My travel partner turned to me recently on one of our long walks and asked,
“So, why do you want to travel?”
Continue readingSix Reasons to Travel
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Author Archives: launa
Beliefs About Stuff that I’m Letting Go
Many thanks to No Side Bar for publishing my piece today on the beliefs I’m uncovering (and letting go) as I unload possessions.
And, let’s admire this lovely empty closet. Beautiful, right?
Travel Book Review: Joan Frank’s Try to Get Lost
I tell everyone that I’m not teaching anymore so my husband and I can travel. That is absolutely true, and it is also true that I’m not teaching so I can have more time to write and read. Travel, reading, writing: the triumvirate for happiness. This puts travel writing–such as this collection of essays with a great title by Joan Frank–squarely in my happy place.
On the Gravitational Pull of Things
The plan is to travel. Our children are grown, and we’re coming up to our last day of working full time. To get out there, we’re renting out this house and unloading its contents, ready to step into the next season of our lives with lighter luggage.
So, we must deal with things.
I walk through the rooms of our suburban house and inventory the objects, organize them into stacks, plot their disbursement. Sometimes, in a burst, I’ll unload a great deal at once. Sometimes, objects persist.
For example, this gargoyle.
What Happiness Sounds Like (when it doesn’t take too much to make you happy)
We were in the mood for someplace quiet on a recent weekend, so we headed for Thomas, West Virginia, a former coal-mining community that’s now finding a second life as a low-key retreat in the mountains.
A Trip to [a town near you]
Justin and I went to Fredericksburg, Virginia on a beautiful fall day a couple of weeks ago.
I fell in love.
This charming building used to be a bank, complete with vault. Great food.
Last Hack You’ll Ever Need for Dangling Backpack Straps
Fellow traveler, there can be a lot of small nuisances on our journeys, but dangling straps from your backpack does not have to be one of them. Travelers trade home comforts for the joy of the journey, so the things in that bag–and the bag itself–take on outsized importance.
Continue readingPolly, Put the Kettle On (Or What the British Taught Me about a Cup of Tea)
“Each day is a little life: every waking and rising a little birth, every fresh morning a little youth, every going to rest and sleep a little death.”
arthur Schopenhauer
Okay, you put the kettle on, and I’ll talk about tea.
Continue readingHow to Love Your Hadrian’s Wall Walk, even if Things Go Wrong
Are you considering this walk? You’re right–it’s a great one. We just returned from Hadrian’s Wall, and here’s what went wrong (and right!), our top tips for YOUR trip, and our itinerary to get your planning started.
12 Stops on my Book-Love Tour of New York City
I’ve been to New York City to see the big attractions and dazzling shows, but my trip last week was something quieter and so sweet: a book-love tour of Manhattan.
This trip was my own creation–self-guided, budget-friendly, and flexible enough for browsing, contemplating, reading, and writing. I missed a few gems, but I also stopped at a surprising number of great destinations in my few days in the city: seven book stores, three museums, and two libraries. I walked or took the subway everywhere. Each night I fell into my clean, no-frills hostel bed exhausted and happy. Can I recommend this 12-stop trip to my fellow book lovers? 100 percent. It was wonderful. Let’s start with the libraries, shall we?
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