Ha! Now this is funny. As you surely know, I love to whine and complain about things I don’t like, including banal, regurgitative, one-upsman, and/or... »
Cultural Tourism
Bulldozing Over Cultures in China
We’ve already been informed that The Mindful Tourist is one of the many websites blocked by the Chinese government (and quite frankly, we feel honored. Thanks, China!), and we don’t think our discussing the latest cultural catastrophe the Chinese are committing will make them change their minds. While we sit fretting over the new six-lane... »
Why to Watch TV on Vacation
Why spend your valuable time on vacation watching the boob-tube? True, you don’t want television-watching to get in the way of going out, seeing the sights, meeting people, and working on that all-important tan (skin cancer prevention advocates: no emails please). But when you have some down time, instead of turning on your computer... »
Point Break LIVE!: The San Francisco Treat
Local theater (or theatre, if you must, dahling) is a great way to experience local culture – be it the show itself if its topic is local, your fellow theater-goers, or even the neighborhood if the venue is not located in a typical tourist section of town. Our last experience in local theater was highly... »
The Top Five Things I Didn’t Expect From China
We are very jazzed that Katie Lewis, the Nomadic Reporter, has written a guest post for the Mindful Tourist. Katie is currently living in China and has some HI-larious anecdotes and observations from her time there. We love how Katie takes the good with the bad and just lives. Read on: I arrived in China, bright-eyed... »
Sustainable Tourism at its Finest: Protect the Cinque Terre
With all the reading and research that goes into this blog (don’t laugh, we’re being serious!), it is rare that we come across something that immediately prompts us to start planning a trip complete with dates, travel arrangements, etc. We read magazines, books, websites, and blogs all touting truly amazing places around the globe... »
Crete is Much More Than Just Beaches
We recently read this descriptive and informative article by Jane Foster of the Observer, about Crete and some out-of-the-way destinations there. Some villagers in the small town of Vamos decided to form a co-op, fixing up stone cottages to be used as guest houses, and offering cooking lessons in a renovated oil press, communal meals... »
Calling Poverty Tourism by its True Name
With the popularity of Slumdog Millionaire, we began to see more and more articles about poverty or slum tourism. Since it left a bad taste in our mouth, we did a little research (also known as sitting on our arse and websurfing) here and there but couldn’t bring ourselves to write a post about it… until... »
Dry Tortugas National Park: If You’re in the Area, We Say “Go, Go, Go!”
We recently found out about a hidden gem in southern Florida called Dry Tortugas National Park. We would venture that you’ve never heard of it either. Contrary to the most popular national park, Great Smoky Mountains, this one is difficult to get to and surrounded only by water, far from the Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge... »
A Tourist’s Role in Archaeological Ethics
Remember the destruction of the Bamiyan Buddhas in Afghanistan? This was in spring of 2001, before most people had heard of the Taliban. We remember it well and were horrified watching video of these incredibly amazing and larger-than-life sculptures that had stood for centuries being blown up by tanks and anti-aircraft weapons. This is... »
Playa del Carmen’s Alternative Alltournative
While Cancun is more associated with the spring break, beer-swigging crowd (a Ft. Lauderdale south of the border, if you will), its neighboring city of Playa del Carmen is more low-key and offers some unexpected ecotourism and socially conscious tourism experiences. When we went to Playa in 2000, the company Alltournative was only a year... »
