Bish Denham's List Bloghop. 8 years of blogging! Travel bucket listl...

First, my thoughts go out to those in Mexico who survived Patricia's fury--the strongest hurricane on record in the western hemisphere. Thankfully the damage has been less than expected from a hurricane of this magnitude, but the storm is ongoing..

Thanks to blogger Guilie Castillo for these links: 

Easy ways to help:

Humane Society International (help for animal victims)

Donations to Red Cross Mexico

AZ Central tells you how to help Patricia victims

CNN's list of sites for Patricia relief

Now... the WEP Halloween challenge is over bar the wrap up and judging, just in time for me to enter Bish's bloghop. The wrap up is today and the winners announced Wednesday. Heads up on next challenge--a sci-fi look at the holiday season...holidays out of this world.

This has got to be one of the most straightforward bloghops ever!

Here' what Bish has to say:

The rules are simple. All you have to do is sign up in the linky thingy below, grab the banner, and make a list. I suggest you keep your list to between 5 and 25 items long. We'll visit each other on October 26th.

You can list whatever you feel like (except for adult type content). That's it! Think about it, the ideas are endless.

You could list:

favorite trees/animals/flowers/insects/pets
favorite books/movies/actors/heroes/villains/music/concerts you've been to
places you'd like to go/places you've been to
make a bucket list
favorite food/desserts/drinks
favorite names
favorite scientists/mathematicians/artists
favorite activists/saints/prophets
favorite myths/mythological places/gods/goddesses
your morning/evening routine
important things to pack when going on vacation
what to take on a picnic
biggest fears
greatest loves
the birthdays of your family members
holidays
things you like/dislike doing
foods you don't like to eat
pictures of your cat/dog
cars you've owned
places you've lived/schools you've attended
musical instruments you play
important moments in history you've lived through
historical eras you'd like to have lived in
famous people (dead or alive) that you'd like to meet

My entry: TRAVEL BUCKET LIST

Okay. I live to travel, so I'm listing some of the places I'm yet to visit...


1. China 


PLAN: Have booked 10 days in China in 2016. Scary, but true. It's on my bucket list. Grabbed a great deal, so we have 10 days in China seeing the main sights--Great Wall, Tienanmen Square, the 'bund' district of Shanghai and more. 

2. India

PLAN: I was about to book the Golden Triangle of India--Delhi (Old and New), Agra and Jaipur for this year, but family intervened, so is still on the bucket list. When we go, we will: 

• Discover the ghost town of Fatehpur Sikri 
• Stroll the pink-hued streets of Jaipur
• Experience the chaotic charm of Old Delhi
• Explore the Red Fort of Agra
• Sit and stare at the Taj Mahal!

3. The Greek Islands

PLAN: Okay, you would have expected an inveterate traveller like me to have lazed around the Greek Islands, lazily cruising around, swimming, eating fish by the beach, trekking into the hills. Sadly, every time I've planned to go, something stopped me--earthquakes, fires, political unrest--Greece is very volatile. Soon, I WILL go! (And I may even meet Jessica Bell, the resident famous author!)

4. Cuba

Beach front hotel, Havana.

PLAN; Well, I was planning a trip to Cuba, incorporating Florida and the rest of the Caribbean, but Michael di Gesu is still looking for that house in Florida, so I thought I'd wait! Just kidding. And I do wish Michael all the best for his house in the sun.  I've looked at local tours, and now that it's no longer forbidden to fly in from the US, I might be able to catch a few of my American friends when I go. Maybe we could meet up in Cuba and hire one of those cool classic cars and tour around. Dreamy!

5. New York City

PLAN: Well, everyone wants to visit NYC once in their life, don't they? When I finally get to the US to catch up with blogger friends, I intend to visit this world capital. I know I'll be more than happy to jump back on a plane and hightail it outta there, but, just once, I'd like to visit all those 'best in the world' places--well, those eateries anyway (not that I'm a fan of bagels or donuts.) Food is always high on my list of things to, er, eat, when I travel. Partaking of a country's food is part and parcel of travelling. I wouldn't be able to handle American portions--we practise nouvelle cuisine in Australia--we have to use a magnifying glass to find the food on the plate, lol, but I'll take my husband to do his usual food incinerator job! While in NYC I have a dream to visit those islands--Nantucket, Martha's Vineyard, and also Boston. And Ann Best is always wanting me to visit her in Virginia. They're all on the East Coast, right?

So there you go. My List. I hope you're enjoying Bish's bloghop and hop on board. To read other posts, go HERE.

• Thank you for reading. Do you like to travel? What places are on your bucket list?

Hello from New Caledonia (Nouvelle Caledonie) in the South Pacific.

Hi friends!

I promised on Lexa Cain's Summer bloghop that I was heading north-east to New Caledonia and here I am. Arrived a few days ago now and as travel always is to me, it's a blast.

Here's some of the highlights so far...paddling in the Baie de Citron, and lovely locals at the Noumea Markets which take place 6 days a week. I'm down there for my banana and chocolate crepe for breakfast every morning. It's a carb-fuelled country.Thankfully I'm walking well over my 10,000 steps, hahahaha!

A very important motivation for this trip was to brush up on my French. So much easier when everyone around you is speaking the language. But after being here a few days I'm exhausted from speaking in a foreign language, as practically no one speaks English! Gulp!

Hope you enjoyed your virtual trip to this wonderful island in the Pacific Ocean.

You may have heard on the blog-vine, that Write...Edit...Publish is starting up again. The lovely Yolanda Renee is helping me get it off the ground. Big announcement today on the WEP website. I hope you'll join us for at least some of the challenges as we have some great prompts coming up.

Write...Edit...Publish 'SHARING'. LOVE AND TRAVEL.

Hi fellow travellers in this theatre called life. For WEP's SHARING I'm comparing love and travel. I fly north to experience another Northern Hemisphere holiday season in just a few days. Naturally, travel is where my mind is. 

This trip...Amsterdam, Paris, Prague, Spain, Portugal and Morocco - 5 exciting weeks! 

Here's what I've learned so far re travel and love...

PHASE ONE: 
ANTICIPATION

When it comes to travel, thinking about it, planning it, is half the fun.

ANTICIPATION is a crucial phase of any journey. It's the promise that life will be more exciting than your everyday routine. Watching a sunset over the Sahara Desert, choosing which outdoor cafe to indulge your love of freshly-caught mussels in garlic cream sauce in the French Quarter in Paris, seeing the fairytale city of Prague for the first time, is probably going to be more fun than getting out of bed, running in the park, walking to work, working...isn't it just? 

We want the same thing from travel that we want from love - a life-changing encounter with destiny. Plus fantastic scenery and food.

'Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.'                 (Mark Twain (1835-1910) 

The streets of Marrakesh
just made for exploring.

PHASE TWO:
PACKING

Getting there won't be half the fun if you are lugging too much luggage! If it won't fit into your carry-on luggage, leave it at home.

LIVING OUT OF A SUITCASE is not fun, but it's even less fun when it's the old cram, sit, zip scenario. 
Here are some of my tips for light travel:

• plan to dress as if you're heading out to the store on Saturday morning. That's the kind of comfort you need when travelling. 
• plan to wear every article of clothing multiple times. There's no room in your luggage for superfluous clothes. (They do have laundries overseas.) 
• discover how little you really need in order to have the time of your life. Travel is not a fashion show - the people you meet will usually only see you in your outfit once! Let them screw up their nose at your fashion sense in that's all they've got to do!

A Lady's List

A small flask of brandy

Smelling salts

Light literature

Cushions covered in chintz or satin for putting under the feet

Suede gloves in Summer

Woolen muffatees in Winter

Fine yellowish brown paper to line the drawers of inns: There is something not particularly tempting in the idea of placing one's possessions in a place where one does not know what preceded them.         

Lillias Campbell Davidson - 'Hints to Lady Travellers at Home and Abroad'. (1889)

I can delete everything on that list except 'light literature' in the form of my Kindle, lol!

PHASE THREE:

ARRIVAL!

ARRIVING in a new place is a lot like love at first sight. The way a traveller feels on the first day of a journey, the first day in a new country, a new city. You feel giddy, gullible, stupid. 

Travel author Vivian Swift recounts arriving in Paris in 2005 - "There is no smoking allowed in the airport terminal," she said in perfect French to the woman who'd lit up a Marlboro. 

The woman looked at her sharply - "Zeez deestarib you?" In other words who could object to a little cigarette smoke, for God's sake? She drops the butt to the floor and crushes it with the leather toe of her tiny Roger Vivier ballerina flat. 

I could kiss her, Vivian recounts, for now I know that I have really and truly arrived in Paris!

Oh yes! Bring it on!

Another view from the Eiffel Tower

Sorry, it gives me vertigo too!

Love and travel both begin with a secret wish for a life with more adventure, more passion. But things can go wrong, as they do. Be prepared. But there's nothing bad about getting lost, you just discover more! Getting lost in Venice is a highlight of my life!

MOST ROMANTIC TRAVEL QUOTE EVER:

Much have I travell'd in realms of gold, and many goodly states and kingdoms seen, round many western islands have I been...felt I like some watcher of the skies when a new planet swims into his ken: or like stout Cortez when with eagle eyes he star'd at the Pacific - and all his men look'd at each other with wild surmise - silent, upon a peak in Darien.                      

John Keats (1795-1821)

LEAST ROMANTIC TRAVEL QUOTE EVER:

I came. I saw, I conquered.                    Julius Caesar (100BCE-44BCE)

With many thanks to:

Vivian Swift's Le Road Trip - A Traveler's Journal of Love and France.

And here is a photo taken in Broome, Western Australia, if any of you should aspire to visit our shores Down Under. Rather amazing, right?

What are your philosophies on travel? Share...
Click on the links in my right-hand sidebar for entries after the 22nd. 

Selfie Travel Interview -- tell me your travel stories...

Hi friends!

I'm more than a little under the weather with an end-of-winter flu, so my usual Monday post time came and went. I decided to post a travel post I've had sitting in 'drafts' for such a moment. Relax and read...

How exciting to see Baby Lit!

One of my little routines is to go for coffee at Avid Reader on the weekend -- a combined book store and cafe -- the perfect business! It's a welcoming little cafe in West End in Brisbane (a short walk down the street from where I live). I read the Sunday papers, eat a freshly-baked muffin, then browse the bookshop. Bliss! The first liftout I reach for in the newspapers is the Escape (travel) section.


One of the other things I do when I'm not writing flash fiction or sweating over novel writing, is write travel articles. Such an enjoyable process, collating all those travel notes from exotic and not-so-exotic journeys and pitching to papers and magazines.

Today I thought I'd post about travel by using the interview found every Sunday in the Escape liftout of the Sunday Mail.  I've jiggled it a bit to create a selfie interview, of course accompanied by photos. Once you've read it, would you answer some/all the relevant questions in comments? I'm addicted to all things travel, so I'd love to hear what you have to say...

WHAT'S YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE TO VISIT IN YOUR OWN COUNTRY?

Home made vanilla ice cream, espresso
 coffee and ice cubes. Ahhh. 

In my case that would be the wonderful world of Oz. My favourite place is the Sunshine Coast, particularly Peregian Beach where husby George (now a popular name again!) and I have a beach house. The beach is amazingly unspoilt, with long stretches of golden sand sparsely populated, so you can always find a private cove. Peregian Village is built in a courtyard square like in Europe, with cafes and boutique shops around the perimeter. The best iced coffee ever is found at my favourite hang out, Baked Poetry Cafe.


WHAT ABOUT YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE OVERSEAS?

Anyone who knows me knows my love affair with Paris. Geo and I have walked, bussed or trained just about every square kilometre, but Paris always delights and surprises. Once you've got all the museums and famous landmarks out of the way, you can really enjoy strolling aimlessly, the best way to enjoy the architecture, the cafes and the history, especially the literary history. We usually travel in the northern winter. It doesn't snow heavily, but sometimes in late winter you get caught by surprise!



BUT if it wasn't Paris, it'd be the medieval hill towns of Italy.

WHAT'S THE BEST THING YOU'VE EVER EATEN OVERSEAS?

I've got to be honest and state that our food in Australia is AMAZING and it really is hard to beat our fresh produce, seafood, beef and fabulous restaurants, so we've lowered our expectations when travelling and amaze ourselves with Paris street food like yummy crepes filled with what passes for chocolate (Nutella!) and banana or a savoury ham and cheese for Geo. All taste pretty good freshly made. Picking up all the makings for what we call a Paris dinner on the way home from a day walking the streets is awesome -- going from shop to shop picking up a fresh baguette, then runny cheese, duck pate or fois gras,  fresh ham, grapes and a bottle of wine. Why does it just taste so good when you're over there? But that duck (canard) at Bordes de Seine (near Monet's Garden) was to die for! Best regional food in France IMO.

WHERE ARE YOU OFF TO NEXT?

Looking up to the kasbah in Tangier

Five weeks in Dec/Jan -- beginning with a few days in Amsterdam, then 2 weeks in Paris north this time - staying at Euro Disney, but our days will be spent in Paris, returning to the Champagne region and Belgium (Bruges). Then the fast train to Malaga, Spain, with a short stint across to Tangier in Morocco, then Portugal. Not at all exhausting, lol!


DO YOU HAVE A BUCKET LIST DESTINATION?
Many. On the agenda is an extended tour including Alaska, Canada, the East Coast of the US. Scandinavia is another drawcard...well, anywhere we haven't been is on the bucket list.


WORST PLACE YOU'VE STAYED?
Chuisi in Tuscany, Italy. Geo liked the idea of a rustic 16th Century fishing hut beside Lake Trasimeno (Where Hannibal ambushed the Romans), and close to a couple of hill towns we'd read about. Not a good idea in winter! The hut was owned by an Aussie who was cosily warm back home. We arrived after dark to find the only heating was from a little wood stove, but there was no wood cut down to size, so our first task was to ring the agents and the best they could do was drive over with a tomahawk. The bedroom was so cold the ceiling dripped condensation all over us. That said, the position was fabulous and we have lots of fond memories. No bad travel experience ever feels bad when you look back on it. There's a story in that one but I haven't written it yet.

BIG CITY HOTEL, BnB, IGLOO, TENT..?
When I travel, I like to go like blazes all day, and really appreciate a hotel at the end of the day to fully chill. I've stayed in BnBs, but don't like being met at the door and asked to report on my whole day before being allowed to head for my room to relax! (This happened to us in the Loire Valley -- horrendous!)

IS THERE ANYTHING YOU CAN'T TRAVEL WITHOUT?
Comfy shoes that feel like runners, but are stylish enough not to be frowned on in Paris, lol!!

WHAT HAS TRAVEL TAUGHT YOU?
That the world is populated with people who are much the same everywhere, and language isn't a huge barrier. We shared a railway carriage back to Chiusi from Pompeii one night and as well as we Aussies, there was an Italian, a German, a Spanish family and a Bulgarian guy, yet we communicated well somehow and it was fabulous! I don't have horror stories -- nearly everyone we've met has been lovely (well, except for that nasty ticket seller in Rome's Termini (main railway station). But Rome's Termini is best avoided! Being chased by totes is pretty challenging, especially when your eyes are smarting from pollution and cars are parked anywhere and everywhere across footpaths and 'pedestrian' crossings! LOL!

But my travel philosophy is that it's not about arriving somewhere new, it's the journey to somewhere new. Enjoy every moment, or if that's not possible, laugh about it later!!

• So I hope you enjoyed reading my travel post. Please tell me about your travels or your dreams of travels...or do you have any travel questions?

A huge thank you to all the awesome people who posted for August's  Write...Edit...Publish  inaugural blogfest. What a lot of super entries to read. The September linky for MOVING ON will go live early September. Please consider joining this group of enthusiastic bloggers.

Locale as Setting : J L Campbell's Jamaica

Today I welcome J L Campbell to my blog, to continue the discussion of how authors use their local settings for their novels or implement scenes from their travels into their stories. Jamaica is still on my To Be Visited list, so I enjoy my visits to Joy's blog where she often posts pictures of her island. Take it away Joy...

Denise, thanks so much for having me. 

As a traveller, Denise won’t be able to relate to my next statement, but I haven’t left the island of Jamaica other than a trip to Cayman years ago, however, I’ve been taking armchair trips since childhood.

Coast of Ocho Rios

Like Denise, I started reading Mills & Boon novels while I was elevenish and still in primary school. Boy, did I enjoy those stories about people living in exotic places. I also took trips to Greece and Africa via Gerald Durrell, who wrote My Family & Other Animals and other stories. 

Scotland was also wonderful to visit with James Herriot in the All Things Bright & Beautiful Series. Travelling with Mark Twain through Europe and the African continent in the Innocents Abroad was an experience I’ve never forgotten. China and Japan are also fascinating places I’ve only visited through books. 

I came away with visuals of faraway lands from the novels I read, which stuck in my head for years, but I didn’t realize the role and impact of setting/s in a novel until I started writing.

At the writing network where I was a member, people expected Jamaica to come alive as my stories unfolded. When I didn’t include enough of the setting, readers would ask ‘Where is Jamaica??’ That experience trained me to add Jamaica not only as setting, but as a character in each novel.  It also taught me that Jamaica made my work unique, although I’ve been told by a publisher that ‘Jamaica is a hard sell’. I believe I’ve done a decent job of fleshing out the island when I take a sampling of Amazon reviews for my books. 

For many, reading is about escapism and I also enjoy that aspect of literature. At the end of a book, I like to think I’m well acquainted with the characters and familiar with their corner of the world.

In my own writing, I try to capture Jamaica through all the senses. There’s the smell of the sea, the caress of the island breeze, the sparkling waters of the Caribbean Sea, the thunderous crash of water cascading from mountain to river and the taste of fruits such as Otaheite apple, Jackfruit and Ackee, which is one half of our national dish. 

Ackee & Saltfish

I sometimes include actual places (Dunn’s River Falls) and landmarks (the National Stadium), which add a dose of reality to my stories. And then there are the not so nice communities. The local language, Patios, can be hard to understand, I include it in such a way that readers won’t be drawn out of the story while trying to translate what’s being said. 

 

St. William Grant Park in Downtown Kingston

Coronation Market in Downtown Kingston

Old Court House in Half-Way Tree

Dunn's River Falls

Giddy House @ Port Royal after 1906 Earthquake

  

Rose Hall Great house a la Annie Palmer, the White Witch of Rose Hall

 

Scene from Half-Way-Tree

 

Another landmark-St. Andrew Parish Church. Welcome to the 1600's

 And some places even find their way on to book covers. The shot was taken in Half-Way-Tree. The clock in the background is several hundred years old, but of course, it's been restored. 

 For me, the best novels include not only memorable characters, but interesting plotlines and a backdrop that comes to life as the story unfolds. Do you add your setting as another character? If not, how do you ensure your characters interact with your locale to enrich the tapestry against which your story unfolds?

Last time we checked, Joy was seen wandering off on the hunt for story-making material. She writes romantic suspense, women's fiction and young adult novels. Her website is here and her Amazon author page is here.

Thank you for visiting today Joy. And thank you for more scenes of Jamaica. Love how you've included a home shot on the cover of Don't Get Mad, Get Even.

• How about you? Joy asks us whether we add setting as a character. How do you get your characters to interact with your locale? I, for one, wallow in wonderful books where the setting is a character.