Brave New Traveler

archives: Life

Not Everyone Will Become A Surf Goddess (And Why That’s Okay)

Nothing wrong with having dreams. Just make sure they're the right ones for you. [...]

The (Next) 50 Most Inspiring Travel Quotes Of All Time

Good travel quotes are markers on the path of life. [...]

Graveyard Travel: How To Celebrate Life By Visiting The Dead

They're not just for dead people anymore. [...]

How Travel Challenges The Acceptance Of Inequality

Pondering life through a surf experience in Peru. [...]

Why Travel Is Most Valuable When Shared

What comes after your long-awaited journey?  [...]

5 Unique Ways To Avoid Depression On The Road

Every traveler gets a little down sometimes. Here's how to get your groove back. [...]

Why Travelers Should Spend Time Instead Of Money

Forget dropping wads of cash. Make sure you stay longer. [...]

Discovering The Hidden Nation Of Soul-Seekers

Where there's no place to call home. [...]

How To Understand (And Beat) Your Homecoming Hangover

Because there's no place like home. [...]

Travel Is About Who You Meet, Not Where You Go

We all dream of meeting that person who has the key to the city's door and is willing to open it.  [...]

Warning: Do You Practice These Travel Superstitions?

Don't worry, we won't tell anyone. [...]

The Most Valuable Thing You Can Pack On The Journey

And it won't fit in your backpack either. [...]

What Would You Give For Your Traveler’s Moment?

Your moment is out there - you just have to find it. [...]

Lessons Of Hope From “The Kid” Of Saigon

Grace Kim finds sorrow and hope abroad, in the guise of Charlie Chaplin's Tramp and The Kid. [...]

Does The Internet Cheapen Your Travel Experience?

Jacob Bielanski asks, "Does the internet cheapen your travel experience?" [...]

The 50 Most Inspiring Travel Quotes Of All Time

Stuck in a travel rut? Jumpstart your lust with these inspiring travel quotes. [...]

Does The World Discriminate Against Disabled Travelers?

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Being a disabled traveler involves challenges many others don [...]

Found In Translation: Why Travel As A Teenager Is The Best Education

When I first arrived in Tokyo, I was sick, lost, and alone. I was also fifteen years old. This was my first of many extended trips for work (I̵ [...]

5 Dreams You Could Experience While Traveling (And What They Mean)

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Your dreams on the road can offer insight into yourself and your [...]

4 Lessons Learned From The Vagabond Life

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} I struggled to define myself. Was I a vagabond? An unemployed 20- [...]

Divine Inspiration: How Travel Teaches Us To Appreciate Humanity

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Knowing ourselves and our communities, and seeing them in unison [...]

The 7 Enigmas of Travel

Travel produces a special feeling - one that can’t be replicated by any other means. When a person anticipates traveling or is en-route, a dif [...]

Does Amazon’s “Kindle” Signal The Death Of The Traveling Paperback?

I work in the publishing industry, and I’m also an avid reader - so it’s no wonder I’ve been knee deep in Kindle speculation for the [...]

Punk To Police: Globalization From The Eyes Of A Chinese Expat

I once had a university professor who I will describe as “mentally diverse.” She was my favorite professor, although you never knew when [...]

Christmas Compassion: Reflections From the Holidays

The holiday season. It arrives with festivities and departs with similar flair. Goodbye…and please do not return until next year. Christmas ha [...]

Handup Or Handout? The Case Against Micro-Loans

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Is the principal effect of micro-lending to further hook people i [...]

Reflections From A Female Solo Traveler

Ever since I began traveling solo at age 19, I’ve been told the same thing over and over: traveling alone as a woman is dangerous. Many people [...]

From Traveler To Tourist In 5 Easy Steps

A good mate of mine is a travel snob. I don’t mean he only flies first class and only stays in five star hotels - quite the opposite. His snobb [...]

How To Handle The Guilt Of Your Over-Consumptive Culture

Everything takes getting used to. Whether it’s sleeping on the street with your family, saying ‘no’ to beggars, fasting for days, f [...]

Do You Know What’s Crawling In Your Hostel Shower?

There are few things in the world that are universal. You might think showering is one of them. How many variations could there be? The answer - mo [...]

6 Simple Ways To Beat The Post-Travel Blues

Several years ago I spent seven months living in France. The country of baguettes, berets and brie became my new home. One day however, I was forced [...]

Beauty Is In The Ride Of The Beholder

My idea of camping is staying in a hotel room without room service and a wall-mounted blow dryer. Give me a clean hotel room with 400 thread count she [...]

How To Decide What To Be When You Grow Up

So it’s here - the time of your life when you’re being steered towards ‘the big decision.’ Namely, “what shall I do wit [...]

How To Pick Your Perfect Profession

In German class recently we covered how to talk about what you do for a living. There’s an expression that means, roughly, by profession - ̶ [...]

The Mysterious Origins of the Travel Bug

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Where did the first person get their inspiration to head out into [...]

Don’t Judge An Experience Until You’ve Surfed It

Photos by Evan Welo I wasn’t sure that I would be able to recognize him; but his Volkswagen hippie van was unmistakable. It sputtered up to us [...]

The Hardest Part Of A Journey Is Coming Home

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Leaving home inevitably means you must return…someday. Aft [...]

Top 10 Things I Miss About Traveling (But Hated At The Time)

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} On the road, it’s easy to get caught up in the day to day [...]

A Newbie’s Guide To Surfing

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Surfing isn’t just an activity - it’s a life philos [...]

Matt Harding’s Moral Dilemma

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} In the vast desert ruins of Morroco, Matt ponders the mirage of  [...]

The Secret To Avoiding Beggars

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} You too, can avoid beggars with this simple, effective technique [...]

Real Travel: In Search Of Authenticity

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} In an age of commodified culture and globalization, does true au [...]

Greatest. Roadtrip Soundtrack. Ever.

Austalia in the spring of 2002. Somewhere on the Great Ocean Road, sitting on a bus with other like-minded backpackers as part of the Oz Experience  [...]

How To Escape An Undesirable Travel Mate

.post .storycontent .subtitle { width: 52%; float: left; margin-right: 3%;} Traveling is all about meeting people on the road. But what ha [...]

We Are All Tourists Now

In the spring of 2002, I spent two weeks trekking though the Australian Outback. Our party included myself, a retired naval officer for a guide, and [...]

What You Think Probably Won’t Kill You

Last December, while planning for my trip to Thailand, I remember telling my mom where I was headed. Her first reaction was “No, you can’ [...]

Get BNT by Email



Jump To Category:


Explore the Community


Latest Blogs

  • It's been over a year now since I left Puerto Rico and as I look back from time to time I cant help but remember the thi...
    » posted on 11 October 2008
  • I'm gazing out of a window at a sky which has no clouds but is still fuzzy and murky and grimy nonetheless, despite the ...
    » posted on 12 October 2008
  • Endless surf. Salty sweat dripping down hot skin. Soft sand between your toes. These are just some of the images that c...
    » posted on 11 October 2008