All articles, tagged with “travel”

I’ve always liked this timeless quote by Lao Tzu:

“Only those who know internal peace can give it to others.”

It’s a great gift to give peace to others. It’s become one of my dominant intentions. What about you?

I’m not sure about New Year’s resolutions, but if I have one for this year, I think that quote embodies the essence of how I wish to live life in 2012 and beyond.

As I write this post, I’m sitting in our travel trailer following a week long vacation to Florida’s west coast. The two of us had a wonderful time with our cats in the warm weather at the beach. We took photos, shot video, read books, watched sunrises and sunsets while enjoying moments of blissful leisure.

It’s easy to experience internal peace under such external circumstances.

Here’s where it gets interesting.

I’m happy (and somewhat surprised) to say that I still feel peaceful even though yesterday took an unusual turn for us. We were driving though Orlando, Florida on our way home when our “check engine” light came on. After consulting the manual, we decided to find a nearby dealership and get the code checked.

The diagnosis was surprisingly pessimistic. We were told that our transmission would fail and that we may or may not make it home to Ohio.

Guess what? it failed…20 minutes before we arrived at our destination in South Carolina on pitch black roads on New Year’s Eve. With an overheating van, erratic shifting and not much around, it was easy to feel stressed.

We hobbled to our destination and managed to hook up the trailer when it dawned on us that we weren’t sure how to get home or when we will be able to do so.

The odd thing is that we felt a certain sense of calm. We suddenly had no idea what we would do on New Year’s Day and there was a certain freedom to that realization. No car dealerships or repair places are open on a New Year’s Day that is a Sunday, so we were “carte blanche” (blank slate) for the first time in many years.

When is the last time you had a day in which you were totally unsure about how it would unfold? Does that make you nervous or does that seem appealing? How many of us would choose such a day?

We didn’t choose it, but it has really opened my eyes to a new perspective. I’m an improviser who began learning how to create spontaneous jazz piano solos around the age of 12. But, I’ve come to realize that improvisation in the creative practice does not always lead to improvisation in day to day living.

I think the peace I feel right now comes from the fact that there was no plan and total surrender today. This was a big lesson and I plan to employ that wisdom.

I felt compelled to share this story, perhaps to inspire others to consider ways to experience internal peace regardless of external circumstances.

Peace and joy to you in 2012!

Greg, our two traveling cats and I spent Canadian Thanksgiving weekend (2nd weekend in October) on the Canadian side of the Thousand Islands in Ontario. We were enthralled by the quiet beauty and uniqueness of the area.

There are around 1865 islands in a 50 mile span of the St. Lawrence River and Lake Ontario that vary greatly in size. Some smaller ones have a charming house or two on them with small bridges connecting a couple tiny islands. Imagine living on your own private island! The Iroquois referred to this area as “Garden of the Great Spirit”. And this IS where Thousand Island dressing was created.

We accessed the Thousand Islands from Gananoque, ON, a lovely little town (pop. 5285) about midway between Toronto and Montreal. We were so impressed by the friendliness of the people. The optimal time to see Fall colors is generally the 3rd weekend in October. Here are some of our trip highlights and links for more info:

In order to see the islands, it’s best to take a boat cruise. The Gananoque Boat Line offers journeys of various lengths including a 5-hour Boldt Castle Stopover Cruise. The 1-hour cruise ($20 per person) was a perfect length for us. We happened upon the boat just as it was departing and since we missed the ticket counter, the dockhand trustingly let us on without tickets. We did buy them afterwards, and it saved us a 1.5 hr. wait for the next boat. The Gan Boat Line gift shop was offering 40% off most items for the holiday, and the cashier was very informative about the area.

For lunch, the gift shop cashier recommended the Ganonoque Inn and Spa for their waterfront view and wi-fi. We tried one of the Inn’s restaurants, Muskie Jake’s, which features delicious casual fare and generous portions. Try the lemon beer-battered fish and chips or veggie wrap. For Thanksgiving weekend, they serve a special all-inclusive turkey dinner for $20 on Sunday night by reservation only. Good deal!

Only 25 minutes away, Kingston sports a pretty waterfront reminiscent of Vancouver’s marina with some nice pubs along the river.

Visit 1000 Islands Gananoque for places to stay, like the picturesque Athlone Inn, and more activities. For campers, there are many nice resorts, including 1000 Islands Camping Resort which is quiet, pretty and has full hook-ups. The 1000 Islands/Ivy Lea KOA has Thanksgiving dinner and Trick or Treat this weekend, but it books up early.

If you want to access this area from upstate New York, click on Visit 1000 Islands.

Happy travels!

So, we decided to take a road trip this year.

We just drove 35 hours in an RV with our cats, from Cleveland to Canmore, Alberta (in the Canadian Rockies). We did the drive in 2.5 days.

What a different experience to drive through all the places you miss when flying 30,000 feet above the Earth. I suppose a comparison would be walking through a neighborhood to observe the details, as opposed to driving past with your eyes on the road.

Anyway, here are a few photos from our first day along the beautiful Bow River. Up to the minute images are available on our Facebook page (click here to follow the journey).