Rolf Potts's Blog, page 88

The “what-ness”

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

My college philosophy professor was fond of the term “what-ness.” As in, the “what-ness” of a place or feeling. Meaning, the core essence of it. Being a callow young man, I rolled my eyes and thought, “He’s nuts. That’s not even a word!”

But in time I became a fan of the concept, because it was really the perfect way to approach description. Now, as a professional writer, the concept is at the heart of my daily work. As I write my new novel—the plot of which involves a travel writer gallivanting through several countries—I’m well aware of the importance of capturing the soul of the locations. I stop myself from reaching for the same old clichés and hackneyed phrases and focus on the “what-ness”.

Just as my old professor taught me to.

The challenge is straight forward, but not easy. Our mandate is to render the location in vivid detail using all the sensory data we can muster.

The what-ness is comprised of the facets that add up to the whole impression. The good news is there’s no secret formula to reach the what-ness. The tools needed to render these places in almost-flesh-and-blood are in already us. They’re all around us, and they’re free.

Just focus on the sensory data.

For example, does the location of the given scene have a particular smell, perhaps giving clues to the dominant agricultural or commercial activity of the neighborhood? Or a noise that is indicative of the place’s character? What are the visuals of the place—are the buildings fairly humdrum or are they freshly coated in an array of pastels? How are the people dressed? Do you dodge well-dressed professionals striding along, absorbed in their own cares? Or do you pass under lines of drying laundry hung from lines suspended from apartment balconies while grandmothers lean out open windows chatting with their neighbors?

These are just a few short examples to give a sense of what I mean.

In future posts I’ll be expanding on ways to imbue these places with the magic necessary to touch the reader’s senses and emotions. By doing so, you are not just presenting the reader with a laundry list of facts; you are leading them to their own satisfying discovery of the “what-ness”.

Original article can be found here: The “what-ness”

I certainly do not travel like Gunnar Garfors

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

I wonder what -besides an obvious desire to make a world’s Guinness record- is worth in Gunnar Garfors’ travelling 5 continents in a day. Please read the full story in this interview on CNNGo.

On Monday June 18th, this Norwegian man has flown to 5 continents (well… a very time limited chunk of them: Istanbul for “Asia”, Casablanca for Africa, Paris for Europe, Punta Cana for North America and Caracas for South America) in 29 hours – reduced to 24 when considering time zones’ changes.

Of course, I may compliment the idea and the endeavor, but the whole thing still looks a bit perplexing to a lover of slow overland travel like I am. And please allow me to run a bit amok over it…

According to Garfors’ statements appeared on CNN.Go, his idea comes from  his previous visit to Instanbul. He affirmed that “If you can visit two continents in a matter of seconds, how many can you visit in a day?”

I am sorry, but being an overland aficionado into his fifth year of deep exploration of the Asian continent ALONE – still much to discover around here, folks -, I wanted to scream after reading such a naïve statement.

It made me question the whole concept of modern day travel: safe, fast, conducted in aseptic insulated plane cabins, with rolling wheels on shiny tarmac…

I cannot agree with such a travel experience: where has the adventure gone? How can someone even think to visit two CONTINENTS by crossing a line along a nonexistent border?

I wonder if travel still counts for an experience today, or if the whole concept  feels more like an exercise in dining table conversation’s bravado: to what use people should say they ”have visited X countries”, when all they really did was vacationing to X different cities in X different countries?

This just sounds not too fair to dedicated travelers. Personally, as I modestly say around the same dining table that I have visited India or China, I am no frequent flyer to Delhi or Beijing. I have in fact visited, eaten, criss-crossed, tasted, slept, made love to 23 and 21 of each country’s provinces and states, and I count them as ONE COUNTRY in my “book of visits”!!

Without bragging, this is what I consider a fair travel experience to one location. Like, if you go to New York City, you CANNOT say you have visited the United States… as you simply visited NYC!!

Please wait, it is not finished yet, as there is more leaving me puzzled: Garfors affirms to be on a quest to visit all of the 198 countries in the world. “I’ve been to 174 of them and plan to visit more next year” he said to CNNGo. Well, dear Garfors, if your “been there” means having stepped off a flight for a few hours – according to the same  article, Garfors’ shortest visiting time was 1 hour and 55 minutes in France, Europe – let me tell you: I am not impressed with any of your numbers.

I am plain worried that what I love – travelling, intended as deeply knowing the world around me –may slowly mutate into another quest for fame and coffee-table ego boosting. I have nothing personal against you, dear Mr. Garfors, but I think I may spare your way of travel. As far as I am concerned, if I keep going my present way, a lifetime will not be enough to visit even half of the continents you claim to have travelled in one day.

Do you readers agree with me or Garfors’ attitude? Please comment hereinafter.

Original article can be found here: I certainly do not travel like Gunnar Garfors

Pushing the limits: around the world in a wheelchair

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

On the 7th of June, 37 year old Andy Campbell and his team set out from The Royal Geographic Society in London. Over the next two years he’s making his way around the world without a distinctively planned route. Eight years ago, Andy fell while rock climbing and became paralyzed from the waist down. As an able-bodied person, suddenly loosing the use of your legs can come as quite a shock. Mobility takes on a whole new angle of thinking. But it hasn’t dampened his adventurous spirit.

photo credit: pushingthelimits.com

A few years ago I vividly remember standing in the doctor’s office blinking at X-rays of my spine hoping magically they’d look “normal” the next time-no such luck. My own gypsy spirit drifted beyond the walls as she said the words, “scoliosis” and “phase two, spinal degeneration”. Putting on the recommended back brace my view of the world changed. For the next year and a half it became part of my daily clothing. I began to take notice of little things like the weight of doors as my hand opened them. Seven months after I was told not to lift over 15lbs for a long while; our very own vagabonding inspiration, Rolf, traveled around the world on his “No baggage” journey.

 

“Disability does not mean inability” as one Michigan based Service Dog training facility promotes. And in that light, Andy of “Pushing the Limits” is making his way around the globe and would appreciate your ideas on where to visit! Check out his blog, drop an email and give him suggestions on where to go next!

I’ve applied to join the expedition when it reaches North America…

Traveling isn’t limited to putting one foot in front of the other—especially after the invention of the wheel–it’s all about attitude.

Original article can be found here: Pushing the limits: around the world in a wheelchair

Confessions of an airline ticket agent

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

Boarding passes from Fukuoka to Taipei. Photo: Tzushun Shu / Flickr

Whenever you buy something, you wonder what the seller knows that you don’t know. For anyone who’s bought a plane ticket, check out this IAMA thread: IAMA Delta/KLM/Air France reservation agent that knows all the tricks to booking low fares and award tickets AMA. If you’re unfamiliar with Reddit, IAMA stands for, “I am a [insert profession], ask me anything.” There are all kinds of interesting and bizarre threads on that site.

The nice thing about that discussion is that it wasn’t just the original poster that had good things to say. Many of the commenters had interesting tips and stories of their own. One good sub-conversation was how to get airline freebies/upgrades/benefits. Another was the fastest way to rack up miles.

Have you worked for an airline? Any insider tips to share? Please write your thoughts in the comments.

 

Original article can be found here: Confessions of an airline ticket agent

Samuel Johnson on the merits of traveling light

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

“We found in the course of our journey the conveniences of having disencumbered ourselves, by laying aside whatever we could spare; for it is not to be imagined without experience, how in climbing crags, and treading bogs, and winding through narrow and obstructed passages, a little bulk will hinder, and a little weight will burthen; or how often a man that has pleased himself at home with his own resolution, will, in the hours of darkness and fatigue, be content to leave behind him everything but himself.”

–Samuel Johnson, The Journey to the Western Islands Scotland (1775)

Original article can be found here: Samuel Johnson on the merits of traveling light

When capturing a neighborhood is better than describing a city

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

In travel writing, I’ve often found that it’s better to capture the soul a neighborhood of a city than try to describe an entire metropolis. A city, after all, is just a collection of neighborhoods, and the best ones are distinctive.

An example: A few scenes of my novel-in-progress take place on Lisbon. Rather than try to convey the vibe of an entire city, I instead enrich the sense of atmosphere by putting the action in a specific location. In this case, I chose to set the action of these scenes in the Alfama quarter, a salty tangle of old-world cobbles that somehow survived till now.

The city itself was devastated by an earthquake two hundred years ago, which explains some of the nice boulevards and squares; they were built on the rubble. Fortunately the Alfama quarter wasn’t too damaged. It’s a ramshackle place pretty much as the old sailors left it. No carved monuments, just creaky, smelly authenticity. That’s why I love it. Every time I think of it I smile, as if thinking of an old friend.

I try to take readers on an amble down the hill from more upscale Belem district, where we reach the briny smell of fresh seafood that wafts up from the cobbled quarter below, as does a dingy racket from the rowdy bars.

I take them into a bar off a side street. The place is crowded and hot, its dark walls lined with old drawings of ships. We sit back and enjoy Portugal’s folk music, fado. People think it’s mostly sad songs about sailors, and it is, but really they’re ballads that can be about anything. The singer launches into a mournful ballad about generations of women awaiting their seafaring men at the Alfama harbor. The patrons sing along well into the early morning, before the sun rises over the well-worn cobbles of the old fishermen’s quarter.

Before long, a picture starts to form. It takes off from there, and soon the scene—and the reader—are on their way.

Original article can be found here: When capturing a neighborhood is better than describing a city

Organize your visas well to travel stress free

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

picture credit:http://www.balkantravellers.com/en/re...

Let’s face it: travelling is much less stressful when you do not need to get yourself a visa. And if you never had such a thought before, believe me, you are either lucky – because you are the holder of a “valuable” nationality passport -, or you have never tried to get to many “off the beaten path” places.

As citizens of Western countries, we are extremely advantaged in our travel options: you may get an idea of what getting a visa for a citizen of a Third World country means by reading this interesting article.

As the author says, he “often has to fill out extensive visa applications months in advance of his trips”, when most of us generally only have to pay a few dollars for a visa on arrival. Or, even easier, we can get a free visa stamp.

However, applying for some visas can bring a lot of stress and challenges also to many Western travelers: the infamous Russian, Iranian and, most recently, the Indian visas are all good examples.

I think I may sympathize with the author of the aforementioned article as I am going to travel to some places such as Iran and Turkmenistan, and I start feeling the visa process-pressure. Requirements, fees and application processes are not very straight forward, to put it mildly. Sometimes, even the information displayed on different embassies’ websites is conflicting, making things even more complicated.

 Therefore, what is best doing? It is important to think carefully, especially when we are on the road attempting overland trips, and waiting around for visas is never the best option.

After taking a deep breath, I generally sit down and start browsing the net for useful information. This may be a very biased starting point, but I still think that the best, most updated page to check current visa requirements and first-hand experience is the Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree. Look carefully and type your quest specifically, as it is possible to get first hand information on the exact consulate you may want to apply for, and this needs to be considered as you plan your visa hunting on the road. You may really want to change your itinerary if applying for a specific visa seems to be easier somewhere. This may save you a lot of foreign headaches.

If you are in South East Asia, Thailand and especially Bangkok is generally a good place to ask for many visas, with Hong Kong being a close second: I personally was denied an Indian visa in Malaysia, to be granted the same request one week later in Bangkok. Same application form, same documents provided. A totally different outcome, and a concrete result: the making of my long awaited trip.

At the beginning of my quest to cross Asia to Europe, I feel that by having done my research and homework, I may be able to make it without ending up in a dead end, no visa opportunity situation. In a sense, it is like we have been transplanted back to school: the ones who do their homework, will get good results. Because to many travelers, the feeling of having a stress free travel experience by holding a passport full of visas is pure bliss. I feel that it is right in that moment that a voyage really starts, and we can finally stop thinking of borders, and enjoy this incredible world.

Original article can be found here: Organize your visas well to travel stress free

Review: the travel halo

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

“The travel pillow for people who hate travel pillows!”~ thetravelhalo.com

Booking overnight transportation can reduce the number of nights one stays in hostels or hotels; but adequate rest in the upright position is challenging. And honestly, most travel pillows out there aren’t worth the space and effort to bring along.

I’ve field tested a number of different kinds…

travel pillow with storage bag

1) Complementary ones on the planes

2) Rectangular ones filled with foam beads

3) The U-shaped kind packed with buckwheat or made from memory foam (both materials are heavy)

4) And one in the shape of a tube, that snaps together around your neck along with a battery operated vibrator

The last one I mentioned works fairly well but still is cumbersome to pack if you’re aiming to travel super lite.

Mike Vahey went back to the drawing board, removed the bulkiness of other designs and created a palm-size product which launched June 21st, 2012 on a crowd-source funding website called Indiegogo. “The Travel Halo” is a stretchy band that fits around your forehead uniquely designed with two foam pads spaced to prevent your head from rolling side to side. The material is a cotton/lycra blend, appears to be resistant to pulls from things like Velcro abrasion, is easily washable and will air dry if need be. Built into the band is a double-ply flip-down eye mask to block light. It’s also large enough to drape over eyeglasses.

“The travel halo” is most effective being used in a sitting position. But out of curiosity, I did try a supine position on a carpet, hardwood floor, camp mat, and a regular bed mattress. It proved comfortable with all those as well. The dog did lick my glasses while floor testing so perhaps the eye mask can double as a lick shield too! The only difference I noticed between sitting up vs lying down was slightly more play from side to side due to the full weight of my head pressing down.

If you are not familiar with a site like Indiegogo, it’s one of many world-wide platforms to raise money for projects. Click here to learn more.

As I said before, “The Travel Halo” was launched recently and is not yet available in stores. You can pre-order one (or more) starting today, June 28th through July 21st 2012 by clicking here to help fund the product campaign and join one of the nine “perk” categories.

I’ll be happy to have one when I travel.

Eyeglass licking culprit, Amity, models “the travel halo”

Original article can be found here: Review: the travel halo

The Points Guy is your travel credit card guru

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

Sign of credits cards accepted. Photo: Phillip Taylor / Flickr

I stayed away from frequent flyer credit cards for a long time, because I wanted to avoid debt. The other reason was that since I lived in Asia, flights were relatively cheap anyway. Looking back, there were a lot of missed opportunities to earn air miles. Now that I’m back in the States, my situation has changed. Getting outside of North America can easily cost over $1,000. As a result, I researched into travel rewards cards to see how to earn flights.

Nomadic Matt had an interview with Brian Kelly, better known as The Points Guy.  TPG is one of the best-known blogs for how to earn more frequent flyer miles. Kelly is like a real-life Ryan Bingham, the character memorably portrayed by George Clooney in the film Up in the Air (watch the air miles scene) Take this excerpt, for example:

For instance, while the current Chase Sapphire Preferred bonus offer is down to 40,000 Ultimate Rewards points from its high of 50,000, I still think it’s a great card because you get double points on travel and dining spending (basically all I do), and those categories are fairly broad so you can earn a ton of points. You could then combine those points with the Ultimate Rewards points you earn with the Chase Freedom card’s quarterly spending bonus categories where you earn 5 points per dollar spent on things like groceries, office supplies, gas stations, or specific merchants like Amazon. Suddenly you’re looking at a ton of extra points.

I will say that you absolutely must do your homework before applying for a credit card. Always look at the fine print and carefully read the terms and conditions. For example, many credit card promise big sign-up bonuses. However, if you read closely, they often require you to spend a large amount of money over a short time period. A common deal I’ve seen is spending $1,000 in three months. The card I picked offered 25,000 miles with your first purchase, regardless of the amount.

The other tip I can give is that if you buy stuff on the Internet, always check your card’s “shopping portal” first. Most credit cards have specific websites that link to the online merchants they’ve partnered with. Let’s say you want to buy new clothes from Nordstrom’s website and you have a credit card with United Airlines. You could earn more miles per dollar if you logged into the United Airlines Mileage Plus Shopping website, then clicked on Nordstrom there. MileagePlus would bounce you over to Nordstrom, and then you would make your purchase. You would get more miles then if you’d gone to Nordstrom directly.

Of course, sometimes you’ll find that your credit card doesn’t have an affiliation with a site you prefer to use like Amazon, and you have to go with lesser-known vendor like Buy.com. I encountered this recently when shopping for video equipment. Then there are times where you have to go for quality, regardless of how it affects your miles. I wanted a good-quality lapel mic for my videos, and the best reviews were for a small independent business called Giant Squid Audio Lab. The owner is an audiophile who makes his own microphones. Even though I wouldn’t get double or triple miles, I bought a mic from him anyway.

Do you use travel rewards cards? How do you get the most out of them? Please share your tips in the comments.

 

Original article can be found here: The Points Guy is your travel credit card guru

The best travel books show the conflict between writer and place

Vagablogging :: Rolf Potts Vagabonding Blog

“What is a travel book? For me it is the story of what happened to one person in a particular place, and nothing more than that; it does not contain hotel and highway information, lists of useful phrases, statistics, or hints as to what kind of clothing is to be needed by the intending visitor. It way be that such books form a category which is doomed to extinction. I hope not, because there is nothing I enjoy more than reading an accurate account by an intelligent writer of what happened to him away from home. The subject matter of the best travel books is the conflict between writer and place. It is not important which of them carries the day, so long as the struggle is faithfully recorded. It takes a writer with a gift for describing a situation to do this well, which is perhaps the reason why so many of the travel books that remain in the memory have been produced by writers expert at the fashioning of novels. One remembers Evelyn Waugh’s insignation in Ethiopia, Graham Green deadpanning through West Africa, Aldous Huxley letting Mexico get him down, Gide discovering his social conscience in the Congo, long after other equally accurate travel accounts have blurred and vanished. Given the novelistic skill of these particular writers it is perhaps perverse of me to prefer their few travel pieces to their novels, but I do.”

–Paul Bowles, “The Challenge to Identity” (1958)

Original article can be found here: The best travel books show the conflict between writer and place