m a g a z i n e Pot-travel INSPIRATION Find out how returning traveler are making a difference in the live of other. TRAVELER S GIFT VACATIONS p. 14 RUNAWAY BRIDESMAIDS p. 22 OIMEI COMPANY p. 30 foreigner FALL 2012 ISSUE 4 Drug Hotpot? Maybe. But Colombia reputation didn t care thi Englih teacher. p.56 THIS ISSUE Editor Pick p.8 Travel Read p.38 Photo Showcae p.78 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 1
travel CONTRIBUTORS JOSEPHSTRZEMPKO Dominican Republic. FAVORITE MODE OF TRANSPORTATION? Motoconcho (motorcycle taxi found in the Dominican Republic). Chicken Feet Soup. MIKEHOWER Cartagena, Colombia. MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT? Sitting in the urf on Playa Blanca on Ila Baru, ipping beer with friend until the wee hour of the night. Mondongo Soup or what I call the Gringo Buter. It a type of oup with vegetable and the key ingredient... tripe. ELLENRHUDY Travel Idol TRUE TRAVEL TALES Learn a little more about thi iue travel contributor and ome of their incredible travel moment. Probably Petra, for the opportunity it afforded me to pend a day pretending I wa Indiana Jone. WHAT ITEM CAN T YOU TRAVEL WITHOUT? A book...or everal book. WHAT DID YOU MISS LEAST ABOUT THE U.S.? The fat pace of life in the U.S. the ene that you have to alway be working or doing omething valuable with your time. WANT TO BE FEATURED IN OUR NEXT ISSUE? Send your travel tory to ubmiion@nativeforeignermag.com and YOU could be one of our next featured contributor! HEATHERMORTON India i by far my favorite detination. WHAT DID YOU MISS MOST ABOUT CANADA? I mied not being able to make a phone call eaily. MOST INTERESTING PERSON YOU MET? I met a very intereting artit in Hardiwar, India, who collected driftwood from the Gange (the acred river to the Hindu). He let each piece peak to him before he begin carving it. RACHELJONES Barcelona. It wa a gorgeou city and nothing like any other city I ve been to in Europe. MOST MEMORABLE MOMENT? Walking the red carpet at the Canne Film Fetival. I will never forget that moment. Ecargot. I ve had it before but everyone thought I wa crazy for 10 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 eating it! Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 11
India Travel: Thing I wih I had Known by Heather Morton PART2: TRAVEL TRUTHS AS I LEARNED THEM The aying, Thing never are a they appear to be, hold a lot of truth while traveling in India. It wa not jut the firt leon I wa taught, but alo one I wa contantly trying to remember. Having an idea about what to expect i helpful, but not quite the ame a experiencing it for yourelf. DRESSING LIKE THE NATIVES I never rebelled againt dreing Indian-ih. Dreing Indian how repect for the culture and it people. I avoided hort and tank and took advantage of the brightly colored hawl (or pahchima) and draped them over my houlder. However, I did find it a bit of a double-tandard that Indian women were allowed to how their bellie, but never their cleavage. That aid, with many Weterner traveling to India today, the dre code i not a rigid a it ued to be with repect to wearing ari and/or looking Indian. In large citie like Delhi and Mumbai, both men and women wear Wetern clothe. However, thi can be a bit deceiving becaue the attitude are not necearily Wetern. For example, an Indian hopkeeper dreed in jean and a t-hirt once told me hi wife would never be allowed to drive a cooter. Backwater tour, Kerala TRAVEL IS RISKY Traveling doe have potential rik, but I don t find thi make me fearful. In 2003, there wa ecalated concern that Pakitan and India were on the verge of tarting WWIII. Thi reulted in a travel adviory warning foreigner about the rik traveling to India. Becaue of thi I wa going to cancel my trip. In the end, I decided to go. When I got to Delhi I heard from the local that the ituation in Kahmir wa not any different than before. Down in Kerala (the outh of India) people were obliviou to the ituation. It wa buine a uual. Thi doe not mean that political iue hould be taken lightly. While traveling, be aware of current event and be cautiou. In addition, it might not be a bad idea to regiter at the nearet Conulate. 64 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 65
DEATH BY DISEASE OR ACCIDENT In tropical climate there are uually many malaria-infected area. Taking a few bottle of ome moquito repellent i alway a good idea, becaue the coil in India are undertood to be carcinogenic. Thee are dry ring that are ignited with a match and left to burn. They give off an aroma that moquitoe dilike. However, I think a better option i to turn on the ceiling fan (uually mot hotel/room have one). A woman traveler told me the moquitoe get dizzy and fall down! It almot impoible to avoid being bitten. But it not the end of the world and I never contracted malaria. Depite the widepread concern over malaria, I am more worried about being killed in a traffic accident than contracting malaria. Statitic how traffic accident are three time higher in countrie like India than in developed one (read more here). In India, big rule the road. Many pedetrian and not jut foreigner have been killed becaue they were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Udaipur Taj Lake Palace Hotel HOSPITALITY AND CUSTOMER SERVICE Hopitality i not a thing of the pat in India. I ve been lucky enough to befriend ome of the local and be invited to their home for a home-cooked meal. Thing obviouly went well, becaue I wa invited back everal time. Indian love to pleae and be good hot. Nothing compare to an Indian dinner lovingly cooked by an Indian woman. Being a cutomer i not bad, either. It i cutomary, a well a aupiciou, that by offering the firt cutomer of the day a dicount, more hopper will appear. When eating out, I wa encouraged to bring all my friend and wa handed everal buine card for ditribution. POVERTY One of the hardet thing to deal with in India i the poverty. Sometime jut coping with it i the bet I could do. It 66 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 67
could get naty with beggar following India Gate, Delhi me and grabbing my clothing. Something equally a ditreing wa when the little children howed up cradling a 5-month-old baby. Unfortunately, Thar Deert, Jaialmer a good a it feel to give money, it uually encourage more beggar to arrive. It one of the mot difficult thing to handle a a foreigner. When faced with uch a ituation I learned it i wie to remember I had the money to get to India, to leave India and to pay for food. Learning a you go make for the bet torie to tell later. Often people perceive travel a only a great adventure. It i indeed, but woven deep into it fabric are ome eriou thing to contend Ranakpur Temple, Rajathan with. Unforeeen iue, now, I doubt I would have uch a having a credit card been able to do it differently. blocked can be treful when I might have laughed harder you are flat out of cah. Still, and enjoyed the ride more. the magic of traveling prevail. Jut omething to think about Had I known what I know for the next time! j Note: If you mied Part I of Heather adventure, Travel Myth a I Experienced Them, check it out in the Summer Iue of Native Foreigner on page 38. India y 2nd mot populou country in the world y Lead the world in banana export y Birthplace of che y Larget city: Mumbai y Mot popular port: cricket Source: Random Fact Fat Fact 68 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 Native Foreigner Magazine Fall 2012 69