How to Travel with a Theme (and Spice Up Your Trip!)

I think I’ve become a “typical tourist.” Ya know, the kind that hits the major tourist sites and a few off-the-path attractions, Yelps a few local restaurants, and moves on. I get my basic overview, learn how to save some money, and continue to the next destination.

And that’s left me feeling that my travels have become too vanilla lately. There’s a spark missing. I mean, I don’t think I go to boring places, but there’s just a part of me that feels there’s been less adventure and pizzazz in my travels, that I haven’t done anything really cool, interesting, or off-beat for a long time.

So, I had an idea:

What if I traveled with a theme?

Instead of just trying to see the usual well-known sites, what if I went with a specific focus in mind?

What if I went to see only the jazz clubs of a city or the modern art museums? Or only hiked trails that begin with the letter M? Or went to learn about a destination’s wine industry? Or decided I’d only eat at Japanese restaurants with a local food expert?

Really, it could be anything, as long as it hyper-focused my travels around one idea that forced me to look at a destination in a different light.

(I’m sure I’m not the first person to think about this, but it’s something I’ve never done before.)

For example, I’ve been to Paris countless times. I’ve hit all the big sites multiple times over. When I returned to Paris recently, I wanted something different and new. I wanted a purpose. So I decided to experience Jazz Age Paris. I wanted my own private Midnight in Paris. I wanted the spirit of the 1920s: jazz, cocktails, and literature.

As a result, I spent time in Montmartre, ate at Les Deux Magots, enjoyed jazz in the Latin Quarter, drank in speakeasies and wine caves, wandered the bookshelves of Shakespeare and Company, and got lost in the streets of the Left Bank. It might not have been the ’20s exactly, but I ate at restaurants I’d never been to, went to music venues I’d never heard of, and saw parts of Paris I didn’t know existed (including a wonderful cobblestone street filled with tiny cafés in a 1900s covered market).

It was the most fun I had had in the City of Lights in a long time…because it was different. Designing my travels around one theme forced me to plan differently.

And it’s something I plan to continue. After being consistently on the road for a decade, I need to spice things up a little bit.

You develop a routine after traveling for a long time. Like everything else, you fall into a certain complacency. Sure, you’re in cool destinations doing cool things — but it’s often the same type of things.

So from now on, instead of just going to places, I’m going with purpose.

(Besides traveling with a theme, I’ve also decided to use only the sharing economy for transportation (when I can), as well as to start looking for more tours on Vayable and meals on EatWith as a way to have more unique and interesting experiences and meet more locals.)

If you’re in a destination for the first time, of course by all means see all the main sites and attractions — but try to add a little theme to your trip that forces you off the beaten path toward some different or unusual attractions, sights, and events.

How to Travel with a Theme (in Five Easy Steps)

So how do you do this? It requires a bit more research than opening up a guidebook! Here’s how I planned my trip: 

Step 1 – Pick a Theme
This is an obvious first step. You can’t do any of the other steps without it. For me, I had 1920s Paris on my mind, so I decided I’d try to relive that era. But it could be anything: learning about cheese or wine production, the vegan food scene, jazz culture, the modern art scene — whatever suits your fancy! And, if you’re note sure what theme to pick, think of things that interest you the most and see that destination has stuff related to it or just Google “What is (x) famous for?” and see what comes out!

Step 2 – Research Online (use multiple keywords)
 After picking your theme, go more in depth on your search. Local blogs, general travel blogs, our forums, Lonely Planet, Time Out, Yelp — these are all websites I use in my research. Then I go to Google and type in a number of keywords to cover all my bases. For my ’20s trip, for example, I typed in “books on 1920s Paris,” “how to see 1920s Paris,” “1920s Paris sights,” “Paris speakeasies,” and “best jazz clubs in Paris” and found a number of references to consult and various places where I could experience that ’20s vibe. This allowed me to compile a list of potential places to visit.

Step 3 – Plan Your Itinerary
While I didn’t want to overplan any trip, I kind of wanted a plan of attack. There was a lot to see in Paris and I didn’t have much time, so I prioritized what appealed the most. First came the food, then the bars, then the sights. This allowed me to come up with a general framework for my trip. Tagging sites on a Google Map can help you see how far apart things are and then plan your optimal route!

Step 4 – Contact Locals and Experts
Couchsurfing groups and Meetup.com are incredible places to find locals who share your interest. They are going to know the ins and outs of the city and probably have lots of suggestions. Additionally, the group meetups are a fun way to meet locals who share a similar passion, making conversation easier and breaking down that awkward language barrier. Lastly, Vayable, a website that lets locals set up their own walking tours, is also a way to find local experts and unique walking tours.

Step 5 – Read a Book (or Three) 
To get context, read a book on the subject. While I already knew a lot about the ’20s Jazz Age, I ended up picking a few more books on the subject:

Books also might clue you in to some other attractions too!

****

When you do something for a long time, it can become sort of stale. It can lose its luster. When it comes to travel, sometimes that just means sitting down, relaxing, and watching Netflix until you gain your mojo back. Other times, it means brining back the spice and excitement of those first moments, trying to get that first high back.

I know travel so well that it’s become too easy. I’ll be traveling with a theme much more often, so more of my upcoming posts will be like this Paris post, trying to hunt down cool and unique things about destinations. I already have two new themes in mind for my return to NYC: the best swing dance clubs and the best Japanese izakaya bars. And, for my return to Portland this summer, I’m thinking food trucks only (there’s even a food truck tour!).

Because, as much as I love the popular things (they are popular for a reason), I want to add something a little different and unique into my trips that spices them up in a way I never would have thought about before.

Photo credit: 1

19 Travel Goals to Accomplish Before 35

Posted: 08/20/2013 | August 20th, 2013

Back in June, as I was reflecting on another birthday, I looked at a very, very old version of my website and spotted a list of travel goals I’d written. I’d forgotten about that list. As I made changes to the site, I had moved the list around, eventually removed it, put it back, and then put it aside for later use. But like so many lists I write, I had forgotten it in the dust bin of my mind.

But seeing that list again made me think about how five years ago I had all these lofty travel goals — and they sort of sputtered out. To be fair, I’ve done some amazing things in the last five years (Galápagos Islands? Check! La Tomatina? Check! Learn to scuba dive? Check! Oktoberfest? Double steins of beer? Double check!), but seeing all those uncompleted goals made me a little sad.

Now, I hate bucket lists — as if there’s some set number of activities to enjoy in the world in order to die happy. I think that’s crap. Life changes and so do your goals and desires. The bucket list you write when you’re 20 is not the same one you write at 40. If I wrote a bucket list 10 years ago, it wouldn’t include 90% of the things I’ve done with my life.

But as I reflect on that long lost list, I think after five years, it’s time for a new list. Mostly because I love lists (I make at least one a day) but also because it would be good to collect and refocus my thoughts.

As a nomad, there’s nowhere in the world I don’t want to see at some point, but there are definite things I want to do and places I want to see sooner rather than later.

So instead of writing a bucket list, I’m writing my travel priorities for the next three years in order to better focus and have some goals to strive for.

Safari in East Africa

This is one of the things I want most in the world, but I’m only going to make this trek with someone else. As I discovered in Africa, such beauty is best not seen alone, and a long safari around the region will be on hold until I find someone to go with.

Hike the Inca Trail

I can barely hike up my stairs without getting winded (I need to follow more of Steve’s advice!), but the thought of hiking this ancient path, setting sight on Machu Picchu, and wondering how the hell they managed to build a city on a mountain top (and maybe even getting photobombed by a llama) is too appealing to pass up.

See the World Cup

I’m a huge soccer fan, and the World Cup just seems like a crazy party you can’t miss. I got into the sport when I began traveling around the world, and knowing Latin America’s obsession with the sport, I can only imagine how great it will be next year. Brazil 2014, here I come!

Spend 4–5 months backpacking South America

I’ll be tying my World Cup goal into what will be my next major trip. I don’t like piecemeal travel, and I’d rather explore this entire region in one go, so despite my attempts at slowing down and becoming more settled, New York City will take a brief backseat to South America next spring while I roam the continent.

See Antarctica

Penguins, glaciers, and whales, oh my!

Spend a month living in the Seychelles

These islands are what my version of heaven would look like, so why not spend a cold winter month there soaking in the sun? Sounds perfectly fine to me.

Climb to Everest base camp

Given my general out-of-shapeness, this is going to be a real challenge, but one I will prepare for and embrace.

Sail along the Amazon and explore the heart of the rainforest

Because ever since I saw photos of this river, I’ve felt the need to satiate my inner Indiana Jones and explore this vast, wild, sometimes uncharted, out-of-the-way region.

See the Northern Lights

Because it’s too beautiful to pass up!

Take the Trans-Siberian Railway

I’ve always dreamed of this long train journey, and my desire has only increased since Katie wrote about her trip. This long, rustic train ride also appeals to me, because in the age of the Internet, travel has gotten too easy and there’s no Internet here to rely on. It’s just you and your travel skills.

Cruise around the Pacific Islands

Because Torre made me jealous, and I think it would be pretty fun to pretend I’m Robinson Crusoe. Sailing the islands is difficult to accomplish, but nothing worthwhile is ever easy.

Spend a week in Borobudur trying to figure out the meaning of life

Borobudur is a Buddhist temple in Indonesia whose winding walkway is lined with reliefs of Buddhist teachings. The higher up you get, the harder the reliefs become. Monks were supposed to figure out the meaning of each relief before moving on. When you’ve made it to the top, you’ve unlocked all the Buddha’s teachings. That’s a challenge I accept.

Walk the Camino de Santiago

Can I walk across Spain? I don’t know, but it will be fun to try. I’ve heard so many good stories about this trip that even if I only make it halfway, I think I’ll enjoy it.

See Petra, Jordan

Ever since I saw Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade as a kid, I’ve always wanted to visit this historic site. Many of my friends have visited and come back with wonderful stories of not only Petra but of Jordan too. I just have to remember that the cup can’t cross the seal or we’re all doomed (Indiana Jones reference).

Travel to the Arctic and see polar bears

I can’t see one pole without seeing the other. It’s only fair, right? Plus, I want to see these amazing animals before they go extinct.

Spend three months in India

Because it’s too big and interesting to spend any less time here. I just don’t feel a short trip would do the country justice.

Learn about wine in France

I’m a wino, and it would be fascinating to learn about the complexities of what I’m drinking. Is that a hint of raspberry in there? Why yes, it is!

Sail around the Caribbean

Just call me Captain Nomadic Jack Sparrow.

Visit Morocco

This country has been on my must-see list for far too long. I love Moroccan food, the kasbahs seem amazing, and a camel ride in the desert is just what the doctor ordered.

Will I get to all of these by the time I’m 35? I don’t know. Maybe, maybe not. But I plan to refer to this often as a way to check in and keep myself on track. If I only accomplish these 19 things in the next three years, I will have done a lot, expanded the places I’ve seen in the world, and be one very, very happy nomad.

So here’s to goals and making them happen!

The Evolution of a Long Term Traveler

Posted: 04/29/2014 | April 29th, 2014

There are downsides to long-term travel: the five-hour friends, the quick relationships, the solitude that leads to loneliness. It’s not all rainbows and unicorns.

But then nothing ever is.

Despite those occasional downsides, I think long-term solo travel is something people should try at least once in their life. Even if you don’t like it, try it — it will teach you a lot about yourself. It’s made me a far better and more awesome person, and I’ll go to the grave preaching its gospel.

But a couple weeks ago, I came home to NYC and created balance in my life. In finding that balance, I’ve come to a stark realization: I am no longer a long-term traveler.

The thought of spending extended time on the road doesn’t fill me with as much excitement anymore.

A month or two of solid travel? Sure.

More than that? No thanks.

I like having a home. I like this website and the work involved with it. I like having a stable set of friends. I like traveling around the country talking about travel and helping others.

Spending extended time on the road makes it hard to accomplish what I want to do with my life now. Everything suffers if I try to cram in too much stuff into the work/life/travel mix.

I still dream about travel all the time…literally.

When I’m asleep and dreaming, it’s usually about travel. I recently had such a vivid dream about losing my passport, I jolted out of bed and ran to where it was to make sure it was still there! (It was.)

Years ago, I wondered if it was possible to travel for too long. Back then, I didn’t know. I was four years into my travels, and the sky was the limit.

Four years later, I think the answer is yes, you can.

At least, I can.

I’ll never give up travel, but right now, extended trips are a thing of the past. The road may never end, but now I want an off-ramp and a rest station before I continue on it.

Long-term travel suited my lifestyle for a long time, but while I’m now even more passionate about travel, travel is not the only thing I want from my life.

As I said last week, there has to be balance.

Maybe one day, I’ll meet someone who will say to me, “Let’s spend five months wandering around Africa!” I’ll look at them and say, “Let’s spend six.”

But as I write this today, I look in the mirror and no longer see a long-term traveler, just a backpacking, budget one.

We get used to a certain way of life, and it becomes hard to change. Whether it’s cubicle life or life on the road, we identify with something. It becomes part of who we are.

What happens when I’m not nomadic? What happens to me?

There’s a quote that says, “A ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for.” My harbor is the road. It’s my comfort zone.

But as I soon enter my thirty-third year of living, I no longer cling to that. It’s been two years since I wrote about “the end of my travels,” but I’ve finally come to terms with what I wrote there.

And I couldn’t be happier.

Continue reading with these posts:

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Malta: The Country of Half-Neglected Buildings

As I sat freezing at a café in Malta, I wondered if I had made the right decision to visit. I had come to Europe for a friend’s wedding and, not wanting to fly back right away, thought I’d make the most of it and travel somewhere new. Why not start off the new year in a new country, right?

But, see, I hate the cold.

If you want to make me sad, send me somewhere cold. I needed somewhere (relatively) warm and—since I only had a week—small. Looking over a map of Europe, Malta seemed like the best choice. It was far south, had easy flight connections to the mainland, seemed tiny, and came highly recommended by friends.

For Europe in January, it seemed liked my best bet.

But as I sat shivering in a sweater, hat, scarf, and winter coat, I realized I should have researched the weather a bit more before I came. Sure, I happened to visit during an unseasonable cold snap (“It’s never like this!” people would say), but that didn’t make me feel any better.

I don’t like exploring places in the cold, which is why you hardly ever see “winter travel” tips on this site. Spring, summer, fall — those are my seasons! I don’t like carrying big bulk clothes, I don’t like sightseeing while freezing.  (Nor did the weather appeal to my friend who had come from Stockholm for warmer weather.)

Yet neither of us had been to Malta before. Both workaholics, we really wanted to put our phones away, turn the computers off, and just enjoy the destination. It had been a long time since either of us had done that.

So we had to make the most of the (terrible) weather. Otherwise, we’d end up inside, back on our computers, and that wasn’t an option!

In the wintertime, you can visit all of Malta in about a week since this place is really a summer beach destinations, and the weather in the winter is definitely not beach weather. (In the summer, you’ll need two weeks to account for beach days.)

My friend and I had grand plans to see everything possible. We’d be up by 7am and out the door by 8 but, after the second day of hitting snooze, we gave up those plans. While I missed a few museums I wanted to see, didn’t wander Gozo’s citadel as much as I wanted (the day we went it was 4°C with piercing wind and rain), and missed the underground ruins at Hal Saflieni Hypogeum, the Tarxien Temples, the underground WWII tunnel tour in Valetta, the Popeye Village, and the famous fish market.

However, while we moved slowly and my to-do list never quite got completed, I regret nothing. Malta cast a spell on me. I found the locals funny, charismatic, and jovial. They always had a good story to share. And the landscape – wow! As you drive out of the towns just that seemed to form one giant megacity, there were vineyards waiting for spring, rocky, rolling hills, ancient villages, sheer cliffs, churches rising high into the sky, and sharp cliffs with sweeping views of the deep blue Mediterranean.

In terms of sightseeing, the catacombs of Mdina were the most interesting, with their maze of hallways and chambers (though not enough skeletons), and the nearby ancient Roman house, with its intact frescos, was a highlight for me. In Valletta, the capital, I sat watching the harbor from the serene Upper Barrak Gardens (where there are fewer people than the lower gardens) and attended mass at the famous St. Stephen’s Church. And I imagined sitting in the main square enjoying the summer sun while having a glass of wine.

However, what I found most striking about the country were the towns that seem to teeter on decay. Throughout the country, they are filled with centuries-old buildings showing a mix of Arabic and Italian influences and picturesque balconies that jutted out so one could spy up and down the street. The cobblestone streets, clearly built before even Europe’s small cars were around, beckon you to explore their turns. In Malta, they name their houses, and I found myself wandering the streets looking at the random collection of names (my Airbnb’s was “The Devon”).

But as I stood wide-eyed, with one ear listening for a car sneaking up behind me, I couldn’t help but notice that it often felt as if Malta was only half-loved. For all the renovated houses and mansions brought back to their historic glory, there were more decrepit and boarded-up ones, sometimes taking up whole blocks. For every beautiful garden and restored square, there seemed to be an equally run-down one. It was as if half the island quickly left and the other half, busy with preservation, was just waiting for them to come back to fix the rest up.

For all that is written about the island’s natural beauty, wonderful beaches, and majestic capital, what I’ll remember most of Malta was this stark contrast. It was like a mystery yearning to be solved. Why don’t people just fix it up? Why does the government let these safety hazards stay up? Who owned these buildings? Some looked like they had been abandoned for decades. Why rebuild a beautiful house only to have the own next door look like it was a crack den? It all seemed so confusing and haphazard. No one could give me a good answer.

My orderly, OCD mind couldn’t wrap its head around it. (I’d be a terrible Southern European!)

My visit to Malta was like watching the preview of a good movie. When it’s over, you can’t wait for the whole movie.

But I don’t know if I’ll ever get back for the feature presentation. There’s so much to see in the world that I have this gut feeling it will be a long time before I get back to Malta. But, even if I never get back, I enjoyed the preview as well as the fact that I finally turned off my computer and just enjoyed where I was without distractions.

It’d been a long time since I last did that.

A Guide to Traveling with Technology

This is a guest post by travel tech guru Dave Dean of Too Many Adapters, a site devoted to technology for travelers. In this post, Dave breaks down the pros and cons of traveling with certain technology.

Wondering what to take on the road when it comes to electronics? You’re not the only one. Long gone are the days where a cassette player and film camera were the height of travel gadgetry. Walking into a hostel common room now, you’d be forgiven for thinking you had accidentally stumbled into the local electronics store. You’re likely to be surrounded by laptops and tablets, smartphones and DSLRs, and more softly glowing Apple logos than you can shake a stick at.

Often unsure of what they really need, people end up carrying a lot more tech gear on the road than they should. After several years of travel and working online though, I’ve figured out what works, what doesn’t, and what you really need.

Laptop

With the slow disappearance of Internet cafes in favor of Wi-Fi hotspots, a laptop is definitely worth considering. It’s the easiest method of staying in touch, backing up photos, and wasting time.

I use mine to work from the road, so I went for something relatively powerful, but for more typical use, a thin and light laptop like an Ultrabook (e.g., Asus Zenbook Prime) or a Macbook Air can provide everything you need at a lower weight and (potentially) cost. Things that matter include:

Size – Nothing larger than a 13” screen or that weighs much over 1kg, and less is definitely better. Consider the size and weight of the power adapter too. Those things can be huge!

Strength – Something made well that won’t fall to pieces the first time it gets knocked in your bag. Get a protective sleeve to prevent scratches and cushion minor bumps, and read the reviews of its durability.

Battery life – Five or six hours is the minimum, 8+ is much better if you plan to take long overnight buses or trains.

Storage space – Don’t skimp on the amount of storage you have. 128Gb really is the minimum, and more is much better. All those photos and downloaded movies take up more space than you think!

SD card slot – It’s not an absolute must, but having an SD card slot built into your laptop is very handy. Assuming your camera uses SD cards (most do), an built-in card reader makes copying your pictures super easy. All you do is insert the card and transfer!

Cost – The less you spend, the more money you have to spend at the bar, right? Not to mention the computer will be cheaper to insure and replace and less of a target for theft. Don’t spend much over $1000.

If your budget doesn’t stretch that far or your needs are more basic, you could go for a tablet instead. Older technology like netbooks could also do the job, although they’re becoming increasingly hard to find.

Tablet

If I didn’t work online, I’d ditch the laptop and carry a tablet computer instead. Smaller, lighter, cheaper, and with better battery life than a laptop, the most well-known example is Apple’s famous iPad (mini or full-size). While either of those will do the job for a traveler, the best value for money at the moment is in the Android range. A Google Nexus 7 or larger Nexus 10 would be my recommendation.

There’s a lot to be said for choosing a tablet if your main use is consumption (i.e., reading web pages, books, and emails, or watching movies) rather than creation (writing, editing video, etc.). Again, choose one with plenty of storage (either built-in or via microSD card).

To back up your photos, both Apple and Android devices let you plug in an external SD card reader, so pick one of those up as well.

If you have absolutely no other choice, you can also use the camera on your tablet to get that must-have shot. Just be aware you’ll look rather silly doing so.

Mobile phone

I carry a Samsung Galaxy S2. It has rapidly become an indispensable piece of travel technology, with all of my music, photos, apps, and entertainment stored on the microSD card, and it was both cheaper and easier to customize than the iPhone I used to use.

I made sure to buy the unlocked version of my phone, meaning that I can use a pre-paid SIM card anywhere in the world and take advantage of much cheaper calling and data rates. Your mobile company at home will charge incredibly high rates if you use your normal number overseas, making roaming calls and data prohibitively expensive for most travelers.

Switching to a local cell company when you arrive in a country can save you a small fortune. I personally know people who accidentally left data enabled when on vacation for a week and came home to a bill of several thousand dollars. If you can’t unlock your phone and absolutely have to use it while traveling, at least turn the data connection off to lessen the pain.

I use dozens of travel apps, but three of the best are:

• Skype: As a general rule, all of my international calls take place via Skype over Wi-Fi or 3G. It’s quick and easy, and buying a few bucks’ worth of SkypeCredit means I can call any phone in the world for hours.
• TripIt: I’ve tried all sorts of ways to keep track of travel bookings, but TripIt is the easiest. Many confirmation emails can simply be forwarded to add them to your list, and it doesn’t take long to manually add the others. With the Pro version, I even get notified of timetable changes and delays. Having every detail at my fingertips has saved me more than once at airport check-ins and bus stations around the world.
• Google Translate: Google just updated the Android version of its translation app, now letting me download language packs for offline use. Even before that, the app was handy for figuring out what on earth was on the menu, or saying/displaying a few words in the local language to get my point across. Now that I can use it anywhere, it’s indispensable.

E-book reader

I resisted buying an e-book reader for a long time. I’m a physical book kind of guy. But now that I’ve made the leap to a Kindle, I’m very pleased with it.

It’s incredibly small and light, more so than even a little paperback, and can store hundreds of books, travel guides, and whatever else I might need. I picked up the Keyboard 3G, which costs more than the Wi-Fi–only version, but the ability to download new books from anywhere with cell phone coverage is invaluable.

An unexpected benefit lies hidden away in the “experimental” section: a slow, clunky web browser. Why is that so great? Because with the 3G connection I have free access to email, Facebook, etc., in over 100 countries.

The browser is too painful to be my only way of getting online, but in a pinch it’s fantastic. This is the only Kindle model that has this feature. All the other 3G versions only let you access Wikipedia and the Amazon store.

I considered a tablet instead, but for reading on the road there was really no contest. The Kindle is cheaper, smaller and lighter, the battery life is measured in weeks rather than hours, the screen is so much better in sunlight, and I can happily lie on the beach without worrying about it.

Thanks to a cheap case I bought off eBay, it looks like a plain notebook if I need to pull it out on the street to check directions. There’s no way I’d even think of doing that with any tablet. I’d be far too much of a target.

Backup

I worked in IT when I wasn’t traveling, so data backup has long been a concern of mine. I just know too many travelers who have lost irreplaceable data due to hard drive failures and theft, among other reasons. Do you want to lose every single photo from your US road trip, your cruise on Halong Bay, and everywhere else you’ve been? Probably not.

I copy photos to my laptop each night, then use Crashplan+ to do the rest. For a few bucks a month it automatically manages backups to both online storage and a portable hard drive that I keep in my pack, all without me having to think about it. Before splashing out on that subscription I backed everything up manually, but found that I was forgetting to do it too often for my liking.

Although I use a Seagate portable drive and it works fine, I’d be looking at the rugged Transcend version if I were buying a new one.

For the small amount of hassle involved, the peace of mind is more than worth it. Don’t risk losing all of your digital memories.

Miscellaneous

Other than the chargers and cables that always seem to tie themselves in knots overnight, the only other gadgets I put in my pack are a universal power adapter and a four-way power box.

You’d struggle to spend more than $25 on the combination if you tried, and they take up very little room in my bag, yet are worth their weight in gold every time I get to a dorm room with one power socket for the 12 people staying in it. I plug all of my devices into the four-way box, connect it to the wall socket via my universal adapter, and I’m done. Easy.

Choosing the right gear to travel with doesn’t have to be a daunting task. Making a few smart choices and limiting yourself to what you truly need will give you all of the benefits that technology can bring while avoiding most of the downsides. Spend a bit of time and money getting it right before you leave — trust me, it will save an awful lot of frustration once you’re out there on the road.

Dave is one half of the team at Too Many Adapters, a site devoted to technology for travelers. A geek as long as he can remember, he worked in IT around the world for 15 years, combining his love of all things nerdy with an overwhelming travel addiction. Now based out of a backpack long term, Dave writes about travel and tech from anywhere with half-decent Internet and a great view. You can also find him talking about the life of a long-term traveler at What’s Dave Doing?

9 Summer Reads to Satiate Your Wanderlust

At the start of the New Year, I vowed to read one book a week, and I’m proud to say I’m accomplishing that goal. I even started a book club to keep me focused (I mean, you can’t recommend books if you don’t read them, right?).

Thanks to my grandmother, I’ve always been addicted to reading (Sadly, not everyone is: 28% of people haven’t read a book in the last year!!). I feel like I might be the only person who read the unabridged version of Les Miserables when he was thirteen! After years of sporadic reading, digesting so many books this year has nourished my long book-starved soul.

And, with the summer travel season in full swing, I wanted to share my recent favorite reads. A good book makes long flights go by quicker.
 

A Year in Provence, by Peter Mayle

I’d heard of this book before but never bothered to pick it up until multiple readers recommended it to me. I’m glad I finally read it — it was incredible. An autobiographical novel following the author Peter Mayle’s year living in Provence, it details the struggles and joys of adapting to a new culture. I loved the interesting characters he meets and his description of the slow pace of life in France (which was a clear departure from his previous life in England). As a Francophile, this book makes me want to move to France even more. Wonderfully and wistfully written, I can understand why it continues to be such a classic.
 

The Art of Travel, by Alain De Botton

Another reader recommendation, this book looks at the why of travel. What compels us to see the world? From the anticipation of a trip, the act of getting there, being there, and the return, Alain De Botton discusses it all. Though dry in parts, this is one of the best written and most thoughtful travel books I’ve read in a really long time. The author’s use of language and imagery is incredibly sophisticated, and his discussions of beauty, travel, and the mundane are equally thought-provoking. I highly, highly recommend reading this book.
 

Eating Viet Nam: Dispatches from a Blue Plastic Table, by Graham Holliday

While I don’t love Vietnam (I didn’t have a good experience there), I do love Vietnamese food… a lot! This is an awesome book about the history and culture behind the country’s street cuisine. Author Graham Holliday has lived in Vietnam a long time, and he sure knows his food. In this engrossing and hunger-inducing book, you’ll wander with him through the backstreets of Vietnam, learning about the street food you see all over the country and, in doing so, begin to understand the country and its people through their first love.

Visit Sunny Chernobyl, by Andrew Blackwell

What’s it like to visit the most polluted places on the planet? Inspired by a trip to Kanpur, India (considered one of the most polluted towns in the country), Andrew Blackwell set off to visit oil towns, coal mines, the Pacific garbage patch, and, of course, Chernobyl. In many ways, I found this to be the anti-travel book. It didn’t inspire me to go anywhere, but it did pique my intellectual curiosity about the places that remain hidden from everyday view. Blackwell’s conversational writing style, self-deprecating jokes, and sarcasm make this book an easy and fun read.
 

Travels with Charley in Search of America, by John Steinbeck

John Steinbeck’s famous travel book… that he most likely made up! Now commonly believed that Steinbeck fictionalized most of the adventures in his book, the writing is so enjoyable that it’s still a worthwhile read. Set in 1960, it tells of Steinbeck’s travels across the US with his dog Charley as they meet colorful, folksy characters along the way. This book is about that cool road trip we all want to take and the people we wish to meet. It’s such a fun read that you easily overlook the fact that many of the stories are embellished.
 

The Kindness of Strangers, by Mike McIntyre

Mike McIntyre set off to travel across America with nothing except the clothes on his back. His goal? To get from San Francisco to Cape Fear with no money, relying solely on the kindness of strangers. Along the way he encountered all kinds of people who shattered the cynical journalist inside him. Having hitchhiked in many countries and been in situations where I needed help from strangers, I found this book (re-released last year on its 20th anniversary) a nice reminder that people the world over are generally good, kind souls.

And, in case you want some non-travel books, these were good too:

• Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. — This biography of John D. Rockefeller by Ron Chernow is long and dense, but it gives you a wonderful insight into the richest man to ever live and how Standard Oil and his subsequent philanthropy changed the world.
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People — A classic book by Stephen Covey on how to organize your time and priorities to lead a better, more thoughtful life. I can’t recommend this book enough.
• Empire of Cotton: A Global History — Sven Beckert’s interesting and detailed look at the history of cotton and how it shaped the world.

So there you have it! Nine books to keep you well-read and inspired this summer! I’ll do a post like this every so often, as I think books are wonderful source of wanderlust (and personal growth).

If you are looking for other books to read, join the free community book club. Once a month, you’ll receive a list of five books that other community members and I have read and enjoyed. So, if you want reading suggestions, just sign up below. Once a month you’ll get a list of suggested books based on what I read and loved that month.

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P.S. – If you have any book suggestions, leave them in the comments. I always need more to read.

P.P.S. – Skip John Waters’s Carsick. It’s a very dull read.

Has Technology Ruined the Travel Experience?

On the first Tuesday of each month, Dave Dean from Too Many Adapters gives us great tips and advice on travel tech and gear. He is our resident expert, trying out new products and seeing what works so you end up with gear that doesn’t break and a laptop not filled with viruses! This month’s column is about the change technology has brought to travel.

If you’ve ever read the comments on an article about travel technology, you’ll likely have found someone insisting that gadgets cheapen the travel experience. It’s just “a weak excuse to stay connected to your old 9-to-5 consumer self, terrified by the enlightenment of travel,” according to one reader of this site. This is an easy argument to make when you see travelers sitting around a table glued to their smartphones or MacBook. No one seems very social.

By keeping us tethered to life back home, does technology rob us of the chance to make real connections on the road? With phones in our faces, are we now less likely to have those exciting, unexpected moments we craved before setting off on our adventure?

As a tech writer I clearly love technology, but I think this is an issue worth examining.

Poking your head into a hostel common room in 2015, you’d barely recognize it from 20 years ago. Gone are the small groups of backpackers playing cards, reading books, and swapping stories. Instead, Facebook’s blue logo shines from a dozen smartphones as statuses and photo albums are updated to let everyone at home know about the wonderful time being had. I used to consider it a failure if I spent an hour in a hostel and hadn’t made a new friend. It’s still not impossible to make that happen — but it’s much easier when the Wi-Fi goes down.

I miss being able to strike up a conversation with a fellow traveler without needing to drag them away from their Instagram feed. Despite hundreds of apps promising to combine “travel” and “social,” smartphones and tablets are largely responsible for making us less social when we travel, by keeping us distracted by our devices.

It’s even worse when we go outside. If we’ve got cellular data, checking a stream of notifications means we’re not immersed in the moment. If we don’t, the temptation to check for a Wi-Fi signal does much the same thing. Long journeys become a question of how much battery life is left and how many TV shows have been downloaded, rather than the people and places around us.

With a map of the entire world in our pockets and a little blue dot to tell us where we are, it’s easy to lose our spontaneity. Getting lost while traveling can be terrifying, fascinating, and eye-opening — often all at the same time — and by using technology to stop that from happening, we miss out on all the good and bad that goes with it.

So, with all of these downsides, it’s obvious that technology and travel don’t mix, right? Shouldn’t we all leave our gadgets at home and hit the road with just a guidebook and an open mind, casting off the shackles of our iPads and laptops for a more enlightened experience?

Not so much.

I traveled without technology for years in the late ’90s, and even though I sometimes miss those simpler times, I wouldn’t return to them. As much as I like to tell the story of the day I got separated from my girlfriend on an Italian train and spent the next eight hours unable to find her, it ruined our limited time in Venice. A quick call or Facebook message would have given us our day back.

Being able to fire up the Hostelworld app to book accommodations at the last minute, then plug the address into Google Maps to find it, makes arriving in a new city late at night far less daunting. There was nothing glamorous about walking 20 minutes in the rain searching for a working public telephone to call home, or paying more for flights because I had to go through a travel agent to book them — give me Skype and Skyscanner any day.

I love that my phone has replaced everything from my alarm clock to my flashlight, and I no longer need to carry round a Walkman and half a dozen mix tapes to listen to my favorite songs on the road. I’m pretty damn happy I can check my bank balance without making an international phone call. While I once stood in the sun for an hour near the Zambian border waiting to cash a traveler’s check, I’m now able to get money out of the nearest ATM in under a minute, almost anywhere in the world.

When I moved to London 15 years ago, I went everywhere armed with only a paper map. Returning last month, I was amazed how much more of central London I saw on foot. With phone in hand, I didn’t think twice about using my feet. I knew how long the trip would take and which routes would get me to my destination. I doubt I would have done the same in 1999. It’s not that I couldn’t have — but I wouldn’t have. The fear of losing my way or not arriving on time held me back. Technology has made it easier to not only get lost but also find your way.

Even though rose-tinted memories sometimes have me pining for those technology-free travel days, I wouldn’t go back to them. I can still get as much challenge as I like with a smartphone in my pocket, just by turning it off. The path less traveled is often the better one, but sometimes all I want is to grab a decent meal without a three-hour adventure beforehand.

As with most other things in life, balance is key. It’s fine to have half an hour on your phone checking email or chatting with your mum, but put it away afterward to talk to the people around you. Buy your flights while lying in bed, but don’t be afraid to turn up somewhere without any plans. By all means take a few photos of the Taj Mahal to show your friends, but don’t spend 20 minutes composing the perfect selfie in front of it. Keep yourself safe in unfamiliar cities, but let yourself surrender to the unexpected when your gut tells you to.

Technology hasn’t ruined travel completely — it’s just made it easier, more accessible, and safer than ever before. What it can do, though, is lessen the experience if you let it.

So don’t let it.

The gadgets are just a tool to help you travel, like a backpack or a decent pair of shoes. They’re not a necessity, and they won’t always improve your trip — in fact, they’ll make it far less interesting if you become too attached to them.

There are always incredible moments waiting to be discovered on the road, and you’re not going to find them on Facebook. They are hidden in plain sight among the people, places, food, and culture of wherever you’re visiting. No matter how much technology you’ve got in your backpack, that hasn’t changed.

Use your laptop, smartphone, tablet, and camera when they’ll make your time on the road easier, then turn them all off to immerse yourself in the moment.

What do you think? Does technology make our travels better or rob us of a deeper experience?

Dave runs Too Many Adapters, a site devoted to technology for travelers. A geek for as long as he can remember, he worked in IT for 15 years. Now based out of a backpack long term, Dave writes about travel and tech from anywhere with half-decent Internet and a great view. You can also find him talking about the life of a long-term traveler at What’s Dave Doing?

Photo credits: 1, 2