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Call it vanity, but I try to never run out of the house without looking presentable. But I’m here in Seattle on a three-month assignment for my company, living in a lovely downtown high-rise furnished apartment. I love my work, but I work HARD—and so I slept in yesterday morning, not rising until nearly 1 p.m. I needed some maple syrup to go with my breakfast—so I tossed on huge wrap-around sunglasses, skinny black jeans, and the navy “Italia” zip-front jacket I picked up during a 2008 cruise stop in Sicily to literally run to the drugstore. And since folks in the Northwest are HARDLY known for their high style, I figured I’d fit right in. No danger of running into anyone I knew—or so I thought.
As I rounded the corner, who did I see standing outside Barolo (http://www.baroloseattle.com/), the FAB ristorante in my building, but a group of elegantly dressed native Italians. As soon as they spotted my “Italia” jacket, they threw open their arms. “Buon giorno, buon giorno!” I greeted the group, and once they discovered I spoke Italian (however limited), they eagerly engaged me in conversation. The men were thrilled to see the Sicilian flag embroidered on the side of my jacket because many of them were from this gorgeous island. It was like Old Home Week! They were gathered at Barolo for the wedding reception of this FINE Italian guy, and were waiting for him and his new bride to arrive. Turned out one man in the group is the manager of my favorite Seattle pizzeria and someone who constantly flirts with me.
“Give her a glass of champagne! Come in and join us,” one of the young gorgeous dark-haired ragazzi said. So here I am, messed-up hair, no makeup, and I’m being invited inside the restaurant to join this super-well-dressed group. I felt like I was having one of those dreams/nightmares when you find yourself naked—or otherwise inappropriately garbed—in a crowd….
Continue June 6, 2010
As someone who’s totally passionate about international travel (and whose often-depleted bank account proves just how much), I want to share that gospel with others. After all, the reason I started this blog was to encourage African-American sisters to venture out far beyond the United States borders and experience the world (http://bit.ly/auHl65). There’s far too much of it to see—and we are far too fabulous—to stick close to home just because we don’t know what we’ll find once we get out there.
I write about this in much detail on the brand-new Jet Magazine Web site (http://www.myjet247.com/)….
Continue May 7, 2010
One of the coolest things about engaging in the blogosphere is the chance to trade thoughts, ideas and experiences with fellow black female bloggers, those of us for whom international travel isn’t a luxury, but a mindset and a lifestyle. Since I launched UrbanTravelGirl back in December 2008 from my rented flat in the south of France, I’ve loved perusing other sisters’ blogs, finding commonalities in our unique, yet shared, overseas adventures.
We blog about keeping our hair hooked up in foreign countries; struggling to learn new languages; what it’s like “traveling while black” outside America. And of COURSE, we get into the “man thing.” Which leads to today’s thought.
I wrote recently about sisters “getting their swirl on” when traveling abroad, and have been fascinated by your thoughts (”merci beaucoup” for sharing!). One of my favorite and most thought-provoking fellow bloggers, American Black Chick in Europe (http://americanblackchickinlondon.blogspot.com/) recently wrote, “Why Am I in Europe?” (http://americanblackchickinlondon.blogspot.com/2010/04/why-am-i-in-europe.html), where she shared her reasons for studying and living on the continent (she first was in London, and now is in Toulouse, France). But some disgruntled reader, going off-topic and complaining about some of the “Hot Man Candy of the Week” photos she occasionally posts, said: “Yes, there are white guys in the USA. Would US black chick feel as free to lust after them or even date them in the USA? You will probably say yes, but we all know the racial dynamics of the USA….”
Continue April 22, 2010
I recently discovered a super-cool Web site, JayTravels.net (http://www.jaytravels.net/), written by a globe-trotting African-American man whose travel tag line is “I haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on my list!” I am SO with him on that. Jay hooked me up this week and featured me in his “Traveler Spotlight” (www.bit.ly/dffuB2). Please check it out, as I reminisce about previous international trips, reveal my travel “Bucket List,” and share my philosophy on travel’s life-changing possibilities.
All this walking down memory lane makes me want to buy a plane ticket to someplace fabulous RIGHT NOW!
GRAZIE MILLE, MERCI BEAUCOUP, et MUCHAS GRACIAS, Jay!
Continue April 6, 2010
Just last week, I picked up a provocative new book: Don’t Bring Home a White Boy: And Other Notions That Keep Black Women from Dating Out (http://www.karynlanghorne.com/)(Gallery Books, $24.99) by Karyn Langhorne Folan. A sister who’s a Harvard Law School grad, former law professor and novelist, Folan plays off the unspoken admonition many of black women have received for generations. The author herself is married to a white American man, and in her book includes real-life anecdotes with black and white men and women as she explores the “notions” that keep interracial dating off the table for many sisters.
But what interested me most is her last chapter: “It’s the Same Story Around the World.” Here, she writes how “Traveling the world—and meeting men from other countries and cultures—can offer American black women a new view of themselves as desirable.” She shares the stories of sisters who’ve lived in Europe, who talk about the very different dynamics of interracial relationships on that continent and in the States.
Many mention feeling attractive, desired, and appreciated FOR their blackness, rather than in spite of it. Some talk about feeling “freer” to be themselves, both personally and in relationships, when they are abroad. And, as Black Women in Europe blog and social network founder Adrianne George reports: “I want black women to know that, in the wider world, we are perceived as smart, hardworking and talented. In short, the world thinks you’re awesome.”
Continue April 5, 2010
It amazes me that in 2010, there are folks out there asking whether black folks travel. There’s still a perception out there that we don’t—which is why I’m thrilled that earlier this month, Jay of JayTravels.net (http://www.jaytravels.net) wrote a blog post on “Do African Americans Travel?” (http://www.jaytravels.net/do-african-americans-travel) But rather than ranting against the naysayers and tossing out figures about how much we spend, Jay shares excellent and thoughtful reasons of why we SHOULD hit the road (“gaining a better understanding of the world and how it affects your life locally;” “the more you travel, the more you realize issues between nations are rarely the will of the ‘people’”).
The discussion always fascinates me. In fact, the reason I launched this blog in the middle of a winter night in December 2008—during my 40th birthday getaway to the south of France, in fact—was to encourage African-American women to get out there and experience the world. And in fact, to let the world experience THEM. We sisters have a LOT more to offer to global culture than the rump-shaking hip-hop video vixens would have people believe. We’re smart, strong, independent, confident—and fascinating creatures in the eyes of many of the world’s diverse peoples.
Continue March 17, 2010
Talk about a film celebrating "romance on the road." "Before Sunset" explores the reconnection of one-time lovers Jesse (an American) and Celine (a Parisian) in the City of Light, nine years after their initial rendezvous in Vienna. This 2004 film might convince even skeptics about the possibility of finding true love on the other side of the world.
If there’s anything we single girls know, it’s that hitting the road brings with it the potential of new romance. And that’s the case whether we roll solo or with a group of our favorite girlfriends. That often was true for me, as my lackluster love life tended to perk up exponentially once I left the Chicago city limits. Perhaps we’re less inhibited and more open to adventure when we travel; maybe the old adage that “familiarity breeds contempt” makes men in other places more tempting than those we encounter at home.
Just in time for Valentine’s Day, I delve the issue of “romance on the road” in “TCW Travel Connection,” the blog I write for Today’s Chicago Woman magazine on ChicagoNow.com.
At the end of my TCW post, I ask: what’s the most romantic thing you’ve encountered during your travels? Did it involve a handsome stranger? A reconnection during a trip with “the one who got away?” Holler back at me!
February 13, 2010
Late last month, I wrote about the “hair issues” we black women often face when traveling abroad—and promised to offer some tips about handling these when you’re overseas.
When I first traveled to Europe in the late 1990s, visiting a friend who worked on a U.S. Army base in Germany, I was doing the relaxed hair thing, toting multiple curling irons and assorted lotions and potions in my always-overstuffed suitcase. But once I started hitting the road with friends, all those curling irons became a royal pain. What a hassle to constantly be plugging in, moving irons from one room to the other, waiting for them to cool down before you could pack them, etc. And then there was always the issue of “what if it rains?”
Now that I’ve been wearing two-strand twist extensions for most of the past five years, that’s no longer a concern. BUT, I have gotten overseas and much to my dismay, realized that I forgot to pack my favorite olive oil sheen or softening lotion. This, my friends, can be a challenge—especially since overseas trips tend to last for more than just a weekend.
But if you find yourself in a city—especially in Europe—and have arrived sans products, I’ve discovered that black folks and Arabs (who frequently have similar hair textures as ours) often live near the city’s main train station….
Continue January 10, 2010
I promise I’m going to write about “Black Chicas and Hair, Part Deux,” but I thought a post I included on my other travel blog, “TCW Travel Connection” (http://bit.ly/6KTkZV) for Today’s Chicago Woman magazine (http://www.tcwmag.com) would make a good introduction to 2010. For the past couple days, I’ve been reflecting and ruminating on the year that was (and thankfully is now OVER) and the year I’m hoping to have. And one thing I’ve promised myself is that I’ll consciously take risks. That I’ll make decisions that are scary but that offer huge long-term potential. And that I’ll remember this one life is NOT a dress rehearsal, and that none of us get a “do-over.”
Maybe part of it has to do with arriving in my 40s (God willing, I’ll turn 41 in a few days) and the realization that life is short. And that I don’t want to look back as an old woman with a list of “woulda-coulda-shouldas.” Hopefully you don’t want to do that, either.
So take a look at this post on letting travel take you outside your “comfort zone,” whatever that is for you. Here’s wishing you a year full of great trips and adventures – I’m looking forward to sharing them with you. And Happy New Year!
Continue January 1, 2010
I can’t believe I’ve been writing this blog for nearly one year and am only NOW finally writing a post about hair. Yes, black women’s hair—sometimes our crowning glory, other times the thorn surrounding our crowns.
For sisters, hair is political. It’s sexual. And when you travel, it needs to be straight-up PRACTICAL—at least for me.
When I talk to black women about travel, the “hair thing” nearly always comes up—ESPECIALLY when we talk about traveling abroad. It’s as much of the discussion as, “Are there any black folks in (name-the-country)?” “Do they speak English?” And “Will my curling irons work over there?” Because unlike many of our sisters of other races, most black chicks don’t naturally have wash-and-go hair. No, after we wash it, we often need to blow-dry it. And sometimes straighten, then curl it. And PRAY we don’t get caught in a rainstorm or encounter high humidity or some other Mother Nature force that will have its way with our tresses. It’s WAY more drama than I feel like dealing with when I’m on the road….
Continue December 22, 2009
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