Remember these Japan-made digital pets that came in the shape of an egg – the precursor to the Furby? I believe they were called “GigaPets” in the United States.

I think about and worry about my blog constantly.  I think about the type of “food” that I should feed this digital creature so that it becomes the resource that I want it to “grow up” to be. Yessir, my blog is my baby.

So…I’m very selective of what I feed it.  Here’s my advice on feeding your blog.  Do not feed it stuff that you yourself don’t want to eat. 

Find your niche.

This should come authentically from who you are.  I don’t like phonies and I think most people can spot a phony from miles away. You may have to do a bit of soul-searching to find this and confront truths and realities that you didn’t want to face. And don’t just look to what’s popular and copy them. Copy their business strategies maybe but not their content. Be original. Be unique. Again, I will repeat: Do not be a phony. Even if you think there are people who will not like you for who you are, who cares? It’s not really your problem.  Their friendship preference is their own concern. Don’t waste your time. It’s better to be liked for who you really are anyway.

Here’s my story. In terms of travel blogs, I see a lot of websites that are about teaching English in Thailand and all these other foreign countries and backpacking solo throughout South America and having wild parties on the beach, dancing with fire-dancers, getting drunk at full moon parties and such.  When I first started travel blogging, I have to admit that I was intimidated by this raucous group of traveling heathens (and I say that lovingly) and I was often challenged by my fellow traveler friends to follow in their footsteps to sleep on the floor of the subway or spend a night in a hammock and hitchhike across South America without knowing a lick of Spanish. So I tried it.  I slept in a raw foods food truck. I traveled with no money. I went to Costa Rica knowing only a few sentences in Spanish. I’ve danced in drum circles with people high on hallucinogenics. But in the end, something about all of this travel felt empty to me.  It was not me.  I was trying to be something I was not.

So I made a list of how I really like to travel. I like visiting friends and family when I travel.  I love markets and organic food. I love yoga. I love children. I love boutique hotels. I love visiting not-for-profits and art museums. I love uncrowded beaches and I love hanging out with animals in the wild (caged animals make me sad) and rolling around in nature without the influence of drugs. I’m not against experimentation or anything, but it’s just not my thing. Now write a list of how you like to travel, no judgment, no limitations.

Sometimes it takes being with people who have the opposite travel style to figure out what your own travel style is.

I was traveling in Nicaragua, on the way to volcano boarding (which is super awesome by the way!), when a fellow traveler chatted with me. He was a backpacker passing through and asked me whether I was backpacking too.  I said no. I was in Nicaragua for 15 days working on a project and I didn’t even really own a backpack.  I have a rolling luggage – mostly because of my back and spine problems.

Suddenly, I was no longer cool. There was silence between us and it was not the comfortable kind.  I tried to recover from the silence by continuing the conversation, but the next thing that tumbled out of my mouth was that it was really my second time staying at a hostel and the first time I really hated it. I found it noisy and I couldn’t sleep, which would make me really grumpy. I usually like staying at boutique hotels. Oh, that made it even worse.  I was shunned by this backpacker. I wasn’t trying to be pretentious. I felt ostracized because I was honest.

A very good backpacker friend said to me in jest that the way I was traveling was “too prissy” and “too feminine” for his taste. But you know what, when I look at myself in the mirror, that’s what I am: a female and I like to travel and you know what, I also like to go shopping for (gasp) nice clothes, artwork and jewelry that are made by local designers and artisans so I can give gifts to my friends when I come back home. Okay, I’m not the most frugal person ever, but I don’t go overboard with my spending either. I like a good deal. I am willing to pay a little bit more for better value. Note: that backpacker friend and I are still friends and we respect each other’s differences.

So although I totally respect the culture of backpacking (because it really is an awesome eye-opening culture), I came to terms with the fact that I was not a cool counter-culture thrifty backpacker. But I had to experience it a little bit to know that it wasn’t me.

Define your niche.

I try to define my travel style in a tweet (I like the 140-character limitation):  ”unique and memorable adventurous travel with a small carbon footprint in often-hidden boutique properties off-the-beaten-path”  (that’s 125 characters). Now try it for yourself.  Try labeling your travel style in 140 characters or less. It’s not easy and it’s probably going to change about seven to fifteen times, but it’s a starting point nonetheless.

Become an expert at your niche and write about it.

If you’re obsessed with cars, the gym, surfing, stuffed animals, whatever your passion is, you’re most probably going to be already reading a lot of literature about it and you’re probably living it. Share articles and the knowledge that you’ve gain from your research and also your real-life experiences with others. In fact, talk and write about it so much that you’re known as the “surfing guy” or the “bacon maple syrup donut girl”.  I’m aiming to be that “off the beaten path follow your bliss travel girl”.

My advice here is find the things that you are naturally attracted to and write about those things. Your passion will shine through in your writing. Be authentic and write as if you were writing a postcard to a friend.

Take your niche and build a business model around it.

I originally started my blog as a portfolio site for my screenwriting work and to promote a different type of travel but I love FreshTraveler so much that now I want to do so much more with it, so I am building a business around it.

At my panel at the ASJA conference on Building Your Business Through Travel Blogging, I mentioned that if you want to make a living off your travel blog, you have to think of it long term, as a marathon run, as a business.

I work with a business coach to get FreshTraveler into shape.  It really helps to have a sounding board or just someone to keep me in check and make sure my hair-brained ideas are also applicable in real life.

In choosing your business coach, I say go with your gut. If the relationship clicks and there is chemistry go for it. If not, drop it and keep looking. Also, find someone who understands what you’re all about. My business coach is a female who is around my age who is into holistic practices and following your bliss. She understands my irrational, seemingly illogical decision-making process and she gets me in a way that no one else does. And because she understands my values at the core, she has helped me push FreshTraveler into a direction that I want. Not to any one cookie cutter direction.

If you need a push and a shove to find your direction (oh, and a vacation!!!), I invite you apply to the Trailblazer’s Retreat that I will be at in Costa Rica on September 7-14th, 2013. It’s a fun way to intensively figure out your direction (whether you still have to define your business or are looking to rebrand an existing business) and get a vacation out of it as well!  It’s a “workcation”.  I personally love “workcations”. Click here for a great article on the benefits of “workcations” from LearnVest.

The Trailblazer’s Retreat is a launching pad to help you create or recreate your DREAM BUSINESS. It’s run by my phenomenal business coach Lynan Saperstein who has really been integral in encouraging me to push FreshTraveler in the direction that I want to go.

Here’s my testimonial about her:

“You know Freud’s id, ego and super ego?  Lynan’s your ego externalized. Organized, realistic and fearless, she’ll tell you everything that you need to get things done without any bullshit and she’ll be up in your face until you get the tasks done. She’s your brunch buddy, best friend, soccer mom, cheerleader, business coach, shrink and a personal trainer wrapped in one.  She intuitively knows what you need to get things done and she’ll give it to you straight.  She’ll help you get over your hurdles, both emotionally and mentally to help you balance your business and your personal life. Lynan will be there to cheer you on or beat you up (whichever one is necessary at that moment) until you cross that finish line. A must-have coach in your life: When she’s started with you, you wonder how you’ll ever function without her. But no worries. Once she’s done with you, you’ll have all the self-confidence and the self-sufficiency to continue growing as a business and as a person.”

I stand by this testimonial a million %. By the end of the TrailBlazer’s Retreat, Lynan GUARANTEES you will not only have a clearer vision of your business, you’ll have a PLAN of how you’re going to execute it.  I know that I definitely did after my sessions with her.

I will be at the Trailblazer’s Retreat teaching a workshop on how to tell a compelling story using any device that shoots video. This can be about your business, or we can even go on an adventure and shoot a travel video! You don’t need a fancy camera to start video blogging.  Just bring your simple point and shoot camera, Iphone, Samsung Galaxy and your laptop. But sign up quick, there are only 30 spots and I know they will fill up! When you apply, make sure you mention that you heard about the retreat through me! I would LOVE to see you there.

ADDED BONUS!  During your stay, you’ll get a personalized one-on-one consultation with me to show you how easy it is and ways that you can incorporate videos into your current blog or business plan… and oh, did I mention, you’ll have an AMAZING vacation as well? I have photos from my last trip down there to prove it!

Come join me and network with fellow TrailBlazers at this amazing “workcation” in Costa Rica.

What are you waiting for? A sign? Here’s a sign (see below).  Now sign up!  :)

Hope to see you there!  And even if you can’t make the retreat, Lynan offers consultations so you can reach out to her independently to see if you guys are a good fit. If it turns out you’re not, she has a network of other coaches she can reach out to.

As for me, I also offer video and writing services, classes, and consultations. A 15 minute SKYPE consultation is completely FREE, so drop me an email at tricia.serrano@gmail.com and we can schedule an appointment.  Don’t be shy!  I want to help you achieve your dreams!

Talk to you soon!

xoxo

Patricia

The beach brought back memories of my childhood home. Raised by the beach at what was the sleepy resort town of Pattaya Beach in Thailand, I remember a lot of my early childhood spent on the beach, in the water and ordering room service at a place that was a lot like Blue Osa.

Now that I was almost 30, and spending almost 10 years in the United States, 6 years of that in university getting my Bachelors and my Masters, I needed to reconnect with who I really was inside. So I spent time writing some poetry:

With head in the sky and my feet on the ground. I know that I’m safe and sound.

Who I am has nothing to do with how I look, my degrees, resume, or the amount in my bank account.

I know my value is measured by my character and drive.

I’m a girl in love with the world and I’m alive.

It’s taken a while, but I’ve allowed myself to be just myself without judgement and I wanted to build a business around who I authentically am. I am doing it.

Out of the rainforest, I emerged anew and rejuvenated. More grounded and ready to rock it. The biggest change from this much needed time to myself was that I changed my position at FreshTraveler from “Host, Writer and Producer” to “CEO and Founder”. I have bigger dreams and ambitions for my business. I realized I was thinking too small and playing it too safe. I didn’t just want a web series or a blog. I didn’t just want to exist online. I want my brand to also exist in reality. I want to build a lifestyle brand and as I embark on that exciting journey, I am more grounded stronger than ever to face any challenge.

Instead of taking what life gives and throws at me, I realized I can CREATE my life as anything that I want and ANYTHING is possible. So here I am, creating my ideal life – online and in real life – as FreshTraveler. Stay tuned for more! 

And with that, I release my first photo essay of my stay at Blue Osa Yoga Resort and Spa.  The photos were taken either by me or Lynan Saperstein. Hope you enjoy them! xo

If you’re a trailblazer entrepreneur who needs a bootcamp of a vacation or just wanting to learn how to tell a good travel story visually with a video camera, I invite you to come back to Blue Osa with me for the Trailblazers Retreat on September 7-14, 2013.  We will discover the Osa Peninsula together and I will show you how to use any camera with video recording capabilities to tell a powerful and entertaining travel story.  Sign up soon as space is limited!   If you want more details about the storytelling workshop itself, shoot me an email at tricia.serrano@gmail.com with TRAILBLAZERS as the subject title.

A pedicab, one of those bicycle powered rickshaws is a summer staple of Manhattan. Not only are they eco-friendly and fun to ride in, they can also be your knight in shining armor.

Here’s my pedicab to the rescue story…

Flashback to the summer of 2012:  It’s 4:45pm. It’s raining and it’s 15 minutes until my bus leaves for DC. I’ve been standing outside trying to hail a cab for 25 mins. Everyone’s off duty and I’m infuriated. I’m having a heart attack because I’m going to miss the last Tripper bus of the day going to Arlington, VA where I’m supposed to meet my friend Anna. And I already missed the earlier bus that I was supposed to catch. Argh. Off-duty cab after off-duty cab and another 5 minutes pass me by. 10 mins left until my bus leaves! I’m not sure what to do anymore. My clothes are soaked and I’m screaming inside. Suddenly, the solution appears. Low and behold, a pedicab pulls up before me.

I only need to go 3 avenues away, I tell him. 30 bucks, he says. I only have 20. He says 25. I only have 20 in cash and I need to catch my bus pronto.

Although a cab is much cheaper, I’d pay extra for the human powered vehicle as long as I don’t miss my bus!!!

He helps me put my two suitcases for my month long Best of the Road trip on his little vehicle and pedals his mighty legs through the sheets of rain and zig zagging through congested traffic and even through a red light. Go Mr. Pedicab Man!

We get to my bus 2 mins shy of it’s departure. Whew! A BIG thank you to Mr. Pedicab Man. I am eternally grateful.

When and why did you start blogging at Fresh Traveler? What were you doing professionally before that? Is your blog a full-time venture?

I bought the domain name FreshTraveler.com when I was a senior at Emerson College and developed it for a senior thesis project. I wanted to create an online series that featured off the beaten path adventures. For the whole story, read this post: About FreshTraveler: My Path to Building a Meaningful Life that is Authentically Mine

I put the blog on hold while I pursued my MFA and after I quit my job, pursued it full time – working freelance to support it mostly doing production work.  But I pursue freelance work because I wanted to have flexibility to travel and work with hotels on their marketing – I create content (written, photos, and videos) for hotels and other tour operators to use for their online promotion. This is called branded content.

Then, I create additional material for my blog – separate from what I create for them. I want to maintain the credibility of my blog being something that I experience organically. I don’t want someone to pay me to say something I don’t mean. I don’t accept that. That’s not credible travel journalism.

How do you arrange travel? Did you go on FAM trips and other types of sponsored travel?

So, first of all, a FAM trip is familiarization trip.  According to the Travel Industry Dictionary, it’s a low-cost or free trip or tour offered to travel agents by a supplier or group of suppliers to familiarize the agents with their destination and services. Example, a resort property or group of hotels and restaurants in Aruba might team up with an airline or tour operator to offer a discount FAM trip to the resort or to Aruba.

I’ve gone on FAM trips (more when I first started) and I am subscribed to a few newsletters that offer low cost trips for people in the travel industry.  There are pros and cons. Pros, FREE TRIP, (woo hoo!) everyone likes that.  CON: You’re on their schedule.  I don’t like that. Especially if I am doing video. I talk to the organizer and tell them up front that we’re making videos and that we need more time to explore.

The next model I am working on is working in conjunction with a travel company/tourism board and doing my own individual press trips – getting their suggestions but also doing my own research online, then crafting an itinerary based on how I want the series of videos to be like.

I think of each of my trips as a film project with three phases – pre-production, production, and post-production phases. I used to shoot doc style – which means hours and hours of rolling the camera but now I prefer traveling with an itinerary. Especially if we are there for only a set number of days and if the videos that I make are only going to be 3 mins long. I just need to make sure that I have enough b-roll and camera coverage.

I like working on a sponsorship model.  It’s much easier getting people to sponsor accommodations and meals than airfare.  Although for Mauiva AirCruise, we got everything covered.  Airfare, meals and hotel.

So far, I haven’t been sponsored individually by an airline although I would like to be, I have been on group trips that have been sponsored by an airline.  Also, if you work with Tourism Boards, they can get you that connection to the properties or stores that you want to go to, but you have to do the convincing that you’re worth their dime.

Have you run ads and / or sponsored posts on your blog? Can you talk about how these work in general terms, and how much revenue they can reasonably generate?

No. I will not run ads or sponsored posts on my blog. I will take sponsors for video content.

What other benefits did you enjoy as an independent travel blogger?

I control what I write. I control the video production on my blog. This is important to me.

Tell us about other opportunities which have resulted from exposure through your blog.

I have received work offers – both copywriting and video, from the content that is on my blog and it is much easier to work with Travel and Tourism Boards when you can show them what you do with the content.

How did you begin working with “Best of the Road” and the Travel Channel? How did they discover you? How did you convince them that your blogging experience would be a benefit to being chosen for the program?

For Best of the Road, I submitted an audition video and they picked us.

What was your experience with that program, and how were you compensated?

We were not paid in cash. We were sponsored but the exposure was huge, especially for a young blogger. I went from a brand new blog with 45 likes to 400 in a few months without needing to harass people on a daily basis.  Also, it really helped establish my credibility as a travel blogger and put me in front of people who saw what kind of work I could produce.

What other work do you do writing about travel?

I guest post on other people’s blogs and websites. I also copy write for travel related products like apps and hotel websites. I also answer a lot of emails about travel as I am now everyone’s travel advisor.

How do find travel writing gigs? What sources do you go to? What kind of pay can someone expect from these assignments?

You pitch to travel magazines, websites, etc. Here are some articles to help you craft your pitch.

How to Pitch a Travel Magazine from Vagabundo Magazine

The Do’s And Don’ts Of Submitting To Online Travel Magazines from Matador Network

Some magazines like Travel and Leisure have a special format to follow, so my advice is to follow it.

I know it may be scary to write your first one but just do it!  If you want a one-on-one tutorial, I also offer sessions via skype or in person if you are in New York City.  Just email me at tricia.serrano@gmail.com for rates.

Depending on what you’re good a doing, you can get paid for your skill. I emphasize your skill because whatever that is going to support you financially while you build your blog.

Here are some links to help you:

Odesk and Elance has freelance writing gigs – travel apps, blog posts, copy, hotel descriptions, etc. You just set up a profile or you search for jobs. One of the jobs I applied for was writing Halloween Costume copy. Now that was fun.

If you’re outgoing and like people you can be a tour guide. Vayable is a platform where you can design your own tour and set your own price.

If you’re more of a slow traveller and like spending more than a few months in a location, here’s the Facebook group for you - Modern Day Nomads. I <3 them! I’ve applied to several of their freelance gigs. They have everything from long term to short term jobs as well as artist grants and even housesitting posts!

Matador is a great place to take any travel related course.  They also have this great travel article: 20 Awesome Travel Jobs and How To Get Them.

I also use the Travel Writing Round Up  from this awesome blog Caroline in the City to look for travel writing opportunities.

If you’re really serious about leading a nomadic life and traveling full time.  Here’s a link to more resources that I’ve collected.

Please explain how these writing jobs fit into the “bigger picture” of your overall revenue-generation model.

These jobs float you but also allow a flexible schedule where you can take care of your blog.  I sometime work on 2 computers, one to monitor my blog and the other to work on my PAID assignment.

It was important for me to establish myself as an expert in something for people to listen to anything I was saying regarding travel or screenwriting or filmmaking so a gig like writing for a travel app that encouraged me to research off the beaten path restaurants, etc. just increased my knowledge base AND I got paid for it.  You get paid more for video work than you do writing.   In writing, you get paid more for apps and copywriting than you do for writing articles most of the time. But that really depends on the magazine or the site that you are writing for.

Have you changed to a Tumblr format recently? (I remember it being a more traditional blog last year, with longer posts, although I could be mistaken). If so, why did you make that change? Is it part of a time-saving strategy, perhaps?

I have a tumblr but I also have wordpress. The Best of the Road blog was hosted on WordPress on their own blog.  I learned a lot from blogging for them.  I originally started off with tumblr because I simply wanted to do video production work but now I am writing more and wordpress is a better place to showcase my writing and it’s much more social media friendly.

What is the connection between travel blogging and screenwriting? Has travel made you a better writer and/or storyteller? Have you found inspiration on your travels?

In my videos, I tell a travel story visually.  It’s a series of beautiful shots that are strung together with a story. I think people remember stories more than a series of pretty shots although it is arguable that online people like looking at non-sequential videos that don’t necessarily tell a story.  I try to balance it and look at it as a challenge in short form visual storytelling.   I also use it as a test and a challenge to learn from for when I want to make my own full length features.

What would you tell someone just beginning a travel blog? What should they realistically expect?

A blog is a platform. It’s a soap box. There’s something you want to say and you say it there.

It takes TIME to grow.  Experiment but also know what you want.  Think about the end goal but stay consistent with your message.

I wanted to get a TV show, but also to build a lifestyle brand FreshTraveler – a new type of travelista or internationalista who travels globally and shops locally.  You have to have products to sell offline or online.

Look at your blog as a business. Matthew Kepnes of NomadicMatt.com  once wrote that blogging was like owning a restaurant. The blog is the window and you have to have menu items for your customers to order from. Here’s a great article he wrote called An Open Letter To Travel Bloggers Who Want To Make Money.

You need to have a niche.  I wanted to encourage a different type of travel.  A spontaneous, off the beaten path, fresh kind of travel and encouraging more people to take risks and get out of their comfort zone and enjoy life. Like visiting an organic farm in the middle of the desert in Baja, California. But how do I do this: by showing people that it’s possible and not unsafe and how much fun I have while I do this and then also making it easy for them to find those adventures.

How did you go about securing a sponsorship from Rand McNally, tourism boards, and others? Put another way… how do you get people to pay you to travel and write?

I enter a lot of video contests. As for securing a sponsorship from Rand McNally, I made an audition video for the contest.  I also get on FAM trips (those are press trips that tourism boards in conjunction with marketing agencies put together) to give different sorts of press a taste of the country. I get invited to these trips, usually after you develop a relationship with the marketing or public relations people. Other ways that I have gotten to travel is to reach out to properties that I like boutique hotels and tour companies that I like to see if they can sponsor me while I am on a trip there. I tend to like these individual press trips better because then I don’t have to follow a set tour schedule because it takes time to do video.

Is travel writing your primary source of work or do you combine it with other income sources?

It’s hard to make money just writing. I travel write, copy write and make films. I make most of my money with script consulting and my video production work. You can also make $ selling stock footage. Here’s a great article from Lights Online Film School on How to Sell Stock Video Footage.

You specialize in video blogging.  What advice can you offer someone about how to get started with vlogging if they’ve never done it?  Do they need expensive equipment?  What software do you use to edit the videos?

You don’t need expensive equipment.  You can even use a smart phone for your blogs.  I use Final Cut X to edit but you can use iMovie or Abode Premiere. My advice is to just do it. I think a lot of people stop themselves because they are intimidated that the footage is going to look bad or the sound is going to be bad if they don’t know what they are doing. I say collect the footage first and then fix it in post-production or delete it and retake. That’s the magic of modern movie-making.

What is the value of a vlog over a traditional text-based blog?

There are a few things. First of all, you are able to connect with your intended audience in a way that you can’t with text.  You are able to have your followers connect with you vicariously not just through writing but by experiencing the travel “with” you. An example of a video that does this particularly well is when I went kayaking with dogs in Costa Rica.

SEO wise, content with video often appears higher on the google ranking.

In your opinion, what are the best markets for travel writers (and is there more available than travel magazines)?

It really depends on what your interest is in writing.  But I really believe that you have to find your niche and your special angle and lens on travel. Other kinds of magazines (business, automobiles) have travel sections that you can also write for.  I have found in my experience that the best markets for me are the off-the-beaten-path unexplored unchartered territories because they are dying for the exposure.  I just got back from an individual press trip to Cabo in Baja California and the tourism board was really excited to work with me because I told them that I was going to Cabo but I did NOT want the Spring Break experience. I wanted the off the beaten path experience and they were really excited to direct me to less explored parts of Baja like the beaches of La Paz or the small town of Todos Santos. But they were also probably really excited because I am going to do a film screening of the short film of my travels in New York later this year.

How do you pick the next location you’ll travel to and write about?

Well, my goal is to travel the whole globe according to the FreshTraveler ethos which is off the beaten path for a fresh mind, body and spirit.  But when I pick the next location, I always ask myself these questions.

1) have I been there yet?

2) is there an angle here that is local and unique?

3)  is it visually interesting?

I tend to like active adventures because they are more fun to film and edit. The more movement, the better. Also, the crazier, the better. I see what opportunities come up and I weigh them against each other.  I get invitations to certain places by the press or from friends. I tend to favor the travels with my friends and the individual press trips over the FAM trips (although FAM trips are a great way to meet other travel writers so I don’t discount them) because you have more control over your schedule and also not all people want to be on camera so that’s a problem or else there’s the people who always want to be on camera and that’s a different problem altogether.  And oh, I also do an airfare check and if I see a cheap flight to a destination that I’ve always wanted to go to and I’m free to go, I buy the ticket first and worry about where I am going to stay later.

If you have any other questions, feel free to ask in the comments below and I will answer them.

Although I travel quite a lot, I haven’t committed to being a full nomad yet. Although it’s been quite tempting, I often miss New York City and crave that sense of community of spending time with friends and family. But I’m compiling this list of online resources in no particular order, just in case I want to get up and go.

I’m going to continuously be adding on to this list so come back for more and if you have any ones to contribute, leave it in the comments below and I’ll incorporate it into this list.

 Nomadtopia – practical advice and inspiration (Amy Scott’s website)

http://nomadtopia.com

Nomadtopia Bookstore

http://bit.ly/nomadbooks

Amy’s interview with Helen Hunter Mackenzie about living and working anywhere in the world

http://lts.cr/Jlsl

Suitcase Entrepreneur – tools to run your business from anywhere

http://suitcaseentrepreneur.com/

Location Independent – the original website and creators of the term “location independent professionals”

http://locationindependent.com/

Location Rebel – from Sean Ogle of Location 180

http://www.locationrebel.com/

Working Couples

http://workingcouples.com

http://www.simplyhired.ca/a/jobs/list/q-couple

House-sitting, Home Exchange, Places to Stay

http://homeexchange.com

http://couchsurfing.com

http://vrbo.com

http://airbnb.com

http://www.housecarers.com

http://www.mindmyhouse.com

http://www.trustedhousesitters.com

http://www.startupstay.com

http://www.ic.org

http://www.housesittingperfected.com

http://www.caretaker.org/

plus local listings on www.craigslist.com  or www.kijiji.ca

Possible leads:

Indeed.com

JuJu.com

CoolJobsCanada.com (primarily hospitality industry jobs)

ModernDayNomads Facebook Group

Freelance Work Online

Odesk.com

Elance.com

Location-Specific

Apartments in Buenos Aires: http://www.bytargentina.com/re/propview.php?view=5143

Location Independence/Long-Term Travel with Kids

http://www.soultravelers3.com/

http://www.familygonefree.com/

http://familyonbikes.org/blog/

http://www.discovershareinspire.com/

http://www.vagabondfamily.org/

http://athomeintheworld.com/

http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?doc_id=4438

Homeschooling, Unschooling, Alternative Education

Book: The New Global Student, by Maya Frost: http://mayafrost.com/new-global-student-book.htm

Medical/Travel insurance

http://worldnomads.com – travel/emergency insurance (Amy Scott is using)

http://www.integraglobal.com/ – comprehensive int’l insurance outside US/Canada (Carrie McKeegan uses)

45 Jobs you can do while traveling

http://www.thebarefootnomad.com/travel-tips/45-great-jobs-you-can-do-while-traveling-the-world-and-how-to-get-them/

Some have been kinder to my skin than others, but by worst is the acidic spray of the Costa Rican Chinche – pronounced CHEEN-CHE (as in Che Guevara).

It’s a green little bugger that wandered onto my laptop without warning while I was working one night.

I thought, oh what a cute little grasshopper. I didn’t even try to kill it or get it away from me. I thought, no big deal.

Boy, was I WRONG.

Here’s a closer look at this “cute little grasshopper”

I know what you’re thinking: Who knew a little bug with such an innocent face could cause such intense anger in this travel blogger?

Well, here’s more about this little green freak:

- it’s droppings are EXTREMELY ACIDIC. I felt like battery acid was thrown on my leg. That did not feel good AT ALL.

- it causes SEVERE skin irritations that HURT and BLISTER (see photo below)

Costa Rican Chinche Rash

I KNOW, RIGHT?!! What a damper on my vacay! What the f**8 little insecto verde, couldn’t you piss on someone else?

So, here was my experience: the spots first turn red, then bluish the next day, and then all the skin far around the spot gets full of blisters (yucky, yucky, yucky and ouch, ouch, ouch!) and after a week or so, it peels off.

GOOD NEWS though: you will survive! Although its droppings hurt, they are not poisonous.  Two weeks after the first signs of my rash, it healed completely without any scarring. Thank goodness. I was contemplating what sort of tribal tattoo design I would get just in the case it did scar horribly.

During my week of agonizing itchiness, I sprayed my blistering skin with vinegar to dry it out and I used this Chinese calamine lotion, Piyan Ping Ointment (see picture below) to soothe the irritation so that I wouldn’t scratch.

Piyan Ping Ointment

It’s very important that you properly protect yourself from bugs when you travel. 

I’m not a big fan of DEET so I use natural methods to ward off bugs.  I use anything LEMONGRASS on my body. I really liked this Costa Rican-made eco-friendly Lemongrass Body Butter from Rainforest Solutions (see the leftmost jar in the photo below) that I picked up here.  Also if you have any orange or lemon peels, rub them all over yourself.  Bugs don’t like citrus peels.

Rainforest Solutions Body Butter

Anyway, I hope you learn from my experience and be weary of these green little acid-spraying buggers while traversing Costa Rica. If you have any questions or similar stories to share about this creepy crawly, please feel free to shoot me an email.

And by the way, THIS is what a grasshopper looks like.

Wishing you safe (and fresh) travels! xoxoxo

Holy beejeezus ohmigoodness! was the first thought that raced through my head when I came upon an email from Traci Suppa of Go BIG or Go Home Travel Blog inviting me to share my experience as a travel video blogger at a panel called

So You Want to … Build Your Business Through Travel Blogging at the American Society of Journalists and Authors’s 42nd Annual Writers’ Conference (ASJA)

Holy crikey batmobile! was the next set of words that tumbled out of my mouth when I saw that the panel would feature other bloggers I admired such as Maria and Anthony Russo of Cultureist.com and Charu Suri of ButterflyDiary.com

Then, there was an entire hour of woah, is this for real? Really for real? For real, for realz?

After a couple more email exchanges between Traci and I, it finally dawned on me that is was.

After having the pleasure of attending so many panels on travel, writing and blogging and learning so much from all the amazing panelists I met,  I am honored and more than happy to share what I learned during this DIY travel blogging journey.

So if you’re planning on being at the conference that day, give me a hoot and holler.  I’d love to see you!

And oh, here’s the tagline for the conference: (lifted from their website)

“Whether you’re a seasoned veteran, an enthusiastic rookie or somewhere in between, the 60-plus panels, workshops and special events at ASJA 2013 will supercharge your career.”

Woo hoo! I’m going to help you supercharge your career!

We’re gathering at 9am on Friday April 26th, 2013 at the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City (mid-town Manhattan to be exact)

Again, here are the deets – succinctly now (copy & paste-able):

ASJA 2013 Annual Writers Conference

9am Friday April 26th, 2013

Roosevelt Hotel

45 EAST 45TH ST. AT MADISON AVENUE,

NEW YORK, NY 10017

Hope to see you there!  Safe (and fresh) travels!

Photo by Eric Golowski.

Dear Friends,

I am giving up traveling and my travel blog FreshTraveler because I have fallen in love with a surfer and am staying in Costa Rica. We are going to live by the beach, fish mahi mahi and red snapper from the sea, and I will grow organic veggies behind our wall-less beach shack on Playa Tamales. I am living my dream of never having to wear shoes or a put on a bra ever. You are welcome to come visit us (there is a lot of sleeping space on the beach during low tide, but please watch out for the crabs!). Or alternatively, Blue Osa Yoga Retreat and Spa is only about a 2-hour walk away from our humble shack.

Please don’t try to convince me otherwise…

I thought about this for a long time and this is absolutely something that I have always wanted to do for April Fool’s.

Have a good one!!

After resurfacing from a torrid week-long love affair with a surfer, here’s some wisdom I picked up.

Hula hooping is good for your soul. Here’s why:

1) It encourages you to shake the stress (that you made up in your mind, btw!) out of those stagnant hips. With or without music.

2) It keeps you focused on the moment so you don’t have anxiety about the past or the future.

3) All the laughter that comes with this activity sends massive amounts of dopamine to your brain and the brains of all around you.

4) You realize that you don’t control the hula hoop and the hula hoop doesn’t control you. You are in it together. You are ONE, and it’s beautiful, even if it’s just for these few precious moments.

5) The movement required to hula a hoop around your navel has a surrendering, calming, centering effect. Like rocking a baby to sleep. Or spooning with someone you love.

6) You feel DAMN GOOD if you successfully keep the hula hoop moving even for 20 seconds.

7) And if you do get out of the groove and drop that thing, all you got to do is pick it up and give it another shot.

8) If you’ve had enough dopamine, you can pass it along for someone else to try and STILL get high from just watching them.

Enough said. When you get bogged down by the things happening around you that you can’t control and need to get realigned, just pick up that hula hoop and hula your way back to happiness.

Pass the wisdom. Pass the love. <3

The clouds at night at the Osa Peninsula. Photo by Eric Golowski.

At Playa Tamales near Puntarenas, Costa Rica, the waves glow at night.  Not by any lights or any help from modern technology.  Natural algae that produce dinoflagellate luciferin live in the water and light up when provoked.  And my crazy yoga instructor friend Leslie Bishop Hunter was happily provoking them.

“Take off your clothes!” she screamed into the darkness. I couldn’t make out where she was, only that her voice was coming from my left, near the sound of the waves.

There was hardly any moonlight to guide my path towards the waves and Leslie’s happy screams. Only the glow of the bioluminescence in the crashing waves, a spectacular light show of glowing plankton that lit up the waves in middle of this otherwise dark night.

The bluish green glow of the waves was the only thing that I could see. That and the phosphorescent glow of the water surrounding Leslie’s aura.

I wanted to go in, but I left my swimsuit in my room at the nearby Blue Osa Yoga Sanctuary and Spa and I didn’t want the saltwater to damage the dyes on my polka-dotted beach dress.

The glowing waves still beckoned.

I tread carefully over the pebbled beach towards Leslie’s splashes. I didn’t want my feet crushing any nocturnal beach creatures and any of the varieties of crab that scuttled along the shore.

From where I was, I could see Leslie making angel wings with her arms in the water. Her waving arms and kicking legs surrounded with a confetti of lit algae. I too wanted to bask in the splendor of the provoked phytoplankton. After a short internal debate over whether I should join her happiness, I decided.

Off came my dress and I ran happily over the pebbled beach into the waters of the Osa Peninsula and let myself be surrounded by the midnight glow of the bioluminescence algae.