Stories 21–27 August

Lots of shorter stories- whew! And exciting road trips!

Welcome to our new editor

For those who are not familiar with her amazing stories as a traveller, here Jillian Amatt - Artistic Voyages introduces herself as our newest editor. Welcome, Jill!

JoAnn’s Weekly News

This is a must-read…don’t say we didn’t tell you or you didn’t know! Thanks, JoAnn.

Writer Spotlight

Welcome B.W.Dave to Globetrotters. My daughter has friends in Costa Rica and loves visiting as often as she can (and it’s a long way from Australia). She absolutely loves the country!

Road Trips

S.K. Shandlin shares the first part of a summer-long road trip around the United States.

And here’s Part 2…

Gerald Sturgill maps out his weekly road trips. I love maps, don’t you?

Nella DiCarlo also takes a small but very interesting road trip. Road trips don’t have to be hundreds of kilometres (or miles).

Kevin Shay writes such a long road trip story it’s in two parts. I love this first part!

And here is Part 2 of the Last Magic Road Trip!

Darren Weir takes us on a road trip around beautiful Tuscany. Tuscany was made to be photographed.

Pierre Matile is going on a road trip but he hasn’t quite made it to the starting point yet.

Here’s the next part of his trip. Thanks for sharing Pierre Matile.

Janin Lyndovsky does a road trip from Brisbane to Sydney return with her 80-year-old father — congratulations!

Here’s another Australian road trip by brand new Medium writer, Michael Cameron.

Ronald Smit writes the most hair-raising road trip — in Africa on unfamiliar “roads”. He never quite admits he was lost — the sign of confidence!

Stories of the Week

I couldn’t pick between them. Both are inspirational stories of places that have left lasting impressions on them — and me!

If you only read two stories this week, read Audrey Stimson’s wonderful Alaskan adventure and Tim Ward’s Norwegian sojourn at the Lofoten Islands. Both such feel-good stories!

Africa

Melissa Morris writes about her interesting time in Aswan, Egypt learning Arabic.

Anne Bonfert starts her A to Z of favourite travel destinations with the starting and finishing points of her 5-day hike along the coast of Ghana. Brilliant, Anne!

Anne continues her A to Z of favourite places with Capetown, South Africa. Another great story!

We follow Oscar Rhea as he prepares for his walk up Kilimanjaro, Tanzania.

Europe

JamieWrites visits Amsterdam by canal boat — it’s definitely the way to see the sights!

Jo Muller visited Vilnius, Lithuania and loved it!

Here I visit Córdoba twice to make sure it’s my favourite C.

And Anne Bonfert writes about Balderschwang — a winter wonderland. This is a must-read for all aspiring travel writers.

Here I visit Dingle three times to make sure it’s my favourite D.

Jerry Dwyer has another story from Ireland, but Northern Ireland. If you’re a Game of Thrones devotee, you might like to visit these places. Even if you’re not, they’re pretty spectacular!

Here’s another story from Ireland. TRAVEL STORIES BY GABE shares his experiences living in Ireland. It is a small country compared to USA, Brazil and Australia, the 4th, 5th and 6th largest countries in the world. Only Russia, Canada and China are bigger. Ireland comes in at number 121 — I had to look that up, Gabe!

Jay Davidson visits famous Saint-Émilion, France on a day tour and then a wine bar in Bordeaux. This definitely was an unexpected event.

Keith Kelley relates his restaurant experiences (and more) in Italy. Don’t believe everything you’ve heard!

Still in Italy, Vincent Van Patten remembers this from his stay in Naples. I love Vincent’s writing style.

Tim Ward spends two months in Norway and writes about things that he thought were weird — or should we say — different?

Jo Muller starts a road trip through the Balkan countries. This first part covers 4 of them.

And the second part covers the other 4!

KL Simmons writes about Rijeka, Croatia and how it makes her miss her home in Seattle.

Meandering Naturists explains that holidays sans- clothes in the south of France are being enjoyed by his whole family.

I write about my favourite E — Elvas, Portugal. I had to visit twice!

Mulan advises that Switzerland is not cheap, but lists some ways you can make it affordable.

Sam Millichap finds another gem off the beaten path. What an interesting story!

The Americas

Robert Knight visits Ottawa, Canada’s capital city. I think I’ll make this a summer destination.

Here’s Robert’s second part of the trip.

And here’s Part 3…Niagara Falls looks amazing! Thanks, Robert!

Nishan Fuard continues his visit to Toronto. Not too many dramas this time.

Allison Ditmer visits Zion National Park, Utah. The photos are magnificent!

Delia Pena-Gay takes us to her hometown, Hunts Point, New York. I hadn’t heard of it. Thanks for updating my knowledge, Delia.

Dimitri Antonopoulos gives us a taste of Savannah — literally! Don’t read this if you’re feeling a little peckish…

Jillian Amatt - Artistic Voyages tells the real-life story of a tragic event that occurred in Nicaragua. There are lessons to be learned from this tragedy.

And from way up north in Alaska, Erika Burkhalter shares her flight over the Juneau Ice Field. Aren’t glaciers fascinating geographical features?

B.W.Dave is all too familiar with the roads in Costa Rica.

Pamela Oglesby drove from Jacksonville, Florida to Cleveland, Ohio with her family. I don’t know how far that is but it doesn’t sound like an hour or two’s drive.

Terry Dip explains how he had an extra two weeks in Mexico! Has this happened to you?

Valerie Delzer reminisces about her times in Mexico City and how photos help her to remember it.

Jean Elizabeth Glass spends some time in Orlando — and not at Disney World.

Asia

If you’re up for a good laugh at Darren Weir’s expense, read his story from Vietnam. Don’t let this stop you from visiting Vietnam! 😆

Terry Dip has lived in both China and Russia so this knowledge comes from experience.

Sanghita Pal discovers an amazing timepiece in West Bengal, India.

Here are some more interesting places in India to visit. Thanks for sharing, Shaqib Akram.

Terry Dip talks about the tops and bottoms of chopsticks. I’m not sure which end is the top and which is the bottom.

Australia

A while ago, I wrote Ten Reasons Not To Visit Australia. People have been asking me to put a positive spin on Australia, so here it is.

Savannah Sundance writes of her trip from New Guinea back to the States via Brisbane and Vancouver.

Travel Tips

Meandering Naturists gives some great personal advice on airports and flight connections.

Kua Lina tells us her secrets about travelling with her family.

Linda Ng tells us how she’s cut down the amount of stuff she takes with her when she flies. I still can’t do it!

Linda continues by telling us what she has cut out of her luggage. I can’t leave my nail file at home, Linda! 😉

Wellness Xplora lists the countries she’s found the most welcoming and friendliest in her travels. Do you agree?

Claudia M. Zedda writes a thought-provoking article about sustainable tourism. We all need to think about this if we are going to continue to enjoy world travel.

Georgia Calimeres has learned some new habits she learned living in Latin America. (Colombia?) I think it would be a good idea if we all adopted these habits!

Elin Melaas writes about the must-take things on a camping trip with her kids. I still take all of them except the headset.

Jeanine Tew contemplates Buddha images from all around the world. Very calming!

Well, that’s it for this week, Globetrotters! Jillian Amatt - Artistic Voyages will be doing the roundup of stories for you all next week as I will be, hopefully, recovering from my knee replacement surgery. It’s the pits getting old and playing too much netball all my life!