Boondocks travelers explore the deep crevasses of the earth searching for the world's secrets. Often ignored is the destruction of a land that offers so much beauty.
In January Haitian lives were shook to their core, by an earthquake that wiped through a population. Destruction shouldn't be a traveling deterrence, instead a traveling inspiration.
Organizations are banding together to pick up the rubble and puzzle piece the country back to a whole.
Trainings like the Disaster Volunteer Reserve prepare the courageous to face the high stress disasters they might encounter.
Alternative groups like the Burning Man bunch, known as a boisterous crew is turning up on the other end of their partying ways. Burners Without Borders is an extended group across the United States working on a number of projects reaching out to countries through volunteer work.
Delirium sets in as I spend my 6th and final day glued to the computer. I haven't seen the sun in days except for its shinning crescent peaking out to wish me a day of good studies. Any contact from the outside world comes through the looking glass as friends sitting side by side stay silently entranced in those finals they must complete. Vocal verbalizations no longer make sense as the only text I can respond to is that of a typewriter. I try to sit near a window but none of the blinds will open. People have slowly been disappearing. Once an atmosphere of chaotic frantics now a lonesome cellar discarded below the brick. Everyone's left, they're enjoying the world out there, the one I have forgotten. Is it nearly Christmas? I have lost all track of time. The dessertion is unbearable.
Traveling can be full of horrible suprises that you never expect leading to an over stressed experience that hardley left you enjoying the places you went to see. On the way to the city of sin these traveling glitches were what found me with the most rewarding experiences....
There are those times when sitting down at the computer can lead you into a spiraling adventure deeper and deeper into the crevasses of the Internet. Technological sessions that end in one's inability to blink looking up the useless nonsense that exist, yet never ceases to interest. It was during one of these time murdering moments, googling my spirit animal the Komodo dragon, that I stumbled upon Indonesia. It was then that I began my research.
I quickly found that Indonesia is the cheapest destination for travel in Asia. A thrifty spender can use as little as $15 per day. NusaTenggara is one of the least developed and least visited parts of Indonesia. The area is broken into many different regions, all which offer a different insight to the local culture. Wikitravel lists the varying subgroups of the regions.
Of the most stunning oasis in Indonesia, Borobudur offers a sight no other place in the world could boast. This fantastic temple is an extraordinary example of 8th and 9th century architecture.
From sandy beaches, to rare animals, to hidden mountain treasures Indonesia is secluded, often forgotten island of adventure and awe for those searching for adventures in the boondocks.
Every year as the seasons change from dreary spring to summer lush, and the sun finally comes out to kiss the cheeks and shoulders of North westerners, who have been left without a ray in the rainy months of winter, we band together to rock. With all the homemade tie dye they can find and festival costumes of many kinds, hippies, hipsters, punks and bros head to the Gorge for a weekend where the dancing never ends, the music never stops, and somewhere there's a Sasquatch on the loose.
Day 1 As the sun rose over the Gorge, in the hours where back at home my head would still be resting peacefully on my pillow, the sweltering heat drifted into our tent as well as the radio tunes of our ecstatically loud Canadian neighbors. We escape the righteous heat waves to be bombarded by the colorful next door characters that would be our entertainment for the following three days.
Day 2 Breakfast and some spigot cleaning left us feeling rested and ready for a pool party. Splashin' in the mini pool, sittin' pool side and blowin' bubbles at other festivalites the festivities soon lead to a corroboree of shenanigans.
A corroboree is the costumed ceremony and celebration of dancing and singing performed by the Australian Aboriginals. Introduced to me by my new Australian mate Sonya.
Tools needed for a Sasquatch Corroboree: a corroboree stick, commandeered from another's campsite, to be used at the ceremonial dance
tribal paint, used in traditional patterns to symbolize one's tribe
and of course every festival corroboree must feature a pair of festival shorts, once worn by the owner then discarded and sacrificed to ensure festival fun
Day 3 after a short stint at trying to reach the river we found a better use for the van... Loaded up with flotation devices, cooler in tow, everyone aboard, and we've instaled the perfect campground PARTY BUS!!!
Once we finally left the campgrounds, there was some music too Girl Talk's epic mixes over the Gorge at sundown, was a sea of bobbing heads.
more epic pictures from Sasquatch on the website animal collective girl talk crystal castles mos def deadmou5 erykah badu santigold
Tuesday morning and we wave a final salute to the epic weekend we call Sasquatch. Like the mythical creature I'm not quite sure if any of it was real. Maybe I'll find out next year.
Creatures of the sun are Rockstars Perched on the hills of Dolores park Like birds of paradise in a field of daisies
Creatures of the sun are Hippies Bouncing to rhythm, flowing to rhyme Dreads twirled around bassnectar beats
Creatures of the sun are Vagabonds Boisterous, accented characters Debauchery upon the magical mystery tour
Creatures of the sun are woodland Lovers Traipsing the trees, glowing in the leaves Hidden in the glittering green
Creatures of the sun are my World Floating through my bubble as it tumbles across the West Coast sky Radiating rainbow reflections on an ever changing sphere
As travel becomes increasingly more accessible the human curiosity to discover grows. These factors have put tourism at the forefront of the world’s industries.
Human curiosity has lead to another growth on the world wide scale, ecological destruction. More and more tourists must be aware of their carbon footprint, that is the excess pollution created from travelers, and the impact visitors have on sites that only a few decades ago were completely untouched by civilization.
In an effort to combine sustainability and travel a new way of seeing the world has gained increasing popularity and notoriety, ecotourism. This form of travel is a way to experience original habitats while doing beneficiary services to the area.
While many have been diving into the experiences of ecotourism companies have used the rising popularity to their advantage. Travel websites and tourist guides have recently been throwing the word ecotourism around without practicing sustainable travel measures.
GoNomadhas posted an article helping those interested in ecotourism to select companies that truly help the environment.
Ecotourism has opened up many opportunities for travelers to experience the most natural habitats. In choosing this sustaining industry when traveling it is important to understand and practice the ecotourist establishment and its fight to protect and benefit the environment.
Mad nomadic, describes my lust for travel. The world is an open book with a series of pages to delight in. Music creates the backdrop for all that I do, and words hold to, in beautiful form, those moments otherwise forgotten. Together, between memories, experience, and futures my life is a twisted canvas with abundant space for creation.
Boondocks travelers explore the deep crevasses of the earth searching for the world's secrets. Often ignored is the destruction of a land that offers so much beauty.
