Grant Lingel shares his story of backpacking through Central America, and the journey of discovering who he is.  If you are looking for the clean, light story of a backpacker, this is not it.  Grant is very open in the memoir of his adventures including details of purchasing drugs in Mexico and sex on the beach, not just the cocktail.  However, if you are intrigued by his honesty, then you would enjoy his story.

You see, Grant bought a one-way plane ticket to Mexico and only had $300 in his pocket.  Sound interesting?  Grant’s spontaneous spirit is unforgettable and extremely shocking while reading his story.

I enjoyed reading the adventure he shares in IMAGINE: A Vagabond Story.  However, I was disturbed by his brutal honesty during the retelling of the decisions he made.  Most individuals would be ashamed to retell a story of sex on a beach with a high school girl then bribing the Mexican police with cash, not be thrown into jail.  Most individuals would also be ashamed to share their tale of being caught by Mexican police (again, I know…) after purchasing cocaine, and lying your way out of it.

Grant Lingel is not ashamed.  He openly shares, without holding back.  If this is the type of book you enjoy, then go for it, and order a copy today.

As for Grant, I have to hand it to him for actually writing a book and publishing his travel adventures.  I have not written a book.  Let alone a 315 page book.  I can only imagine it took a lot of time and effort to record the journey.

I continued to read and hoped for a huge transformation of lifestyle choices and personal discovery to occur.  Even when I only had less than 50 pages left to read, I still hoped for a personal transformation.  I read hints of this transformation, but also continued to read of more drugs and sex.

• Girls from Norway go topless: “…a very cute and topless Norwegian girl named Birgit.  She was in Playa for two months learning Spanish with thirty-four other Norwegian girls.” page 266.
• The search for the magic mushrooms: “Sebastian told us that Palenque was famous for its magic mushrooms…” page 281.
• It took Grant an entire day to realize that he had already met the same traveler a few cities back:  ”She thought it was a riot that it took the two of us an entire day to realize we had already met before and told me to stop smoking so much pot.” page 308.

Now to Grant’s credit, I also read improved travel logic and some reflection during those last 50 pages:

• Considering the people he had met from all around the world: “I was still baffled by the fact that such different people could relate so well.” page 255.
• Again, Grant recognizes, its all about the people: “I was incredibly touched by his kind words and continued to realize that it’s the people along the way that you meet who make your trip, make your world and your life.  It is they who shape you into the person you become.” page 262.
• Self catering…a great way to save money while traveling:  ”We returned to a busy hostel that evening with bags of pasta and veggies in hand.  I was pretty much eating the same meal every night: pasta or rice with cooked veggies.  Oddly, I was still enjoying it night after night and loved how it kept my wad of savings intact.” page 270.

I agree with Grant that travel is all about the people you meet.  I also enjoyed that Grant shared he is a vegetarian.  Justin and I are both vegetarians and have backpacked all around the world with no difficulty finding delicious food.  In fact, certain areas of the world are a perfect match for “veg-friendly” eating.

Although, I cannot personally recommend this book as a travel philosophy book, I can recommend it to someone who would enjoy reading a book like Grant’s story.  I don’t believe that Grant set out to write a travel philosophy book.  Instead, it is a candid story of all of his adventures and mistakes along his journey.

Grant, Thank you for asking us to review your book.  I had lots of fun!  I kept reading, wanting to grab my backpack and head out to explore.  After reading about your travels in Central America, I want to talk Justin into spending our summer traveling and learning Spanish.

I do not ride alone.  Each day, as I ride my bike to work, I see dozens of other individuals choosing transportation via pedals. Some are biking to work like me. Others are cycling to class, a friends house, a local coffee shop, the store, an appointment, or they are doing it for the health of it.

Fort Collins, Colorado is an extremely bike friendly community. The parents of my students will often ride to the school with their child or children riding behind them.  You have to admit, that in a vehicle dominated society, this is impressive.  I often experience this new, hard to describe feeling of pride and excitement for living in an area of the country that is as “pro-bicycles” as this area of Colorado.

It’s a feeling of pride because I know our community has a smaller carbon footprint than areas that rely upon motor vehicles for transportation. The air is cleaner. It’s easier to see the mountains in the horizon. If hundreds of people stopped biking to work (and other places) and began driving cars everywhere, I am sure that our local air pollution would increase rapidly.

I also get an energetic rush as I pedal in the bike lane, experiencing the trill of my commute. Alright, it’s not so thrilling when it is raining. But I am not the only cyclist getting wet!

I have lived in several places that have no bike lanes (or even sidewalk), causing extreme difficulty for anyone attempting to bike or walk. These “non-bicycle friendly communities” force individuals to rely solely upon their vehicles.

I enjoy the freedom my bike offers. No oil change, less money spent on gas (petrol) and no speeding tickets.  It is such a cheap method of transportation! If you are serious about travel and adventure, why wouldn’t you live in a community that caters to bike riding and/or offers a reliable form of mass transportation? It’s easy to cut out the cost of owning or leasing, and maintaining a motor vehicle. Then you can save that money for travel, adventures and fun!

Justin and I are currently a one car family. We would like to continue to have only one vehicle to insure and maintain. Living in Fort Collins, Colorado should allow us to continue to practice our “one car family policy” as we utilize bicycles for a majority of our transportation needs.

Our Bikes

Justin just bought a bike this weekend.  Now we are both able to leave the car at home and bike downtown for entertainment or bike to friends house.  I found a great vintage bike about a month ago, at Brave New Wheel, the bike shop behind our house.  Ironically, Justin also bought a vintage cruiser from Brave New Wheel.  It is a great shop that fixes up bikes from the 60′s, 70′s and 80′s, as to be both environmentally friendly (re-use) as well as, allowing classics to cruise the streets again.  

My bike is a dark green mens “ALL PRO” from the 70′s.  It was made in Troy, Michigan, where my brother and his wife live.  However, the bike itself was not the “corvette” of bikes back in the day.  In fact, it has a vintage KMart sticker on it.  But that’s how I roll!  My bike’s name is Green Tea (or in Mandarin Chinese - lǜ chá).  Brave New Wheel is such a fun store, they even gave me the teapot bike bell (with the Chinese character for tea on it) for FREE.

Justin’s bike is also from the 70′s, it’s the classic Schwinn.  His bike was one of the last to be produced in the Rockbrook Chicago factory before Schwinn outsourced their manufacturing needs to Japan (Panasonic) and Taiwan (Giant).   We have installed the bell, the rack and a steal basket.  Now all Justin’s bike needs is a name.  You Choose:  Justin’s bikes name.  Vote in the You Choose Poll now!

How do you find a bike friendly city?  

The League of American Bicyclists is a good place to start.  They have ranked Fort Collins at GOLD, when it comes to Most Bicycle Friendly Communities.  

You don’t even have to spend a cent to get a bike.  In Fort Collins, you can save more money for travel by volunteering 20 hours of community service (with any non-profit organization in Fort Collins) and earn a bike for FREE.  The Fort Collins Bike Co-op is the perfect organization to unite a community to bike together.  

Do you bike to work? Go on bike-cations? Let me know about your biking experiences and adventures. Feel free to email me a picture of you and your bike. I would love to see your Earth-friendly wheels!

You have voted on the future of this website.

The winner is:  Share travel information on cities and places we visit or live in.

The site will now focus both on Fort Collins, Colorado, where Justin and I live, in addition to places in which we visit.  Some of these places will be local, in Colorado.  Other places will include various cities and regions of America that we explore.  

Justin and I would love to visit other countries and continue international travel.  For now, we are both focusing on life in America.  However, feel free to ask questions and request articles on other countries we visited.  For example, the “Rome Hostels” article was requested by a backpacker traveling to Rome, interested in finding the best hostel Rome.    

It’s not Europe, but when it comes to America, I can’t think of a more fascinating place to live and experience life than Fort Collins, Colorado.  The city offers an awesome biking culture, an active downtown, countless opportunities for nearby recreation, a handful of local micro breweries, museums, shops, restaurants, bars, theater, festivals, and so many other opportunities for entertainment and adventure.  I couldn’t imagine a more dynamic place to write about.  I hope you enjoy reading about Fort Collins as we set out to discover and explore life!

Soon, life will bring us to Michigan again, for a brief visit.  Since we have both grown up in Michigan, and are very familiar with the Great Lakes State, I plan to write a special article on Michigan.  Enjoy reading about the Big Mitten!

Thanks again for voting.  Please let us know if you want to hear about something special or have an idea for an article.

Justin and I have moved to Fort Collins, Colorado.  I now have a wonderful job as a preschool teacher and Justin is exploring various employment opportunities.

Although we are not currently living a nomadic lifestyle out of backpacks, we still have a great passion for travel and exploring the world.  The two of us are excited about where we are in life.  It’s great to live out of a backpack and pursue continual travel, but we are also excited to be in one place permanently.  Last week, on May 27th, Justin and I celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary.  Over the past 3 years we haven’t lived in one place for more than a year.  The two of us have lived an extremely nomadic lifestyle.  Feel free to check out some of our favorite cities in which we have lived in www.justinandnatalie.com

For now, Fort Collins, Colorado will prove to be our happy home as we become a part of a community and continue to build great friendships.  However, after experiencing a season of international travel, Justin and I will be unable to deny future travel adventures.  Although we are currently unable to depart on a long-term trip, the two of us will supplement our wander lust with small trips and adventures that we will mix into our current lifestyle.

Soon the You Choose poll to decide the future of www.nomadbackpackers.com will close.  At this time, we will formally announce what the plans for this website include.  I can’t wait to see the outcome!

Follow Up

The You Choose Poll results:  The outcome was for our website to be updated with cities and places we visit or live in.  

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Vote, because You Choose what will appear in the future.  It’s up to You!

The You Choose poll is located in the sidebar.  Scroll down and You Choose is on the right.  If you have a better idea, that’s great!  Email us.  We would love to hear your great ideas or advice for how www.nomadbackpackers.com should transition.

Although, we don’t know where we are going next.  We love to travel, and plan to do lots of exploring in the future.  There will still be many adventures to read about.

You Choose what is next!

On another note…

Thank you for voting in our most recent You Choose poll.  We are currently unable to explore South East Asia.  However, when we travel to South East Asia in the future, we will be sure to take part in a Multi-day elephant riding trip.

Since Our New Office is always on the go, Jason and Sara agreed to a virtual interview.  Their advice will help anyone think outside of the cubicle and dream of working, while traveling the world.

Natalie: How did you gain the necessary skills to work remotely?  Did you read lots of books?  Experiment with personal websites and online marketing?

Jason: Trial by fire. Sara and I have left multiple broken and failed websites in our wake. From these failures we have attained enough knowledge, confidence, and skills to both make money through our own websites, as well as, help others do the same.

Of course, books, education, and experience played a role as well.

Natalie: Is it difficult to work while you are traveling?  Are the distractions endless?

Sara: Generally speaking, it is a little harder to work overseas than it is at home. Internet access is often a problem, so we usually plan around that. As for distractions, while living in Denver, I was distracted by episodes of Lost and invites to happy hour.  My more recent distractions of jungle tours in Costa Rica and shoe shopping in Bangkok are just as tempting as the Denver distractions of my past. It’s all about discipline.

Natalie: Do you have a physical home to return to?  How long have you been traveling? How often do you return?

Sara: Our address is Public Storage unit #67, Denver, Colorado…we’re definitely homeless, but surprisingly we don’t miss having a home. We just miss friends and family.  Jason and I altered our lifestyle in August, 2008. We return to the states every 1-3 months to take care of business and see friends and family, and we plan on returning to the USA at the end of May for a wedding…we almost always come back for the weddings (including our own).

Natalie: Weddings are a good excuse to return (especially your own).  Is it difficult to keep new work consistently coming in?  Do you have key clients you depend on?  Are you ever concerned that work opportunities will lessen with the global economic issues?

Jason: Finding new clients is always a concern, regardless of where we are. Still, we like to think we’re doing a good job because we’re able to depend on referrals for new business. As for the economy, we’re not terribly concerned. The Internet industry is still going strong.

Sara: We plan on working remotely through the end of the year. After that – who knows. The more time we spend doing this, the easier it gets.

Natalie: It’s good to know it gets easier.  It has been fascinating to learn about your lifestyle of travel and international telecommuting.  Your lifestyle will encourage and inspire so many others to work remotely as they travel the world.  Thanks Jason and Sara!

NOTE:  The photos I have included are not actual photos of Jason or Sara working around the world.  Although, they look just as sharp while working remotely.  If you would like to see actual photos of Jason and Sara visit their gallery.

Check out Jason and Sara at Our New Office and follow their travels.  Jason’s latest travel discovery is bite-size bananas in Panama.  While Sara is savoring her natural alarm clock each morning, as the sounds of traffic, horns and car alarms wake her up in Panama.

As for Justin and I, we are sorting out our next step in life.  Thank you so much for all of the encouraging emails and topic suggestions for future articles we will consider writing.  Be sure to vote in our next poll, You Choose, coming soon!

Tom was originally diagnosed with anal cancer.  Cancer has now been found in other places throughout his body including the liver and lungs.

There are so many uncertainties in life, and health is a huge element that we cannot control.  We are not sure what the future will bring.  Although we are currently not traveling, we will pick out trip up again some time in the future. I trust that South East Asia will still be there. For the time being, I am certain our current place in life is right here, in Detroit, Michigan with family.

This is a very difficult time for Justin especially.  I am not sure what you personally believe, however we are choosing to pray to God.  You may join us in prayer for Tom as we believe he has a fighting chance.

We look forward to writing about our recent experimental transportation (the cruise ship) as well as sharing our thoughts on Singapore.  If you are currently traveling and would like to share your ideas, advice, insight or adventures, please let us know what you’ve been up too.  Justin and I will continue to post travel articles and information as we reflect on the last 6 months and plan for the future.

If there is an aspect of our backpacking journey that you would like to hear more about, please let us know.  We love to entertain questions.  Be creative.  We have had all sorts of questions, and have not been offended yet.  Hit me with your best shot.

And as for Tom, we know he is being hit hard, but fighting back hard too.  Please email us if you would like to be updated with Tom’s status, in efforts to pray for his fight against cancer.

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I think one of the best ways to select a live performance in an urban setting is on foot.  Especially, if you are unfamiliar with the city, people, or culture.  What fun!  The individual working the Box Office has no clue that you are semi-interviewing the entire theater through them.  Box Office operators beware, you are the first impression of the Friday night show contending for my consideration.  You are the face of the theater.  No stage makeup necessary. The personality of this key individual can make or break whether or not I purchase tickets.

When I walked into the Bats Theatre I knew I could experience a high energy intimate show, through their black box theater.  I asked about one of their upcoming shows, “Words Apart” only to find out it was sold out on Valentines Day evening (Feb 14th is just days away. Incase you are suddenly frantic because you forgot to do something special, breathe, you still have time).  Yeah, I was a little bummed that “Words Apart” sold out because it’s an adaptation of “Romeo and Juliet”, and it’s described as, “a young Deaf man struggles to find love in a predominantly hearing world”.  Sounds like a romantic Valentines Day activity to me.  Oh, well, I’ll have to seek out other cupid plans in Wellington (and that was cupid, the little guy with the arrows, not a stupid typo).  I could always get tickets for the night after Valentines Day, it could still be a romantic date for Justin and I.

Forgetting about the Hallmark holiday, I continued to hang out with the nice girl (it’s true, I can’t remember her name) at the ticket box and inquired about a dance intensive show that interested me.  Finally, with no theatrical conclusions made, I asked the question, “May I take a look at your black box?”. She agreed and set me loose to do some exploring.  A bit of try it before you buy it.  Who wouldn’t want to walk into the theater venue, sit in a seat, and try to imagine the type of show they wanted to see?  The options are truly endless with a black box theatre: improvisation, a series of one act plays, a poetry reading, a beat boxer, or maybe some choreography with a mix of intense lighting and sound?

As I walked into the black box, I found a few friendly Kiwi’s with hundreds of cardboard boxes.

The Purposefully Edited Version of What Happened Next:

Natalie: “Are you guys working on the set for a show?

(Natalie’s) Internal Monolog: Okay, I was right.  Man I miss theater, I’ve gotta see a show soon.  Wow, this bunch of Kiwis is way too outgoing and dynamic to be the stage crew.  No offense to my flat building buddies.

Natalie: “Are you guys the cast?”

(Natalie’s) Internal Monolog: Sweet as (that’s what Kiwis say right?), I’m meeting the cast.  La la La la La laaaaa!  Wow, they seem like fun.  I should talk Justin into seeing this show.  It will be sweet as.  There we go, now I’ve got the Kiwi convo down.  Except that it’s in my head.  Hmmmm, I better let this great cast know I am interested in the show and that I am not just drooling over their cool cardboard boxes.

Now a Word From our Sponsor: Reality

Justin and I now have tickets for the opening night performance of “Drowning Bird Plummeting Fish” presented by Binge Culture.  What fun!  I know we are going to see a unique show with an environmental awareness theme. Even the flyer a cast member handed to me was printed on re-used paper.  Needless to say, if I had not ventured by foot into the Wellington Theatre District, I would not have met the cast and bought tickets to see this show.  It counts to go by foot instead of merely browsing different theater’s websites.

Another theater I visited today, during my “interview the person at the Box Office adventure”, was the Downstage Theatre.  I’ve seen advertisements for a show called, “Turbine” all over Wellington.  Amy, at the Box Office, convinced me that I should see the show, simply by mentioning that it had first been performed at the Bats Theatre last year.  Since it did so well there, they took it to the next level.  In the end, I purchased tickets to see a special performance of “Turbine” next week which includes a post show cast discussion.  I love these opportunities to meet the cast and crew after a performance and to be able to consider different aspects of the show as a collective audience.

Since the Downstage Theatre seems to be larger and better funded than the Bats Theatre, I can only hope that more little black box shows will build to the Proscenium level in the future.  Who knows?  Maybe Binge Culture will soon present “Drowning Bird Plummeting Fish” at a Theatre near you.

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We are backpacking and plan to be on the go for a year or so.  I am choosing to participate in Blog Action Day 2008 and discuss poverty globally.  Even only a few weeks into our backpacking adventure, we have already seen glimpses of several homeless, hungry, lost individuals.  Although Rome is a beautiful historic city, their is a more painful side to all the beauty and romance, as poverty is a tragedy many Romans witness.

However, I would like to share a story from a few summers ago where I witnessed the harsh reality of poverty. I was taking classes at a university in Beijing during the summer of 2005, while big construction plans for the Olympics were still well underway.  I had just finished my last final exam (even though I was nervous I ended up getting all A’s) and planned to go for a long walk.  I walked north away from the educational district, towards the Olympic planning sites.

As I got closer, I began to see the usual construction elements, including dirt, cranes, building materials, and other large intimidating vehicles.  As I turned right onto a major road I noticed a 50×300 ft large canvas advertisement showing an image of a luxury townhouse, set up to create more high income housing in Beijing and to enhance China’s image during the Olympics.  I also noticed a small cut in the middle of the enormous canvas draped so high and so wide across an opening.

Finding myself in an adventurous mood, I decided I try to fit through the small hole and see what was occurring behind the advertisement.  As I crouched through, the air escaped my lungs and I couldn’t breath for a minute. I had never seen anything like this before.  It appeared to be a shanty town of garbage, rubble, and debris.  It was a small poor Chinese community that had grouped together and formed a type of safe haven for themselves. Only, it was barren, almost like a ghost town.  Numerous signs of the people and families that had once lived there were plainly visible, but the majority of the community had obviously evacuate as a result of the construction.  As I was walking past these abandoned shack-like homes constructed of just about everything and anything, I was in so much shock I couldn’t cry.  Then I heard a noise.  It was nearby.  Was it a wild dog, was I going to be attached by a gang of Beijing rebels, but then I saw him.  Not too far from me was a child.  A young boy.  In a box.  As I saw him I was holding my camera and did the only thing that made sense.  I took a picture.  It seemed so American, I almost hate myself for it.  But I just knew that I might be able to share it someday as a way to share the very real problem of poverty our world currently faces.

I heard someone, hopefully a parent inside, and I knew it was my time to get going.  But I think about that little boy all the time.  I wonder, where does he live now that the Olympics came in and built a stadium on his home? He would be three years older now.  Is he able to go to school?  Does he have enough food?  Safe drinkable water?  Is he still alive?  I wish I could have helped.  I wanted to do something.  It was getting late and I needed to return to my dorm for the night.  I was almost 4 miles from my University.  I feel so shameful that I did nothing.  What could I do?  I prayed.  I still pray for him and his family.

On this Blog Action Day 2008 I will also pray for the young boy and that he may grow into an adult and help our world understand poverty and the many social issues we cannot ignore.  People are suffering and struggling all around the world.  This was just one story, from one woman.

Living without my jeans is not a big deal.  Their are so many others living with far less.  What could you live without?  If you gave up that pizza, could you donate to world vision?  If you gave up your Saturday could you volunteer at a shelter in your community?  Share ideas, things that you already do to help others, or things you plan on doing in the future to help end poverty.

During my first year in high school (at 14 years old) I was able to meet some of my other cousins while visiting Rome. Luna (at the time 15 years old) and Jada (11) were so beautiful and fun. They took us to a tiny authentic restaurant where they personally knew the owners. They began to teach me the importance of getting off the beaten path while in another country. Don’t just eat where tourist eat. Be adventurous, go down a few unmarked streets with your Italian cousins, duck through a small wooden door and taste the amazing food on the other side. Needless to say, it felt incredible. I have hip, cool family in Italy and they are fun and adventurous.

Now, ten years later,as a grown woman, I was able to introduce my husband to Sabrina and Fabricio during our second evening in Rome. “Justin, these were the kids, well adults now, Fabricio (20) is now engaged and all, but I played with them at my grandma’s we swam together!”

Family holds value that cannot be measured with money or possessions. I am now able to recognize this on a whole new level. How do you place a value on spending a day with your grandma in the town she was born and grew up in? How does one comprehend creating the feeling only Christmas can bring by simply showing up? I cannot express how fortunate I am for having the opportunity to meet aunts, uncles and tons of relatives in Bagnoli del Trigno. It will be a day I will never forget. The best way to describe the joy that we experienced, is by the fact that my mother burst into tears of joy at 12 different times throughout the day.

Luna and Jada even went home (to Bagnoli) for the weekend to make wine with their dad (my uncle Basilio). So, I was able to once again spend time with my two awesome cousins now in their twenties. I do hope that we are able to meet up every decade or so. They are very special to me.

So now I sit, looking out a castle window gazing out into the Italian countryside, wondering why would anyone ever leave this? But if my grandma and grandpa had not been in America, I would not exist…

To be a woman traveling back to Italy with my grandparents considering the sacrifice and hardship they endured to make it in America, start a successful business, and all of their accomplishments. I know why they did it. It was for family!

The one strongest most motivating factor was the love that only family creates and offers.

I have translated what my Great Aunt Peurina said to us in Bagnoli, “I feel so rich, because I have all of my family here.”

She helped me comprehend the value of family a little more that day.