All I can say is THANK YOU for this post. As someone who travels with small children I get very tired of the chauvinism I see in much travel writing. To say that travel is only valid if it happens in a certain way is to say that only a certain type of person can do it (and from what I can tell that person needs to be unattached and also physically able in virtually every way).
To me travel means the act of prioritizing experience over stuff. That is to say, I believe that it is going out and doing things - even small things - outside the realm of everyday life. This might mean climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. Or it might mean taking your toddler to explore a nearby town you've never visited instead of going to the grocery store on a Friday morning.
Like you and your husband I've often had to make work and family fit into my travel plans. It was the only way to take off for 13 months with a 1 year old, which my husband and I did.
I think travel is about stepping out in any way you can. We haven't worried ourselves with where others say we should go, what we 'have' to see - sure it's nice to hear other people's stories and take some of it into account but really, we've never been to any of the places we're going so it will all be fabulous and new!
I see nothing wrong with your method of travel. You are combining several 'methods' from backpacking, to mini-retirements, with some home comforts. The point is you experiencing a wide variety of cultures, but accepting that some tourist trail short bursts are necessary to pack in the places you want to see.
Perhaps too many people (myself included) expect that we can just travel without working and forget that we need to carve out the best way of living.
I'd like to do the whole simplicity thing and live out of a back pack with just my laptop and guitar. And perhaps if I was unplugged for a while I'd get some writing done! I think this is better than the short breaks I'm cramming in at the moment around my job.
I pick a city for a home base and like to stay at least three months, but prefer to stay six or more. The first one and a half to two months I spend getting to know my new home, by then I'm neck deep in cool new projects in my new home and I take long weekends to travel around the region. When it's time to go back home, I usually don't want to but I'd rather leave while I love the place than wait around until I'm sick of it.
If traveling is a priority to you then you work your life around it.
Everyone's life is unique so the workarounds vary - traveling with dogs isn't moronic at all - if you've got two dogs you make plans for it. Same if you had 2 kids, etc.
I wouldn't take the negative comments to heart ;) we all get them from time to time..
@Anil: I do take them seriously, because they are an opportunity to address concerns people have, but may not voice. Although my husband joked, "maybe you should call the post "feeding the trolls"".
mich
· 1 year ago
I usually say this to myself - "Hey, whatever works!" So, cheer up!
What an awesome post! This idea of "authenticity" is a luxury for those who are young at heart, and mean well. When you take your life on the road, you have no room for such a decadent term. It's our life now, not a gap year. I feel the same way. Cheers for a heartfelt post.
<abbr>Roberta Beach Jacobson´s last blog post..Island cat</abbr>
Maria | Never the Same River T
· 1 year ago
Everyone has a different travel style - and most of us haven't traveled enough to really know what that style is! I used to think I was a bare-bones kind of girl, but I am beginning to think that I aspire to a bit more comfort than the average hostel provides.
I applaud you for finding a style that works for you, your husband, and your furry friends.
Great post! I love your honesty. I commend you for traveling with your pups! As a dog lover, and travel addict I love hearing about your journey & experiences combining both.
Ruthe
· 1 year ago
kudos to you! I enjoyed this post very much and will never understand the incessant need of others to rain on another person's parade.
The worst part of traveling for me is the fact that I miss my dogs so much - I love the fact that your dogs are a priority and accompany you on your travels. I follow your journey SPECIFICALLY because you are doing it "another way" so thank you for sharing :).
Authentic is in the eye of the beholder. I say this having recently pressed the publish button on a post entitled "Authentic Travel in China."
Anyhow, my feeling is: live life the way you'd like to live it, travel as you'd like to travel. What matters most is how you satisfied you are with your style of travel, not what others think about it.
But you are in the public eye and you've got a blog, so you open yourself up. Double-edged sword. There are trolls who seem to enjoy pissing in someone else's Cheerios and there are bloggers and networkers who are genuinely terrific. Hopefully, on the whole, you experience much fewer of the former than you do of the latter.
Great perspective. Honor the traveler for simply doing it. There is no right way, or wrong way. In the end it's about how it makes you feel. Trying to live up to someone else's travel standards will just leave you feeling unsatisfied. Do what you want, take chances and enjoy.
Ive told you already this is my favorite travel blog, dont change a thing. its real, travelling with dogs is better than travelling with most people. I'd love that, moronic it aint. I look forward to all your adventures, your post on the blog is getting attention too. Go girl. I nominate you "absolutley fearless"
<abbr>Donna Jackson´s last blog post..Adopt or die</abbr>
Fly Girl
· 1 year ago
What a thought-provoking post. Sometimes, when you're really driven to do something, you don't always take the time to define it. For me, travel is about new experiences and connecting with a different culture. I've journeyed to 4 different countries this year and I feel that I got a taste of each culture. Staying in a resort and never leaving the property can't be considered travel for me but for others, it might be a little step towards something they've never experienced and that counts as travel for them. Like everything, it all depends on your perspective.
Really cool story, Every thing I own fits in my backpack and an extra pack for some other stuff, and the bag I carry, and the house we have is just a homebase, and the car is just to get me on my travels, the computer and phone just to arrange travels, and the money I earn, you get it... Is this travel focussed!
Travel for me is meeting exploring my self, wind/waves, locals, cultures and countries. Take time to relax less planning, the better the travel gets.
People always gotta talk crap. If you wish to skateboard (hey, thats an idea) down to Ushuaia with your two dogs, go for it. I took planes, buses, ferries, ships, cars or anything that could and would get me where I needed. If that meant taking an airplane versus a 13 hour bus ride, then I did. If taking a 15 hour bus ride worked out better than an airplane, then I did that. I could have taking a 40+ hour bus ride to Ushuaia, seeing loads of Pampas and Patagonia and arrive exhausted and wasted to Ushuaia, or take an airplane that would get me there in 3.5 hours. Does that make me less of an "authentic" traveler? Hardly. They called you "moronic"? That person says that because they can't do it, so they assume you can't and shouldn't.
Christine, if you want to hop scotch your way down to the end of the world, be sure to take loads of pictures, 'cos I'll be reading all the way through.
Hi Christine, couldn't agree with you more. It makes me despair when people get judgmental over something that really doesn't need judgment. People should just do what works for them. Simple as that.
Some people pride themselves with the ability to get under another's skin. They are experts at it. They can read a few of your blogs, fairly accurately determine what sort of person you are and aim directly for your foibles. They're angry, pessimistic, glass-is-half-empty, "The world's a bad place", sky is always falling sort of people. You can't really ignore them - they WILL get to you.
One nasty comment, block that IP from posting. That's not to say they're gone, but it's a bit more difficult for them to post again. There's no point in having some flame-war with them - they'll win. Ignore & block.
You tend to ask for it though with your blog posts ... the "what do I do now" posts. You look to the blogosphere for answers on itineraries, destinations, ways & means, etc. I'm not here to pass any sort of judgment on that approach (yeah, right!) ... but I wouldn't do it. It's just asking for more people like the person from Boston to tell you how 'moronic' you are. Continue the same way, but ignore the comments. If you really want an opinion, send the same questions to your trusted friends via email ...
Binwah
· 1 year ago
Your title - Another Way to Travel | almostfearless.com - caught my eye on the google blogsearch page. Just goes to show you how important good titles are! ;-) I've added almostfearless.com to my reader, so I can see what else you come up with
Keith
· 1 year ago
I hope you didn't take any exception to what I wrote ... I was only suggesting alternatives you *might* consider if taking the car all the way isn't practicable.
Now, I wouldn't take a car, because I'd be too paranoid about breaking down in the back of beyond, and requiring an expensive part to be shipped in ... UNLESS the car was a cheap,locally-bought klunker that I could abandon by the roadside if repair would be too expensive. But, that's me ... !!
I think you may be confusing snobbery with someone being pig-headed and condescending...
Log0
· 1 year ago
As I've promised, I will start leaving comments and be less of a CD-Rom. =)
I also have a day job, and I try very hard to strive for chances to get around, and try many different things in Shanghai, where I am stationed right now.
I also have my ways of travelling, in response to yours. And I am on your side.
Ant
· 1 year ago
A purposely passionate post, Christine.
I think some people struggle with others not conforming to their own perception of travel. Travel has become such a brand these days that anyone who doesn't comply is almost seen as unfashionable. I think it's a generation thing, the 80's generation (that's me) grew up without the right of claiming true Hippy status, so they got together (probably in Thailand) and realised they all looked and acted pretty similar - so naturally that was the way things would be.
Only the Hippy's never died, they just went into hiding. My point being. Each generation will have the text book way to being loose, but we all know that it's those that throw the book away (therefore ignore the rules) that we find the most compelling.
The way it is now, for it to be "authentic travel" you need to be sitting in a remote village no one has ever visited before and following their ways of life for 6 years. Only then have you "traveled" somewhere. I read a great article, probably on BNT, about how sometimes "real" travel just sucks and there are reasons people don't take the train to some remote village, because there's nothing to do and nothing to see.
I figure it's the same with music, you have those people who can't listen to bands that anyone else likes. Well, maybe there's a reason no one else listens to them.
I figure traveling comfortably and in a way that suits your lifestyle is still traveling. Are you outside of your country? Check. Are you on the move in one way or another? Check. Are you aiming to experience the sights and sounds of another environment? Check. You don't have to be living in a mud pit eating grasshoppers for it to be considered traveling, though I imagine in ten years the travel snobs will be all over that destination for their backpacking adventures.
I advocate slow travel and staying in one place too. Better to rent an apartment for two weeks in another country and get to know the people, culture, and community, than dashing from one city to the next just to say you've been there.
i also work full time to save money for long term - i'm lucky that I have four weeks of vacation -but I make the most of them. Which means travel by air to one place, not long bus or train trips (unless that's the trip in itself)
Travel to me is simply exploring... It doesn't matter how, or how long, or what method of transportation. For the person who bikes around the world that is his journey. compared to the guy who drove around the world in a Mercedes To say that neither one of these guys really traveled is clearly not true.
No two journeys should be alike. -Skip
cluetrain
· 1 year ago
So anyone who doesn't kiss your ass gets their IP location exposed? I'm where you said because I'm earning money for a flight. I'm not against telecommuting. I am against privileged Americans pretending that deluxe vacations are some kind of transformative adventure. Plus I never said you weren't authentic—you're an authentic idiot driving a car full of your bourgeois lifestyle into Latin America. Why leave Peoria when you can bring it with you and whinge about how much it costs on your blog?
Note from Christine: I'm leaving this in, because I don't ever delete comments (unless they are spam).
@Cluetrain: I hear what you are saying, I don't agree and I have outlined my position in this post. This was never just about you, it has been something I have noticed over time and I thought I should address it. At this point, I don't think there is anything constructive that I can add. If you continue to name call, I will delete your comments. I do not mind differing opinions. You don't have to like me or agree with me to comment here. But you do have to be civil. You've been warned.
La Chupacabra
· 1 year ago
I'd really appreciate it if you did a post (or directed me to a past post) about the logistics of traveling with the dogs. I've always sort of accepted that I wouldn't be traveling to places where I couldn't drive because I'm not going to kennel my dogs for months at a time. You obviously did it to Europe and back again, so do you mind sharing the details? What worked? What didn't? Did it cost more or less than you thought? How did the dogs handle it?
Also, If you need any recommendations for PV, just let me know.
Seriously? There are travel critics? Wow. I guess those people really do need to get a life. Traveling's awesome - good for you! Sounds like you have a wonderful life!
I agree with Jen above. There are travel critics?!?! If there was one, correct way of travel, then there would be no Bloggers writing about their experiences. That sounds like a pretty boring world to me. :)
I agree to some extent with everyone. I can see how cluetrain feels; there are a number of disrespectful travelers out there, but I doubt you are one. There is really no correct way to travel and after being on the road for 10 months now, I still don't know how I want to travel from here on out. In any case, someone will always criticize, but "asi es la vida".
I think having a branding that says "Almost Fearless - Quit your job. Travel the world." will especially envite scrutiny. It's a pretty strong statement. I've met people doing all kind of crazy travel adventures most of which I would not have the cajones to do that I would consider almost fearless. Is it almost fearless to you? Yes. Is it almost fearless to me and a lot of people I meet traveling? Probably not. The writing is good, the style you are traveling is good, but for me, it doesn't fit the branding.
Just a thought :)
Emily
· 1 year ago
Hi Christine, Just found your blog and am loving it so far. I agree with @La Chupacabra up there - a post on traveling with the dogs would be great! My boyfriend and I are currently living in Chile with our pup, and while I would love to travel somewhat extensively before moving back to the US (whenever we decide to do that), I had previously thought of the dog as an obstacle to that. I wouldn't want to fly her more than a few times since that seems pretty traumatic for a dog.
As far as the "right" way to travel goes, if someone wants to say you're doing it wrong that just shows his or her own closed mind. And yes, you can have a closed mind even if you travel (hey there, @cluetrain!). Who says that flying first or staying in a luxury resort doesn't count? If I do that but get out of my resort every day, seeing the sites and interacting with locals, isn't that more of a "transformative adventure" than someone who's roughing it hitch hiking and staying in a hostel but only ever hanging out with gringos and going to the expat/tourist hang outs? I think so, but if you want to take the second route then go for it - it's YOUR trip, so YOU get to choose what to do!
When you blog like this one the great things is you leave yourself vulnerable to everyone's opinion, and I respect you for it. I have been attacked for not traveling the "right way" as well. But when it's one comment I think you can be assured that it's an outlier. I'm a little lost on why car travel is less authentic - maybe b/c you get to bring more stuff? I think his point is to try and blend in with a culture when you go, but guess what? You aren't a poor Central American...you're a traveler from the US and to pretend to be anything else is unauthentic to me.
-Robin (also in Boston):)
Christine
· 1 year ago
Robin: I know, I definitely put myself out there. I'm ok with that. But I felt compelled to say something, as I've definitely heard variations on the "correct" travel argument... especially when you call it the tourist vs backpacker or tourist vs traveler debate. I am a bit surprised by the response though!
Also, yay Boston! That's my hometown too :)
Cuckoo
· 1 year ago
Your posts are so informative, inspiring and give a different perspective.
Yes, I agree with you... travel can be of any type. Depends on different situations. No one should actually dictate you.
I, myself, advocate for slow travel soaking in the local culture and history.
Voyage Autouir du Monde
· 1 year ago
Bravo pour ce site superbe ! Bon voyage !!! Sylvain
Christy
· 1 year ago
Heck! I'd love to do what your doing. I'm a graphic designer like your husband and shoot I'd die to find a job that lets me do what you guys are doing. Props!
One of the great things about travel is that is is meant to be totally customizable for the person who is doing it. Send two people to the same place and they will have totally different experiences. Is that wrong? Nope, that is what makes travel so exciting and fun for so many people.
It greatly annoys me that others stand in judgement of how someone chooses to travel (especially many who don't travel at all). Thought-provoking post. For me, I have tried several forms of travel from long-term to short trips, backpacking to reasonably comfortable approaches and most forms of transport from hitching to flying to driving. It depends on lots of variables - life situation, money, time, attitude, safety of the place you are going. These days I take longer in each place and spend more time absorbing the location. In my 20s, I just tried to see as much as I could. I have always like to get out into the countryside and walk and relax and enjoy. Keep up your great blog.
Travel is the most important word in this discussion. If you like to travel, need to travel, want to travel, like Nike says, just do it. My way won't be the next guy's way and that's ok. Good for you, Christine, for seeing the world on your own terms. Great discussion.
Excellent call. If someone is willing to travel, why critique the how? Seriously. Travel for me includes my wife and I backpacking in whatever direction seems the most viable. We are working basic jobs (bar tending, serving, etc)as it suits us and seeing the world along the way. We view long term travel as a lifestyle decision not as a long "vacation".
Nomad where you will and let the critiques enjoy their time in Boston.
One world
· 11 months ago
Optimizing your travels for coverage and speed to let you see the most and experience as many things as possible might sound like a good idea, but after a few years you will realize that the globe actually has a boundary. The number of things to see in the world is very large but not infinite.
Taking it slower will let you enjoy traveling for many more years, and it may help save some carbon as well. The train is orders of magnitude friendlier to the planet than flying or driving and lets you visit places that are altogether different from cookie-cutter airport lobbies and hotel rooms.
young persons car insurance
· 8 months ago
I have a few sites I go to, but the quality is always the best here!
Dan
· 7 months ago
There is only one way to travel...
You're own way, so long as you are doing what works for you you're traveling right. That's not to say though that you should not always look for ways you could make your travel experiences better.
All Comments
To me travel means the act of prioritizing experience over stuff. That is to say, I believe that it is going out and doing things - even small things - outside the realm of everyday life. This might mean climbing Mount Kilimanjaro. Or it might mean taking your toddler to explore a nearby town you've never visited instead of going to the grocery store on a Friday morning.
Like you and your husband I've often had to make work and family fit into my travel plans. It was the only way to take off for 13 months with a 1 year old, which my husband and I did.
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Perhaps too many people (myself included) expect that we can just travel without working and forget that we need to carve out the best way of living.
I'd like to do the whole simplicity thing and live out of a back pack with just my laptop and guitar. And perhaps if I was unplugged for a while I'd get some writing done! I think this is better than the short breaks I'm cramming in at the moment around my job.
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Everyone's life is unique so the workarounds vary - traveling with dogs isn't moronic at all - if you've got two dogs you make plans for it. Same if you had 2 kids, etc.
I wouldn't take the negative comments to heart ;) we all get them from time to time..
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I applaud you for finding a style that works for you, your husband, and your furry friends.
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The worst part of traveling for me is the fact that I miss my dogs so much - I love the fact that your dogs are a priority and accompany you on your travels. I follow your journey SPECIFICALLY because you are doing it "another way" so thank you for sharing :).
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Anyhow, my feeling is: live life the way you'd like to live it, travel as you'd like to travel. What matters most is how you satisfied you are with your style of travel, not what others think about it.
But you are in the public eye and you've got a blog, so you open yourself up. Double-edged sword. There are trolls who seem to enjoy pissing in someone else's Cheerios and there are bloggers and networkers who are genuinely terrific. Hopefully, on the whole, you experience much fewer of the former than you do of the latter.
Enjoy the journey.
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I look forward to all your adventures, your post on the blog is getting attention too. Go girl. I nominate you "absolutley fearless"
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Travel for me is meeting exploring my self, wind/waves, locals, cultures and countries. Take time to relax less planning, the better the travel gets.
Here is the Stumble, thumbs up:
http://www.stumbleupon.com/url/almostfearless.c...
Christine, if you want to hop scotch your way down to the end of the world, be sure to take loads of pictures, 'cos I'll be reading all the way through.
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K x
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I've never traveled the "correct" way then. I've always just done it "my" way, and for me that is the best way.
Just as the best way for you is "your" way. ;-)
<abbr>Tina´s last blog post..Silly me</abbr>
One nasty comment, block that IP from posting. That's not to say they're gone, but it's a bit more difficult for them to post again. There's no point in having some flame-war with them - they'll win. Ignore & block.
You tend to ask for it though with your blog posts ... the "what do I do now" posts. You look to the blogosphere for answers on itineraries, destinations, ways & means, etc. I'm not here to pass any sort of judgment on that approach (yeah, right!) ... but I wouldn't do it. It's just asking for more people like the person from Boston to tell you how 'moronic' you are. Continue the same way, but ignore the comments. If you really want an opinion, send the same questions to your trusted friends via email ...
Now, I wouldn't take a car, because I'd be too paranoid about breaking down in the back of beyond, and requiring an expensive part to be shipped in ... UNLESS the car was a cheap,locally-bought klunker that I could abandon by the roadside if repair would be too expensive. But, that's me ... !!
<abbr>Keith´s last blog post..Cyprus</abbr>
I also have a day job, and I try very hard to strive for chances to get around, and try many different things in Shanghai, where I am stationed right now.
I also have my ways of travelling, in response to yours. And I am on your side.
I think some people struggle with others not conforming to their own perception of travel. Travel has become such a brand these days that anyone who doesn't comply is almost seen as unfashionable. I think it's a generation thing, the 80's generation (that's me) grew up without the right of claiming true Hippy status, so they got together (probably in Thailand) and realised they all looked and acted pretty similar - so naturally that was the way things would be.
Only the Hippy's never died, they just went into hiding. My point being. Each generation will have the text book way to being loose, but we all know that it's those that throw the book away (therefore ignore the rules) that we find the most compelling.
<abbr>Ant´s last blog post..The Big Shift</abbr>
I figure it's the same with music, you have those people who can't listen to bands that anyone else likes. Well, maybe there's a reason no one else listens to them.
I figure traveling comfortably and in a way that suits your lifestyle is still traveling. Are you outside of your country? Check. Are you on the move in one way or another? Check. Are you aiming to experience the sights and sounds of another environment? Check. You don't have to be living in a mud pit eating grasshoppers for it to be considered traveling, though I imagine in ten years the travel snobs will be all over that destination for their backpacking adventures.
<abbr>1002things´s last blog post..Monday’s Picture of the Week</abbr>
i also work full time to save money for long term - i'm lucky that I have four weeks of vacation -but I make the most of them. Which means travel by air to one place, not long bus or train trips (unless that's the trip in itself)
All the best - james.. http://www.futuregringo.com
<abbr>james´s last blog post..The New LAX</abbr>
No two journeys should be alike.
-Skip
Note from Christine: I'm leaving this in, because I don't ever delete comments (unless they are spam).
@Cluetrain: I hear what you are saying, I don't agree and I have outlined my position in this post. This was never just about you, it has been something I have noticed over time and I thought I should address it. At this point, I don't think there is anything constructive that I can add. If you continue to name call, I will delete your comments. I do not mind differing opinions. You don't have to like me or agree with me to comment here. But you do have to be civil. You've been warned.
Also, If you need any recommendations for PV, just let me know.
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I think having a branding that says "Almost Fearless - Quit your job. Travel the world." will especially envite scrutiny. It's a pretty strong statement. I've met people doing all kind of crazy travel adventures most of which I would not have the cajones to do that I would consider almost fearless. Is it almost fearless to you? Yes. Is it almost fearless to me and a lot of people I meet traveling? Probably not. The writing is good, the style you are traveling is good, but for me, it doesn't fit the branding.
Just a thought :)
As far as the "right" way to travel goes, if someone wants to say you're doing it wrong that just shows his or her own closed mind. And yes, you can have a closed mind even if you travel (hey there, @cluetrain!). Who says that flying first or staying in a luxury resort doesn't count? If I do that but get out of my resort every day, seeing the sites and interacting with locals, isn't that more of a "transformative adventure" than someone who's roughing it hitch hiking and staying in a hostel but only ever hanging out with gringos and going to the expat/tourist hang outs? I think so, but if you want to take the second route then go for it - it's YOUR trip, so YOU get to choose what to do!
<abbr>Emily´s last blog post..Madness</abbr>
-Robin (also in Boston):)
Also, yay Boston! That's my hometown too :)
Yes, I agree with you... travel can be of any type. Depends on different situations. No one should actually dictate you.
I, myself, advocate for slow travel soaking in the local culture and history.
<abbr>Christy´s last blog post..The United States of Cookies</abbr>
Have fun with your pooches!
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Thanks for the article!
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Nomad where you will and let the critiques enjoy their time in Boston.
Taking it slower will let you enjoy traveling for many more years, and it may help save some carbon as well. The train is orders of magnitude friendlier to the planet than flying or driving and lets you visit places that are altogether different from cookie-cutter airport lobbies and hotel rooms.
You're own way, so long as you are doing what works for you you're traveling right. That's not to say though that you should not always look for ways you could make your travel experiences better.
Looking forward to your next post.