Winter is coming . . . and with it, the holidays.
By now you’ve probably seen about 10,000 of those “gift guides” – gift lists for moms, dads, husbands, wives, neighbors, friends, etc. – even travelers. Here’s the secret behind those gift lists, though: They usually start with a reporter sending an email out to a huge mailing list that we are on for our coaching and consulting business.
Read MoreAs a kid, the mementos my dad collected in his travels with the US Air Force served as visible reminders of the world beyond Iowa. I recently found myself going through those treasures. That experience, and the last 16 months mostly at home with my own travel purchases, has caused me to reflect on the things we carry home from our travels. In the process, I came up with a few guidelines I intend to use going forward. If you’re headed out on a trip soon, they may help you avoid coming home weighed down with purchases you regret.
Read MoreIn an certainly uncertain world, I thought it would be funny to post this piece Amy wrote for another site about business travel. We can assume that business travel will happen one day in the future. When it does, you can be prepared after reading this article while being required to stay at home!
How to Travel for Work Without Derailing Your Life
—Amy M. Garder
Read MoreWinter is coming . . . and with it, the holidays.
By now you’ve probably seen about 10,000 of those “gift guides” – gift lists for moms, dads, husbands, wives, neighbors, friends, etc. – even travelers. Here’s the secret behind those gift lists, though: They usually start with a reporter sending an email out to a huge mailing list that we are on for our coaching and consulting business.
Read MoreKeith R. Sbiral was honored to have a story with images published recently in the Viewfinder, the quarterly journal of the International Leica Society, Volume 52, Number 2.
Read MoreAs we look forward to seeing fellow LHSA members in Boston, we wanted to pass along a few tips from our most recent trip to Boston when we attended another conference in June. We asked our fellow conference attendees for their tips as well.
Read MoreFor years, I’ve heard Rick Steves talk about becoming a “temporary local.” And I thought we were pretty good at it. But almost three months of living temporarily in Jackson, Wyoming (the major town in Jackson Hole, Wyoming) has taught me first that our “temporary local” skills could be improved and second, how to do it.
Read MoreFor me it was last September. At the time, I felt like I shouldn’t write about it, because I worried that my personal feelings might cloud my judgement. Now, 13 months later, after being fortunate enough to have several meals since then at restaurants ranked as highly or more highly, I’ve decided it’s time to write about our dinner at Cinc Sentits in Barcelona. (Cinc Sentits means ‘Five Senses’ in Catalan.)
Read MoreRoller bag or backpack? Hard sided or soft? Two wheels or four? With built in phone charger or not? $69 or $999?
Buying a suitcase can be as simple as answering those five questions, or you can take the approach I’ve taken: spend far too many hours researching, trying suitcases, and even buying far more than I care to admit. (In fact, every time I comment on Keith’s quest for the perfect camera bag, he reminds me that my suitcase collection rivals his camera bag collection. Watch for his camera bag recommendations in a future post.)
Read MorePRIME DAY UPDATE NOW POSTED!
Amazon’s Prime Day (ok, really two days in 2019) is here! Each of the last five years, we’ve found great deals on items that have enhanced our travels. Here are the items we’re watching for this year (between midnight Sunday, July 14 (Pacific time) and midnight Tuesday, July 16). If we’ve overlooked something, let us know in the comments!
First, if you’re not already a Prime Member, sign up for a free 30 day trial here.
Read MoreTraveling around the world in one carry-on and a backpack takes some planning. (I often think of Rick Steves’ advice: “No one ever comes back from a trip and says ‘Next time, I’ll pack more.’”) Because we get questions about this so often, we’re starting a series of posts on packing. (If you missed it, check out our post on laundry – a key part of being able to pack light.)
Read MoreSummer is officially here, the time to load up the (metaphorical) station wagon and head for the hills. Whether you’re loading up a literal car or flying somewhere, packing can be stressful and unpleasant. And when you add camera equipment to the equation, packing can be painful as you worry about getting your camera bag on board.
Read MoreOne of our Photographers in Focus, Craig Semetko is big on serendipity, giving talks and workshops on finding and introducing serendipity in your photography and life. Other than hearing Craig speak, I’d never thought much about serendipity in travel, until our April, 2019 trip to Kauai left me realizing Craig might just be onto something.
Read MoreSince I started an Instagram account almost a year ago (follow Red Dot Blue Dot at @reddotbluedot1 and me at @amy.m.gardner), I’ve posted images from about 10 different countries and several states. Never have I had as many requests for travel tips, though, as when I posted an iPhone photo from Asheville, North Carolina.
Read MoreOne of the most frequent questions we get about travel is how we pack with one carry-on bag and one backpack each, whether for a trip that spans 10 weeks and 15 countries like last summer’s, or for shorter trips. People often say “I could never do that because I work out” or “I need dress clothes” or “I carry a camera with me.” I usually just nod and smile…
Read MoreFive hundred year old Panama City, Panama was never on my travel radar until last January when a friend emailed that he was planning a gathering there to celebrate his birthday. Within less than an hour, we had checked flight availability and booked miles tickets on Copa via United. Fast forward to Thanksgiving Day, when we were among the few intrepid travelers at O’Hare awaiting a very early morning direct flight to Panama City.
Read MoreIf your Panama trip is limited to Panama City, you may want to fit in a visit to a nearby beach. There are a few within a two hour drive, but we didn’t want to rent a car for a day or do a full day tour. Instead, while we were having breakfast one day during our stay, another person at the same event told us about Taboga Island. We decided to check it out later that day.
Read MoreI tried to cancel our honeymoon. We were in Chicago for 12 hours between our wedding and our very early morning flight to Kauai, and in that time, I told my new husband that I wanted to cancel our honeymoon. He vetoed that plan, and instead packed for me (which is why I still own a week’s worth of clothes from the Lihue, Kauai Walmart and Hilo Hattie’s) and we went anyway.
Read MoreIn 2018 we visited 19 countries — 16 of them for the first time. One or both of us visited US cities from San Francisco to Washington, DC, Carmel, Indiana to Miami, Florida.
All in all, Amy spent just shy of 5 months traveling and Keith wasn’t far behind. From stepping briefly into North Korea at the DMZ to nearly a month in different trips to Cuba we were fortunate to see more of the world in 2018 than any other year of our lives, and were even inducted into the Circumnavigators Club. We decided to look back on our 2018 travels as we look forward to 2019. As usual, we didn’t always agree. Check out our 2018 Year in Review He Said, She Said below.
Read MoreWhen you think of small towns in Germany, Bacharach is what you’re imagining, even if you don’t know it. The town of less than 2,000 year-round residents includes timber-frame houses surrounded by an old city wall originally constructed in the 1300 and 1400s with vineyards and a castle-turned-hostel peering down from the hills above the town.
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