A few months ago, I posted about how I used a few frequent flyer miles and $2 to get a subscription to National Geographic Traveler – some kindling to spark new travel ideas. I’ve gotten a couple of issues and been less than impressed, but something changed in the May edition.
The first article that piqued my interest was an annual feature on “2012 50 Tours of a Lifetime.” By the time I had read the first two, I was already adding to my wanderlustbank. They feature guided tours around the world, all of which were intriguing – some of which were downright necessary.
I found myself inspired to start building my own list – a list of self-guided trips that we, budget-minded travelers could focus in on. Look for some posts to that effect in the future.
If that was the only “goodie” in the magazine, it would have been enough, but the next one that caught my eye was entitled, “Cheating Death” by Edward Readicker-Henderson. In some of the finest travel prose I’ve ever read, Ed tells us how he was told that he needed to bid the world farewell, as he had a terminal illness that would take his life. He set out to bid farewell in his own way, “Whoever created the world went to a whole lot of trouble. It would be downright rude not to go out and see as much of it as possible.”
Twenty years later, he’s still traveling – new experiences, people and places, his life-support. Inspiring.
