Category: Planet Earth

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A trick for power off the beaten path

At times an adventurer may find himself far from the life of convenience that spurred his great journey. In those moments of unfamiliarity one may find the amenities of life to be long distant memories and they themselves in great need of simple modernities.

In the middle of a desert, breathing air too thin to even retain the heat of my breath I once found myself in need. Inside my room made of stacked salt blocks, the compass/thermometer attached to my bag said -8° C. There were no power outlets, no climate control, nor anything save a small, elevated light in the darkness. A bare bulb hung above a room housing two preposterous buccaneers who stared at it with hope in their eyes, and dead batteries in their hands.

In this moment, far from any civilization and in need of power, perhaps you will have the luck (more than foresight) to have one of these little devices in your kit.

Many places that I have been fortunate enough to visit and survive do not have infrastructure such as the city provides. Where a single generator runs the lights for certain hours of the day and no accommodation is made for charging pleasantries, you may find this little device to be a savior.

In the day of smart phones and charging bricks, we are both more and less susceptible to crippling power loss. Consider tossing one of these light bulb adapters in your pack before you go. If all you have is a light bulb, you can now charge your phone at the furthest flung stopover in your meanderings.

Pro Tip: Check the voltage for the country you are in 110/120/220/240! and check the voltage rating on your power adapter for the device you are trying to charge. I nearly killed myself with an electric razor once!

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A Decade Between

10 years ago today, I loaded up a motorcycle and a girl in my new black truck and drove across the country for a 6 month opportunity.

6 months became 12.

12 became 18.

And 18 became innumerable. The months stretched on, and the motorcycle and the relationship both ended at their respective crash sites. I found more… and I kept crashing those, too.

Today, and every year for weeks around this anniversary, I pay special attention to those memories. I reach out to the friends who said goodbye to me that day; tears spilling down to run over chapped lips in the Arizona desert sun. I remember the salt of it.

This year, I bought am loading another motorcycle in the same truck. Where the old bike was blue, things are now black and red. Where things were once shiny, they are now battered and bruised; no longer new… we have that in common. It seems to fit better. Today, I’m alone, but it’s probably better for adventures on days like this. Easier to dwell on things… to remember.

I remember the hours driving across the country. The tastes of new and strange food on our lips and tales of adventure in our mouths. I remember the columns of trees lining the roads, our silent witnesses as we slept in a farmhouse in Tennessee named for a particularly violent local family.

The trees in this part of Texas line the sides of the road as well. I drive the whole afternoon with all the windows open. No one’s hair to muss but mine. The trees and the miles take me back. I smell the forests, again.

Things are wet here. The splashes of color even carry moisture that the Arizona desert never could. Color only brought in rare moments, or from the denizens thereof. My mind spirals away unsafely from the road before me. To the orange juice of lost mornings. To the waterwheel and stone at the end of that long road… and farther still; to the zinfandel and lipstick at the beginning of it.

Days like today are important. They carry your past for you. You need not hold all of these decisions every moment for you would surely collapse. Days like this wait patiently, and they encircle you, taking you to a place of remembrance. Taking you to a place of worship and honoring the moments that built you.

There are so many things in the rear view. There is a reason that the word “reflection” can mean so many things. Today, among them is a new motorcycle. Hopefully with it, new promises. Maybe ones that I will keep this time.

 

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What we actually need…

My lovely new friend, Lena, gave me this quote recently. Since then, I have bought this the author’s book. A change of situation often offers a change in perspective and an opportunity for growth that we may never have if we stay put. That being said… pack accordingly. I have been known to say that all you really need to pack is a sense of adventure, and I hold to that statement. Even if you are staying rooted, though… know what you need.

“You’ll need coffee shops and sunsets and road trips. Airplanes and passports and new songs and old songs, but people more than anything else. You will need other people and you will need to be that other person to someone else, a living breathing screaming invitation to believe better things.”
~ Jamie Tworkowski

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Just the tip… s?

So maybe time for a new dash of my new favorite tricks when taking on a new place. There is a lot of great info out there on this, and other, sites. If you have any others that you want to add, put them in the comments below!

In no particular order:

  • Google the airport you are going to and find out what the WiFi is like and any other Gotchas.
  • Smartphone users: unlock/jailbreak your phone before you leave the country. Call your provider if necessary.
  • Bring a backup NON-smart phone. Local simcards are usually cheap and can help out a lot when you are stuck.
  • Install the google translate app, and download the offline languages for where you will be. Seriously.
  • Use Google maps?  Download the offline map areas for the cities you will visit. GPS works everywhere and this can save your bacon.
  • If you know where you want to visit, save those addresses as Stars in Google Maps. You can find them offline later.
  • Don’t overpack. Seriously, don’t do it. You can get anything you need almost anywhere in the world within minutes.
  • If you really want to try something out of the ordinary, look up your destination on atlasobscura.com
  • If you are going to a foreign country, learn how to say “I don’t speak <insert language here>. Do you speak English?”
    • Yes, I’m assuming that you, the reader, speak English.
  • Language basics
    • Hello / Goodbye
    • Where / Where is…
    • What / It /Something
    • Basic directions i.e. straight / left / right
    • Please / Thank you
    • I want / need / have / like
    • where is an internet cafe?
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How to not lose your job…

Amazonian Tributary, Bolivia

 

So many people talk to me about a desire to travel and see the world. People who have their lives together; a career, a house, maybe a family.  While none of these are going to stop you from traveling, they may seem daunting at first. I ran across this article speaking specifically to people who are looking to travel and concerned about their job and career.

Here’s a quick quote to whet your appetite:

You dream, what seems like, a very impossible dream. I’m here to tell you: It’s not impossible. It’s actually quite possible. You can take time off from your job to travel and return to it, career intact.  It’s a matter of some planning, preparation, and a thoughtful conversation with your boss.

It’s rare to find well articulated planning advice for this sort of thing. When I left, I looked long and hard for it, and finally just decided to wing it, throwing caution to the wind, and trusting in the Universe to sort things out for me on my return. For those of you who are a little more structure minded than I, click the link below and start turning that dream into a reality!

http://takeyourbigtrip.com/2014/09/21/how-to-talk-to-your-boss-about-taking-time-off-to-travel/

Bosphorous Channel, Istanbul

 

 

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Chicago: The Main Event!

I’m loose on the town for the next two days, and tonight I have the decided honor of being part of the panel of experts to take part in the MeetPlanGo National Event for 2011. And that isn’t even the best part…

They say, “Never meet your heroes.”

Today, I couldn’t disagree more. One of the largest influences on my taking the plunge and going around the world as I did, was a girl named Lisa Lubin. She answered all my tremulous questions with candor and solid information, and provided enough gentle prodding to continually motivate me to take the next step; whatever it may have been.

Lisa is the “Kick Ass Host” for the Chicago MPG event location, and invited me to be a part of the panel (waow!) and is hosting ME at her place for my time in Chicago.  To say she has the whole thing under control would be a gross understatement. Anyone who is fortunate enough to be in Chicago for the event tonight and listen to Lisa unravel the mystery of Global Domination is in for a rare treat.

I’m super pumped to be here, along with Lisa and the other panelists. I’m obviously biased in thinking that this is going to be the best of the National Event locations, but there are several more across North America. If you haven’t checked into this yet, please do so and if you have the chance, get to your local MPG event and hear what people who have “done it” have to say in response to your questions. This is an opportunity that only comes once a year, so go and get it!

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Meet Plan Go 2011: Chicago!

I am really excited about this!

Since I’ve returned I have had a lot of conversations with people about the trip, and it’s been good, and sometimes hard, for me to talk about things; once I start really describing a place or event to someone else the memories come back and I start to remember all these little things that happened and it really takes me back there. I’ve even been told by a few people that it was inspiring and changed their lives for the better. I like that.

Now, coming up in October, Tuesday the 18th, I’ve been giving the opportunity to speak to an audience on a panel with a number of other people who have done similar amazing extended trips of their own.

Meet Plan Go is an organization that helps people to take career breaks (sabbaticals), and extended travels.  The group is full of inspiration, how to’s, and excuse-bashing-help for anyone trying to get away from a desk and off to the trip of a lifetime.

The Meet Plan Go National Event will be  held in 17 cities across the United States and Canada simultaneously on October 18th, and will have different panelists for each city to relay all their experiences and answer your questions about how you can achieve your travel goals.

If you are even curious about what a trip like this is comprised of or how your life would change if you decided to go for it, please take a look at the web site and see if there is anything there for you. Aaaand, heaven forbid, if you decide you would like to hear what I have to say about it in person, pick up a ticket to the Chicago event and let’s make it happen!

Wrap-Up:

Date: Tuesday, October 18th | Doors: 5:30pm
Kendall College | 900 N. North Branch Street

http://meetplango.com/national-event/