StumbledUpon: Almost Fearless

Photo of Madrid by Adek2007 on Flickr

You can find the best blogs on StumbleUpon. It's how I found one of my favorites, Euros Ate My Dollars, and this morning, it led me to Almost Fearless, "a blog that follows one womans journey from corporate manager to free wheeling travel writer."

The author, Christine, recently quit her job and is planning to live abroad with her husband. Their first stop is Spain, where they are renting an apartment in Madrid for 3 months. So far, her posts are about deciding to live abroad, preparing for the move, and quitting her job. After reading through the archives this morning, I'm hooked. She started the blog less than six weeks ago, so it didn't take me long, but now I have to wait patiently for new posts.

Some of my favorite articles:
Getting the Nerve to Go
The Moment Before You Quit Your Job
10 Unexpected Costs of Owning Things

These are just a few, and I really could have listed her whole archive, so check it out and see what your favorites are.

See more of my favorites on StumbleUpon.

Travel Bits: 2008 Travvies and a Travel Photo Contest

Lake Superior, Tettegouche State Park in Minnesota

*Nominations are now open for the 2008 Travvies, to recognize the best travel blogs. Visit Upgrade: Travel Better to nominate your favorite travel blogs in one or more categories:

• Best Travel Blog
• Best Single-Author Travel Blog
• Best Group-Written Travel Blog
• Best Destination or Trip Narrative Blog
• Best Informative/Practical Travel Blog
• Best Photography on a Travel Blog
• Best Big Media Blog
• Best Podcast or Video Blog

*In other news, Greg at StartBackpacking is sponsoring a "Crazy travel photo moment" contest at Spongefish. Go through your travel photos and pick your craziest to enter for a chance to win a $40 Amazon gift certificate.

Tips for Planning a Trip

Dried Seafood in Bangkok
Photo by Lee LeFever on Flickr

Ben and Brittany at Euros Ate My Dollars have created a Trip Planning section to their website. They will be adding more advice as their travels continue, but they already have some great travel tips based on their firsthand experience.

Check out:
Budgeting for your trip
What to pack for long term travel
Transportation and how to get around
Accommodation reviews: Where to stay and what places to avoid

I hope they will let us know via blog posts when they add more information to this very useful section.

For travel stories, you can also read about Ben and Brittany's experiences in Bangkok, Thailand, their first stop after leaving Europe.

Tales from Trails: The Big Walk

Valle de Baztan in Navarra, Spain
Photo by f0ff0 on Flickr

Thanks to Hiking Blogs, I have a new travel blog on my RSS reader. In 2003, Paul and Helen Webster left Cape Finisterre, Spain and started walking to Istanbul, Turkey. They are now sharing that adventure one journal entry at a time on The Big Walk. Check it out for the great stories and beautiful photographs. At this time, they are on Day 13 and walking El Camino de Santiago in reverse.

The original walk raised over £5,000 for the British Red Cross, and the blog is to raise money for the John Muir Trust. Please consider visiting their sponsorship page and donating to a great cause.

From other Blogs...

Golden Palace in Kyoto, Japan
Photo by Pi productions at Flickr

TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
Read about the Top Things to do in Kyoto, Japan on Viator Travel Blog.

Jack at Eyeflare recommends visiting Kauai, Hawaii for the outdoors.

The Guardian lists 10 of the best readers' tips for visiting Barcelona, Spain.

Oddity Central's post on Taking a Swim in the Devil's Pool in Africa is a huge hit on StumbleUpon. Vagabondish also mentions Swimming at the edge of Victoria Falls and shares a video of the experience.

TRAVEL TIPS:
Amanda at Vagabondish shares tips on how to experience the local scene on rainy days.

JUST FOR FUN:
David at Authorblog is doing a series of interviews with bloggers from around the world and Rambling Traveler was the featured blog this week. Thank you, David!

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Travel Blogs...

From the Campanile in Florence, Italy
Photo by Scott Raymond on Wikimedia Commons

TRAVEL NARRATIVE:
In one of my favorite posts on Euros Ate My Dollars, Brittany explores the other side of long-term travel.

TRAVEL TIPS:
Check out the new travel forums on Start Backpacking. Greg's main focus is on "helping people plan their exit from the Rat Race."

Mike at Vagabondish has put together a cheat sheet of Google shortcuts for travelers.

More good stuff from Less than a Shoestring: a list of where to get U.S. State Tourist Information and Highway Maps for all 50 states.

TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
Thinking of planning a trip to Italy? Jack at Eyeflare has some ideas of what to do in Florence and Pisa during your visit.

You can also check out Noambit's Taking A Cheap Trip To Italy: how to start planning a trip on a budget.

Back in the states, Angie at Alaskan Explorer describes a visit to the popular town of Ketchikan, Alaska.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

Getting Uncomfortable

Palisade Head, North Shore of Lake Superior
Photo by Connor Cashman

I came across an interesting post on Darrenbarefoot.com that includes this quote from Atomic-dogmA.com:

"I always feel most alive when I’ve been pushed out of my comfort zone."

The title of the Darren's post is Getting Uncomfortable, and is about deliberately doing things that scare you. Not screaming scary, but butterflies in the stomach scary. I like Darren's statement,

"... I think adversity builds character, and one way to make yourself a better person is to try things that make you uncomfortable."

When writers do a good job of putting ideas into words, everything makes sense. Finding posts like these are what makes surfing the web so satisfying.


side note: These quotes also remind me of the 5 Reasons Why I Travel meme that was going around last year. Many people listed reasons like the chance to challenge themselves or push their boundaries. While you can do that at home, the unfamiliar situations that happen while traveling give you so many more opportunities to experience those butterflies in your stomach.

Welcome Home

© Copyright Sloan Schang and Amy Hojnowski

Amy and Sloan from Reason to Wander are back from their travels, and Sloan provided a quote in his Welcome Home post that really struck me:

We always knew the trip would change us but what we weren't prepared for was that it would not have changed anyone else.

Be sure to read the whole post, and the great comment that someone left about the effect these two travelers have had on their readers.

From other Travel Blogs...

Chichicastenango, Guatemala

TRAVEL NARRATIVES
Thank you to Soloride on Stumble Upon for letting me know about The World by Road, a blog about driving around the world. Steve Shoppman and Steve Bouey started their two year trip in Denver, Colorado last February. I've just started reading the archives, but I'm already impressed. Interesting stories and great photographs make up for the awkward blog navigation (it would be great if they offered an archive search to make it easier to read the blog from the beginning). They are inviting travelers to join them for different parts of their journey. If you are interested, take a look at their time line for future countries to see where they are going next.

TRAVEL TIPS
Ubertramp is putting together lists of sites with airline promotions for cheap flights, deals and special offers. So far, he has links for North America and South America and the Caribbean.

Beth at Wanderluster shares 4 Reasons to Consider Traveling Solo. Although I'm still not sure traveling alone is for me, her reasons are making me reconsider.

Rolf Potts gives advice on Awakening Your Inner Vagabond on Vagablogging. Most of his suggestions come from his book, Vagabonding, and are good reminders of how to get the most from your travels.

TRAVEL DESTINATIONS
Travel Hacker shares a list of 25 Microbreweries across the United States.

Eyeflare has some good ideas for a New Zealand driving holiday.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Blogs...

TRAVEL NARRATIVES:
A post on Dooce led me to The Daily Coyote, which in turn led me to Vespa Vagabond. Both sites are written by Shreve, who lives in a small cabin in Wyoming. The Daily Coyote is about her experience raising an orphaned coyote, and Vespa Vagabond is about her journey from San Francisco to New York City on her Vespa scooter.

Travis on Tour has a great story about his experience in a public bathhouse in Busan, South Korea.


TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
National Parks Traveler writes about America's National Lakeshores.

The London Traveler shares A visitor's guide to Westminster Abbey.


TRAVEL TIPS:
If you liked my article on 10 Tricks to Meeting People While Traveling, you can read more tips on Brave New Traveler's How to Actually Meet Locals On The Road.

If you are considering a backpacking trip, Hiking Trip Reports shares some Hiking Trip Tips that will help you get started.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Travel Blogs...

Red Rocks Park near Morrison, Colorado

TRAVEL NARRATIVES:
Dave from GoBackpacking started his round the world trip today. His first stop is Tahiti, but I'm not at all jealous. I like the below freezing temps we are experiencing in Minnesota, really. Ha! In a recent post, Dave shared his packing list and a photo of everything he is bringing on his trip. Could you pack like that for a year on the road?


TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
Learn about the history of Central Park on Eyeflare.

National Parks Traveler has two articles that caught my eye: Paddling Into Yellowstone National Park and How the National Seashores Came to Be.

Read about the Big Sur Coast in California on Real Travel.


TRAVEL TIPS:
Nath at Ubertramp is at it again. He is sharing even more travel tips with Hidden Money Belts and How to Hide Money on your Person.

Not just for women, Beth at Wanderlust and Lipstick shares 5 tips for solo women travelers.

TRAVEL WRITING:
Check out Vagabondish for some great tips on How to Write a Travel Journal That's Worth Reading. I especially like the suggestions to use different color pens to mark different days, and to create an index of your entries. I even have one of those pens with 4 different colors to choose from.


TRAVEL PHOTOGRAPHY:
The holidays are here, and it seems like cameras are on sale at all the stores. If you are thinking of buying a new camera for yourself or someone else, here are some good resources to help you choose a digital camera.

Digital Photography School has several tutorials on how to buy digital cameras.

Should you buy a DSLR camera? Check out the traveler's notebook useful article and quiz to help you decide.


For more travel articles, check out the section marked From other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Blogs...

I found a new blog on StumbleUpon this week. It's only a month old, but Cool Things in Random Places shows a lot of promise. Quirky posts like "We can't stop here. This is Bat Country" offer interesting facts about unusual places.

Another blog I Stumbled on was The London Traveler. Full of useful information about London, including A Visitor's Guide to British Pubs, this blog is a great resource for people traveling to London.

In last week's Cheapskate Friday, Nath at Ubertramp tipped us off to some free online travel guides.

Jack at Eyeflare shares a scary video about cleaning services in hotel rooms. Yikes.

The holidays are here, and some of my favorite gift ideas come from the Agros Gift Catalog. Take a peak and consider giving one of these great gifts to families in need.

Not about travel, but still worthwhile: In last week's post, A Ramble About Clutter, I wrote about getting rid of the stuff we accumulate. With my current focus on decluttering, I was glad to see an article on Get Rich Slowly about The Hidden Costs of Stuff. Amanda does a great job explaining how stuff can get in our way.

The above picture was taken in the Burren, near Poulnabrone, in County Clare, Ireland. I've also featured it as today's puzzle on Rambling Puzzles.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From Other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Travel Blogs...

Sometimes I feel like a kid in a candy store. It's been a busy week in the travesphere, and here are some great travel articles for you to read.

TRAVEL TIPS:
Vagabondish is an excellent source for travel tips, including Pickpockets in Action: How to Avoid Getting Ripped Off and 12 Clever Uses for Your Digital Camera.

TravelHacker shares The World Traveler's Guide to Tipping.

TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
Are you thinking of celebrating Christmas away from home? Exit Row Seat has a great post on Five Cities to Visit this Christmas. They all sound wonderful, and very tempting.

Intelligent Travel has a new feature called Talk to a Traveler. The first interview is with Scott Macdonald from Antigonish, Nova Scotia. I think this is going to become my favorite feature on IT.

TRAVEL BITS:
Nath has given Ubertramp a new look and direction. Check it out and enjoy his articles about backpacking and budget travel.

The New York Times has an interesting article on long term family travel. I just wish these families had blogs I could read!

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From Other Blogs in my sidebar.

Travel Finds on StumbleUpon

Hadrian's Arch, Ephesus, Turkey

It was a great day for playing doing research on StumbleUpon. Here are some of the goodies I came across:

Redwood Hikes-"A guide to California's old growth coast redwood trails from Big Sur to Jed Smith"

Photos from the Hebrides- Check out these beautiful pictures of the Scottish Islands.

Acadia National Park- Suggestions from One Big Maine on what to do at Acadia National Park.

Euros Ate My Dollars- Brittany and Ben blog about their travels. Their 8 month trip started in September with 2 months in Greece. They have now moved on to Italy.

International Telephone Code Guide- How to make international phone calls during your round the world trip.

See more of my favorites on StumbleUpon.

Tales from Trails: Britain's End to End Walk

Photo by angryhaggis on Flickr

One site that has been taking up way too much of my time is Hiking Blogs, a directory of sorts for, well, hiking blogs. The site has a system for rating the quality of the blogs listed, and the current top 20 blogs can be found under the Top 20 category. I've been going through several of the blogs, starting with ones focusing on hiking in the United Kingdom.

Although it technically isn't a blog, one of the websites that caught my interest is My Long Walk, about Daryl May's experience hiking from Land's End to John o'Groats in Britain. A 63 year old American, Mr. May grew up in Britain, and this was a chance for him to see how it had changed since his youth. He shares his thoughts in 56 journal entries, one for each day of his walk.

Another good site about the End to End walk is Walking Land's End to John o'Groats with Mark Moxon. It includes a journal of the experience as well as tips and facts about the walk. For book lovers, When I Walk, I Bounce - Walking from Land's End to John o'Groats by Mark Moxon, was published this year.

From other Travel Blogs...

Oak Leaves by Lisa Pertile

TRAVEL NARRATIVES:
Thank you to Vagablogging for finding this gem, Novoarte's Travel Blog on Matador. The good news: there are only 3 months of archives to catch up with. The bad news: There are only 3 months of archives to enjoy before I have to wait for the newest post. Similar to Reason to Wander, it is like finding a great book series, reading all the books in a week, then having to wait a year for the next one. Luckily, blog posts come out more often than once a year!


TRAVEL TIPS:
Amanda at Vagabondish has some fun suggestions on How to Keep Busy on the Trans-Siberian Railway.

Read Eva's Budget Travel Tips For Great Britain on Brave New Traveler.

Smarter Travel has a list of Great websites for climate and weather data. Be sure to check out the forecast or weather history for wherever you are going.


TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
The New York Times shares good spots to see Fall Color Without the Crowds. Find out where to go in Rhode Island, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Oregon and Washington.


JUST FOR FUN:
Not at all travel related, but it made me laugh... Check out my brother's post, Mah Na Mah Na >> Scrubs >> Martin Sexton, 'Diner' on Moving to Freedom.org. I think it is great that he shares classic television clips like the Muppets with my little niece.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From Other Blogs in my sidebar.

From other Travel Blogs...

TRAVEL NARRATIVES:
I've been following a blog called Travis on Tour that I found on TravelBlogs. Travis is in South Korea, teaching ESL and blogging about his experience. He has a fun sense of humor and his stories make me smile.

Ryan Van Duzer is going on another bike trip. In 2005, he rode from Honduras to Boulder, Colorado. His new plan is to bike the east coast of the United States from Maine to Florida. He is blogging about his experiences on Life at 15MPH.


TRAVEL TIPS:
Rob at Go Budget Travel has a great article on 14 Ways to Use Duct Tape In Your Travels.

Avoid miscommunication while you are away from home with The Guardian's Top 10 travel faux pas.

Viator's travel blog has more tips with 5 Pretty Good Reasons to Take a Hop-On Hop-Off Tour.


TRAVEL DESTINATIONS:
The New York Times visits Nicaragua and gives recommendations on places to see and things to do.

Viator goes to Egypt and shares impressions of the Giza Pyraminds and the Sphinx.

For more travel articles, check out the section marked From Other Blogs in my sidebar.

How to Find Good Travel Blogs

I've mentioned a few times that it would be great to have some kind of travel blog directory. There are a lot of blog directories out there that have sections for travel, but I'm talking about a one stop shop for great travel blogs. I'm excited because two other travel bloggers are attempting to do just that.

Earlier this year, Timen from in my All Stars started up the Trusted Travel Blog Network, a list of blogs that are nominated by bloggers or readers and reviewed by an independent panel. Although his travels in Vietnam have put some of his plans on hold for now, Timen has some great ideas for the network.

In September, Eric at From the swivellin' chair became an editor at Travel Blogs.com, a site that "brings the internet's best narrative travel blogs together into one place." The site includes travel stories taken from featured blogs as well as interviews with the bloggers themselves. This is a great resource for finding those "round the world" or "on the road" stories.

I still visit the travel sections of other blog directories when I'm looking for new blogs to read, but one downside is the number of out-of-date or spam type blogs that are listed. Some directories, like Blog Top Sites and Top Blog Area, avoid this by ranking blogs according to the number of visitors they receive. The blogs at the top are more current and tend to be more popular. By going down the list, though, you can find good blogs that aren't as well known.

Another idea is to visit Technorati and do an advanced search for travel blogs. You can do that by searching for keywords in posts, or certain categories in posts or the blog directory.

Of course, one of the best ways to find a good blog is to follow recommendations from other bloggers. That is another reason why I'm excited about the Trusted Travel Network and Travel Blogs.com.

More Reasons to Wander

© Copyright Sloan Schang and Amy Hojnowski

I know I already wrote about Sloan and Amy's blog, Reason to Wander, but I just finished all the archives, and I want to reassure everyone who did not check it out after my first post that this blog is definitely worth adding to your RSS reader.

You know how you don't want to finish reading a good book? That's how I felt when I read the archives, and how I feel about their trip in general. I don't want it to end. The blog is that good.

What else did I find in the archives? Great stories about getting a haircut in India and talking to old men in Ireland. Beautiful pictures of Ireland that made me want to plan another trip back to that wonderful country. Stories from China about a good guest house in Yangshuo, and enjoying the "no seat assigned" rail car.

After reading about their visit to Mongolia and return to China, I'm now waiting for their next entry. Patiently. I'm waiting patiently. Because it has only been 3 days since their last post.

(I'm also hoping they write a book about this trip because I know they have more stories and photographs to share.)

Reason to Wander

© Copyright Sloan Schang and Amy Hojnowski.

I'm reading a new (to me) blog called Reason to Wander. It is about a couple who traveled from Portland to Florida in a 1977 VW Camper Bus, then, after visiting with family over the holidays, left for a round the world trip.

The blog is set up in a non-traditional format with each entry labeled with a number. The number designates one of at least 141 reasons to wander. The archives are full of wonderful photographs and interesting descriptions of their experiences.

Some of the descriptions made me laugh, and those laughs continued with the entertaining comments. I loved their description of Delhi, India and the post about the monkeys of Pulau Pankgor, Malaysia. And the photographs! One of my favorites is of the camper bus parked next to some RVs, but there are many more to enjoy. I'm not even halfway through the archives, so I have a lot more to look forward to.

Although I like the creativity of the numbered reasons to wander, I wish they also had labels so we could search through the archives easier, because I know I will want to revisit some of my favorite posts.