Tag: travel

Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: VIII. Broken Down Somewhere in Belgium

This is part of a series I have been working on. The Introduction is here. I can't remember how it was I found out that the bus had broken down. What I definitely remember is that it was extremely cold. The bus breaking down did come several hours into a long bus trip from London. From there, … Continue reading Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: VIII. Broken Down Somewhere in Belgium →

Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: II. Madrid, the Arrival

This is part of a series I have been working on. The Introduction is here. the arrival I was supposed to take the train from Paris to Madrid. It was one of those things that I had planned out well in advance like the responsible adult I had thought I was. I bought my Eurail … Continue reading Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: II. Madrid, the Arrival →

Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: I. Paris, Versailles

This is part of a series I have been working on. The Introduction is here. Versailles A few days into Paris—before the Australians, the honeymooners, the college kids, and the life-traveller; after the three asshole partiers, Matthieu from Montreal, and the nameless guy from Newport Beach—I decided to check out the Palace of Versailles. It was … Continue reading Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: I. Paris, Versailles →

Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: IV. Casablanca

This is part of a series I have been working on. The Introduction is here. I was exhausted and burnt out. For short trips, you rally. But backpacking is a marathon. I dyed my hair from blonde to brown before I left Vancouver because I knew I was going to Morocco, and I’d heard warnings—mostly … Continue reading Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: IV. Casablanca →

Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: I. Paris, the Five Types of Travellers

This is part of a series I have been working on. The Introduction is here. the five types of travellers My first week in Paris was a crash course in backpacking. The first day, wandering from my hostel along Rue Moufftard down to Place St. Michel, took me onto the Ile de la Cite, towards … Continue reading Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: I. Paris, the Five Types of Travellers →

The Commencement of Commencement Advice Commences

There's nothing more useless than unsolicited advice.  I was going to preface that with When you're young, but it's really applicable to all ages. Unsolicited advice simply comes at a much greater frequency when you're young. As I age (like a slowly ripening then rotting apple; that is the metaphor I've chosen to age by), I understand this … Continue reading The Commencement of Commencement Advice Commences →

Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: Introduction

This is the introduction of what I hope will become a series / retrospective project / diary-after-the-fact / examination of memory-and-place-and-all-that-jazz. All the links to other posts about specific adventures and places are/will be below. Whenever you get back from a long bout of travelling, the world always feels different (at least for a little while, … Continue reading Travel and the Art of Mental Maintenance: Introduction →

So We’ve Yet to Find a Decent World Map with South Sudan

For my sixth birthday, my grandparents bought me globe. It sat on the desk, tilted at that attractive, precarious angle. I loved that the mountain ranges were palpable beneath my fingertips. Their intention with this gift was to aid my transition into the realm of proper education. I had just begun the first grade. This … Continue reading So We’ve Yet to Find a Decent World Map with South Sudan →