Live An Adventure Podcast

This map shows the happiness of countries around the world. In other words, it shows the extent to which countries deliver long, happy, and environmentally sustainable lives for their citizens. Most measures of national progress put a high emphasis on economic activity without too much concern for environmental limits or less tangible aspects, such as well-being. The HPI (Happy Planet Index) puts at the heart the idea that happiness is not necessarily about wealth but living long lives with a high experience of well-being within the environmental limits of the planet. The reason for some high-income nations score significantly below other nations is the ecological footprint left on the planet. It is important to note, however, that the data does not take into account internal inequality measures and human rights issues tied to some countries which are high up in the rankings. Similarly, this map illustrates the differences in the absolute HPI score and does not take into account t...

1. “One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” – Henry Miller 2. “The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page.” – St. Augustine 3. “There are no foreign lands. It is the traveler only who is foreign.” – Robert Louis Stevenson 4. “The use of traveling is to regulate imagination by reality, and instead of thinking how things may be, to see them as they are.” – Samuel Johnson 5. “All the pathos and irony of leaving one’s youth behind is thus implicit in every joyous moment of travel: one knows that the first joy can never be recovered, and the wise traveler learns not to repeat successes but tries new places all the time.” – Paul Fussell 6. “Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life.” – Jack Kerouac 7. “He who does not travel does not know the value of men.” – Moorish proverb 8. “People travel to faraway places to watch, in fascination, the kind of p...

Ana and Mario are passionate teachers and travelers. They met in  Brasov, Romania, and got married in Antigua Guatemala. They’ve traveled extensively in Europe, Asia, and the Americas. They’ve taught in Romania, the Philippines, and China. They want to inspire others to celebrate learning, adventures, and generosity. Out of gratitude, they strive to make the world a better place.  #TeachersTravelers

Travel: how was it for you? Did you ‘find yourself’ halfway up a mountain and come down a different person? Did you meet the love of your life in the lower bunk of a hostel dorm? Did you reach a destiny-defining decision in the back of a chicken bus? Perhaps your experiences seem less melodramatic than this. But if you’ve spent any length of time living out of a backpack or a suitcase, there’s a fair chance you’ve chalked up one, some or perhaps many of a traveller’s classic rites of passage. These events range from the trivial to the transcendental, the unpleasant to the wondrous. But whatever the details, they qualify you for lifetime membership of the tribe animatedly swapping notes at the crossroads – the airport lounges, the train stations, the hotel bars – where travellers often meet. Here are a few you might recognise. Most travellers have at least one place that they just can’t shake That special place What? Just one? But you've been to dozens of special places; in f...

1. To experience the WOW factor 2. To escape routine 3. To learn about new cultures 4. To witness the peak of human adaptability 5. To create new friendships 6. To find inner peace 7. To gain a new perspective 8. To de-stress 9. To discover yourself 10. To broaden your horizons 11. To master a new language 12. To sample new cuisines 13. To dare to be different 14. To expand your professional network 15. To put your problems into perspective 16. To see the beauty of nature 17. To reach new heights in common sense 18. To explore your creative side 19. To gawk at the man-made wonders of the world 20. To taste freedom 21. To grow personally and intellectually 22. To feel alive 23. To realize that humans are the same everywhere 24. To hone your self-confidence 25. To view “home” with a new pair of eyes 26. To attend unique cultural, art, and music festivals 27. To participate in an authentic cooking class with locals 28. To m...

Everyone is always ready to go on a new adventure. Whether you want to eat your way through a foodie mecca, immerse yourself in a new culture or explore remote trails in untamed frontiers, the new year is the best time to set new goals and take action. So, it probably comes as no surprise that at the start of each year, Americans resolve to travel more. Yet according to The Travel Effect, a study released by the U.S. Travel Association, more than 4 out of 10 U.S. employees ended 2013 with unused time off -- an average of more than three paid days forfeited per worker. So, why are U.S. workers depriving themselves the chance to experience somewhere new? "A lot of Americans would love the concept of traveling, but they never made the time for it," explained Joe Diaz, co-founder of AFAR, a multiplatform media company that includes the travel magazine AFAR and AFAR.com. With a mission to inspire people to have meaningful travel experiences across the globe, AFAR also encou...

The world’s happiest people aren’t in Qatar, the richest country by most measures. They aren’t in Japan, the nation with the highest life expectancy. Canada, with its chart-topping percentage of college graduates, doesn’t make the top 10. A poll released last year of nearly 150,000 people around the world says seven of the world’s 10 countries with the most upbeat attitudes are in Latin America. Many of the seven do poorly in traditional measures of well-being, like Guatemala, a country torn by decades of civil war followed by waves of gang-driven criminality that give it one of the highest homicide rates in the world. Guatemala sits just above Iraq on the United Nations’ Human Development Index, a composite of life expectancy, education and per capita income. But it ranks seventh in positive emotions. “In Guatemala, it’s a culture of friendly people who are always smiling,” said Luz Castillo, a 30-year-old surfing instructor. “Despite all the problems that we’re facing, we’re surroun...

Despite incessant praise, Italy continues to surprise and delight. If you get it right, travelling in the bel paese (beautiful country) is one of those rare experiences in life that cannot be overrated. Bella Vita In few places do art and life intermingle so effortlessly. This may be the land of Dante, Michelangelo, da Vinci and Botticelli but it’s also the home of Salvatore Ferragamo, Giorgio Armani and Gualtiero Marchesi. Food, fashion, art and architecture – you’ll quickly learn that the root of Italian pathology is an unswerving dedication to living life well. A surprising number of Italians care deeply about the floral aftertastes of sheep cheese, the correct way to cut marble and the nuances of a Vivaldi concerto. Lurking behind the disinvoltura – the appearance of effortlessness – is a passionate attention to life’s fine print. So slow down, start taking note of life’s details and enjoy your own bella vita. Read more at htt...

The summer of 2011, from June 19 to August 14, I traveled from Palermo, Italy to Manchester, England, 2080 km / 1290 mi. I visited 50 cities in 5 countries (The Vatican and Monaco count as countries hehe). These numbers are just that, numbers. They do not convey the joy and gratitude I feel in my heart for having met so many wonderful people and visited so many amazing places. I met most of them through Couchsurfing.com. They welcomed me and made me feel home for a day or two or more. We shared meals and stories. We walked around cities and beaches. We laughed and we were quiet. We learned from each other and shared our views on travel and life. Each place became a memorable moment because of them. I thank every one of them for making this the most awesome trip ever !!   Martina, Bruna, Katryn, Natasja, Iwona, Sven: Praia A Mare Nunzio, Vito, Natalia, Emma: Matera Marina and her daughter: Taranto Mina, Maria, Agata, Alessandro, Luca: Sorrento Julie and Juliet...