The Perpetual Tourist

When I was in second grade, my class “adopted” a whale when we were doing our ocean lessons. Researchers sent us photos and information about our class pet, and we watched a lot of slide shows of whales. I think we all thought of them as sort of mystical creatures that only folks with the absolute best connections would ever have the opportunity to see for themselves — you know, people who were tight with the president or something.

I guess this notion sort of stuck with me over the years, because I had no idea that regular people could go on whale watching tours and see real live whales in their natural habitats, until my friend Amy, self-proclaimed Whale Geek, started talking about all the whale watching she does. I grilled her on the subject so that I could pass on some information about what could be a fascinating hobby, or just a one-time adventure — great for individuals or family excursions.

Amy does most of her whale watches in the Gulf of Maine, off the coast of New England. She says that this is one of the best places to go whale watching because these waters are highly productive feeding grounds, with one of the best researched populations of humpback whales on the planet, because they are so easy to reach and study. And these humpbacks, Amy says, tend to be the most dramatic at the surface, giving onlookers quite a show as they eat, play, and go about their daily business. For a photographer like Amy, the North Atlantic is a great spot to take roll upon roll of film (or fill up a memory card).

All whale watching tours will have naturalists on board. Usually these are professional researchers who are there to give information and answer questions you have about the whales. If they have been working in the same area for a while, they will often be able to identify specific whales and give lots of details like the animal’s age, how many calves it has, and more. Sometimes the naturalist may just be a college intern, who won’t be able to give you as many details. When researching different companies for a tour, Amy suggests asking them about their naturalists, and going with the more seasoned scientists.

A typical whale watching tour will last 3-4 hours. Since you are going out into the animal’s natural habitat and not a large tank at an aquarium, there is no way to guarantee what you will see. Check with the company, as most offer coupons for another trip if you don’t see any whales your first time out, or if the trip is canceled for bad weather.

Here are some of Amy’s tips for a first time whale watcher:

• Bring a jacket, a hat, and sunscreen. It’s almost always cooler out on the ocean than it is on shore, as well as windier. You need to protect yourself from the sun — but be sure your hat has a chin strap, or you might lose it in the wind!
• Book your first whale watch with a smaller company; not someone with giant boats. The more crowded a ship is, the harder it is to get a good look at the whales, which can be frustrating.
• Be patient. It can take a while to get to the whales. Maybe you want to spend this time talking to the naturalist, asking questions.
• If you are prone to sea sickness, take something before you go out on the boat.
• Keep an open mind. When you go into it with lots of expectations, you are bound to be disappointed. Remember that these are wild animals, not Shamu doing tricks for you at Sea World. You don’t get to see a whale breach (leap out of the water) every time, but when you do, it’s really magnificent. Just enjoy watching these beautiful animals in an environment that not many people ever get to see.

Thanks, Amy, for all the helpful information as well as all the photographs used in this post! Visit Amy’s brand new whale watching website here, and check back regularly for photos from her latest trips.

As a tree-hugging environmentalist, I’ve always argued that rising fuel prices are a good thing.  As gas becomes unaffordable, people are forced to change their most environmentally destructive behavior.  Those who can’t cut driving and travel entirely out of their lifestyles turn to more fuel efficient vehicles like the Toyota Prius and other hybrid cars, or they utilize public transportation and carpools more often.  As rising fuel costs make it impossible for the general population to go on living life as they always have, change will be absolutely necessary, and it is my belief that it will come in the form of environmentally friendly renewable energy sources to power cars and planes — cleaner, more affordable fuel.

This trend is already starting to show.  Whether folks listen to Al Gore or not, they can’t help but listen to their bank accounts.  That’s why we’re seeing a real decline in driving and fuel consumption, while we’re also seeing an increase in use of public transportation and carpools.  Airlines have been suffering perhaps most of all, as they can’t increase fares enough to keep up with rising costs of flying their planes, and fewer people are flying due to a combination of higher costs and the slumping economy.  Those who are still frequent fliers (hi, that’s me) are noticing some big changes put in place by airlines to offset the rising costs of keeping their planes in the air.

Two major announcements came recently from the airlines that have some travelers absolutely outraged.  The first was that planes will be slowing down to conserve fuel.  Just as cars do, airplanes get better mileage when they slow down a little, so airlines are doing just that.  But before you flip out about having to sit even longer in those cramped little seats, look at the actual statistics.  Most airlines are adding at most 10 minutes to their flights, while at the same time saving millions on fuel.

For example, on an international flight from Paris to Minneapolis, a Northwest Airlines flight added just eight minutes to the total flight time of almost nine hours, saving 162 gallons of fuel and $535.  $535 for eight minutes is a pretty good return.  Add this up across the board and airlines will save millions of dollars while saving tons upon tons of fuel — and the reality is that most travelers won’t even notice the extra few minutes of flight time.  This is not something to get upset about as an airline passenger.  But of course, people will…

The second major change is that airlines are charging more for checked luggage.  They have always charged fees — often very high ones — for oversized bags.  That is, bags weighing over 50 pounds.  Most airlines have generally allowed up to two free checked bags per passenger, in addition to two free carry-on pieces.  However, since airlines can only increase fares by so much before passengers bail completely, they are adding fees wherever possible, most notably to check luggage.  Southwest Airlines changed their luggage policy from two free checked bags per passenger to one earlier this month, but the big news came when American Airlines announced it would start charging fees for all checked luggage.

Other airlines are expected to follow suit.  So what does this mean for you?  Well, you can be the asshole who tries to stuff your giant bags into the overhead bins on the plane, or you can accept that packing huge bags adds weight to the plane and therefore reduces its fuel efficiency, and adjust accordingly.  Pack as much as you can into a reasonably-sized carry-on bag, and try to fit everything else into one less-than-50-pound suitcase.  With American’s new policy, your first piece of checked luggage will be $15, and your second is $25.  I’ve just returned from five weeks on the road — DC, Texas, Oregon, North Carolina, and finally home — and I was able to pack everything I needed for that trip in one big bag.  Granted, I’m not traveling with children, but if I can pack for three different climates and five weeks of travel time in one bag, surely you can consolidate your trip to one piece of luggage as well.

You may also notice increased prices for food and drinks on the plane when you fly.  Remember that you are allowed to bring food and drinks on the plane — I always fill up a water bottle inside the terminal (rather than spending $5 on a soda that will only make me have to pee on the plane) and pack a few light snacks in case the peanuts and pretzels served on board don’t satisfy.

Yes, the airlines are making lots of changes, but the fact of the matter is that these don’t have to affect you, the traveler, very much at all.  You simply need to be aware of the new guidelines and plan accordingly — but this shouldn’t really mean any major changes in your plans.  These changes will affect you very little; they will have an enormously positive impact on the environment (even if that is only a side effect and not the purpose).  But go ahead and bitch about it all if you want — bitching won’t bring fuel prices down, but it will help encourage positive change.

Obviously, I’m someone who travels a lot. With this lifestyle comes a lot of traditions. In my case, it’s usually annual bridge tournaments or a family vacation somewhere each year, but there’s only one thing on my calendar that’s written in ink. Permanent marker, in fact. That event is Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, held every July in Hillsdale, NY, and all the gold in the world couldn’t persuade me to skip it.

Falcon Ridge, or FRFF, is a four-day music and dance festival where attendees can camp onsite in tents or RVs. Most people camp in groups of some sort — college alumni, geographical groups, or fans of the same band. I’ve been camping in the Pirate’s Patch, AKA Camp Edhead, AKA Lower Camp Fruvous, AKA Shantytown(e) for the six years that I’ve been attending the festival. We all come from different places, and we see each other for about five days out of every year, but the feeling of community in this group is incredible. For some people, the camping and hanging out is as much of a draw as the performances — which are fantastic, by the way.

FRFF organizers try to keep a core group of favorites on the lineup each year, while at the same time bringing in new and different acts. Festivals are a great place to discover new favorites, but also a great place to schmooze with the ones you already love. Unlike stadium concerts or even coffeehouse shows, there’s much less of a wall between artists and fans at a festival, and you often get a chance to hang out and even sometimes jam with the musicians you love. There’s always someone performing somewhere, and even in the wee hours of the morning, there are song circles and jam sessions carrying on from the evening before. But don’t worry — if late night tunes aren’t your thing, there are designated quiet camping sections for those who need their sleep, as well as many local bed & breakfasts if you prefer indoor plumbing.

The port-a-potties are sort of a bummer, but you’re hardly roughing it when you camp at a place like Falcon Ridge. There are showers — sure the festival is crawling with hippies, but we’re clean ones — and when you camp in a group, everyone can bring a couple of things that give the campsite more of the comforts of home. For example, everyone at the Pirate’s Patch brings a couple of camp chairs and/or tables, and then someone brings cooking supplies, someone else brings food, and other folks contribute labor, like setup and teardown of the camp, cooking, and the all-important 7am tarp run, where campers line up at the stages with tarps to secure their seats for the day’s concerts.

If your group of campers doesn’t include a chef, don’t sweat it. There are tons of food vendors, some that are open 24 hours, where you can get great food. Some of the most delicious meals I’ve ever had were at this festival — I highly recommend the Traveler’s Kitchen and their Colorado Wrap. Yum!

Oh yeah, there’s great music, too! The term “folk” spans such a wide spectrum, and the festival organizers do a great job every year of getting a nice variety of performers. There’s always great dance music in the dance tent and great dances for dancers of all skill levels. There’s a family tent, which specializes in children’s music, and then two other stages — the workshop and main stage — where each set lasts about an hour and you can see dozens of different performers each day.

Recent festival performers include Ani Difranco, Arlo Guthrie, Shawn Colvin, Richard Shindell, Girlyman, and Greg Brown. Some highlights of this year’s festival are Dar Williams, Eddie From Ohio, Patty Larkin, Crooked Still, Tracy Grammer, and Railroad Earth. For a complete list of this year’s performers, check the 2008 FRFF schedule here.  All performances include feature sign language interpreters for the hearing impaired and there is special seating for people with disabilities and their companions.

Tickets are on sale now for $120 — that’s for four days of music and camping. It’s like a hundred concerts for the price of four, and don’t tell the ticket salespeople, but it’s worth way more than that.

Look for me there — I’ll be the one in tye-dye.

When I was a junior in college, I had the opportunity to travel to Australia with my interterm class. Interterm is the three-week session in January at my alma mater where students can either get a dreaded requirement out of the way quickly, or go on trips or take a class that can’t be offered for a full semester (I got to take a swordfighting class my freshman year). One of my history professors took a group of kids to Australia each year, and I was lucky enough to be one of those kids.

If you want to get to Australia, this is a great way to do it. Traveling in a group made it much cheaper than going on my own, and going with a prof who’d been twenty times already was great, because he pointed out all the little things we might never have noticed as novice tourists of Oz. Our group spent time in Sydney, Canberra, and Melbourne, and we packed more into our time there than the Travel Channel could fit in a six-hour miniseries. For now I’m just going to focus on a few of the little things that you may not think about seeing or doing that made my time in Sydney spectacular.

Paddy’s Markets

People who like to shop will want to set aside a whole day to spend at Paddy’s Markets. If you’re not a real shopper, maybe four or five hours will be enough for you. Paddy’s is part mega-mall, part flea market, and it’s HUGE. I literally spent a whole day there and saw maybe 50% of it all. In the lower area, vendors set up booths and tables just like a flea market, and sell everything you can think of — food, clothes, souvenirs, jewelry, and so much more — all at very reasonable prices. When I was there, the US dollar was worth two Australian dollars, but now the currencies are trading almost one for one. Still, the prices are low and you’ll be able to stretch your spending money at a place like this.

Opals

Australia is famous for its opals, and once you get there, it will be impossible to miss all the stores selling the gorgeous gems. These make a great gift for loved ones who don’t get to make the trip with you, so keep that in mind. When you buy any high-dollar item in Australia, you will be charged the local taxes, but you can get a special receipt from the stores that allow you to recover this tax money when you leave the country (if you are not an Australian citizen, that is). Remember when traveling with opals that they are very fragile gems — pack them carefully.

Boulder opals and black opals are the deeply colored, dark stones you’ll find. These are much more rare than the white or milky opals typically seen in jewelry. They will be more expensive, but they’re cheaper in Australia than anywhere else, so if you want them, this is the place to buy. I had a very good experience shopping at Flame Opals in Sydney, but there are plenty of other opal vendors all around. Do some comparison shopping before settling on the first thing you see, because there are so many choices!

Indian Food

Australia has a large population of Indian people, and there are lots of Indian restaurants all over Sydney. The food isn’t Americanized like it is in the Western hemisphere, and I’ve had few meals in my lifetime as delicious as the Indian food I ate in Sydney.

Keep in mind when you dine out anywhere in Australia that tipping is not expected like it is in the US. Tips are always appreciated, of course, but servers are actually paid real wages and restaurants do not put this burden on their customers. A 10% tip is very gracious, and is about the most that would be appropriate for good service. If you are dining with large groups, tips are somewhat more expected, however.

Wine

Australian wine isn’t exactly world famous like French wine or Napa Valley wine, but Australia is the world’s 4th leading wine exporter. According to a coach (not “bus”) driver I had on a tour, Australia only exports the worst of its products — Foster’s, Kylie Minogue, and its bad wines. (His words, not mine.) In other words, just because you haven’t found good Australian wine elsewhere in the world, that doesn’t mean you won’t find it in Australia. I definitely recommend sampling the local wines when you dine out.

Sydney is one of my favorite cities in the world, and I hope one day I can afford another trip back. Maybe I should get in touch with my old professor and see if he’s accepting applications for chaperons. I’d recommend it to anyone who has the chance to visit. Of course you’ll want to see all the things the city is famous for, like the Sydney Harbor Bridge and the Sydney Opera House, and all the beaches, but you’ll be shortchanging yourself if you skip over all the little things that give the city so much flavor.

Enjoy your trip down under, and please bring me back some opals:)

I’m in the middle of an extended stay in Oregon, which has quickly become my home-away-from-home. I came here for the first time just six months ago, but I have the benefit of a knowledgeable personal guide. My husband grew up here, and through his work with FedEx, has memorized every back road and corner of this state. He shows me new things every day, though, and I feel like he could write this blog for me and keep it totally fresh without ever talking about anything other than his home state. Today’s will be an Oregon-inspired but not Oregon-specific post.

I’ve learned that Oregonians love their wind sports. Wind surfing is huge on the lakes, rivers, and the Oregon coast in the summer months. It looks like a lot of fun and I’m looking forward to my chance to try it, but on Sunday I witnessed a popular Oregon activity that I didn’t even realize existed: paragliding. I’ve seen parasailing and I’ve seen hang gliding, but this was new to me, and I instantly wished I could join in the fun. Of course I’ll need to get an anti-anxiety prescription first, but it is something I’d like to try one day. For now, I just watched from the beach below in Oceanside, Oregon as paragliders kept launching themselves off a cliff above and drifting peacefully down to the shore where I stood.

It looked a lot like you were at the mercy of the winds, and I was very nervous that someone would get thrown back into the side of the cliff, or blown out into the ocean, or stuck in a tree high out of reach of rescuers, but despite my worries, everyone made it safely to the ground in basically the same spot, meaning they must have all had a good deal of control over their flights.

Paragliders soar to heights several thousand feet above the ground while harnessed into the glider in a seated position. It looks much more comfortable than hang gliding, which was also going on above me this weekend — the two activities seem to go hand in hand here on the Oregon coast. Instructional classes are available for paragliding newbies, as well as tandem flights for those who don’t feel entirely comfortable piloting their own gliders so high above solid ground (that’d be me).

Curious about what it takes? According to some information I’ve gathered on the sport, paragliding does not require nerves of steel or incredible fitness. Most who’ve experienced it say that any fear of heights or fear of falling dissolves as they take flight for the first time. Furthermore, beyond the ability to run a few steps at your launch, the physical requirements for a successful flight are minimal. Landing a paraglider should not involve hard impact, and steering is more about finesse than strength. Keep in mind, though, that your gear will weigh approximately 25 pounds.

Paragliding is not like skydiving. Skydivers use their parachute to decelerate as they fall groundward, but paragliders are designed to maximize air time, with some flights lasting well over an hour as you glide on the wind currents. It’s not a fast thrill, but a ride you can savor. Depending on how you decide to approach the sport — either purchase a tandem flight package, or go through a training program for solo flight — the cost starts at about $100. I think that sounds totally reasonable.

If you’re not on the Oregon coast, there are plenty of other places paragliding is popular, like Aspen, Florida, California, Australia, and pretty much anywhere else in the world with nice views.

Ashland, Oregon is perhaps the most romantic place I’ve ever been. The small town doesn’t sell itself as a couples’ destination, and I certainly recommend visiting the place with or without a significant other, but for a newlywed couple on their honeymoon, I can’t think of a better place to be.

The town is featured in the latest edition of 1000 Places To See Before You Die. So what is there to see? Ashland is a popular tourist destination because of its plays. The Oregon Shakespeare Festival lives in Ashland, and on any given day, you can see a Shakespeare classic or some other genre of performance from musical to comedy to experimental theater at one of Ashland’s three main theaters, including the gorgeous outdoor Elizabethan Theater, open in the summertime.

Getting around Ashland is easy, and you won’t need a car to see the sights here. Everything is within pleasant walking distance from each of the town’s many places to stay. Ashland has only one major hotel, which is a nice place to stay for sure, but for a slightly higher price, you can stay in a truly delightful bed & breakfast. A friend introduced me to the Peerless Hotel, which is really a boutique hotel/bnb, in an old and beautifully decorated house. Each room is different and uniquely wonderful. But good luck snagging a room here — that will be difficult now that the Peerless is recommended not just by some travel blogger, but also by the 1000 Places To See book.

As you walk around Ashland, you’ll pass dozens of boutiques and shops selling things like handmade jewelry, Buddhist accessories and decorations, and lots and lots of artwork. The town has a very hippie feel to it, and shopping here is about as far from mall shopping as you can get. Perhaps the most beautiful part of the town is Lithia Park, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It’s a gorgeous place to take a stroll and soak up some sun, but don’t leave without drinking from the Lithia water fountain. Water from Lithia Springs is rich with minerals and drinking from the fountain is said to improve your health. In truth, the water is rich with sulfur and smells just like a wet fart. It tastes only slightly better. Still, it’s part of the Ashland experience, so hold your nose and drink up!

This tiny mountain town has plenty to see and do that you could enjoy an entire vacation without leaving the town limits — but you simply can’t do that. With Ashland’s proximity to Crater Lake National Park, it should be a crime to visit Ashland without making at least a day trip to Crater Lake. The park is open year round, and park employees work hard round the clock to keep the roads paved up to the visitor’s center, but there are points in the year where the actual lake itself is only accessible by snowshoe or ski. I visited on May 2, while most of the park was under 11 feet of snow. Still, the roads were plowed all the way to the rim (but not around it), and it was not a cold day, so it was relatively easy to get up to the rim, and the weather was actually quite enjoyable.

I always thought the phrase “take your breath away” was hyperbole, but my first live glimpse of Crater Lake quite literally stole my breath. Pictures simply do not capture it adequately (still, here’s a picture). The lake, which, at over 1,900 feet deep is the deepest lake in North America, is fed only by rain and melting snow, and is allegedly the cleanest body of fresh water in the world. The water is a stunning deep blue, and the mountain and clouds above it reflect so clearly and completely off the surface that it’s like looking in a mirror, only somehow even clearer.

If you visit Crater Lake in the summer months, you can drive around the entire rim and stay at the Crater Lake Lodge, a resort hotel overlooking the lake 1,000 feet below. If I were to write a book called 1 Place To See Before You Die, it would contain one entry, and that would be Crater Lake. It is absolutely stunning, and you simply cannot understand the experience until you see it for yourself. So go, see it for yourself!

As a travel blogger and wife of a bridge pro, I get to see a lot of the world, and I’m very lucky in that regard. But there are some places I’ll probably never see, like the North and South Poles, for instance. Luckily, I can live vicariously through someone who has been to both these places, and will probably be one of the first people on Mars if that ever happens in our lifetime. My little sister (which is what I call her because that’s what she IS, never mind that we have different parents), Emily Gercke, spent the summer before her senior year in college doing research on glaciers in the Arctic Circle, and then after she graduated, she spent the next winter living on Antarctica (their summertime) doing hydrology research down there.

I’ve never been much of a science person, so her work was never something I really understood much (except for one thing: Global Warming is real, and so frightening I’m glad I don’t understand it better), but her life is full of fascinating stories and photographs from all the places she’s been.

So what’s it like to live at the South Pole?

In fairness, Emily wasn’t all the way to the pole. As indicated by her blog, she was working at a spot on the Antarctic continent about 78 degrees south. Still, it’s a part of Earth that not many people have ever seen firsthand. Antarctica has no native people, and most of its population is made up of scientists who are there temporarily. You can see the continent from a cruise ship if you can afford it, but to set foot on the ice, you pretty much have to be a scientist. Emily spent the Antarctic summer of 2007 living in a tent on the ice with one other researcher.

That’s right — a tent. During the summer, temperatures aren’t as cold as you might think, with highs in the 40’s. But the lows are still low, and you’re still surrounded by ice, and in Emily’s case, you don’t even have walls around you. The sun never completely sets in Antarctica in summer, but rather just circles the sky. It takes some adjusting to be able to sleep, and then more adjusting when it’s time to return home to a place that actually experiences night.

International laws are in place to protect the Antarctic ecosystem, and these laws are extremely strict. No waste of any kind can be left on the continent, so people living there must contain all their waste — natural and otherwise — to be shipped elsewhere. Living in a tent in the bitter cold comes with some glory, but when I learned about this part of the experience, I no longer envied my little sister so entirely.

Most days, Emily hiked several miles to take readings at various streams. Since she and the other researchers were largely on their own throughout their time in Antarctica, they had to go through survival training called Happy Camper School, where they learned how to not freeze to death or get stranded in a whiteout. It’s a pretty cool life to go where no one else has been and camp among penguins and seals, but the reason no one has been there is because it’s difficult and dangerous.

Every couple of weeks, a helicopter would come to pick Emily and her fellow scientists up to fly back to a base where they could organize their research data, sleep on real beds, and take showers. During her helicopter flights, she had great views of the wildlife below — penguins, seals, whales, and more. It’s one thing to view animals in a simulated zoo habitat, but there’s something really spectacular about seeing whales playing in the sea, or getting nose to nose with penguins, the cutest animals on the planet!

While Emily’s life in the field had its perks, like the close encounters with cute creatures, it’s just a little too rough for most people to handle. Even most people who live in Antarctica don’t go into the field like Emily did. They live at research stations in permanent buildings. McMurdo Station is the largest of the American stations, with about 1100 people living there in the summer. It’s a lot like being at college — there are gyms, intramural sports, bars, a radio station, and clubs. Emily said it wasn’t much different from living in the US in winter.

As a tourist, an Antarctic cruise could be lots of fun. Unlike other popular cruises, which are largely just floating parties, Antarctic cruises are led by experienced guides and are made to be educational journeys. You’ll get to see a lot of wildlife in their natural habitat, and beautiful, untouched ice and snow that just doesn’t occur many other places in the world. As a scientist, Antarctica would be an incredible place to work, if only for a short time. You get to be a tourist, too, and see things that only a few people have ever seen before.

It’s not a trip that’s even possible for most people, though, which is why I encourage you to check out Emily’s blog from her time on the continent. In some ways, it’s even better than being there, because you can see her pictures and read her stories from the comfort of a well-heated home, with beds and showers and toilets.