There was nothing scarier for me after the decision to travel around the world than the aspect of leaving my career.

For 20 years I had identified myself by my career and the idea of leaving terrified me. I’ve written a lot about this internal turmoil and the resulting feelings a year later.

One of the many aspects I had to confront, and I am sure you are wrestling with as well, is how do I leave my job gracefully and when do I tell them. There have been jobs in my past where I wanted just to light a match, set it to the kindling, and burn the bridge in spectacular fashion. Trust me when I tell you that the corresponding elated and satisfied feeling will die away quickly when you see the impact in has on your career prospects.

Assuming you are looking for a less incendiary departure, here are a few suggestions:

About the author:
Warren Talbot and his wife Betsy quit their jobs and sold everything they owned to travel the world in 2010. You can learn more about how to Live the Good Life at their blog, Married with Luggage. In addition, their new digital guide Dream Save Do: The Step-by-Step Blueprint for Amassing the Cash to Live Your Dream provides you with the inspiration and process to save for your dream.

Most of us would never have heard of Nagasaki had it not been for a few rogue clouds. On the morning of August 9th 1945 an American B-29 bomber carrying a nuclear bomb with the code name “Fat Man” was circling over the city of Kokura, its intended target. A late covering of cloud had obscured the city from the bomber crew and was preventing them from releasing their lethal cargo.

Running short of fuel they switched to their secondary target, the industrial port city of Nagasaki. Even Nagasaki may have been spared, with more clouds covering the city and forcing the pilots to consider dropping their bomb at sea. But fortunately for the crew (and tragically for the city’s inhabitants) a last-minute break in cloud cover gave the crew the opportunity they needed.

At 11.02 the second American atomic bomb to be dropped on a Japanese city detonated over the northern Nagasaki suburb of Urakami. That the hypocentre was around 3km north of the intended point probably saved many lives although 75,000 were killed instantly or as a direct result of the bomb. The city lies at the bottom of a valley and many of Nagasaki’s buildings were shielded from the blast thanks to the city’s topography.

A visit to the Atomic Bomb Museum in Nagasaki provides a powerful insight into the events of 1945. Visitors are shown ruins from Urakami Cathedral which stood only a short distance from the hypocentre and where mass was taking place at the moment the bomb fell. All were killed and the building was completely destroyed, but a few poignant personal objects were later recovered.

The museum then focuses on the lives of those affected by the bomb. It recalls stories of the people who survived and the hellish aftermath that the city became in the subsequent days. The accounts are difficult to absorb, yet from many of the stories a spirit of hope and resilience shines through, along with constant pleas for future world peace. The exhibits of the final hall looks at the global nuclear arms race, the effects of nuclear testing in the Pacific and questions the role of a nuclear deterrent as a force for world peace in the future.

Outside of the museum, the hypocentre is clearly marked with a black stone memorial in a small enclosed park, while the newly built Urakami Cathedral is worth a visit. A few original artifacts are kept outside the modern building, while to the side a large section of the church that fell onto a grass bank in the atomic destruction has been left untouched.

The Nagasaki Peace Park is dominated by a giant statue created by sculptor Seibou Kitamura. Around the park are various memorials given to the city as an gift of friendship, mainly by the ex-communist states of Eastern Europe.

It is only natural to compare a visit to Nagasaki with one to Hiroshima, especially having visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial only two days earlier. The area around the Hiroshima Peace Park is wide and flat giving a sense of space and openness. The Nagasaki sites on the other hand are dotted around the slopes of Urakami and are very much within a residential area. Walk from the museum to the Peace Park or to the cathedral and you’ll be passing homes, offices and busy streets. Everything appears, on the surface at least, reassuringly normal. While the Hiroshima site has developed buildings and an infrastructure to cater for the huge crowds that visit, Nagasaki feels a lot more intimate and an integral part of the surrounding modern city.

I liked Nagasaki as a city very much. Beyond the atomic bomb monuments it is a very pleasant port city with a trendy harbour area, several grand old buildings and plenty of evidence of its strong multi-faith roots (the city had been the centre of Japanese Christianity for many hundreds of years and had withstood a lengthy period of persecution).

Within three days we had been to Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the two places in the world where humans have used their scientific knowledge to unleash a instrument of the most devastating power on their fellow men. As our train pulled out of Nagasaki station I’m sure I wasn’t the first to reflect on the hope that I never have the opportunity to visit another place that has suffered the fate shared by these two Japanese cities.

Nagasaki and the Atomic Bomb Museum is a post from: 501 Places

Welcome to round 62 of ‘Meet a Random Traveller’. The series dedicated to bring attention to fantastic people all around the world doing their thing.

Random Traveller 62

Who are you?
My name is Kate McCulley and I run Adventurous Kate.  I’m a twenty-something from Boston, Massachusetts, and I decided to trade my pleasant but unfulfilling life for travel and online entrepreneurship.  I quit my job in fall 2010 to travel Southeast Asia for six months.  Those six months passed…and I haven’t gone back to the corporate world.  I’ve become a full-fledged digital nomad, and I travel full-time — though I’ve been spending quite a bit of time in the UK these days!

What’s the deal?
Adventurous Kate, first and always, is a solo female travel blog. My goal is to show women that solo travel can be safe, cheap and a lot of fun! I also write a lot about my adventures, from the death-defying (surviving a shipwreck in Indonesia) to the disgusting (drinking snake blood and bile in Vietnam) to the incredibly stupid (fighting Muay Thai in a bar and having a bloody eye for three weeks). I try not to say no to anything, and that inevitably leads to some crazy stories.

It was great meeting you in Bangkok but how are you finding being away from the backpacker scene in SE Asia, does anywhere compare?
Nothing compares to the backpacker scene in Southeast Asia. I miss it so much — not just the backpacker scene, but the Southeast Asia lifestyle — living cheap, eating street food on a tiny stool on a sidewalk, basking in the glorious sun and humidity, cheap massages all the time. People who live in Southeast Asia really have it figured out.

Being a Brit I am of course very happy to see you falling in love with my home, What is it about the place you like? Tell me it’s brown sauce!
It’s funny — I actually fell in love with the culture first, and I did it while in Asia! Most of my travel companions were British, and I grew to love British culture through them. One of those travel companions was a lovely English lad whom I met in Vietnam. We’ve been together since, and I’ve been spending a lot of time with him in his hometown of Chester. Spending so much time in the UK has given me a great appreciation for British culture. I love the humor and its omnipresence. I love the language and the funny expressions. I love how green everything is, especially when viewed from a train. I love the pubs and their real ales, and I love the food. And yes, that includes brown sauce on full English breakfasts!

What’s Next?
This November, I’ll be landing in the Middle East for the first time, exploring Jordan and Turkey. After that, my plans are up in the air — and that’s how I love it! Lately, I’ve been tending to travel wherever an opportunity presents itself, and I hope opportunities bring me back to Southeast Asia soon. Or at least somewhere warm, cheap and amazing! Until then, I’ll be enjoying myself here in the UK.

A big thanks to Kate for taking part, great to have you.

Be sure to check her out:
Blog: Adventurous Kate
Twitter: @adventurouskate
Facebook: /Adventurouskate

Fancy being Random Traveller #63? Contact us.

Random Travel Interview #62 with Kate from Adventurous Kate -

"Eh Celeste poria ia 'oe!"

This means "Celeste, you're fat," and I'm frequently greeted this way by female Tahitian friends I haven't seen in awhile.

It's not a compliment. In the past rotundity may have been a sign of beauty for Tahitian women but the Western world has seeped in too deeply and now most people would prefer to be skinny. But the conversation starter has stuck and, unless you look almost sickly thin, or you're a known athlete, people will probably tell you you've put on weight or at least "haven't got any fatter." In a way it's like saying you look healthy and happy even though you're not going to win any beauty pageants.

No one means offence by these comments but I still don't like being told I'm fat. I always get offended -- I can't help it -- but I let it go as a cross-cultural faux pas I'm only aware of on my end.

And this has got me thinking about other similar small talk that Westerners find uncouth.

In Indonesia and Malaysia the classic conversation starter is "Where are you going?"

This question isn't meant to be answered literally although most Westerners don't know that so feel it's invasive.

"Why is it this guy on the street's business where I'm going?" people ask.

It's not, so just answer vaguely with something like the classic "jalan jalan," which means just wandering around.

In the same vein if you asked an Indonesian "How are you?" they'd find it weird. It's a pretty intimate question if you think about it. Why would you casually ask about someone's mental state? It's a big can of worms if you attempt to answer it honestly.

In China common small talk may start with "Have you eaten?" I like this one (perhaps because I'm poria). It insinuates getting invited in for a meal or going to eat somewhere yummy, although it's more of a polite thing to say than attached to any real expectations.

These are just a few and I'm sure there are many more examples of funny conversation starters from around the world. Please leave some in the comments! I'd love to hear from you.

This Photo Friday was submitted by Rhonda & Jim Delameter, whose career break in 2007-08 took them through 19 countries, including Namibia where this photo was taken.

“We had a year of superlatives…birthdays on the Great Barrier Reef and floating the Nile. Thanksgiving on the beach in Bali. Christmas with tens of thousands of Vietnamese dressed as Santa in Hanoi. New Years Eve on the shore of the Mekong and Valentines day watching the sunrise at the Taj Mahal. The highlight was getting up long before dawn to hike the worlds highest sand dunes in Namibia on our 18th anniversary to watch the sun come up over Africa.”

We will be sharing more about Rhonda & Jim’s career break (and future plans) in the coming weeks, but couldn’t wait to share this awe-inspiring photo.

Have you celebrated an important milestone during your travels?

Want to see your photo here? Check out our easy submission policy!

 

I had someone recently ask me how I do my laundry since I’m nomadic and constantly traveling.  Quite frankly I do my laundry any way I can; in the sink, in a washing machine, at the laundromat, or have someone do it for me for the right price.  My travel clothes have little numbers written on all of the tags from when I leave my bag of dirty clothes with a random lady to do my wash; the numbers help them keep track of all of the different bags of laundry they do.

No matter where you are from in the world – every person has to do laundry.  However they way we do laundry certainly varies from country to country.    This is my collection of laundry around the world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Serendipity is when someone finds something that they weren’t expecting to find. This is normally associated with a good outcome – something pleasant and unexpected. However I had the pleasure and misfortune of experiencing travel serendipity twice on the same day – the day I arrived in Hawaii.

I’m on the move again; albeit for a short time (3 weeks). Quite honestly I had to get out and explore again. As much as I absolutely love seeing friends and family in the US and evangelizing about Meet Plan Go and extended travel, I can’t find my inspiration or happiness there. I yearn to be moving and exploring; I sometimes feel like this is a curse, but you can’t really change the fiber of your being, so instead I try to work with it.

Surprisingly I’ve never been to Hawaii before, yet I have passed over it many times at 30,000 feet. Recently while in London I met up with an old friend from my corporate past as he was traveling this summer. He was my old assistant who worked for me in my past corporate life. And I can safely say he was my favorite assistant I ever worked with; and I’m not just saying that because he’s also a fellow Aquarius and former pastry chef. He brought life and levity to my daily corporate existence and most importantly he put up with my type A insanity while also baking me strawberry cakes.

Ron lives in Hawaii now with his partner Mark. He has invited me numerous times to Hawaii, and finally I bit. I really needed a break from the US…yes, yes, yes…I know that Hawaii is the US – stop hyperventilating; honestly, it doesn’t really feel like it. It’s this weird laid-back island with seemingly more Asian influence than American influence. Plus – he offered the icing on the cake – “You can stay with us at our house and we have an extra car to use.” I know that you don’t pass up staying with a local, free lodging, and transportation in Hawaii! So I escaped to the turquoise water and welcoming smiles of Ron and Mark.

I arrived at the baggage claim to Hawaiian leis and hugs from Ron. I was a bit stunned, as I wasn’t expecting to see him at baggage claim. Nowhere in America, or most other countries, do they allow non-passengers into baggage claim. Hawaii is different apparently. We waited for my bag picked, I pointed to it, Ron picked it up and away we went chatting away and out the door into the hot Hawaiian climate.

Ron is an avid reader of Ottsworld and knows me quite well from my life prior to Ottsworld so when I arrived in his home he pointed out that he had plenty of Diet Coke and peanut butter for my 2 week stay. This was the best welcome ever! We quickly put down my bag and took the car out exploring around Kailua where Ron and Mark live.
Soon we were winding around volcanic cliffs and peering out on the glistening ocean. I was once again reminded of how amazing it is to travel with a local in tow as Ron took me to little secret spots, tucked away behind million dollar homes to photograph the sunset; locations which don’t exist in guidebooks. As we were walking down one of the public access pathways to another picture perfect view serendipity intervened. Coming up the path was a familiar face – the only other person I knew in all of Hawaii – Yen, our Meet Plan Go Honolulu host.

We all stared at each other in amazement. I had planned on seeing her later in the week, but I had never planned to serendipitously run into her on a remote part of Oahu. Ok universe…I’m listening now…

We chatted excitedly we made plans to see each other the next day for some hiking and afterward Ron and I continued our secret, local, sunset tour. We arrived back at the house to make meet Mark and go to dinner, but before we left I wanted to quick freshen up as I was sweaty and had been on the go since I arrived at the airport!

That’s when serendipity #2 hit me. I went to my suitcase to unlock it and get my toiletries and I was greeted by a lime green lock. Wait a minute…that’s not my lock.

My first reaction to the imposter green lock was that TSA had inspected my bag and put the wrong lock back on – damn TSA! Immediately my mind was racing on how I could cut it off and tweet my dissatisfaction with them. Then slowly the fog started to lift; I looked at the bag and realized that I had made the stupidest traveler mistake ever. I had picked up the wrong bag and taken it with me!

My heart sank in embarrassment as I searched for the United Baggage number to call with my tail between my legs trying to rectify the situation. The bag was exactly the same as mine – but in my excitement around seeing Ron in the baggage claim I completely got out of my normal routine and didn’t check for tags. As I listened to the phone ring I realized they probably didn’t care about this excuse. I also realized that they had been trying to call me during the day but I hadn’t picked up because it said it was a blocked number and I was too busy touring around!

Mark and Ron demonstrated their hospitality and aloha spirit by driving me and someone elses luggage all the way back to the airport on the other side of the island. I thought to myself – how can I call myself a professional traveler; I made the biggest rookie mistake ever. I guess it goes to show you that even ‘professionals’ have a bad day…see the Cubs Franchise if you don’t believe me.

It was an eventful welcome to Oahu full of unexpected experiences. I can hardly wait to see what the next 3 weeks brings!

I’ve filled up the rest of my time here with some great travel experiences which I will bring you over the next weeks. And I will be testing out the theory of if Hawaii can be a solo, and not super expensive travel destination or not. Staying with locals is a good start to the experiment! Stay tuned for Shark cage diving (doing this today!!), photo safaris, star gazing, lots of hiking, manta ray snorkeling, and hopefully even some cattle herding. I have a lot planned for Hawaii – so stay tuned!

Have you ever made a stupid rookie travel mistake – please tell me about it to make me feel better!

On my recent visit to South Korea I was fortunate enough to tour along the Demilitarised Zone in South Korea. At Imjingak where the Freedom Bridge is located there are millions of prayer ribbons tied to the fence which I’m told have messages of hope, dreams and wishes for unification between North and South Korea.

Even though I couldn’t read a word of what was written on them, I know they carry with them a small message of hope that one day we might all be able to just get along.

Related posts:

1. Eating Out In South Korea
2. Blog Tripping to the Korean Grand Prix

Thanks for checking out my post - Prayer Ribbons At The DMZ South Korea. For more of the same head on over to my blog The Aussie Nomad and check out all of my other travel articles.

If you attended one of our nationwide events, chances are you heard some inspiring stories from veteran career breakers. You may have even met some like-minded individuals who have similar dreams as you. That powerful combination may have helped to motivate you to realize you can make a career break happen for yourself. But…now what?

Before I departed on the Mongol Rally, when I told people about what I was doing this summer they were surprised, but consistently it was one topic about the epic road trip that fascinated people most. It wasn’t the inappropriate car or the length of the trip. It wasn’t the fact that my team had no mechanical knowledge. It was simply the team dynamics.

“You are going to ride for 5 weeks in a car with people you don’t know?!” said in an incredulous tone as if I had announced I was going to Mars to plant Christmas trees this summer.

So – here it is…what you’ve all been waiting for…the post on how 4 strangers drove 8500 miles in a car together…the good, the bad, and the ugly.

Let me just start this by recanting what one participant on another team told me during the rally. She had actually done the rally with her husband 4 years prior and they were doing it again this year. She said,

“It’s not mechanical issues that normally trip up teams, it is the team relationships and dynamics.”

She told me this as one of their team members flew home that morning due to that precise issue. Quite frankly, hearing that made me feel better as our team dynamics certainly weren’t all chirping birds, butterflies, and wildflowers every day.

The Good

The best times were drinking wine, vodka, and beer (no surprise) and simply hanging out camping or in one of our apartment rentals talking about our parents and families. Since we were all about the same age, it was amazing how many things we had in common.

I remember one of my favorite nights was camping in Kazakhstan. The men retired early and Deb and I stayed up chatting and drinking beer underneath the expansive star display. I loved how open and honest we could be with each other.

When we clicked…we clicked; especially at border crossings. We did a good job of dividing responsibilities most days. Because we were pretty well traveled and independent already – we were efficient and generally we all had roles. Dave changed tires and managed the camp stove. Deb constantly was in charge of petrol and cooking meals. Rick provided humor and did dishes. And I worked on figuring out lodging in our next location most of the time.
We also were able to teach each other new things about blogging and tools we used. I think all of use came away with new tips and knowledge that we didn’t have before!

The Bad

Rick, Dave, Deb and I didn’t really know each other very well at all, but we had all had little hints into our personalities during the course of planning over the last year via skype. However what we didn’t plan for is that those hints would turn out to be full blown issues when in a car with the same people day in and day out.

One of the biggest hurdles we had to deal with is that we all had very different travel styles. I came from a solo background where I controlled everything myself. I never have to ask anyone what I should do or where I should go – I just do what I want.
Dave and Deb travel as a couple normally. They know each other so well that they barely have to even ask one another what the other thinks! Rick hadn’t traveled extensively outside the US at all and he certainly hadn’t done much independent travel where roughing it and split second decisions were necessary.

And the biggest hurdle for us was the fact that for all of us – we had to constantly make decisions about our journey every day, hour, and sometimes minute. Those decisions would need to be discussed and scrutinized by the other teams members because they would affect all of us. The majority of our time when we travel many decisions are made for us – certainly when it comes to press trips or tours. But now we were faced with where to stay each night, how to get there, which road to take, who would drive, how much gas do we get, etc. And everyone’s personality and level of tolerance was different…this is a difficult recipe for success.

 

The Ugly

From the beginning I had said I went on this trip because it scared me. I really didn’t know if I could do it. Driving in other countries has always intimidated me. More often than not my scaredy-cat personality would come out in the form of worry. I felt like my mother sometimes…but I couldn’t help it. Did it annoy and effect my teammates, yes. Did we argue about it…yes. Did we make up…yes.

Traveling with Rick was like traveling with Bill Clinton. I say that mainly because he sounds just like him! However I quickly realized that he was sort of like Clinton in other ways too – you could never really nail him down on anything! He was soooooo easy going that he didn’t really have an opinion. In this rally world where lots of decisions needed to be made, having one person opt out of the decisions made for a tense time. Did it annoy and effect the team…yes. Did we argue about it…yes. Did we make up…well…most of the time!

I learned midway through the rally that Dave and Deb had a big concern about team dynamics. They wanted to make sure they didn’t always appear ‘teamed up’ or on the same side. They didn’t want it to be the Dave/Deb show and overpower the team – especially when the majority of the time it was only the 3 of us making decisions. It was actually great to hear that they had put that much thought into it. However since they were trying so hard not to dominate the decisions, it sort of backfired as I never really knew what they wanted to do or when they were backing down because they didn’t want to appear too pushy. There were times when I needed them to be pushy and push me out of my scaredy-cat ways – but they backed down. Did we fight about it…yes. Did we resolve it…yes. Did we make up…yes.

The one thing that you could always count on is that Deb would speak her mind. I found it refreshing and challenging at the same time. Yet I know that I’d rather be around a person where I know exactly where I stand as opposed to being back-stabbed. It pushed me to stand up for myself and my opinion at times. And the best part is that she appreciated the push back.

I don’t think I need to get into all of the details of every bad moment…we certainly had some. There were tears, there was yelling, there was talk of quitting and going home. We were all frustrated with each other on some days; who wouldn’t be?!

Are we still friends?

Just like anything in life – there are ups and downs and you will be thrown challenges. Imagine being in a car with 3 of your work colleagues for 5 weeks – how do you think you’d fare?

The important thing is that we are all still friends and quite frankly I miss them!  It’s strange to go from every day together to nothing. I think it’s a testament to the type of people we are that we can go through such an adventure and still remain friends! Rick had to go home early to catch a flight, but Dave, Deb, and me ended up really bonding then; they felt like siblings by the time we got to Ulaanbaatar! I love them, yet we can all frustrate the hell out of each other too – just like any good sibling relationship! But I know that the bond we built together will last us a lifetime.

Would I travel with them again? Hell yes!

 

Have you ever traveled with strangers?  What were the challenges?