Archive | Travel

RSS feed for this section

Busy times here at Veritrope HQ, but two of my favorite online pals made me an offer that I couldn’t refuse: To appear on their wonderful podcast, Generational, and talk about travel with them.

Gabe Weatherhead and Erik Hess are my kind of people – keen observers of how technology fits into our everyday lives and gracious about sharing their knowledge with their readers and followers. I think you can tell we had a lot of fun talking before, during, and after the recording… and I hope you enjoy “hanging out with us” as well.

You can listen here or get it via iTunes. While you do, I’ll be working on a way to lure those guys to some of the places that I know they love so we can meet up again soon.

A Look At Why Certain Hotels Create An Emotional Resonance With Us. Featuring The Park Hyatt Tokyo, The Fairmont San Francisco.

View from Park Hyatt Tokyo

Up Above It All: The View From The 46th Floor of The Park Hyatt Tokyo

GARY LEFF, author of the popular travel blog “View from the Wing”, recently posted “How The Jesus and Mary Chain Influence My Hotel Choices” – his take on why some hotels create a deeper emotional response in us than others.1

He looked at two which are among my own sentimental favorites: The Park Hyatt Tokyo and the Fairmont San Francisco. I’ve noticed that, even though the staff of great hotels like these may change over the years, an essence endures. People can identify it and, often times, identify with it. Something more than just institutional memory, it seems like what the Romans called the genius loci — the spirit of a place.

Hotels, stadiums, stores, neighborhoods, cities, even whole countries can have it. The spirit of certain places — and the people we meet there — captures our attention. It can stir our imaginations. It can make us feel a sense of belonging. After a time, you begin to feel that you know it in the comfortable, familiar way that you know an old friend.

Finding these places is why I love getting on airplanes. 
[Read more…]

  1. I’m a big fan of Gary’s blog and any item whose title so felicitously combines “travel” and  “80’s music” references engenders an almost irresistible, Pavlov-quick click-through from me. []
An old woman walks 1km to buy pain medicine.

Young Lao Photographers Document Their World With Donated Cameras

It’s hard to believe that it’s already been three months since I visited Luang Prabang, Laos to work alongside the dedicated people who run The Language Project.

Fanny Odermatt, a Swiss volunteer at Language Project’s @ My Library center sent me a message yesterday with a brief update on one of their projects: The Young Lao Photographer’s Gallery. If you’re in need of a bit of “virtual traveling” (or if you participated in the Help In Your Own Way Giveaway), I thought this would be a nice middle-of-the-week treat for you!

Students use donated cameras to document their daily lives and, in image after image, you can see both the beauty and the challenges of life in the Lao Republic. Soon, you’ll be able to buy these images directly from the website and the proceeds will be shared by the library and the photographers.

As part of the run-up to a book project called “Laos Through Our Own Eyes”, the @My Library center has also sponsored a Portrait Contest for its students. There are some really lovely, affecting shots here — especially remarkable given how young these photographers are. While you’re there, be sure to check out the other galleries as well!

This is a link post – You can visit the site mentioned by clicking the main link above (or just click here).