Reality Czech! Prague, here I come I declared once I booked a studio apartment for three days and two nights in the city’s Old Town section. Next, I researched to see how much I could accomplish during my stay without being gluttonous. Usually, I cover quite a bit on my trips by being organized, through … Continued
Fifteen hours – for some, it sounds like a horrendously long bus ride from Skopje, Macedonia to Istanbul, Turkey. Yet, it was the shortest bus ride during my six-month solo backpacking trip in China and Southeast-Central Europe. Six months ago in early March this year, I quit my well-paying job in Malaysia and packed my … Continued
I left the U.S. on August 1 for a grand adventure. Many thought I was foolish. Others thought I was unique. Some told me that they were a bit jealous. And, a few saw me as just plain crazy (including myself, at times!). There have been those who support my journey and those that dismiss … Continued
It’s the same walk but every day it’s different. Yesterday the mountains were shrouded in mist and I walked in steady drizzle; today the sun is shining and the bright yellow of the beech leaves contrasts sharply with the blue of the autumn sky. It’s still damp underfoot, however, and I slip and slide as … Continued
“It happened again, Lu. Sally backed out of the trip just as we were to send a check.” “What? Again?” “I don’t know if I’ll ever get to Rome. I so wanted to be surrounded by the history of our grandparents.” “That’s a shame.” “Gotta go. Talk to you next … Continued
A Decade of Departures I left home as soon as I was able. It had never been a happy place and the often violent streets of Belfast offered little respite. I therefore spent much of my childhood in my room, longing for elsewhere, learning to spell the names of countries as I leafed through my … Continued
Some of the time there’s a shade of light that can’t be defined or replicated, certainly not in the Instagram picture I’m about to upload unfiltered. Often it’s the luminescence of the water that makes me stop and look, as the waves etch their white foam between the blue – or is it green… or … Continued
One Thousand and One Travels In July 1994, “tarmac” wasn’t a word I knew. I called it “the magic carpet main station,” as every plane had to start there if it wanted to go for an air ride. I was eleven years old, on my own, and vastly excited as I walked down the … Continued
There are many ways in which people choose to live their lives- every one of them unique. I didn’t, however, just make the choice to have a distinctive life, but also made a choice to aim to have a remarkable day, every single day. For all of my adult life, I have been an adventure … Continued
by Joey Bui At the entrance to Vinh Nghiem Temple in Saigon, you can buy wreaths of jasmine. My grandmother buys me a wreath every time we go together. We have been twice, once when I was six, and then when I was sixteen. The petals are twisted into thick bulbs, and the stalks … Continued