I couldn’t figure out why I was so nervous about this trip. It wasn’t nearly as exotic as any of my recent travels, and I was even going with friends. Sitting in the airport waiting for my flight, I realized the culprit as a loudspeaker blared over and over again: “We are at an orange…
At an extremely young age, armed with nothing more than sheer determinism and very few bucks she had saved along the way, the always fiercely independent Lala left the town she had called home. She landed In NYC with no clue where she would go, no apartment, no hook ups or any friends, so a…
by Swapna Dutta I had always wanted to visit Nainital, a popular summer retreat in north India. Located in the state of Uttaranchal at an altitude of 1,938 meters, it was not too far from Delhi where I lived. So when an official job required my presence there I jumped at the chance. Though said…
Estara is a Sound Healing and Movement Educator, Sacred Dance Artist, Vocal Ceremonialist and Author. Estara integrates over 15 years of experience in energy healing and transformational modalities. She gives presentations at conferences and leads workshops and retreats in vibrational healing, teaching her breakthrough system of integrating breath, movement, and sound. She also leads women’s…
Holly Payne is a novelist and screenwriter living in San Francisco. She is the author of two novels, The Virgin’s Knot and The Sound of Blue. “The Virgin’s Knot” is the critically acclaimed story of a magically gifted Turkish woman whose faithful virgin hands create prized dowries for lucky brides, something that the weaver herself…
by Deborah Smith The most amazing trip I ever took was my first Backroads (www.backroads.com) trip to Bali. I had been making plans with a girlfriend to get away for a week or so. She found the Backroads web site, where they advertised multi-sport tours ranging from easy to challenging. The Bali trip included biking,…
by Jill Richardson, Granola Diva Ordering Chinese food in China is a job best done by experts. One of my Chinese friends tells me she thinks the oldest person at the table orders for everyone because it requires age and experience to acquire the necessary skill. Never was this more apparent than during my first…