vagabonding

Through couchsurfing, I connected with a very cool Australian who introduced me to Rolf Potts' book, Vagabonding. For someone unhappy with their 9-to-5 life, it may be just the thing to help them break free. For people who have traveled a bit, it will make you want to travel more. For those who have traveled extensively and for long periods of time, it will validate your (often frowned upon) choices.

Will this book change your life? It depends on how stuck or free you feel. It has become a bible for some and is just pleasure reading for others. Did I agree with everything in the book? No. Potts offers vagabonding as a lifestyle, and while I know that world travel will always be something I appreciate and will incorporate as much as I can into my life, I grew up as a vagabond, and now having lived more places than years, I like the romantic notion of having a home to return to after traveling.

If you are curious about traveling, though, and haven't done much of it or want to go off into the world but feel unable to, then I'd highly recommend reading this book. Yes, traveling is a luxury in some ways, but it is very, very doable. For those who say money is the limiting factor, I lived in a dormitory in Thailand for $1.62 a night, ate street pad thai for $1 and bought pants for $2. I rented an oceanfront bachelor in Capetown for $300 a month and ate the best plates of burgers and fries for $1. Oh, but the flights, one might argue. My plane ticket to Thailand was $450 from Los Angeles, with a free overnight stop in Taipei. My ticket to Capetown was $600 from Geneva, where I was living at the time, with a free weeklong stop in Istanbul. You can make it work.

The way to make travel affordable is to jump on travel specials and then stay there for a while. Once the plane ticket is out of the way, many places will actually be much cheaper on a day-to-day basis. For those who say there isn't enough time, yes, there may be some sacrifices. You may make choices that others don't understand (which will be terrifying for some and liberating for others). Potts also lists resources for women traveling alone, for people with kids, and for the GLBTQ crowd. In other words, it may be harder for some than others, but you can make it happen if you want to. And when thinking about what you gain, it might not be tangible or quantifiable. But you would probably never forget spending two months in Senegal, whereas two months of 'regular life' could easily disappear without your even noticing.

And of course, reading this book doesn't mean you have to sell everything, quit your real life and take off to unknown lands forever. My partner and I plan to travel and do field work for a year, but we're also excited to plant roots and become an active part of a community when we return to California. We still want to work hard in our chosen fields to serve others and fulfill our potential as human beings, and we believe that travel will enrich our efforts.

Potts reminds us to live simply, so that we don't become hampered and imprisoned by accumulated stuff; to see the adventure in the everyday, even when (especially when) we're at home; and to be open and non-judgmental so as to really see and experience life fully, no matter where you are.

So, what do you think? How valuable is travel? Is travel just an escape from responsibility? Or has it made a difference in your life or how you see the world? Is there meaningful and meaningless travel? What's the difference, if any? How would you feel if you could never travel again?

the monchichi world tour

So, this will be my third blog, but I've brought all the posts from my old ones (serendipity berries and monchichi) over, so we're one big happy Brady Bunch now.

(In case you're wondering about all this shuffling about, I'd gotten bored of my first blog (bad sign) and went off looking for something new and fancy (another bad sign) but then realized that fancy photo slideshows don't always go with great text function (a good analogy for other things, too). So, I'm back to blogger and here to stay. It may not have the bells, whistles and flashy tight jeans, but it's like the good old tugboat that keeps on chugging and never lets you down.)

Anyway, on to the exciting news: our travel itinerary! I've finally got a skeleton worked out, with a bit of room for whim and chaos. So, here's a rough estimate of where we'll be for the next few months.

June-July: Road trip across the US
Boston -> New York -> Philadelphia -> Washington, DC -> Pittsburgh -> Chicago -> Iowa City -> Des Moines, Iowa -> Lincoln, Nebraska -> Denver -> Arches National Park, Utah -> Canyonlands -> Capitol Reef -> Grand Staircase - Escalante -> Bryce Canyon -> Zion Canyon -> Grand Canyon -> Las Vegas -> Los Angeles

July-August: Australia and New Zealand
Los Angeles -> Sydney -> Melbourne -> Alice Springs -> Uluru (Ayers Rock) -> Alice Springs -> Cairns -> Port Douglas -> Great Barrier Reef -> Sydney -> Christchurch, New Zealand -> TranzAlpine train to Greymouth -> Franz Joseph Glacier -> Fox Glacier -> Wanaka Lake -> Te Anau (glow worms in caves!) -> Queenstown -> Dunedin -> Hanmer Springs -> Kaikoura -> Abel Tasman National Park -> Christchurch -> Sydney -> Los Angeles

September: Mexico to visit in-laws
(hoping swine flu is gone by then)

October-December: Tanzania for field work

We're still sorting out the details, but it's starting to come together. We'll visit friends and family, couchsurf a couple times in the US, camp for almost two weeks in the national parks in Utah and Arizona, and go in a campervan for five days from Alice Springs to Ayers Rock. We'll wing the New Zealand portion of our trip, as it's pretty easy to get around the south island. And we're debating whether to go through with our Mexico plans (likely), in spite of swine flu terror.

In the spring, I think we'll try to go to Asia and South America, but nothing is planned yet.

So, world travelers, where do you suggest we go (or not go)? Any favorite places you don't mind sharing?

couchsurfing around the world

(May 7, 2009)

I heard about couchsurfing a few years ago and thought it was interesting-- but not enough to try it. I figured it would be a bunch of teenagers who wanted to get wasted on cheap beer all night long. I have no problems with said population, but it isn't who I'd spend all of my free time with.

Recently, I've started planning a trip around the world, and I was astounded at how expensive accommodation was. Let me put my dentures in and tell you about hostel prices back in my day. But seriously, backpacking for two people means that hostels are often not the most economical choice. Are we really going to pay $20+ each to sleep in a 12-bunk room when we could get a private hotel room with a private bathroom for a few dollars more? Unlikely, but spending that much each night wasn't going to work for us, either. A student mentioned couchsurfing in passing the other day when I mentioned this, so I finally went to check it out.

It was nothing like what I expected. Their emphasis is not on the free accommodation but on the community that is built from connecting with locals and getting to know a place from a real-person-living-there perspective. Their mission statement is "to internationally network people and places, create educational exchanges, raise collective consciousness, spread tolerance and facilitate cultural understanding."

Intrigued, I looked to see who the couchsurfers were in Christchurch, New Zealand. There were people of all ages and types, from 45-year-old teachers of the blind to 23-year-old artists-- all offering their couches for strangers to sleep on. It was remarkable.

So, I created a profile and went through all of the profiles to see who I liked best. (You can even select age, gender, etc. in your search.) Then, I sent a 'couchsurf request' to a couple in Christchurch and another to a family in Iowa City, Iowa. Within hours, the family in Iowa City had decided to take us in. I felt like a mad scientist, screaming "It works! It works!" Instead of blowing up in my face, the crazy couchsurfing 'invention' lit up and did somersaults.

For a while, I suspected couchsurfing was just a cruel joke the cool kids were playing on me. I would send a couchsurfing request to someone who seemed really nice and funny in their profile, and I'd be laughed to the ground for falling for it. My partner said they were probably serial killers just looking for fresh prey. Instead, I found really nice people who just wanted to connect with other open-minded, interesting people from around the world.

I'm excited to meet the people I've connected with-- they are people I would have chosen to be my friends, if we'd lived in the same city. I'm looking forward to meeting more people as my partner and I embark on a year of travel and field work, and I look forward to hosting nice people from around the world when our year of extended travel is over. Now, it's true that I haven't yet met any of these people in person, and they may turn out to be nothing like their 'chiseled, 6'3" and a souffle chef in my spare time' internet personas, but I'm optimistic.

If you're interested, you can check it out here. You can choose who you'd like to stay with, you can choose who stays with you -- or you can sign up to meet for coffee or a drink with people who are visiting your town and not host anyone or stay on anyone's 'couch' (which could range from a private bedroom to camping in someone's backyard). At the very least, I figure I'll have some interesting stories.

If we make it out alive.

Posted via email from sweet freedom

the quiet side of new york

(April 25, 2009)
Yes, it's the city that never sleeps, and while the first image of the big apple that pops into many heads is Times Square, there are many little alcoves of serenity, too.

In Central Park, if you slow down enough to take in your surroundings, you'll sometimes find faces carved into the rocks (first photo). And some of the old Mom 'n' Pop cafes that reek of history are a dying breed worth supporting.

Here are a few photos of a quiet day in the big city. It may not be the typical New York City experience, but it's a nice one nonetheless.

city art in cambridge and boston, ma

(May 1, 2009)
I've walked down this alley in Chinatown, oh, at least twenty times over the years, and I only noticed this huge, four-story mural the other day. Now, to cut myself some slack, I usually walk down the alley going southbound, and one can only see it going northbound. But still, it was huge. And quite impressive, I thought (first two pictures).

The next three photos are of one of those electrical boxes that are normally just ugly and there. But, not this one! I found this in South Boston in March when I went to get a haircut. It made me happy.

And the last two photos are Shepard Fairey murals in Harvard Square. The first one was by the Gap (December 2008), and the second one was by John Harvard's (April 2009). If you haven't yet seen the Shepard Fairey exhibit at the ICA, I'd highly recommend it. (Free on Thursday nights or anytime with a Harvard ID.)

Seen any neat city art lately? I'd love to hear about it! You can email me at monchichiland@gmail.com.

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from sweet freedom

port elizabeth, maine

(April 22, 2009)

Now that we know we'll be leaving the east coast soon, I'm growing increasingly nostalgic, thinking of the endless forests of thin tree trunks along the side of the road, the crisp mornings, even the beauty of winter. I am not a cold-weather person, but the stillness of a white world outside and a fire burning in the fireplace with a mug of warm tea in your hands is hard to beat.

And seeing the sun rise over beaches made for long walks in sweaters, the rainbow-colored leaves of a Vermont fall, and old red brick buildings with white window trims. I have complained about the cold and yearned for humid, 80-degree days, but these images of New England will always make me smile.

Here are some from Port Elizabeth, Maine. Enjoy.

 

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from sweet freedom

creative quality vs. quantity

(April 13, 2009)

Here's an excerpt from the book, Art & Fear (by David Bayles and Ted Orland), from my friend, Cookie:

The ceramics teacher announced on opening day that he was dividing the class into two groups. All those on the left side of the studio, he said, would be graded solely on the quantity of work they produced, all those on the right solely on its quality.

His procedure was simple: on the final day of class he would bring in his bathroom scales and weigh the work of the “quantity” group: fifty pound of pots rated an “A”, forty pounds a “B”, and so on. Those being graded on “quality”, however, needed to produce only one pot—albeit a perfect one—to get an “A”.

Well, came grading time and a curious fact emerged: the works of highest quality were all produced by the group being graded for quantity. It seems that while the “quantity” group was busily churning out piles of work—and learning from their mistakes—the “quality” group had sat theorizing about perfection, and in the end had little more to show for their efforts than grandiose theories and a pile of dead clay. I find the parable liberating: we are supposed to make lots of mistakes and produce a great deal of "experiments" on our way to learning our craft and creating something of beauty.

Hallelujah. I'm off to make mistakes!

Posted via email from sweet freedom

morocco

(April 9, 2009)

[First, click on the bottom right corner of the slide show to stop it. You may even need to go back a frame or two. You have a green field with a grey sky? Okay, great. Now, you can relax and read a few sentences before diving in.]

Morocco was intense, vast, beautiful, and not at all what I expected. To begin, it was incredibly lush. When our plane touched down in Casablanca, I was surprised to see so much green (the first photo of the slide show below, with a bit of runway on the bottom edge). On our train rides to Marrakech and Fes, the view out the window was of endless fields of green, rolling hills, herds of sheep-- and more green fields, occasionally filled with red poppies or yellow or orange or purple flowers. I had signed up for a camel trek through the world's largest desert and wondered if I'd landed in the right place.

As it turned out, Morocco had it all: the lush fields of wildflowers, but also rocky mountains, red mountains, green mountains, white snow-capped mountains and, of course, the Sahara Desert. And that doesn't even begin to describe the old medinas with their winding, narrow alleys, tiny stalls selling anything and everything, and examples of beautiful carvings and mosaic work around every corner. The attention to detail was astounding. But enough talk.

Here is a slide show of our trip. Enjoy!

Posted via email from sweet freedom

amsterdam

(April 1, 2009)
It feels like people focus on the pot and the red light district, but my partner and I thought Amsterdam was a gorgeous city with beautiful buildings. We loved the biking and walking culture, and the Vlaamse (Flemish) frites are delicious. Served with mayo and ketchup, if you'd like.

Here are some photos:

See and download the full gallery on posterous

Posted via email from sweet freedom

a fresh start

(March 21, 2009)

So, I'm leaving blogger. Blogger and I have had a great relationship, but it has run its course. We will probably check in with one another from time to time and still be friendly, but it's time for me to move on.

So, here I am. (Looking around.) Pretty swanky, no? A perfect tabula rasa.

I think a positive beginning is important. My old blog was born from witnessing death. I felt like I had to fight death or preach life in every post. I avoided getting too personal and blogged daily and then every weekday (blah blah blah), sometimes even inserting random newsbits just to fill space (hanging head in shame).

It's time for a new beginning.

This new chapter will be born from rainbows and puppies. Except that I'm not a rainbows and puppies person. So, let's say instead that this blog open creative space will be the lovechild of creamy homemade French vanilla ice cream topped with fresh strawberries and backpacking around the world with my best friend.

In other words, sweet freedom.

I'll only post something when I actually have something interesting to share (there's a novel idea). Plus, I still want to celebrate life, and it's still me writing, so it's not that different. Like getting a drastic haircut, post-breakup, we're never quite as different as we expect to be. It's still me, but with short hair.

Now, just like the morning of one's birthday or of New Year's Day, even though the world hasn't really changed, life feels a twinkle different. Like we've been given a second chance to get things right. So, here goes.

Love affair with life, take 2.

P.S. I'll be in Morocco (and briefly in Amsterdam) until the end of the month, so I'll see you in April.

Posted via web from sweet freedom