Street art in Spain and Portugal

October 19th, 2008 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

Todd and Lauren just posted a slide show of street art they saw in Spain and Portugal. UPDATE: The round-the-world, ephemerratic couple has landed in Delhi and remains Eastward-bound …

Africa Trek—Couple’s 8,700-mile Walking Honeymoon across Africa now Available in the U.S.

September 29th, 2008 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

Alexandre and Sonia Poussin took a three-year honeymoon to walk from the Cape of Good Hope to the Sea of Galilee. Originally published in 2004 in France, the Poussins’ story has become somewhat of a European phenomenon and is now available in the U.S.

“Most people,” says Alexandre, “approach Africa with fear, a lot of organization, and little time. We had faith, confidence, and no prejudice on one side; no organization, tour operator, or back-up team of any kind on the other; and no time limit.” One of the extraordinary goals of the trip was to meet people—normal, everyday Africans, “to better understand them, and understand the issues of their lives…. Our approach was anything but sophisticated: one footstep after another, for almost ever…. And let it be. Let adventure be.”

This is sure to be a phenomenal read and a close-up of introduction to the amazing individuals the Poussins met. I’m hoping it will inspire my own extended-honeymoon storytelling.

The result is a stunning collection of Africa Trek books, as well documentary DVDs which have been featured as a mini-series on the Travel Channel and are coming to a PBS station near you.
[LINK]: Official Africa Trek home page — the video is amazing.

Putumayo Records Releases Round-the-World Sesame Street Disks

September 19th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

Putumayo Records has produced some of my favorite world music compilations. Ever. (Their Kids’ division’s recent release, African Dreamland, is particularly amazing and tranquil.) Sesame Street is a global phenomenon that has entertained and educated children in 120 countries and scores of languages. I can’t wait to hear what this collision of goodness brings. I just ordered Sesame Street Playground, a two-disk CD/DVD of Sesame Street productions from Brazil, France, China, India, Israel, Mexico, the Netherlands, Palestine, Russia, South Africa, Tanzania, and the U.S. We’re talkin’ “Rubber Ducky” in Chinese and “Galli Galli Sim Sim” in Hindi. I just love that it’s now part of my job to track this stuff down. I’ll let you know how it sounds when it gets here. In the meantime:

[LINK]: Making-of “Sesame Street Playground” video

[LINK]: NYT article on Sesame Street going global

[LINK]: Putumayo Kids

[LINK]: Putumayo Presents Music Videos from Around the World

Daniela Petrova on the Pitfalls of Volunteering Abroad

August 29th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

In her recent article for World Hum, “A Tourist With a Shovel and a Hoe,” writer Daniela Petrova “looked down her nose at tourists there to have a good time. But was her own motivation much different?” She hits on the main conundrum that faces short-term international volunteers—the actual effectiveness of such programs. Having been on a dozen such trips, mostly with American Jewish World Service, I’m well aware of this issue. A group might spend nearly $30,000 to visit a village and help build a school that costs $2,000 for a local non-governmental organization whose entire annual budget might be less than $20,000. What’s the point? (more…)

Über–Tranquilo Travelers Depart on Slow, Ephemerratic Round-the-World Quest: TheArtDontStop and LBoogie are Eastward Bound

July 28th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

The happy departing couple (a.k.a. Todd Berman and Lauren Girardin, a.k.a. my brother and sister-in-law) was last seen in Phillie, hop-skipping across the country before launching overseas for a year. They began in San Francisco with goodbye grafitti on the wall of an old police station in the Mission. They proceeded eastward and have been posting a slow flurry of cheesesteaks and sculpture gardens, warmin’ up the keys of their (momentarily) state-of-the-art microcomputer as they travel through exotic Midwestern cultures.

Their humble Quest?

“… To meet strangers and strange people … To eat wildy and locally. To tell you stories and show you artwork.”

For one year. Todd is mostly a sketch-pad and canvas kind of a guy while Lauren is more of a photog/website ninja. The resulting clash of wanderlusting, creative getupandgo is Ephemerratic.com—which I recommend bookmarking right … about … now.

First stop: Morocco.

Ghana girls dorm is finished!

April 11th, 2008 | By Joshua | 2 Comments »

Last October, I posted a plea from Peace Corps Volunteer Carl Allen in Northern Ghana, who was raising funds to build a girls’ dorm at a business school in the village of Nakpanduri. We had met Carl two years ago while visiting the palace of his village’s chief, David Kansuk Laari. Today, I am happy to pass along the news from Nakpanduri that the girls’ dormitory has been completed and a new generation of rural Ghanaian young women will now be able to attend the Nakpanduri Business Secondary School. Eighty girls from surrounding villages can come stay in the accommodations and get an education. This is huge. It is widely accepted that one of the quickest ways to bring an entire community out of poverty is to educate its girls and women, so a hearty congratulations to the students, teachers, Chief, and to Carl.

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Help girls go to school in Northern Ghana

October 27th, 2007 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

Last year, Tay and I met Peace Corps Volunteer Carl “Ka” Allen in Northern Ghana, in the village of Nakpanduri where Carl was living and where Tay and I were guests of Chief David Kansuk Laari. It was a classic encounter in the Chief’s “palace,” where we watched World Cup soccer and drank beer under a starry African sky. Well, Carl is still in Ghana and he — and the girls of Nakpanduri — need your help. For a number of reasons, educating the world’s girls is probably the single most effective way to improve the quality of life and eradicate poverty, so this project will have far-reaching and long-lasting outcomes. Donate Now! or learn more from Carl himself–> (more…)

Sigiriya Rock Fortress Tops List of “Hanging Monasteries”

October 4th, 2007 | By Joshua | 2 Comments »

Last year, I spent my 33rd birthday climbing Sigiriya, an ancient rock-top fortress in Sri Lanka’s cultural triangle. Yesterday, Sigiriya popped up on this fascinating post called “Hanging Monasteries of the World” with a few other remarkable cliff-top sites.

My birthday began with a trailhead call to my mobile phone from Sabah, our host, cook, and housemate in Nuwara Eliya. A cheer rang in his voice: “Many happy returns, sir!” sent me upward with a smile. The soaring, flat-topped mesa upon which Prince Kasyapa built this acclaimed fifth-century compound, has been called the Eighth Wonder of the World for its engineering and utter audacity. Evidence suggests he used it more as a pleasure palace than military post, though — the royal swimming pool, wide thrones, and saucy cave frescoes are cited as proof.

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HOW TO TRAVEL AROUND THE WORLD: Fourth Edition available for pre-order

September 23rd, 2007 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

Here ye! Here ye!

The fourth edition of Edward Hasbrouck’s Round-the-World Bible is here! I have yet to see the updated version, but Tay and I used the third edition of The Practical Nomad: How to Travel Around the World while planning our big trip across the globe. The book is full of insight from one of the most knowledgeable experts in the travel industry. The new edition includes updates on airport security procedures, travel documents, entry requirements, and border crossings. There are also tips on how to find the best deals without getting ripped off, advice on choosing destinations, routes, and traveling companions, and how to make the time and money for extended travel.

In other Practical Nomad news, Hasbrouck testified before the Transportation Security Administration in Washington last week regarding an illegal government program that is secretly keeping dossiers on tens of millions of innocent international travelers to and from the USA. His testimony earned a mention on the front page of Saturday’s Washington Post in which Hasbrouck is referred to as a “civil liberties activist who was a travel agent for more than 15 years.”

The Ten Most Tranquilo Temples in the World

September 20th, 2007 | By Joshua | 6 Comments »

Check out these remarkable photos of The Ten Most Amazing Temples in the World (via Neatorama.com). The collection is exclusively Buddhist and Hindu (otherwise, I would suggest a Maya temple or two to the list). From the Tiger’s Nest Monastery, pictured here atop a 3,000-foot cliff in Bhutan, to the ruins of Angkor and Prambanan, this is quite an impressive gathering.

I’m happy to say that the Tranquilo Traveler has visited three of the top ten. Here are some flashbacks to my original posts about visiting:

Angkor Wat — Siem Reap, Cambodia
The Golden Temple — Amritrsar, India
Varanasi — India

If clicking through these quiet, beautiful places inspires you to sit and take a few breaths, mosey over to this online Zen meditation room: The bell rings…