Most honeymoons, Mary knows, do not start this way. Lying outside on the sloping attic roof in Edinburgh, listening to the soft snores of her groom, she realizes that Rudy’s number one rule, “adapt," once again reigns. Rudy’s Rules for Travel takes you across the twentieth-century globe with intrepid, frugal Rudy and his spouse Mary, a catastrophic thinker seeking comfort. Whether stalled in a Spanish car tunnel, stranded atop a runaway elephant, or held at rifle-point at a Soviet border, Rudy has a rule for every occasion—for example, “Relax, some kind stranger will appear.” Mary, meanwhile, has her deep breathing and her own commandment: “Expect the worst.” The two are a picture of contrast. As Mary was being born, Rudy was a new American citizen flying US Air Force missions over his homeland, Germany. His father was a seaman, hers an accountant. And when this marriage of opposites goes traveling, their stories combine laugh-out-loud humor with poignant lessons from the odyssey of a World War II veteran. So start packing—you’ll want to join these two.

In 2018, Kathy Elkind and her husband decided to take a grown-up “gap year” in Europe and walk the 1,400-mile Grande Randonnée Cinq (GR5) across The Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and France. At fifty-seven, Kathy has chosen comfort over hardship: Unlike the Appalachian Trail and the Pacific Coast Trail, the GR5 winds from village to village instead of campsite to campsite. She and Jim get to indulge in warm beds and delicious regional food every night and croissants in the mornings. The GR5 is not all comfort. Walking day after day for ninety-eight days bring sickness, accommodation struggles, language barriers, and storm-shrouded mountains in the Alps. Meanwhile, Kathy finds herself reflecting on difficult topics—primarily, her struggles with dyslexia, overeating, and shame. But she also finds that the walking becomes a moving meditation and the beauty of the landscape heals; she begins to discover her own wise strength; and as the days unfold, she comes to the gratifying realization that a long marriage is like a long trail: there are ups and downs and it takes hard work to keep going, but the beauty along the way is staggering. Written with raw honesty and compassion, and rich with dazzling scenery, To Walk It Is To See It will inspire you to lace up your walking shoes and discover your own path.

Lucinda Jackson, a harried scientist and business executive, sets off to make a break from her corporate decades and have an “extraordinary” retirement. She launches into a five-phase “Project Escape,” complete with a vision, goals, and a scorecard of success to deliver this next chapter. Soon, Jackson and her semi-reluctant husband of thirty years are off as volunteers to the government of the Pacific island country of Palau. But while Jackson got the girl out of the corporation, even the jolt of Palau can’t fully get the corporation out of the girl. As she struggles through self-examination around purpose, identity, ego, marriage, and parenthood after years of investing so much in career, Jackson gradually learns who she is again. Whether you’re thinking ahead to retirement or are already there, Project Escape provides an unvarnished but ultimately encouraging reference in navigating the “post-career” era.

When Alana and Roland, a spirited Canadian couple with an insatiable desire to live life to the fullest, embark on an epic yearlong travel adventure around the world with their newborn son and ten-year-old daughter, they think they’re prepared for whatever might come their way. They soon discover that this is not entirely true. This charming family love story, sure to inspire wanderlust, is peppered with funny parenting mishaps, thrilling adventures, breathtaking sceneries, unforgettable monuments, and culinary bliss. However, as you are taken through the temples of Southeast Asia, the pyramids of Egypt, the rolling hills of Tuscany, and the African plains, you will also be exposed to the world as experienced by a biracial, blended family. Around the World in Black & White is a tale of self-discovery, racial awakening, resilience, and deeper understanding. This bold, witty, and heartfelt memoir will have you rethinking how you travel, how you see the world, and how the world sees you.

Drinking glasses of cava in the sunshine, indulging in delicious tapas, and learning Spanish with ease is what Amy Breen, a hard-charging physician and mother of three, expected of life in Spain. But when she and her young family move to Barcelona, the tranquilo lifestyle of their new country has other ideas for her. Join Amy and her family in their mishaps and adventures living in Barcelona and traveling throughout Europe, and watch as Amy—openly and with a self-deprecating humor—unfolds her struggles in her transition from a handle-it-all doctor and mother in the States to full-time parent who needs her kids to translate. The tranquilo way of life is Amy’s adversary, and then teacher, in this humorous personal and family journey.

"This course attempts to communicate to travel modeling professionals some of the [travel demand forecasting] procedures developed by their colleagues around the U.S. and abroad, most of which have been implemented as part of an existing travel demand modeling system."--p.1-5

Ride the wave with Rudy Rucker---author, programmer, mathematician, professor, cyberpunk, hipster, transrealist, and family man. A writer’s journey. Rucker composed "Journals: 1990-2014" over twenty-five years. A long-running adventure. Entries include: Introspection and philosophizing, sketches of daily life, descriptions of Rucker's travels, and notes on writing.

Circle the twentieth-century globe with risk-taking, frugal Rudy and his spouse Mary, a catastrophic thinker seeking comfort. When this marriage of opposites goes traveling, their engaging stories combine laugh-out-loud humor with poignant lessons from the odyssey of a World War II veteran.

In the first few years of her life, four-year-old Sandra Schmidt endured TB, the death of her mother and the abandonment of her father. It is 1938: Hitler runs Sandras homeland and soon much of the homelands of Germanys neighbors. She is raised in the safety of her grandparents home until the Americans and British start bombing Germany and her village. Sandra is struck by a piece of shrapnel and almost dies from infection. Her lifelong friend and Sandra wonder what the Jewish Solution is all about when her beloved grandfather is sent to a concentration camp for hiring Jews in the market he manages. He escapes with the help of a former employee who now is a warden there. After Sandras grandfather dies she lets an American GI trundle her off to New York, but doesnt like it there and runs off to California. But being beautiful doesnt guarantee you a job there. She struggles for a while, and after a few mishaps she lands a job as a Tour Manager to India. The tour companys management is impressed with her and offers her a permanent position. She always told her grandmother that: someday I will travel the world. Oddly enough, this will be her new profession, and she travels with American tourists for many years. The dream she had of traveling with the rich and famous had finally come true.