travel — Page 3

Photo: Overlooking the Grand Canyon

December 16, 2011 By Jillian

Hiking Arizona’s Grand Canyon was a spectacular experience. We spent a few days at the Canyon, exploring different trails into what seemed like an endless canyon of gorgeous orange and red rock.
Our ultimately goal was to hike in and out of the Canyon in one day. Rim to river to rim. After extensive research we set out a strategy to conquer the canyon without bringing heavy camping equipment. At 4am we stood on the rim of the South Canyon, listening to coyotes howl and descended into the canyon. By breakfast we were at the river, soaking our feet in it’s cool current. By lunch we were half way back up and by mid afternoon, we had conquered the canyon.

It was exhausting, but judging by our pictures, I think you can tell that it was worth it!

IF YOU GO: You don’t have to conquer the canyon on foot! Rail tours will take you all over the American west and once in the park you’re all set with a wide array of public transport at the ready. If you do go hiking, bring plenty of water, food and a hat – hiking without a plan can put you in serious danger. We stopped into the backcountry office before taking off into the canyon – a good idea for gathering up-to-date information and advice.

Inspiring yourself and others

December 8, 2011 By Jillian

in·spi·ra·tion/

Noun:

The process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something, esp. to do something creative: “flashes of inspiration”.

The quality of having been so stimulated, esp. when evident in something: “a moment of inspiration in an otherwise dull display”.

Who or what inspires you? In October we were honored to participate in Meet, Plan, Go -Orlando, a local edition of a national career break event. The event was inspiring, from the other panelists to the enthusiasm and questions from the registrants, I walked out of the event inspired to continue to find ways to live my life to the fullest.

After the event a man approached me from the crowd. Rick is an entrepreneur in South Florida, who was hoping to take his own career break in the near future. His enthusiasm and passion for taking control of his life was catchy, and I found inspiration at his eagerness to push forward with his plan. One year ago today we landed our feet back in the U.S. having completed our trip around the world. This last year has been rough on both of us, as coming home always is and we celebrate this bittersweet milestone with both tears of joy and sadness. Tuesday, we stopped by Rick’s restaurant and saw this sign on the door:

Congratulations Rick. There’s no better way we could have celebrated our one year home than to see someone else start the journey to their dream. Rick, wherever you are, I hope you follow your dream and continue to inspire others with your enthusiasm and zeal for life. See you on the other end!

Travel Running

September 13, 2011 By Danny

Growing up I was never particularly athletic but at some point, something changed, and I became a runner. I’ve now run three marathons and have logged thousands of miles. The weird thing is….I don’t much care for distance running; it generally hurts, takes up a lot of time, and makes my clothes smell.

Lately I’ve gotten back into running but only for short distances, usually 5-10 kilometers (3-6mi) at a time. I enjoy exercising, but going out and running non-stop for 2 hours excites me about as much as a dental appointment…just because I do it, doesn’t make it fun. Before this weekend, the furthest I’ve run in the past 3 years was approximately 8 miles. A far cry from those 26.2 mile marathons I used to race.

This past weekend Jillian and I traveled to Chicago to run the Chicago Half Marathon. The race was 13.1 miles along the lake shore and mostly skipped the sites of Chicago that most tourists would be interested in seeing. The run was almost completely flat and didn’t provide for a large amount of spectators. Other than running the same race as Olympic speed skater Apolo Ohno, and the Chicago deep dish pizza provided at the finish line, it was amongst the least exciting races in which I’ve ever taken part.

But it was probably my favorite.

This time I didn’t train hard and I really didn’t know how quick I’d do the run. I was at the start line with four other family members who were mostly in the same boat as me. Jillian’s sister, Becka, helped pace me for most of the race, but after that I was on my own. But at the start I was with people. At the finish I found all those fellow runners again. My five AM wakeup call was a team effort and the night before had the feeling of a couch-surf mixed with a chocolate-fueled teenage slumber party. Pre-race we joked about laxatives and how poorly we’d do rather than race splits and pace groups. Post race we all enjoyed bagels and football together and when I was restless it wasn’t too difficult to convince others to join me and the big dog Hendrix for a walk along the lake. This race was my favorite because for the first time it was vacation first, race second.

If it hadn’t been for the race I think most of us wouldn’t have been traveling this weekend, somehow though the race brought us together and it was worth the trip all the way around. On the pavement, I pushed harder than I ever had in the past, but once I finished it was time to relax and enjoy the pizza! I don’t expect I’ll ever again train for a big race again but because of this weekend I do expect to sign up for far more of them.

And if anyone is curious, I ran the 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 6 minutes. That’s means each mile took me, on average, about 9 minutes and 40 seconds. I didn’t train particularly well. My first marathon, exactly twice the distance I ran this Sunday, for which I trained 6 months to run, saw me finish in an even 5 hours…you do the math!

Flashback: Peru

August 18, 2011 By Jillian

Our first moments in Peru were not our greatest. In fact, it was the only point on our whole trip when someone attempted to rob us. Yup, it was really not a great start. Things could only get better though and once we thwarted the would be thieves, we were free to roam about the country.

Peru was more than we expected. It’s not often you can say that about a place, but I was expecting the home of Machu Picchu and little else. It turned out there was A LOT more to do in Peru than I ever expected. We spent a month in the country and I still feel as though we missed a lot. Peru was a country of many firsts for us: my first time hiking above 15,000 feet, the first time I saw penguins outside of a zoo, the first time I ate heart, the first time I let a monkey climb on my shoulder, the first time I ran up a mountain in the dark to get in line to climb another mountain, and unfortunately the first time someone attempted to rob us.

Perhaps it is because of that last first that Peru taught me to ENJOY my travels and to STOP worrying. Sure it was incredibly empowering knowing that my paranoid watching had stopped thieves from running off with our backpacks, but instead of doubling down on my “all seeing eye” I somehow felt that the experience validated relaxing a bit. Naively I felt invincible and somewhat like a travel superhero. I felt like I sent a message out with every look, daring the next thief to take me on. Fortunately none did because I highly doubt looking back on it I would have been so successful the second time.

The naïve sense of invincibility allowed me for the first time in the trip to really let my guard down. Ironic that an attempted robbery caused me to be less cautious, but somewhere between being shaken by the experience and exhilarated at thwarting the thieves I realized that even if they took my backpack SO WHAT. Let me repeat that, my world, my trip, it wouldn’t end just because someone took my backpack. So I learned to relax and stop worrying so much. Experiencing something is often less scary than what you imagine the experience to be and after someone tried to rob me I was a lot less afraid of being robbed. Strange isn’t it, but I learned not to be so afraid. I learned to let go of my what ifs, worries and fears and go with the flow. It was exhilarating.

In Peru I learned to let it go and started to really enjoy our trip.

Rail Holidays – The Jewels of India

August 14, 2011 By Guest Blogger

Imagine being buried in a pile of penny sweets wearing a suit made from feathers surrounded by the cast from West Side Story in full chorus. This kind of sensory overload is equal to that which you will experience on a trip to India. However the India trip, of course, will also be much more rewarding, enjoyable and less like a Lady Ga Ga video. One way to remove a bit of unnecessary intensity from an Indian adventure is to let somebody else take care of the plans, which is why I decided to go with rail holidays. With the worries of destinations and transport taken care of, I was free to soak up the experience.

Delhi

First was the chaotic cocktail that is Delhi. What a magically intoxicating mix: throw in a handful of languages, a generous portion of New Delhi sophistication, mix in a few drops of ancient magic and blend in a bumper pack of Crayola. This is a city shared by medieval markets and cosmopolitan coffee shops; where tours of ancient monuments can be followed by a round of Mojitos. My highlight had to be the Red Fort: towering arches and auburn splendour hewn from sandstone in the 1600’s; the first of many architectural masterpieces to come.

Agra

Of course, nothing could quite prepare you for the Taj Mahal, the jewel in Agra’s crown. No matter the level of hype or hyperbole, this palace more than lives up to it. A fleet of 1000 elephants carried the dazzling slabs of white marble 200 miles to construct it; surely the most extravagant gift ever made to a lover. Inspired, I tried a similar feat with hamsters and Mini Cheddars when I got home. Apparently it’s not a good idea to use an edible building material.

Beyond the Palace of Winds, Fort Amber looms over the Maota lake. This really is the stuff that legends are made of. Whilst the Palace is a ghostly ruin, sand blowing beneath high arches, the Fort’s facade resembles a princess’ jewellery box.

Ranthambore National Park

If anything grapples with this incredible architecture to be the icon of northern India, then it has to be the elusive tiger. Our next destination, Ranthambore National Park is a haven for them, as well as a plethora of other animals including leopards, mongoose and crocodiles. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the safari, and we even caught a glimpse of the majestic tiger, lapping from the edge of a nearby lake.

Udaipur

Udaipur is another watery wonderland, rippling reflections of towers and temples decorating the surface of Lake Pichola. The floating palace at the water’s centre is positively dreamy, and our tour was lucky enough to arrive when the waters allowed a visit.

To round off are the ancient Buddhist and Hindu temples known as The Ellora Caves. Never before had I seen anything even remotely like this: an architectural wonder calved straight into a basalt cliff face. Statues, balconies and pillars stand frozen in time, expertly crafted over 1000 years ago.

Author: Sophie McGovern is an avid traveler who enjoys the challenge of travel. She still hops a train from time to time.

Photo: Overlooking the Grand Canyon

Inspiring yourself and others

in·spi·ra·tion/