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Posts Tagged ‘Africa’

Phil In The Blank

Wednesday, December 1st, 2010

Phil Paoletta is a guy after our own hearts, simply because he willingly chose to go to West Africa. If you’ve been keeping up with our blog, you know that we spent 3 months in the region back in ’09. It’s an amazing place, and if you read Phil’s awesomely named blog, Phil in the Blank, you’ll get a sense of what it’s like. Don’t let his “loose stool count” scare you away. Seriously. Instead, focus on his love for drawing camels, his desire to eat more Yassa, and his willingness to suffer through long bus rides. We feel your pain, Phil. Really, we do.

By now you’re probably figuring out how this works: I asked Phil a bunch of questions. His answers were insightful, just like his blog. (more…)

Photo Friday: Ethiopia

Friday, November 5th, 2010

Despite what you may have heard, Ethiopia is not starving. It is green, lush, and full of life and culture. It is diverse and amazing. From the highlands in the north to the tribal lands of the south, to the religious and historical sites to the stunning landscapes, Ethiopia offers something for everyone. We spent a month in the country. You should, too. (more…)

The Girl Effect

Sunday, September 26th, 2010

As travelers, we see how the rest of the world lives. Sometimes we see beautiful beaches, amazing historical sites, and cities full of culture. But we also see poverty, malnutrition, disease, and a number of other issues that lead to more and more problems. So, as travelers, now that we’re seeing how the rest of the world lives, we have a responsibility to raise awareness of these issues.

Teenage girls play an important factor in local culture, economics, health, crime, and education. Check out this video, and then see The Girl Effect for more information. (more…)

Photo Friday: Senegal

Friday, September 10th, 2010

Everyone likes friday, and everyone likes a photo! (more…)

Our Ultimate Guide: How To Plan A Trip Around The World

Sunday, September 5th, 2010

In 2009, we spent eleven months traveling through Africa, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. We want you to learn from our experience, so we put together a trip planning guide: How To Plan A Trip Around The World. We cover everything from budgeting to packing, route planning to insurance, safety to vaccinations, and visas to round-the-world plane tickets. Combining our first hand experience with tips and resources from other travelers, we leave no stone unturned. And the best part is that we’re always adding more information to it as we gather more advice and stories from other travelers. (more…)

Married with Luggage: Warren and Betsy

Sunday, August 15th, 2010

Here’s one to make you think: Warren and Betsy Talbot will leave on October 1st, 2010 to begin a three-year trip around the world. That sounds crazy even to us! Actually, “crazy” isn’t the word to describe it, because we’re very jealous. However, at close to 40 years of age, both members of this married duo have recently had some life experiences to make them rethink their priorities. Warren explained their motivation to us:

In April of 2008 Betsy’s brother had a serious heart attack at 35. Then in August a dear friend of ours had a brain aneurysm. Today both of them are doing great but their experiences shook us and caused us to reevaluate what is important to us. Within a month of her brain aneurysm we decided life is too short to not explore our dreams. On September 1st, 2008 we decided to take a year off to travel the world. After doing some more research and a LOT of dedicated savings, we determined we could stretch out time on the road to more than 3 years. We simply had to take the first step towards our dreams and now we are following them.

These moments in life force us all to reevaluate ourselves and our place in the world. In our experience, many people who look to take a career break or sabbatical or make a major life change are often motivated by some type of search for more meaning in their lives. We’re all behind you, Warren and Betsy, so stick with it.
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Mali: Come and Understand

Tuesday, June 1st, 2010

Here’s another country from the “places you never thought to visit” file: Mali. On our trip around the world we spent an entire month in this diverse and stunningly beautiful West African nation. It may surprise you that Mali has enough to offer to warrant an entire month, but we dove in and didn’t even have time to see everything.

The famous city of Timbuktou (yes, it really exists) is probably the biggest tourist draw. This Saharan trading town is slowly disappearing into the desert. But even more fascinating is the area known as Dogon Country, where an entire ethnic group made their homes in and around a huge cliff several hundred years ago to hide from Islamic invaders. They still live as they have for millennia: farming their land with little water or electricity.
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