Travel Stories
Words from world wanderers, words from on location around the world.
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Creative Wanderlust Story: Poolside Gossip – Flash Fiction Inspired by Slim Aarons’s Iconic 1970s Photograph
I wore yellow because Jane hates the color. That’s just the kind of mood I’m in today. Shitty. Carl has once again left me here in Palm Springs to “cool my jets” as he hops off to Positano or Portofino or somewhere panoramic pawning his next screenplay. Another story of a horny middle aged man’s disenchantment with married life leading him to find solace in the arms of a hooker. And, yes, Dawn is en route with him. She’s no doubt packed her satin disco dress and hot pants, clueless to fashion rules in coast side Italy. She’ll be doing her own type of pawning, or pawing playing the leading lady role…
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How to Add Creativity to Your Life Everyday
Do you know of the numerous health and happiness benefits adding creativity to your life can bring? Not only does it improve our mood (hello, happiness!) but can also improve brain function and our mental & physical health! I know, I know, I hear what you are thinking… “but I’m not creative at ALL.” (i.e., “I can’t draw…” “I am NOT artsy…” or the ever popular “I have no time for creativity.”) When I say adding creativity to your life, I think of it as a much larger concept than dabbling with watercolors, or drawing a realistic rendering. Although I love watercoloring and admire those who draw with photo perfection,…
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Creative Wanderlust Prompt: Palm Springs
It’s time for a little Southern California, mid-century modern, wanderlust adventure this week with our Creative Wanderlust Prompt: Palm Springs! Palm Springs is a desert resort area in California’s Colorado Desert, a 7 million acre area of land that is part of the Sonoran Desert. The landscape is arid and brown like many deserts, yet unique as it is surrounded on three sides by towering mountain ranges: Little San Bernardino Mountains to the north, the Santa Rosa Mountains on the south, and the San Jacinto Mountains to the west. San Jacinto Peak rises 3,302 m or 10,834 ft and is often covered in snow in the winter. Palm Springs is also…
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Creative Wanderlust Adventure: Finding Stories Everywhere
Los Angeles is the city of stories. At any given moment, one has to wonder how many writers are working away crafting the next television show or movie plot. On a recent trip to LA, I too was inspired by stories. When I put my mind to it, I could start seeing them everywhere. A person would be walking in front of me down Fairfax… what was their story? I would pass a building on Sunset… what happened there? I would over hear a snippet of a conversation in Beverly Hills… what was on their minds? I soon latched on to my perfect character, in the perfect setting, with a…
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Don’t Believe All That You Read
Below is a fictional travel story I wrote from the prompt: They say _______ but my experience tells me… They told me to be careful, watch your guard, be alert, aware of your surroundings, and your exit strategy. It’s not a safe city. People are rude, brusk and unfriendly. Stepping off the plane I was prepared. My backpack was zipped and secured to my front. My money and valuables safely split up and tucked away in obscure places on my body. I briskly walk to the subway with my bags, head down so as to not make direct eye contact with anyone for fear of inviting submission or being confrontational.…
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Travel Journal: A Day at Bondi Beach, Sydney, Australia
I’ll never forget our perfect day hanging out on famed Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia. It was winter time, yet the sunny, mid-seventy degree (fahrenheit) weather would suggest otherwise. We took a metro train from the Circular Quay to a bus and wandered our way to the beach through various neighborhoods and suburbs.* When we arrived I felt like we had been transported far from the CBD, and had landed in beach heaven! It was hard to believe that Sydney’s relaxed, laid back vibe could get any cooler, but in Bondi, it definitely did! After grabbing a bite to eat, we hung out on the beach and dipped our legs…
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Travel Story – Cabins of Lake Tahoe
One of my favorite things to do when I’m in Tahoe is to take long walks. Walks along the lakeside are amazing, but I also love to wander in and out of the neighborhoods on the North Shore and up into the mountains. My favorite part of wandering in the neighborhoods is playing the childhood game of “I Spy” and finding the sweet old cabins that once filled these neighborhoods. Many of them were built as summer cabins, with very little in the way of insulation (fine for summer in Tahoe), yet completely ill equipped for living in during the snowy winters. Trust me, I lived in one through two…
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Travel Story – Road Trip Along the Eastern Sierras
The stark landscape along state route 395 in California and Nevada is so incredible inspirational. Here are highlights from my road trip along this route.
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Travel Journal – Charles Bridge, Prague
The Charles Bridge in Prague, Czech Republic is one of the top sites to visit. This historic bridge spans the Vltava river and connects Old Town Prague with Prague Castle. In the summer it is bustling with tourists exploring the city and soaking up the views. It’s the perfect spot to stop and capture in your travel journal. I used a simple layout for each image to help convey the beauty of the landmark. Here are a few of my journal pages. We came to this spot twice to soak up the view of the bridge an Prague Castle, once during the day and once at night to see the…
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Digital Travel Journal: Visiting a Llama Farm in Peru
After we left Cusco, Peru. we headed down into the Sacred Valley and stopped along the way at a the Awana Kancha weaving center to get a glimpse at how the beautiful Peruvian wools are produced. This small spot provides a self guided tour of the different steps it takes to make wool for weaving. In the first area are penned up animals (llamas, alpacas, vicunas and guanacos) where you discover the differences between these camelids and can see how their wool varies. (Vicunas have the most coveted wool, as it is very soft.) All the animals are domesticated and quite friendly, and of course love to be fed. The…