Archive for the ‘Travel Perspectives’ Category
Four Seasons in Rome
I just finished reading a book called “Four Seasons in Rome,” by Anthony Doerr. One the surface, it’s the tale of a husband and wife who move to Rome for a year (for a writing fellowship) with their two children. The catch is that the children are twins and are only a few months old [...]
The changing face of travel
There is an interesting and in-depth interview with travel writer Rolf Potts on World Hum. Potts covers a variety of topics and it’s worth checking out the entire piece, especially if you’re interested in travel writing. But here is a small excerpt from the interview about the transformation of travel in recent decades. What major changes have [...]
Pilgrimage travel
A fast-growing travel niche is religion-based tourism, which caters to people who want to have a pilgrimage experience during their journey. This NY Times article has more information. Some 16 feet beneath the present-day street level of Damascus, the Syrian capital, just off the Street Called Straight, is a cramped, artificially lighted chapel with roughly cut [...]
Lost Girls on the road
Have you heard of the Lost Girls? They’re three twentysomething New York friends who left their jobs and hit the road together for a one-year journey around the world. Along the way, they blogged about the trip and are now back home working on a book about the experience. Sort of like Sex and the [...]
Talking travel with Paul Theroux
In 1975, Paul Theroux published a bestselling travel memoir, The Great Railway Bazaar, about a train trip from Europe to Asia. In the years since he has become one of the world’s most successful and best known travel writers. He recently published a new book, Ghost Train to the Eastern Star, in which he retraces much of [...]
Yoga retreat in India
Have you ever imagined what it’d be like to spend time at a yoga retreat in India? Well, now you can live vicariously through Kyle Jarrard, who wrote an account for the International Herald Tribune of the experience he and his wife had in Puducherry, India. The first sound in the morning is crows, right at 5. [...]
A conversation in Uganda
The best travel experiences are often the most unexpected and they frequently involve chance meetings with locals. Christopher Vourlias recently traveled through Uganda, where he found himself having a conversation about writing and life with a farmer. He wrote about the experience for World Hum. They met on a local bus… I’d met Colin a few [...]
Press coverage for “Two Laps Around the World”
I have to take time for a bit of book promotion here, as there was some nice press coverage in today’s Arizona Daily Star newspaper about my travel memoir, Two Laps Around the World. It was the trip of a lifetime. Two trips, actually. In 2002, Bob Riel and Lisa Higgins, wed the year before, embarked [...]
Been there, ate that
A week or so ago, I had a post about Luang Prabang, Laos, and quoted an article written by Gayle Keck. Not long after that, I heard from Gayle and she told me about an interesting new website she’s created called “Been There Ate That.” There, people post photos of meals they’ve eaten around the world, [...]
NFL collectors items in rural Nicaragua
Every year, the National Football League produces t-shirts and hats to commemorate the winning team in the Super Bowl. These items are, of course, passed out on the field immediately after the game finishes – leaving one to wonder what happens to the products that were made for the team that didn’t win. It seems they are distributed [...]
Life in Afghanistan
What is life like for expatriates in Afghanistan? There is an interesting feature in the Financial Times today – an interview with Belinda Bowling, a South African lawyer who currently lives in Kabul. An excerpt: What brought you to Afghanistan? When I turned 30 I decided to take a year’s career break from my law firm and explore my [...]
Talking travel with Arthur Frommer
Everyone knows about the Frommer’s series of travel guidebooks, but what about the man behind the guides? Arthur Frommer just did an online interview for Rolf Potts’ Vagabonding site and talked about his life as a traveler and a writer. Some highlights: How did you get started traveling? By accident, and at the expense of Uncle Sam. [...]
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Bob Riel is a writer and a traveler. Go here to read more about Bob, his work and the Travels in the Riel World blog.
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Two Laps Around the World
My travel memoir - Two Laps Around the World: Tales and Insights from a Life Sabbatical - is about two round-the-world journeys with my wife.
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