Travel is the Traveler The guidebooks warn about this treacherous, hardscrabble path. “The travel-writing trail is long,” one says, solemnly. “It can be extremely demanding and daunting…lonely, exhausting, and depressing.” But here, I’m undaunted and uninhibited, quickened by a private fire, and the warnings only fan my ardor as I survey the vexing terrain. The … Continued
Yeehaw Namaste: Adventure and Peace in the American West The Last Best Place My first morning in Montana, I awoke to guttural, almost prehistoric, squawks outside my window. I bolted upright and slid my sleeping mask to my forehead. Our yoga teacher had closed our Vinyasa practice the night before with a warning: over-zealous songbirds … Continued
It was New Year’s Eve. The stems of wilted, white and golden roses washed up on the shore and tickled my feet, offerings for Yemaya (the Sea Goddess) from the people of Salvador, Bahia. Everyone was dressed in white. I watched as people threw themselves into the Ocean, some fully clothed. A pulsating Spirit permeated … Continued
Travelling is a question of time. Freedom is also a question of time. Where these two intersect, you realize self-autonomy. It is late March, austral fall, and I find myself returning to what I thought I left behind in Canada, winter. I’m in Ushuaia, the capital and main port city of Argentina’s Tierra del Fuego. … Continued
An Afternoon in the Sun in Colorado I’ve spent many a summer in London. I’ve enjoyed a spring or two in Paris. I’ve had the pleasure of a few overnights in Cabo San Lucas, San Diego, Rapid City, Grand Canyon, and Disney World. Of all the places my feet have walked, I am always happiest … Continued
My mother was born in 1926 to immigrant parents and was the first girl in our family to be born an American citizen and a resident of the San Francisco. I had lived in the San Francisco bay area my whole life and not once realized the freedom and opportunities that were at my feet. … Continued
I was standing on a snow-crusted field outside of Fairbanks, Alaska staring at the dancing shimmer of lights, the Aurora Borealis, in the nighttime sky. The lights spoke directly to me. They moved, surrounded, caressed, freed me from my body, then invited me to join their cosmic ballet. I was overwhelmed. Tears of joy iced … Continued
Bill and I have been RVing across North America, free to be where we want to be, do what we want to do. Concord, Massachusetts was not part of our itinerary but the Millers, Bills friends, invited us to visit with them. Am I glad we did! Doug showed us how the city was the … Continued
Deep in the jungle in Costa Rica, climbing high above the treetops, all that lies before us is lush vegetation for miles and miles as thin fog rolls through. A light breeze brushes my cheek, as the chatter of monkey echoes in the distance, a natural musical. This is where I feel free, above the … Continued
Just outside the town of Truth or Consequences, in southern New Mexico, there’s a spaceport designed for taking tourists into outer space. Called Spaceport America, the state-of-the-art facility isn’t ready for launching wannabe astronauts into the cosmos just yet. But once it is, perhaps in late 2013 or early 2014, regular folks will be able … Continued