Prompt #10: At what point in your travels have you felt most in tune with the Earth? Share a story of how you interacted with the local environment or nature.

“”I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately, to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die, discover that I had not lived.” –Henry David Thoreau

I feel most in tune with nature when I’m both experiencing it’s beauty visually and doing something physical, like hiking or surfing. It’s probably a combination of endorphins and the reward of doing something “difficult” that makes being in nature seem like even a bigger payoff while exercising.

In October of 2008, I was in Imlil, a small village in the High Atlas Mountains, in Morocco. Imlil is the base for treks up Mt Toubkal (the highest mountain in Northern Africa). Although we started out freezing when we left in the morning, it warmed up a bit by the afternoon as we hiked through the valley. It was breathtaking (the view and the hiking) as we hiked up the rocky paths below the snow-covered High Atlas mountains. Passing goats and herders, we finally reached the “hut” area had a snack and then turned around to go home. It felt so good to get out in nature and see a different side of Morocco that I hadn’t experienced yet.

And after a couple days of no showers, it was also nice to find a hammam in town after a long hike.

Where do you feel closest with nature?

Join the 30 Days of Indie Travel project and share your story.

1. groupon – how cool is Groupon? OK, this week’s deals have completely sucked, but maybe that’s a good thing, as I’ve bought way too many deals lately — really, you can never have too many home goods and massages though. Plus, it’s awesome getting a $10 credit when a friend buys something. groupon

2. striped knee socks – Japan officially has the coolest sock selection. I bought a pair of striped knee socks when I was in Tokyo, and they’re my absolute favorite socks — perfect for winter and they make me smile. American Apparel sells some similar [almost as cool] ones, but not sure on the fit as they’re unisex, so they might be gigantic in the ankles. $10 american apparel

3. green – I love green. Yep, I’m oddly drawn to green. I often find myself thinking “ooh I really like something about this…” and then I’m all “oh, it’s because that entire wall is painted green.” Perhaps that’s what prompted me to buy a green handbag a few months ago. <3

4. learning to make a perfect omelette – I checked out Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking at the library last fall and as luck would have it, got to keep it for several months. I had lots of time to practice making the perfect omelette — as you may have guessed it’s all about the butter. $18.50 amazon

5. cuff bracelets – Although I’ve never been much of a jewelry fan, I love cuff bracelets. I bought a silver one in Essaouira, Morocco and it’s one of my favorite travel ‘souvenirs’.

6. dahlias – I love dahlias because they’re almost obnoxiously colorful and every single one is completely different… and they remind me of summer.

7. love it or leave it coat rack – a daily reminder to live at 100%, instead of just surviving. Life. is. short. $24 urban outfitters

8. burt’s bees chapstick – every day’s a jolly holiday with you Burt! $3 everywhere

9. better off ted – This show is incredibly funny. Add it to your Hulu queue stat! free hulu

10. grey suede pumps – I have joint custody originally found/borrow often a pair of Franco Sartos. They make me smile. nordstrom rack

What’s on your list?

Pros of Traveling With a Group:

• Built-in travel companions who are starting/ending the same place. One of the fun parts of traveling solo is meeting new people and traveling together, but sometimes lets face it, you meet really cool people who just came from where you’re going etc.  It’s a total crapshoot on meeting people in hostels. Sometimes you meet someone the first day that you click with, other times you’ll be somewhere a week, and you don’t always find people who want to go the same places. So organized trips like GAP are great for this aspect. First, a lot of the people who travel on these trips are either young professionals, like myself, who like to mix it up with small group adventure travel or really interesting older couples, who you would never meet at a hostel and are truly unique individuals.  You’ll often find like minded travelers as well, so you can skip the “Oh, uhhh I don’t really like to read, except for magazines” conversations.  Typical GAP travelers like to have a good time, but not so good of a time that they wake up at noon and drag their butts to the bus station having missed out on experiencing anything other than the local bar.  It also changes the group dynamic to have a mix of ages. After the hostelling “scene” it’s a nice break.
• Safety. As a solo female travel, safety is definitely high on my priority list.  Although I use some common sense for things like dressing more conservatively, not wandering around at night alone, always knowing how to get back to my hotel etc; mixing it up with small group adventure travel is like a vacation from your vacation.  It’s great to not have to think about things as much.  I did a three week Morocco trip through Intrepid Travel and then stayed on in Marrakech for several days afterward.  The difference of being in a group vs solo was HUGE! Having blond hair and blue eyes is going to make you stand out in many countries around the world, but when you’re alone, you get talked to way more and followed and in some countries it’s just not relaxing, especially if you’re planning on traveling within the country.  A city break is so much different than arriving alone into town on a 11pm train.
• Get off the beaten track. This is one of my main reasons for joining up with an adventure travel company.  I wanted to go to Eastern Europe and not just take the train from Budapest to Bucharest to Sofia.  When you want to get out of the cities, without recruiting a fellow traveler, small group adventure travel on a budget is brilliant.  I really don’t see myself hiking around in the mountains of Bulgaria alone or taking the overnight train to Istanbul solo.  Although I love seeing new cities, give me a week and I’ll be headed back out into nature.  Getting out into rural areas and nature gives you a different perspective on countries and people.
• Budget Options. When you typically think of group travel, you think of seniors piling off of a coach and lining up for the bathrooms or cruise ship goers who pay 20 times the price to take a bus somewhere a public bus already goes.  What’s great about GAP and Intrepid is that they have different pricing and comfort levels. Basic is like bottom of the line accommodations (but still nicer than a lot of hostels), Original is a step up with more included items and they even have Comfort trips, for the very hard to please.  I love how when I’m on a GAP trip we’re traveling just how I would if I was solo by taking the public buses, cheap trains and accommodation etc.
• Sustainable travel has become somewhat of a buzzword recently, but GAP and Intrepid are big on helping the local communities and supporting local business. Sometimes when you stay at hostels it feels like you’re just getting recommendations for a lot of expat businesses, relying on the Lonely Planet guidebook, and occasionally stumbling upon something truly unique all by yourself.  I really enjoyed the local aspect of my trips.  Whether it’s hiking with a local guide and having tea with a Berber family in Morocco, a home-stay in rural Romania or meeting people who grew up during the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, it’s experiences you would rarely happen up on your own.  It doesn’t feel forced either, because most of these people are genuinely interested in sharing with you what’s going on in their lives, so it’s not all Hallmark momenty, but definitely a good time. Helps you think about humanity instead or just hitting the beach and the bar.
• I only have to share this room with one other person? Not 24?  I even lucked out and got my own room once! Let’s face it, hosteling for months at a time can get really old: locking up your bag, carrying your toiletries to the shower, hopping around on one foot trying to change in the showers, being assigned to a smelly 12 bed dorm and being the only female.  I loved the break from hosteling and having my own room.
• It’s like your own personal Amazing Race and Survivor combined. I guess this could be a con, but who hasn’t thought it would be fun to be on the Amazing Race?  I find it quite good fun to watch the group dynamic.  Although all of my trips have been fairly drama free, there have always been a few hilarious “OMG” moments.  ;)
• Do what you want. As I’ve said, it’s your holiday, so you can do as much or as little as you like.  I’m one of those people who needs space and solo time, so some days I would wake up early and go wander around town, other days I would hang out with a few people from my group.
• Discounts. Did someone say discounts?  You know when you’re standing in line to buy tickets for something and you see the prices for groups vs solo and wish you could wrangle up a group of 10 and cash in on that discount? Group trips often include a few big attractions, like the Aya Sophia in Istanbul for my Turkey trip.
• Diversity. We travel to see new things and experience new cultures and meet new people.  You’ll meet all kinds of people on your trips. You’ll usually find more Canadians on GAP trips since they’re a Canadian company and likewise with Intrepid and Australians.  On my trips there have always been a few Americans, Brits, Kiwis, or Germans too.
• No planning required. As mentioned, it’s like taking a vacation from your vacation.  Although I love planning and logistics, sometimes lining up transport and hostels and figuring out schedules can be frustrating. This is especially true in countries where everything is on “when it gets here” time.  For example, when the road was closed due to flooding in Morocco and we had to backtrack several hours I wasn’t too bugged.  If I’d been alone I would have been second guessing the driver’s motives and wondering where I was going to stay.

Cons of Traveling With a Group:

• You don’t get to pick your roommate (unless you’re traveling with them).  On one trip I was the only single girl so I got my own room.  As luck would have it, on another trip there were 4 of girls in our late 20′s and 30′s and 1 lady in her 60′s.  I’m by no means an ageist, but it happens that none of us really hit it off with this lady, so we took turns rotating rooms.  It wasn’t a catastrophe, but there was a lot of internal rolling of the eyes on my part.
• You don’t get to pick your tour guide. My guide in China was a nightmare. She was unprofessional, unorganized and even talked about how much work it was and how she didn’t make enough money.  I ended up having a great time on my trip, but it was in spite of her.
• Tours cost more. Generally, organized tours cost more than if you were to do it solo.  However, if you watch the last minute sale sections of GAP and Intrepid, you can get 20 – 25% off a “last minute departure” trip.  When I was in Romania, I bought a sale Intrepid trip leaving out of Istanbul for 3 weeks later, because I knew I would be going to Istanbul.  I also saved money by calling with my Skype phone to a local Intrepid office in Melbourne and paying in Australian Dollars which saved me a few hundred dollars, since they were charging more in USD and the 3% exchange rate fee on my credit card was well worth it.
• Watch those extras. When you’re traveling with a group, sometimes you can get caught up in “group think” about activities and restaurants. When you’re on your own, it’s easier to say “No, that’s not something I’m interested in.”  However, when you’re with a group and you’re the only person who doesn’t want to do something you can feel like “UGGGH!” But it’s your vacation so speak up.  Many times other people are just going along to be agreeable. Since I was on a budget, this was never really a problem for me (and I’m super frugal to start with).  Several times everyone was going to an expensive restaurant for dinner and I just wasn’t up for dropping $20 on a meal and just wanted grab some street food.  So I would just said, “Hey, I think I’m just going to grab something quick and cheap for dinner, so don’t worry about waiting around for me” and most of the time there were others who felt the same way and voilà I still had dinner companions.
• Set itineraries. Sometimes you arrive in a new town and find it charming and perfect and you want to stay for a week, while other times you arrive and want to leave on the next train.  When you’re on a tour, it’s not a hop on hop off bus, so you can’t really change up your itinerary unless you want to pay for your hotel and transport and leave the group.  So that part can be frustrating on occasion, but really it just makes you want to go back to some places someday.  They get a lot of feedback on what people like and dislike about the trip, so the time is usually allotted quite well.
• Nobody expects the wild card. Not only do you not get to pick your roommate, but you might just have a nutter on your trip. These things do happen, rarely, but they do.
• Optional Activities. It all depends on the tour leader, but I had one that was quite pushy on doing certain add-on activities, which made me wonder what their motivation was, maybe a kickback.  Most leaders also get a free dinner, when they join the group at restaurants.  I don’t like dining in groups of 8-12 anyway, so I had more fun splitting up into smaller groups with a few people that I really clicked with. Also, I was quite vocal on what my budget was.  If the tour leader mentioned a “really good restaurant” I would do a little research on my own by asking what the price range was or even stopping by to check it out.  Splitting dinner bills is another thing I was careful with, because often times everyone will say, well let’s just divide it by 6 and it will all even out.  Call me cheap, but I’ve always said “No thanks,” and explained that it will never “even out” for me since I’m a vegetarian, don’t order starters, and didn’t have 5 beers.  It’s fine to get slighted every once in a while when you go out back home, but when you’re on the road for a year, this can really add up.  Thankfully, everyone has always been extremely cool about this!

Bottom line: Would I recommend a GAP Adventure or Intrepid Travel trip? That depends.  How’s that for an MBA answer? ;)   But it really does depend on several things:  who you are, where you’re going, your travel style, how much time you have, if you’re traveling with someone, etc.

• If you’re traveling solo and female I would check out any of their cheap trips to parts of Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
• If you’re traveling solo (male or female), I would recommend GAP for some third-world countries like Morocco and Cambodia. It gives you the chance to really experience the countries at a deeper level.
• If you’re going to Eastern Europe and you’re traveling as a couple I would say do it on your own.  Some of the rural areas are pretty spendy solo, but 2 – 4 people to split costs would be ideal.
• If you’re going to Paris or Berlin or Barcelona definitely skip the GAP trip.  My first visit to Europe was in 2006, I was admittedly a little nervous along with my excitement, but going on a trip would have been a waste.  Most European cities are more fun to experience solo or as a pair.  Unless you get a smokin’ deal, I’d say go it on your own.
• If you’re traveling with a friend, you might enjoy a group trip more than if you’re traveling as a couple.  I would suggest couples try out a short (4 – 8 days) trip and then do a week or so on your own.
• If you have two weeks vacation time and you want to see the highlights of an unpredictable (read 3rd world) country, then I’d recommend a GAP trip.
• If you think Muslims are terrorists or that traveling is dangerous, I would encourage you to reevaluate your bias, check out some crime statistics, “simmer down” and book a trip to Morocco.
• Do the math. I have a travel spreadsheet that I use to calculate the trip price + local payment + food + activities/shopping = total price / days = Price per day.  Now, if this price per day is less than you could do solo, go for it. For example: I found a 3 week Intrepid trip to Morocco on sale for $580 + 475 local payment.  It included a camel trek in the Sahara, some guided hikes and a few breakfasts.  So excluding food and shopping, that’s $50/day.  Lonely Planet says you can get by on $40 if you’re really slumming it.  So going with Intrepid in this instance was a no brainer!  It would have been difficult to find all the transport and lodging for less than that as a solo traveler.

I hope you’ve found this travel info useful.  While I’ve only traveled with GAP Adventures and Intrepid Travel (and yes, they used to be sister companies), I’ve met people who’ve traveled with Gecko, Exodus, and Dragoman, but after a quick price check, I think I’ll stick to GAP and Intrepid. 

Any thoughts on group travel?  Do share!

1. Moroccan architecture
   It seems that everywhere you look in the Imperial cities of Fes, Meknes, Rabat and Marrakech, you see amazing architecture: keyhole doors, stunning mosques, and intricate details.
2. Tagine & couscous
   I admit, after two straight weeks of eating tagines or couscous for dinner, I was a little over it.  However, the simplicity of this style of cooking is so efficient and delicious.  It’s like slow cooking, Moroccan style.
3. Henna
   I finally got henna done while in the seaside town of Essaouira.  I ended up getting my hands, feet, calf, and stomach done.  The Moroccan woman did a beautiful job and it was so much fun watching her work.  The henna lasted for about three weeks and was a great reminder of my time in Morocco.
4. Bartering/shopping
   I tried to save most of my shopping until my last stop, Marrakech. Overall,  I ended up purchasing two large pieces of material, a leather belt and bag, and about 10 pillow covers.  I had a great time bargaining with the locals, throwing out an occasional “Humdallah” (Praise God), and “Insh’Allah”  (God willing), and telling them that this same thing was only $x in Essaouira etc.  Most of the vendors were really fun to negotiate with, and they all remembered me when I went back through the markets a few days later.
5. Arabic slang
   OK, less slang words, more basic words.  :)  Anyway, I had a brilliant time using my basic words: “Merhaba” (hello), “Shukran” (thank you), “Yellah” (let’s go), “la” (no), “Insh’Allah”, “Humdallah”, and my favorite: “Mafi Mushkila” (It’s not a problem!).
6. Being modest
   While keeping my shoulders and knees covered isn’t usually what gets me excited about packing for vacation, it’s surprising what you can get used to.  By the time I got back to Spain, I was shocked at how small my tank tops felt, and don’t get me started on the short shorts!  Being modest in a Muslim country not only feels respectful, but it really helps on the attention factor, especially if you have blonde hair and blue eyes!
7. Mint Tea
   I LOVE mint tea!  Everywhere you go in Morocco you get mint tea, whether you’re hiking through the mountains and meet a Berber family or shopping in the souks.  It’s definitely a tea culture, and it’s super fun to pour!
8. Moroccans
   OK, so the constant attention can be over the top if you’ve had a long day and sometimes you just wish you were invisible, but for the most part, it’s just curiousity… and maybe 50% the blonde hair and blue eyes bit.  At least now I know that I would hate to be a celebrity!  By the time I got to Barcelona, I was like “uh, no one has told me that I’m beautiful yet today or offered 1,000 camels for my hand in marriage!”  ;)
9. Les chameaux (camels)
   One of the most memorable experiences in Morocco was riding camels out into the Sahara, and sleeping out under the stars.  It was so quiet and peaceful and just one of those moments that I’ll always remember.
   
10. Hamams
    After several days of cold showers in freezing Imlil, we decided on a visiting the local hamam after a five hour hike.  Compared to the hamam in Istanbul, it was very local!  But it was really amazing to observe the sense of community.

See more 10 Things That Make Me Happy lists:  10 Things That Make Me Happy, 10 Things That Make Me Happy {about fall}