Summer Sojourns 2022 Looking Forward !

Many of our clients have already spirited themselves to the South of France and returned from delightful à la française seashore jaunts. Italy, Rome has hosted a flock of peeps from our Travel Tribe. One adventurous sea going client has chartered our favorite yacht for multiple experiences: Greenland, the Canary Islands, Sicily, and multiple turquoise sea Caribbean jaunts. On the horizon for fall and the holidays: Cheval Blanc in the Maldives and Le Meurice, Paris. Istanbul is hot again! My recent holiday reminded me of why all our original clients visited, we are reserving the Four Seasons in Istanbul, they still love our clients! Nothing better than a sunset yacht cruise up the Bosporus and docking at Four Seasons Aqua Terrace for a divine dinner! Did you know Aman has launched a chic outpost in New York City?

Havana, Cuba

Morocco is said to be the hottest scene for 2023, I am besotted with the country and the charming friendly people. Several clients have visited and more arrive in November for a Camel Caravan.

Morocco, embraced by the darling locals!

I once told a magazine writer I’m certain I was born with the DNA of a gypsy. For my 8th grade graduation, I coveted a small leather suitcase – at that age I never went further than my best friend’s house 4 blocks away or maybe to my grandparent’s home which was only 15 miles away. My parents surprised me with a hard-sided, stitched baby blue suitcase, lined in silky pale blue satin; a small lock and a gold key on a narrow blue ribbon guaranteed the safety of my valuables! I treasured it for my overnight getaways.

High school graduation yielded a trifecta prezzie: a full set of luggage, including a lady’s leather travel cosmetic case. I didn’t have an itinerary, in my heart, I knew adventure lay beyond the

Beatrice Wood

Avant-Garde artist and potter Beatrice Wood lived in Ojai; as a young girl, I was mesmerized by her stacks of shimmering wrist bangles, enormous ethnic silver necklaces and riotously decorated costumes – a mysterious bohemian gypsy – she truly represented uncharted territory – a different realm, somewhere far from the little burb of Ojai. Had I known she had spent time with Duchamp and lived in Paris, I might have worked up a petite bit of pluck and uttered a few words to her; but sometimes mystery is better than reality; don’t you sometimes find that to be true about people you meet?

but sometimes mystery is better than reality; don’t you sometimes find that to be true about people you meet?

Travel creates a teaching environment, we learn, we are challenged; I find travel the absolute essential antidote to everyday routines. When I pack my suitcase, I am usually completely pre-occupied with all the tasks that must be accomplished before I can escape. The ever-growing list of must do prior to departure creates some stress; slowly each item is crossed off. Lock the gates and off to the airport. On arrival at the airport lounge, I let out a sigh of relief and let the pure sense of excitement wash over me.

“To get away from one’s working environment is, in a sense, to get away from oneself; and this is often the chief advantage of travel and change.” ~Charles Horton Cooley

My comfortable routines are dismissed, and the anticipation of a new far-off destination begins to sink in. Fresh vistas, foreign languages, interesting foods, curious customs, and people in indigenous dress – seeing places I’ve never seen before. A pleasing adventure of searching new locales for client travel, the pursuit never gets old.

Istanbul

There are times certainly that the luxury of my soft little pillow is missed, the paradox of travel – the comfy reminders of home – while enjoying the adventure at hand. Certainly, the brave seafaring explorers in tall, masted ships, civilizations crossing boundless lands and seas to explore new countryside felt the tug of home. The spark of curiosity about uncharted territory overruled the dilemma experienced by all civilizations that left their comfort zones to search the world.

Chefchaouen, The Blue Pearl City of Morocco

Travel means edging out of your habitat, traversing new pathways, being alive in an unknown place, a Journey.

Wonderful to be out in the world meeting my business colleagues again!

Travel Survival Skills – Pink or Blue Currency?

Before any Journey departure, I have a long check list of what to do/what to take. Rarely do I arrive to a foreign country without local currency, VIP arrival translates to tipping, begging for unscheduled help translates to a gratuity, ie in Scotland, after 50+ days of travel, I injured my hip- I struggled with carry on bags on the tarmac at small airports – those steep stairs up to a plane in heat or rain were a challenge – local cash is always appreciated. At every airport, my pockets are stuffed with small bills. Traversing three countries with different currency presented its own challenges – memorizing each currency and value.

In Morocco the dizzying 30 day Camel Caravan Two schedule sometimes left me fatigued, my driver and I developed many code phrases for the Journey, we had a code phrase for please, let the guide go, I’m tired; for tipping, it was simple blue or pink – use the Blue currency for your gratuity. It made me slightly dependent, but it relieved me of calculating rates at the end of a strenuous hiking or sightseeing day!

Turkish Lira may prove more daunting – the 5 Lira note equals .30. When I’m on my own and language barriers are challenging, I’ve been known to just open my wallet and let people take the necessary amount, fresh oregano from a farmer provides immense pleasure when I’m home recreating a local dish – I’m sure they have never taken too many pink or blue notes.

A small spice shop in Marrakesh that I frequented would pick out coins in my wallet – currency is mostly manageable, but coins, takes me so long to read the small font, please take the coins! One of my favorite photos of me is on a country lane in France, me with wallet open ‘negotiating’ a bag of walnuts from a local farmer! I’ll never forget the experience!

Please just take the coins!

Memories and Experiences – are what I crave the most in my travel.