“A quest was born. A book was written.” Where Am I Wearing? promises a unique global tour

December 4th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

Kelsey Timmerman’s debut book, Where Am I Wearing? A Global Tour to the Countries, Factories, and People that Make Our Clothes, is in stores now. The book recounts Kelsey’s “global quest to meet the people who made my clothes.” I’m always game for a travel book with a social justice bent and can’t wait to check this one out.
From the Inside Flap: “Ninety-seven percent of our clothes are made overseas. Yet globalization makes it difficult to know much about the origin of the products we buy … So journalist and blogger Kelsey Timmerman decided to visit each of the countries and factories where his five favorite items of clothing were made and meet the workers…. Whether bowling with workers in Cambodia or riding a roller coaster with laborers in Bangladesh, he bridges the gap between impersonal economic forces and the people most directly affected by them. For anyone who wants to truly understand the real issues and the human costs of globalization, Where Am I Wearing? is an indispensable and unforgettable journey.”

Where Am I Wearing Blog

“The Ragged Edges behind Each Tale”: Interview with Rolf Potts, Postmodern Travel Writer

November 30th, 2008 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

Here’s an interesting interview with Rolf Potts in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Travel writer explains fudging stories,” by John Flinn. Potts touches on the concept of mindful travel, the age-old “traveler vs. tourist” debate, and, most interestingly to me, explains why he decided annotate the stories in his new book with end notes:

“I was trying to reveal the ragged edges behind each tale … I wanted to remind the reader of the gap between story and experience, traveler and writer, truth and presentation; I wanted to show how the laws of nature and the laws of storytelling are separate entities.”

Rolf Potts has reported from over fifty countries for dozens of major publications. His first book, Vagabonding, is a kind of independent traveler’s manifesto; his latest is Marco Polo Didn’t Go There: Stories and Revelations from One Decade as a Postmodern Travel Writer (Travelers’ Tales Guides). Anyone read it yet?

—Link to SF Gate interview with Rolf

—Rolf’s interview with me from 2005

Article on “meaningful interaction” in southern Belize—my first elephant

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

Elephant Journal (”it’s about the mindful life”) just went paperless, and as they scan their back issues into a sexy new website, the ele folks continue to post new articles and “elevision” shows. I’m happy to contribute this piece on mindful (responsible, eco, sustainable, fair trade, whatever) travel in Belize’s Toledo District, the southernmost, most-ignored region in the country. Hopefully, the slide show and captions will soon appear, and the images are already up. Enjoy… [LINK]->

Moon Nicaragua up for Book of the Year Award at Planeta.com—place your vote today

November 17th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

Moon Nicaragua, 3rd edition, coauthored with Randy Wood, is up for an award at Planeta.com. I strongly endorse Bruce Barcott’s The Last Flight of the Scarlet Macaw in the environment category (I reviewed Barcott’s book in Mountain Gazette not too long ago), and I humbly/shamelessly ask you to consider voting for Moon Nicaragua in the guidebook category.

[LINK]-> The Planeta Book of the Year Award; click on “VOTING” to vote

[LINK]-> The authors’ official Moon Nica home page

Blog across Mexico by travel writer Richard Arghiris

October 16th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

Richard Arghiris has departed on a marathon coast-to-coast writing assignment across Mexico. He is updating the Footprint guide to that massive and varied country. I do not envy him the task (he has only 10 weeks or so to cover an area the size of … um, Mexico), but I will gladly keep an eye on his blog from the comforts of my armchair. Should be a fun ride—and a peek into the life of a guidebook writer on the road. First stop, Mexico City:

“Cities are notoriously complex animals and few are as big and scary as Mexico’s capital. It will be a real challenge getting to grips with it – and its wealth of surrounding attractions. I have my eye on an apartment close to the Revolution monument where I hope to base myself. Gym, sauna and WiFi included in the rent. One highlight of my stay will be the Day of the Dead celebrations.” [LINK]->

Handsome, inquisitive poison dart frog is Nicaragua’s new face

October 10th, 2008 | By Joshua | 2 Comments »

Our new cover was shot by Denver–based photographer Brent Ward. Thanks for the striking image, Brent. May this frog’s alluring gaze attract many a traveler to get up and go to Nicaragua.

Moon Nicaragua 3rd Edition—Buy your autographed hot-off-the-presses copy today!

October 3rd, 2008 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

Oye. Oye. Moon Handbooks Nicaragua, 3rd Edition is available.
Once again, Randy and I scoured the country to create the most up-to-date, comprehensive guidebook to one of the most intriguing countries in the world. Pictured here, my daughter, Shanti, studies up for her trip to Nica-landia next summer.

Buy it:

(1) fair-trade direct from the author

(2) from your local, independent bookstore

(3) from your local, big-box bookstore

(4) from Amazon.com

< -— GoToNicaragua.com —-> 

Budget Travel Article on Belize’s Chocolate Trail

September 23rd, 2008 | By Joshua | 1 Comment »

My latest article for Budget Travel:

“Belize’s remote southern Toledo region doesn’t make it onto many tourist itineraries, but it was at the top of mine this summer. The guidebook I write was due for an update, and I was eager to check out reports of chocolate tours in Toledo’s lush hills and valleys….”

Don’t forget to launch the slide show.

[LINK] to article—>

Transitions Abroad 10-Year Archive Available Online

August 9th, 2008 | By Joshua | No Comments »

Transitions Abroad founder and senior editor Clay Hubbs created the magazine in 1977 to promote travel as “real interaction with other cultures.” After thirty years of pursuing this vision, Clay passed away in 2007 and the following year, the magazine printed its final issue before being resurrected online as the Transitions Abroad Webzine. Clay’s son, Gregory Hubbs, took the operation online in 2004 and is constantly working to improve the site to make it the absolute number one web portal for responsible and alternative travel. You can now access 10 years of back issues on their site in between browsing new material. [LINK: http://www.transitionsabroad.com]

Moon Nicaragua Tres Ya Está! Pre-Order a Copy Now

August 5th, 2008 | By Joshua | 2 Comments »

My co-author, Randy Wood, and I are happy to announce the froggy Third Edition of Moon Handbooks Nicaragua! Our goal from the beginning was to create the guidebook we wished we’d had when we first arrived in Nicaragua. That was in 1998, when there was not a single decent guidebook on Central America’s largest, least visited nation. Things have changed a bit since then—in some areas, anyway. The rest of the country is enormous, rarely visited, and always full of surprises. You can pre-order the book with Amazon above, or you can buy an autographed copy fair-trade-direct from the author.

More info at GoToNicaragua.com.