A Top Travel Read: Grounded by Seth Stevenson

I have a confession to make: when I read for fun, I don't read about travel. I tend to go with novels or compelling books on history (Antonia Fraser and David McCullough--you make me smile).

But the other week I found myself laughing out loud, and furiously flipping through the pages, of a travel book I had to read for work. I was interviewing the author Seth Stevenson for our radio show and had grudgingly begun his book about three-days before the interview in preparation.

A travel memoir, Grounded: A Down to Earth Journey Around the World is the tale of Stevenson and his partner Rebecca's circumnavigation around the globe, accomplished entirely on the surface of the planet. Though in many cases it would have been less expensive and quicker, they made the decision to forgo airline travel altogether and embarked on a romp that rivals "Around the World in 80 Days".

Grounded is everything most travel memoirs are not. It has suspense, as the problems inherent in getting from continent to continent by boat nearly force the couple to abandon their quest at several points. There's a laugh on nearly every page. And Stevenson has a wonderful way of interweaving his personal tale with history--both the history of the places they visit and the modes of transportation they use--that opens up the story and gives it greater interest. I feel like I know a lot more about international commerce thanks to his explanation of how cargo ships have reworked the way nations trade with one another...and that's a good thing!

Best of all, the book introduced me to a number of places that I haven't visited yet and am now eager to see. If you're still wrestling with your summer travel plans, this could be a terrific resource to peruse. It's one of those rare travel books that truly opens up the world. I urge you to pick up a copy.

(And just in case you're wondering: I have no connection to Stevenson, nor does the publishing company that publishes the Pauline Frommer guidebooks. I'm just a fan.)

A Hello From Your New Travel Blogger

A very wise college professor of mine once veered sharply off-topic to talk about our coming careers. She said, “You’ll likely choose your profession for one reason, but to keep doing it, you’ll have to keep coming up with ever new and more compelling reasons. If you can’t find those reasons, change careers.”

My career, travel writing and editing, in a manner, chose me. I am the daughter of travel writers Arthur Frommer and Hope Arthur, after all, and started vagabonding around the globe at the age of four months. I’d always loved to write, the planet was my playground, and travel gave me a charge—boom, profession picked.

But beyond the visceral thrill of dashing here and there, trying exotic foods, and seeing eye-popping works of art and architecture--the initial lures—I’ve found new reasons to write over the years which I hope will become the hallmarks of this column. They include:

• Frugality: Unlike many of the travel bloggers you’ll read online, I pay for my own travel. So I understand how important, no crucial, saving a loonie is. Lack of cash very literally clips our wings. I’m going to do my darndest in this column and in my blog, to uncover the best deals out there—ones that allow us, as adults, to travel in comfort and safety, but not overpay. From money-saving methods of travel to last minute offers, you’ll find them with my byline.
• Estrogen: No secret, I’m a woman. And I do think that many of the issues in travel, particularly safety and destination choice, can vary, a bit, by gender. So I’ll be gearing some of these posts towards women’s travel. But you fellows who are in touch with your feminine sides, please feel free to read along, too.
• Motherhood: Blame it on estrogen (see above), but over the years I've "reproduced". I have two daughters and now drag them along with me, from China to Guatemala to Disneyland. This has been both a joy and a royal pain and it has schooled me in the art of planning trips that are appropriate for all ages and levels of obsession with Justin Bieber. So family travel, too, will be a focus.
• Expanding Horizons: I’m all for going to the top of the Eiffel Tower when you’re in Paris, or to the edge of the Grand Canyon when in Arizona. But I believe travel is more than just viewing natural wonders and works created decades or even centuries ago. You need to get off the tourist treadmill. It’s eye-opening and just plain fun to engage with the locals, pull back the curtain on the current culture of the places you’re visiting, learn new skills, have adventures! So I’ll also be devoting a good amount of space here to the more unusual experiences one can have on the road, experiences that create friendships and open eyes.
  

I look forward to creating an ongoing conversation on all these issues and more in the upcoming months.

(Photo: Me with my exhausted daughter in Mykonos, Greece taken by my husband Mahlon Stewart)