Headline — Page 30

A Beach Bum’s Tale of Survival

November 6, 2011 By Guest Blogger

[Ed. Note: Today’s guest post comes to us from John Rarity, author of the new book- “Working Beach Bum“, now available at Amazon.com. John’s giving away a copy of his book to one of our lucky readers- check out our facebook page on Monday, November 7th for giveaway rules and instructions! Contest ends November 21st!]

Why does anybody do anything worth doing? This was a question posed to me by my favorite college History professor. I suppose he had plenty of examples to choose from, in terms of people having done something worth doing. They made history, after all.

So, there I was, boarding a one-way flight from Texas to Maui. Not sure what to expect but full of expectations, I at least knew one thing for certain – there were definitely going to be a few sweet ass beaches there when I arrived. And there were.

I launched on the development of “Working Beach Bum” because I was curious and enthralled with picturesque beach scene, and too young and broke to want to wait for the right time. I’d forgone the law degree in lieu of one that actually appealed to me – freelance work, i.e. semi-employment, or unemployment, depending on how you looked at it. Bottom line, I worked for myself, and although the financial consequences of doing so were to live primarily a frugal lifestyle, the freedom and liberty of calling my own shots emboldened me. This combined with a love affair with writing and travel, and developing “Working Beach Bum” was a no brainer! I was off, but it wasn’t easy.

I had started with only $1,000, barely enough to cover my first month’s rent plus expenses when I arrived in Maui. At least until I could cash my first paycheck from a job that was, as of the moment of my departure, undetermined. Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t completely oblivious to the powers of the internet and in fact did use it to email my dad’s cousin and help line-up a few job opportunities. Regardless, knowing what my options were and acting on them would have to wait until I was on the island.

After a couple of months on Maui, I set off for Oahu, where I wasn’t as lucky in the job department – but there were sweet ass beaches there too! The book eventually chronicles how I landed jobs and managed to put a roof over my head, as I explored the shorelines of my dream U.S. beach destinations: Hawaii, California, Florida and Puerto Rico. I’d done it. I had set off with a beach bum’s budget and not only survived, but in the end thrived my way from the middle of the Pacific Ocean to the emerald green shores of the Caribbean Sea. I had met people, shared experiences and most of all proved to myself that living a dream – regardless of the practicality – is a worthy endeavor of the highest calling.

My ultimate hope is that “Working Beach Bum” manages to amuse and inspires its readers to take the leap and experience the trip of their lives. I did, and I’ll never regret it.

You can check out John’s book, now for sale on Amazon.com.

Bio: John Rarity has covered beach destinations all over the U.S., Thailand, Australia and beyond, developing his knowledge and skills in budget travel. He is also founder and currently heads GoStayPlay.com, a social travel deals and events website. Check him out on his Blog, Twitter or on Facebook.

Mexico City, Cuidad de Mexico, D.F.

November 4, 2011 By Jillian

Mexico City is a place with many names and many personalities.

Polluted. Sprawling. Enormous.

Those were pretty much the first words that came to my mind when I thought about Mexico City and yet, we despite not a single positive word that came to mind, were drawn to visit. Having skipped Mexico City the first time through Mexico in 2009, we were determined to cross it off the list. It feels like we’ve had a taste of everywhere else in Mexico, so we might as well take a stab at the heart of darkness, literally.

And so back in the travel saddle, we found ourselves passing a few days in Mexico City before a wedding.

On our first day in town we went to probably one of the most impressive anthropology museums in the world. The Museo Nacional de Antropología covers all of the famous pre-Columbian peoples in Mexico from the famous Aztecs to the lesser known Toltecs. It was a bit like traveling through Mexico again, each room we visited was another stop through memory lane. Food stalls hawked chili covered peanuts and fried grasshoppers.

On our second day we spent the morning exploring explore Tiotihuacan and the in the afternoon Templo Mayor. I stood in the middle of Aztec ruins, looking at the stone altar where they performed human sacrifice. The city and traffic buzzed around us and the bell tower of the second largest cathedral in the new world shaded us from above.

On our third day I sat in the Zocalo, drinking an ice cold beer, watching the numerous vendors hawk their wares, sat in on a children’s theater performance for dia de los meurtos and watched a man cut himself with glass for money on the metro.

How on earth can I add all of this up into one cohesive tale? It’s like being a part of the Palo Volador, multiple personalities spinning through the air.

My story of Mexico City is much the same of the city it’s self. Layers upon layers of interesting history, hidden gems and stories worth exploring. We crossed the city on the metro, zipping underneath fancy neighborhoods, rundown areas of town, old churches, new sky scrappers and high-rises. The city once paved in gold according to Cortez now sits uncomfortably crowded in the middle of a drained lake, a population pushing resources to the brink. And yet parts of it remains charming. The city parks are alive with young lovers, families and friends enjoying the freedom of sunshine. The base of the angel statue is dotted with teenagers and adolescents hanging about and wherever you go you are greeted by a genuine smile and a firm handshake.

It is a city of discrepancies, a city of multiple personalities not easily summarized in one story.

Forced to Change Plans

November 1, 2011 By Jillian

I know we’ve sanctimoniously posted about how to find things to do in the rain, but there are just some rain storms you don’t play around with:

That’s right, a hurricane. In Mexico City for a few days before heading to Cancun for a friend’s wedding, we opened our email early Sunday morning to a warning message from Danny’s Dad- Hurricane Rina had been born. As we trolled various weather sites on the Internet we soon realized he wasn’t kidding, this was gearing up to be a direct hit, to exactly where we were heading.

So we did what any traveler would do- we waited. We worried, played the odds, thought of various scenarios, but completely avoided making a decision. We waited until the last possible moment and then it was time. Tuesday morning, just two hours before our scheduled departure to Cancun, we bit the bullet and bought a ticket home. Although it would have made for great pictures, we weren’t willing to stand on a balcony overlooking the ocean watching a the eye of a hurricane approach.

We felt defeated, deflated and above all frustrated on that flight home. We were supposed to spend the week snorkeling, diving and exploring cenotes. We were supposed to be at our friend’s wedding on Saturday, toes in the sand, frozen cocktail in hand.

And so by early Wednesday morning we were back at work and that defeated feeling- so much more intense than the day before. As the hours ticked by it was clear Rina was becoming less and less of a storm. With each update she was downgraded, until Thursday night when she hit Cancun as a low grade tropical storm and then, with a whimper instead of a bang, it was over.

Don’t worry, the story does have a good ending. That whimper petered out even more so by Friday evening we were back on a plane to Cancun to attend the wedding!

What would you have done? Have you ever changed your plans for severe weather?

Photo Credit: NOAA, Flickr User mac_ivan

So, You Want to Make A Travel Show!

October 30, 2011 By Guest Blogger

Editor’s Note: There are lots of travel blogs out there, so setting yourself apart can be a difficult & creative endeavor. We asked Mehdy Ghannad from The Hostel Life, to share with us a behind the scenes look at what it takes to put together an episode of his show.

People always say, “You have the best job in the world,” and I can’t deny the truth in that. I love every bit of it. But — and I would have to say a big BUT — it hasn’t been easy and it continues to have as many downs as ups. When I took on the endeavor of The Hostel Life a few years back, I had no production, film or media training whatsoever. But for some reason, I didn’t think it would be very difficult. I said to myself, there are so many shows on TV that I think are just plain terrible and yet they are on TV and continue to get picked up year after year. Really, how hard could it be? I took a look at shows like Jersey Shore and I was flabbergasted as to why is this show so popular. Anyone could easily do something better than that. Right?

Once again, so I thought!

My original concept was more a “Choose Your Own Adventure” style theme, which was great in theory. I would travel and we would post videos daily and have people help me make decisions along the way. Talk about an idea that was great on paper. During our Colombia shoot we were averaging 3 hours of sleep as we were editing, loading, filming, dumping and hoping the connection was strong enough to load an entire video. This is very difficult in some remote locations and hostels. The video content suffered a little as well, we were too worried about getting something out there instead of getting something out there that people want to watch. We were spending too much time editing instead of capturing the surrounding sites and attractions. The new version of The Hostel Life is a lot less stressful, but still very demanding on the entire crew.

Most shows in The Hostel Life’s genre — Travel Channel, Discovery Channel and National Geographic shows — usually have at least an 8-person travel team/crew. The Hostel Life has 2 maybe 3 people at the most as part of the crew. I personally hold many of the roles from host, producer, director, writer and cameraman, and I also do a lot of the post-production work. Another huge difference is that the shows on the travel channels have itineraries and plans set well in advance before production begins. It’s very common that a producer and a camera operator go out a few days ahead of the crew to do scout locations, film shots, check out the attractions, and make sure the activities are set. So pretty much the talent shows up and does the activity or interview, and that’s about it.

The Hostel Life is at most 40 % planned and the rest just happens. So we are literally a run and gun guerrilla-style production. We have no idea if something is going to be show-worthy until we get there and film it. Like I said, some things we organize beforehand, but 9 times out of 10, what makes it into the show are the events that organically happen. Just like when you travel, the best situations that occur are the things that are unplanned.

Let me give you a few good examples of this. From our recent release of the Chicago episode, the whole Wieners Circle Hot Dog segment was not planned at all. We literally went there one day, as a referral from one of my friends, and then came up with the idea to get one of our new hostel friends to order the infamous “Chocolate Milkshake” (highly recommended if you get the chance to go to Chicago). Another great example, and one of my absolute favorites, is during our shoot in Jordan I was able to ride on a chariot going 25 mph in the ancient Roman city of Jerash. Trust me, this is only 5% of the cool random things that happen on the fly. The rest you will have to wait and see in upcoming shows!
I can’t emphasize the fact that we are working constantly every day during our productions. We are usually in 5th gear for 16 to 18 hours a day consisting of shooting, some basic post-production, and a little planning for the next day. During one of our shoots, I had food poisoning and was vomiting like crazy, another crew member was limping as he fractured his foot, and the other broke out into a severe rash. But the show had to go on. So at the end of that trip, we took a few days to catch up on rest, decompress, and visit the doctor! Also during all these shoots, we are constantly trying to stay connected with our followers and fans. Using all the social media outlets from blogging, Tweeting, Facebooking, and posting photos and small videos, we try to keep our fans and followers connected as much as possible. This is a huge undertaking in itself because the crew is so small on location.

The rest of the time when we are not on shoots is managing all the post-production work.

Since once again things randomly happen, it takes time to weed through 3 to 7 hours of video to make a 22-minute show. I personally watch everything we film from start to finish and start putting the story together just like a jigsaw puzzle. So a lot of the time the actual way the story is told comes after the shoot. I am always looking at ways to tell the story the best, in the most entertaining and visually stimulating way to the viewer. I know that most other producers cringe when I tell them this is how I run the production. I know that my approach is really an unorthodox way of doing things, but that’s the essence of our show — traveling with little planning is the best way to travel. So why shouldn’t the production reflect that as well?

Our goal as a production is to get people to really see the world. If they don’t think they can do it, maybe the show will convince them that they can. We can be that nudge to show them that it’s safe to travel, it can be done economically, and maybe point out a few things they have to check out if they plan to go to some of these locations. I personally love it when I get emails or comments from people saying that they never thought of that country as a place to take a vacation and how it has moved to the top of their list. For me, hearing that or reading those emails is the ultimate compliment and what we want the effect of The Hostel Life to be.

What I personally want aside from being able to see more of the world is really to take people along with me into what I love doing most, and that’s meeting people. What better way to experience life than meeting people from all walks of life? It’s easy to get lost in the daily routine of our lives, but I hope that with The Hostel Life, it will give people the escape they need and ultimately help people view the world a little bit differently as I continue to do.

Mehdy Ghannad is creator, producer and writer of The Hostel Life. The Hostel Life is an eclectic bunch of open-minded, adventure-seeking travel junkies, looking to spread the word of backpacking and the joys of staying in hostels. You can catch up on all the episodes on YouTube, or preview the latest news on Twitter and Facebook. All of the photos are courtesy of The Hostel Life.

Thanks to Mehdy for today’s post. If you’re an adventurous traveler interested in writing for IShouldLogOff, contact us at info [at] ishouldlogoff.com or check our submission guidelines. We received no compensation for this guest post, we just thought it would be interesting for you!

My first trip abroad; I was fourteen.

October 25, 2011 By Jillian

Do you remember your first trip abroad? I was fourteen when I first went overseas. Headed to the United Kingdom with a student group, I thought I was the coolest fourteen year old on the planet. I remember putting on make-up for my passport photo – real make up and for probably the first and only time in my life I voluntarily used hair spray. The passport photo was very, very important to a fourteen year old me. Getting that photo and applying for my passport I felt important, special, like I was somebody who was going places.

The breakfast at Tiffany’s this is so cool feeling wore off when I found out we had to wear matching outfits on the plane. This was so not cool, even more so because it was my dad who suggested the matching t-shirts for the airport. My fourteen year old self died with mortification. My dad. Matching t-shirts. I was sure I would never live that day down for the rest of my life.

As you well know, somehow I did get over my mortification. Somehow my teenage self got over the utter uncoolness of the matching t-shirts and got on with the trip. I learned that tea + milk + lemon was not a delicious idea, but it was a fun experiment to watch. I learned that there were washing machines in the world that doubled as dryers and that there was such thing as 15 o’clock and 19 o’clock (yes I discovered what we call military time in the U.S.). I learned that not all British people drink tea, ride horses or eat fish and chips- that some eat Indian food. I learned that Wales and Scotland are distinctly different than England and that indeed Ireland was in fact very green. I learned that the world, or at least the U.K. was not at all what I thought and then again exactly what I thought.

Taking my first trip abroad at fourteen without my parents, my eyes were opened wide to the “world”. Although I thought it was very cool at the time, I never realized what a ticket to the world it would be. That first trip was one of the greatest gifts my parents have ever given me. That small book (I’m on my third renewal now!) has been the souvenir I take everywhere. It’s been the keeper of my memories, my travels and my journeys around the world. I treasure my border stamps, run my fingers over my visas with the gentleness reserved only for babies or treasured objects.

I may not fall in love with every place I go. I may not even like some of the places I go, but I appreciate the experiences. That first trip abroad brought to life a part of my personality that I didn’t even recognize at fourteen, something I couldn’t grasp or appreciate. Today so many years later here I am, on my third passport renewal, the fire still burning.

What started your love of travel? Is there a trip or a destination that sparked the fire for you?

Photo 1 courtesy of Flickr user Max Braun under a creative commons license.

A Beach Bum’s Tale of Survival

Mexico City, Cuidad de Mexico, D.F.

Forced to Change Plans

So, You Want to Make A Travel Show!

My first trip abroad; I was fourteen.

Recent Comments

Banking on the Road

Adventure Guides