras and many other exciting places. I have zip lined in Cabo, narrowly escaped the earthquake in Japan, received a HUGE bouquet of flowers from a stranger in Positano (my friends dubbed me the Princess of Positano since then), went cave diving and horseback riding on the beach in Punta Cana, played with monkeys in Roatan, glared into the mouth of a steamy volcano in Nicaragua, my friends and I had a stellar white sand beach along the beautiful coastline of Colombia all to ourselves, stared in wonder at the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx, got caught in a downpour atop the Acropolis in Athens, visited the MLK Memorial in DC, and had many other awe inspiring experiences.

What’s different about your blog or site?

My blog, Sabbatical Scapes, is different due to the fact that I am chronicling the experience of quitting my corporate IT job during the throes of the recession in August 2009 to go on sabbatical…Not as a young backpacker, not as couchsurfer, but as a 41 year old professional, with a mortgage, car, and other responsibilities. I did not sell anything to make my dream come true. Actually, keeping my lifestyle of comfort was important. Moreover, I want to inspire and encourage others to go for their dreams as well and to really know that with God all things are possible.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it? Read more »

Today I’m happy to add Lola Åkerström to our list of featured travel bloggers. A writer, photographer and traveler, Lola  has been published in some of the world’s most prestigious travel publications. She is the editor for Matador Goods and also photoblogs for Sweden’s offical website. I highly recommend that you check out Lola’s personal  blog, especially the ‘postcard’ travel photo series.

Lola, what’s your travel background?

I’ve been traveling ever since I was 1 year old. I’ve always been a geography nut, especially both human and physical geography, so traversing the globe was always in my cards. When I was growing up, my family was (and still is) big into spending time together abroad, meeting up on different continents, and such. It wasn’t until my early 20s that I started traveling solo, and lately I bring my husband along on a trip or two. I’ve been blessed to be able to visit roughly 40 countries so far and look forward to experiencing more.

What’s different about your blog or site?

I work as a freelance writer and photographer who covers various aspects of travel, culture, food, and lifestyle with a few stints in between as a painter, cartoonist, and web developer. I spent 12+ years as a GIS/web programmer before finally resigning in 2009 and making the fulltime leap into a location-independent lifestyle as a freelancer.

You can check out my portfolio and credits here – http://www.akinmade.com.

Blogging is just one of many platforms I use to share my work, and my work has appeared in many major publications around the globe.

What’s different about my work is that I try not to put all my eggs in a single basket; developing various skills along the way so if one source of income hits a dry spell, I can always rely on other skills until it bounces back.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you traveled and how did you handle it?

One of the most unexpected things I encountered was at the Terror Museum in Budapest. I was down in its basement looking at old cells where prisoners had been kept. I noticed an old man crying and looking around in desperation, almost disoriented. He spotted me, headed over, and in the little way we could communicate, told me he once was a prisoner in one of those cells.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

I never travel without my camera because you just never know when you’ll snap that once in a lifetime moment.

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

Ironically, my ‘hero’  happens to be outside of the travel blogging world. I find Oprah Winfrey to be an extraordinary inspiration, and her life echoes a mantra I try to live by – live your authentic self. You need to show up completely in your own life, and find your own path in life. There are so many distractions out there and one can get easily swayed by trying to fit a certain profile, fit a certain club, or run with a certain pack.

One needs to step back, discover what it is they’re truly passionate about, and try to pursue and develop those passions in a way that makes them feel fulfilled – be it travel, writing, photography, blogging, or a combination of all these.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

I was recently asked this same question and my answer is that I’ve actually chucked out any bucket lists I had. My attitude and philosophy towards travel has changed with time. I’ve stopped looking at life as a checklist and more as a moment by moment experience. If I never get to go skydiving off Kilimanjaro in my lifetime, I won’t have regrets because it wasn’t on some bucket list that defined my life.

That said, I really do want to go to the North Pole because it has always been a childhood dream of mine and it means so much on so many levels to me. I would love to explore Mongolia, more of West Africa, as well as spend a few months island hopping around the South Pacific.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

I love rooting around Kayak and Skyscanner to find low fares.

Anything to add?

I’ve been blessed to visit roughly 40 countries so far and I know I’ll journey through a few more, but one of the things I’m trying to do a lot more of is to travel at a slower pace instead of flitting from place to place.

Thanks, Lola. Want to be featured in this slot? Leave a comment on this post to be considered or contact me to find out more.

Today’s featured travel blogger is Brian, a fellow British expat who lives in and blogs about the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico. His site, Discovering Puerto Rico, gives you an in-depth look at the island and its attractions, with some great pictures too. Follow Brian on Twitter at @coqui2008.

Brian, what’s your travel background?

I am an expat Brit now living in Puerto Rico and so my site naturally focuses on the Caribbean Island of Puerto Rico. Prior to Puerto Rico I lived in the USA (Florida and North Carolina) for a few years and before that the majority of my life in the UK. I visited several European countries and traveled extensively around England. Most exotic destination to date: Kenya for an amazing Safari. Longest trip to date: 3.5 week road-trip exploring the beauty of British Columbia, Canada.

What’s different about your blog or site?

I started Discovering Puerto Rico (it was actually named something different at first) to help with the adjustment of moving to Puerto Rico and I used it as a way to research and get to know the island and people.

One of the things I noticed immediately was the lack of up to date information on things to see and do in Puerto Rico on the web, so I believe my site helps to fill in some of those gaps plus gives visitors to the site a local perspective on things rather than the big corporate feel of some of the more well known tour guide sites. My in-laws are always telling me that I know more about places to see here in Puerto Rico than they do, so I guess my site is doing something right

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you travelled and how did you handle it?

To celebrate my wedding anniversary I arranged to stay at a hotel on the west coast of Scotland overlooking a loch. I naturally made a reservation for a loch view which I confirmed several times before arriving. On arrival the room was very nice but to my complete surprise we had a view of a huge road bridge (and slight water view). The next morning we left the hotel and found an even better one close by where we celebrated our wedding anniversary in style.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

I never travel without an open mind, because you can miss so much if you visit a place with a preconceived mind set.

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

I really like the work of Julie Schwietert Collazo from the Matador Network. I like how she captures a destination and integrates a lot of local perspectives into her writing.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

It’s a place that I have already visited (so hopefully it will still count as a bucket list item). Kenya (or Botswana) for a safari. I had such an amazing time the first time I went to Kenya back in the 90s that it is #1 on my list of places that I have to visit. It’s probably not going to happen any time soon; but it will happen.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

A cop out, I know, but I’d have to say the internet. I know there are a lot of online and phone apps for planning trips, but I do not have one single tool that I use. I’d rather just use a search engine and plan my trip that way.

Anything to add?

For anyone that has recently moved to a new country/city, I strongly urge them to start a website or at the very least start collecting information about the place. It’s a great focused way of finding out about a new place and will get you out of the house exploring and meeting locals.

Thanks, Brian. Want to be featured in this slot? Leave a comment on this post to be considered. (Image: james.rintamaki)

I think you’ll enjoy today’s interview with Barbara Weibel of Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel, who has always loved travel. Her travel philosophy is particularly inspirational and I was moved by her account of her stay in Nepal.

Barbara Weibel in Puma, Nepal Cultural Home Stay

Barbara, what’s your travel background?

I’ve had the wanderlust my entire life. The moment I turned 18 I threw a tent and backpack in my car and headed out on a cross-country exploration of the U.S. During my corporate years, I continued to travel whenever possible, though two week vacations left me wanting more. Eventually I began traveling a month at a time, which led me to the realization that I wanted to make a career out of travel.

What’s different about your blog or site?

The stories on my blog, Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel, are intensely personal first-person narrative articles about the places I visit, the people I meet and the fascinating (and sometimes crazy) things that happen to me. Over the past five years I’ve stayed with a Maasai family in Tanzania, Africa; held the hand of the Dalai Lama; ridden dilapidated buses in Mexico to the deepest canyon in North America, and cruised down the Mekong River in Laos. I’ve been robbed in Hawaii, attacked by a mob in India, and healed by a Tibetan Shaman. I share these and more escapades on my blog as I immerse in cultures around the world, confirming my fervent belief that people everywhere are more alike than we are different. Read about my journey at http://holeinthedonut.com.

What’s the most unexpected thing that has ever happened to you when you traveled and how did you handle it?

For years. people have asked me which country is my favorite. I could never narrow down my answer to one country, as I liked different places for different reasons. Then, about a year and a half ago, I went to Nepal, intending to stay for three weeks or so. Three months later, I was still there.

A Nepali family invited me to participate in the Brother/Sister Tika Ceremony on the final day of the Hindu holiday known as Tihar (Diwali in India). In this lovely ceremony, brothers place a tika (mark made with colored powder) on the forehead of their sisters and the sisters do the same to their brothers. I received a tika from the father, my Bhai (little brother) for the day. At the end of the day I thanked the family for allowing me to be a part of their family for the day. They responded, “On no, you don’t understand. You are now Didi (older sister) to us forever.”

Since then, I have truly become a part of their family, spending most days with them when I am in Nepal, and have even adopted the country as my home base for a good part of the year. I never expected to want to settle down in one place for any length of time again but Nepal, and my Nepali family, have changed all that for me.

Complete the sentence: I never travel without … because …

I never travel without my Yoga mat because practicing Yoga keeps me flexible and healthy.

When it comes to travel and travel blogging, who is your mentor/hero and why?

My heroes in travel blogging all have one thing in common; they are quality writers who don’t crank out top ten lists and trite “how to”articles in order to rank well on Google. There are many that I follow, but I have two favorites. Jodi Ettenberg from Legal Nomads left a legal career to travel and write, focusing on food. Her articles are a sensual wonderland and Mike Sowden from Fevered Mutterings is a traveler whose ability to attract misadventure is nothing less than astounding. Both are always entertaining reads.

What place is on your travel bucket list? Why?

In a week I am off to South America, where I will strike off two places that have long been on my travel wish list: Machu Picchu in Peru and the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador. However, seeing the Northern Lights is still at the top of my bucket list, and I hope to combine that with a trip to Iceland sometime soon.

What is your favourite travel planning tool?

I don’t do a lot of pre-planning on purpose, as I don’t want to go to a country with pre-conceived ideas. I usually buy a one-way ticket and have one night’s reservation at a guest house or hostel, then wander around the country based on information and tips gleaned from locals and other long-term travelers. Once I know where I’m going, I usually rely on the Lonely Planet Thorn Tree forum for destination information and TripAdvisor for reviews of various accommodation choices prior to heading to a new location.

Anything to add?

I am constantly amazed by the lack of Americans I meet on the road. When I am in the States, the question I am asked most often is, “Aren’t you afraid?”  My answer is always the same, “There is nothing to be afraid of.” Americans, more than any other people, seem to have a fear of traveling, which I find sad. I believe that getting to know other cultures is our best hope for world peace and travel is the best vehicle for achieving this kind of knowledge and understanding. I hope that my blog will encourage people to travel without fear.

Want to be featured in this slot? Leave a comment on this post to be considered.