Have no fear, however, some of the best conversations I’ve ever had, have been “non” conversations. It’s amazing how easily we can communicate without the spoken word. Of course, as scuba divers, it is essential we have a basic form of non verbal communication, a global language of hand gestures to indicate basic commands and questions such as: go up, go down, stop, how much air do you have or look at the big shark!

Here in Indonesia, our dive guides have a smattering of English words and I have an even smaller smattering of Bahasa but I had a lengthy and hilarious conversation yesterday with Eddy, my guide, underwater. It went something like this:

Eddy found a scorpionfish and pointed it out to me. This is an extremely poisonous fish, well camouflaged within the reef and if you are not careful, you can fall victim to it’s excruciating sting as I did one day a year ago by stepping on one off the beach. Anyways, Eddy pointed out the fish. I returned his gesture with a pantomime motion of stabbing it to death. Since my unfortunate encounter, I wish them all ill fortune (in a simple joking manner!). Eddy agreed with me saying we should kill it and eat it. Not being one to indulge in seafood, I waved off his invitation to dine and pointed to my foot with a stamping motion indicating my past history with the fish.

Here we were at 70 feet under the water with schools of fish swirling around us, concentrating on telling stories!

Eddy wiped his brow in understanding and what I thought was sympathy and then a huge burst of bubble erupted from his regulator. He was laughing hysterically at me probably for doing something so dumb as stepping on the fish! He laughed so hard his mask flooded. I rubbed my eyes with closed fists to tell him that I was a cry baby from the pain of the sting which sent him into more peels of laughter. Of course, laughter being infectious, it send me into giggles as well.

So here we are the two of us, masks flooded, doubled over in fits of hilarity, bubbles bursting from our mouths over a simple story of the worst pain in my life as the current hurls us down the reef. We kind of slapped each other on the shoulder and then just continued with our dive. We didn’t talk about it after the dive, the whole story had been told and understood under the sea, conversation over.

Sometimes it’s the wordless conversations that are the best way to communicate and build a base for a friendship.  I wonder what Eddy and I will “talk” about today in the blue?

To Your Adventures!

Mantagirl

As 2011 comes to a close, it always makes Ridlon and I think back on the year. Like many people, we do a end of year review of what worked, what didn’t, what we accomplished and what lies ahead.

This morning Ridlon found a list of things we wanted to have, be or do that we wrote at some point in 2010. Considering they are major events/experiences or purchases, we were surprised at how many we could check off the “bucket list” since then. It’s not a yearly list but a continual, organic, dynamic document. And it is simply amazing how intention works. Once we write it down, put it on a dream board and open up to opportunity, how it all falls into place. Just for fun, here is the list. What is in red is what has been completed.

1.Purchase/learn Final Cut Pro editing software

2.Purchase lights for video system (did it but have to do it again!)

3.Train on a diving rebreather

4.Get our dry suit diving certification

5.Become a published author

6.Dive with whales

7.Stay at the ice hotel in Finland

8.Fly to London with our friend Lee at the helm (an AA pilot)

9.Dive the Sardine Run

10.Dive with the mantas in the Maldives

11.Do a Civil War battlefield tour with Dad (Ridlon)

12.Take a trip with our nieces and nephews

13.Climb the Seven Summits (ONE of seven summited so far)

14.Climb Mt. Rainier

15.Three month speaking tour for Ocean of Hope (our non profit)

16.Dive Raja Ampat for a month (headed back again in 2 weeks!)

17.Dive the southern Red Sea

18.Travel/Dive Cuba before it opens up

19.Safari in Africa

20.Climb Torres del Paine (Patagonia)

21.Argentina wine tour

22.See the sandhill crane migration in Nebraska

23.Swim with whale sharks using a biofin

24.Fly an Ultralight

25.Dive the cownose ray migration in Mexico

26.Take a luxury cruise with mom (Ridlon)

27.Costa Rica birding tour with brother and dad (Ridlon)

28.Hike the Great Himalayan Trail

29.Buy a red jeep

30.Dive Cocos Island (did it twice!)

31.Spend a season in Antarctica diving

32.Fly at Mach 2

33.Go into space (orbit)

34.Film a documentary

35.Speak at a Fortune 100 company

36.Have a personal assistant

37.Have a massage every day

38.Go to the bottom of the Marianas Trench

39.See polar bears and tigers in the wild

40.Dive with sailfish at Isla Mujeres, Mexico

41.Dive the Line Islands

42.Buy at Yeti mountain bike (Ridlon)

43.Do Ocean of Hope village projects

44.Dive Fakarava (again)

45.Round the world expedition (IN PLANNING for a July departure!)

46.Live in a foreign country for a year (non English speaking)

47.Dive with the Great White sharks of Guadaloupe Island

48.Learn to Kiteboard

49.Go to Greenland

50.Bike the Telluride/Moab trail

Put intention to work for you in 2012 and see what dreams you can make come true! I know by looking at this list, it CAN and WILL happen!

To Your 2012 Adventures!

Mantagirl

keep a list of intentions you'll be amazed at what you accomplish

Every year, nearly 20,000 people die and 21 million medical visits are needed due to home accidents in the United States, says the U.S. Home Safety Council.

Here are six of the top accidents waiting to happen in your home.

 1. Cutting yourself with a knife. 150 people stab themselves every day while trying to open a jar or a packaged meal with a knife!

2. Slamming fingers in doors/windows. 30,000 people are rushed to the US Emergency rooms each year with an amputated finger and one of the top reasons is slamming them in doors!

Scared Yet? Ready to run away from home?  Here’s more!

falls are the biggest culprit in home accidents

3. Falling down the stairs. More people end up in the US Emergency rooms because of fall related injuries than from any other cause.

 4. Getting burned while cooking. 60,000 people are hospitalized every year with burn related injuries and cooking is one of most hazardous.

Wow, I don’t know about you, but I’m packing my bags RIGHT NOW. Ready for the last two?

hmmmm, safer to go adventuring huh?

 5. Falling out of windows (really??). According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, thousands of young children are killed or injured from falling out of windows every year.

 6. Electrocution. About 1000 people die each year from this.

Of course you can argue that the reason this happens is because most people spend most of their time at home and these numbers also include children. And you would probably be right. I’m simply making the point that staying home is not a safer way to live life. Get out and experience the world. Don’t let FEAR stop you from life.

What on earth made me think of this? The irony of a situation that happened last week. In 2009, Ridlon climbed and summited the 6th highest peak in the world at 26,906’ as well as two 20,000’ mountains in the Himalayas. Last month we summited Mt. Kilimanjaro at 19, 341’. Not a scratch on him! Last Friday he ran up the stairs in the dark and slammed his foot into the couch. Result? Spiral fracture of the middle toe!

I’m convinced!!! It’s safer out of the house… I’m leaving and going traveling…..I’m going “out there” where I don’t have to fear for my life……I just hope I don’t slam my fingers in the door on the way out!

To Your Adventures!

Mantagirl

That's it, I'm OUTTA here!

PS: Big thanks to George at the Norco Inc. in Hamilton, MT. George hooked us up with a great boot for Ridlon’s foot and I promised him a link in my blog. If you live in the northwest and need safety supplies for welding, medical, or industrial gas, check ‘em out! www.norco-inc.com

I’ve been home 27 days.. if you count today and the day I landed at the airport. About 22 days too long. Not that I don’t like home, in fact I LOVE my home. But when I’m home, I’m not traveling, simple as that.

My biggest fear is living an ordinary life.

My biggest fear is living an ordinary life

I abhor allowing even a single day to pass without some kind of adventure. Even as the world gets smaller, there is more to see and experience and learn than could ever be accomplished in one life. It’s like never getting to the end of the internet, you can never come to the end of adventure. This is why it’s both a gift and a curse. It’s infinite.

Many people say I’ve been lucky to do what I’ve done in my life. I will be bold here and say, no I’ve worked VERY hard at it. In fact, I’m obsessed with it. I’m always planning and thinking and scheming and figuring a way to the next plane ticket, the next “never been to” destination. And it never seems enough.

As the year 2011 winds down, I think about what I’ve done this year and I feel that I haven’t been very adventurous. Then Ridlon shakes his head and recounts the year.

“We began by watching an amazing New Year’s Eve 2010/11 night of fireworks, anchored in the harbor off Sorong, West Papua, Indonesia after spending a month diving Raja Ampat. From there we headed off for a week of exploring in Ubud, Bali. The bags were repacked within a week to go off in search of the hammerheads of Cocos Island, Costa Rica for two weeks. After a brief stop to visit our families in Ohio and Texas, we left barely two weeks later at the end of February for six months traveling back to Costa Rica and then by ship across the Caribbean and the Atlantic and finishing up in late August in Greece. We managed an entire three weeks back home before a month of exploration of Tanzania, Mozambique and S. Africa including climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, diving and safari.”

Well, I guess when he says it like that, it’s been a pretty busy year.

Now, I’ve spent an entire 27 days at home….. sigh… I feel I’m living an “ordinary life” once again. I feel I’m wasting precious time.

Adventure is life giving oxygen

It makes me feel alive. It ignites my sense of wonder and encourages my sense of wander. I sit here today and wonder what people are doing in Uganda or who’s diving today in the Galapagos or who’s beginning an adventure of a lifetime? And every day I think I should be there.

When I am out adventuring I feel I have this gift I can’t hold in my hand. It’s sand through my fingers and so I need to keep digging back into the beach and refilling my hands. I need to live and experience it at each and every moment. Traveling and connecting with the world through people and culture and nature is the fabric of life and I am furiously weaving as fast as I can. It’s a rush of a lifetime.

Adventure is life giving oxygen

Really, I used to have a swing in my house

I used to have a swing in my house. Yes, a real swing and yes inside my house and yes, I had very high ceilings! And I used to swing on it every day, pumping my legs and reaching as high as I possibly could. The thrill of being at the top of the pendulum was exhilarating. Flying high, half out of control, in a state of constant movement was key. And in order to keep flying high, you have to continuously pump your legs and work towards it or else you will slow down and stop at the bottom… and when it stops it’s no better than simply sitting on a chair…. or living an ordinary life.

The dichotomy of adventure, the curse of the addiction and the precious gift…..

To Your Adventures,

Mantagirl

27 days ago in S. Africa, time to go!

We all have bucket lists. Things we want to do before we die. How many items does your bucket list have on it? 10? 20? 100? Take a look at it. Is it the same 20 or 100 things this year as it was last year? Or five years ago? If so, why? Lack of time? Money? or is it FEAR?

What's on your bucket list? Kilimanjaro is on many!

If you think long and hard about it, fear probably is at the top of the list. I mean, it’s easy to SAY that it’s time and money but ….it’s probably FEAR. Time and money are things that can be overcome much easier than fear. If you need the time, take a leave of absence from your job and go it. That’s not rocket science. And there are always ways to fund the dreams but fear is a mountain high hurdle.

“Courage is the resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not the absence of fear”

                ~Mark Twain

“I want to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro, but I have no idea HOW to do it”

Fear stops us in our tracks. We fear that we don’t know how to do the thing it is we so long to do. . Fear keeps us from asking HOW and moving forward to success.

Recently, Ridlon and I completed writing a how to guide on Living Adventurously (soon to be available as a free download on our website). One of our eight principles is “Not knowing is never a reason for not doing”. I thought about this yesterday when I had to do a couple of things I’d never done before.

It was snowy and my almost vertical driveway was slick. If I wanted to go to town, it would be smart to put the chains on the truck. But I had never done it. Like many women, I relied on my husband for this more “manly” task. But now, here I was faced with “figure it out or stay home”. I was afraid to try and fail. It took a few tries to get them lined up around the tires and get them hooked in the wheel well. My neighbors probably would have laughed! One fell off halfway down the driveway and wrapped around the axel so I was under the truck in the wet snow, learning and feeling dumb. Now I know. Then as soon as I got to town a brake light went out on the truck. I went and bought a new light and rather than just let the CarQuest guy fix it, I watched and asked so I knew how to get the taillight cover off and back on. I felt kind of stupid not knowing but I WAS stupid on that particular subject. But… now I know. We are not all experts on every subject.

“Hey, why would they want to talk to me?”

It made me think even further back to an enlightening moment I had on a cruise two years ago. I had joined a fantastic company of people who make and distribute vitamin supplements (www.usana.com) and 700 of us were on a Caribbean cruise together. I was a novice at the sales process and was feeling a bit shy and stupid on the subject because I WAS unknowledgeable about it. Ridlon jumped right in and went and asked the most successful people how to become successful but I was thinking, “Hey, why would they want to talk to me?” I was letting FEAR get in the way of my success.

We spent one evening with another couple who were at the top of the company. The wife, (I’ll call her Sarah) was an especially strong, go after it, type of woman and while I really liked her, I was a bit uncomfortable because of her knowledge and success. I didn’t think she would want to give me the time of day.  As the conversation turned to scuba diving, she and her husband mentioned that they had just finished their beginning course but had not completed their training dives. Well, here we were in the Caribbean, so we offered our services to help them complete their Open Water course.

We took them out the next day into a shallow bay of just 25’ of water in perfect conditions. I could tell that Sarah was nervous. I couldn’t believe it. How could this strong, confident, successful woman be nervous about 25’ of perfect blue sea? I took her down slowly, watching her eyes widen we dropped further down. I reached out and she took a death grip on my hand. I led her confidently, smiling with my eyes and showing her that it was alright. She was terrified, I could tell. In her mind, she was simply trying to survive, in mine, I was learning a valuable lesson.

Learn from someone who knows, don't be afraid to ask

We all have something we do great but we all have things we are “dumb” at only because of lack of knowledge. Don’t be afraid to find those people who have the knowledge and ask, “Can I learn from you?”. Sarah was top dog on terra firma but underwater was my realm. It wasn’t a contest, it was a lesson. We all have FEAR.

What’s on your bucket list that with only a bit of knowledge could you accomplish? What will it take to get over that fear of not knowing how? Ask someone! Don’t let “Not knowing EVER be a reason for not doing”.

To Your Adventures and may you check off many things on your bucket list in the new year!

~Mantagirl

To Your Adventures!

“There’s something about tradition….something comforting, something satisfying.  It’s a feel good moment that you’ve carried on something important into the future.  It’s a way of belonging.”

Kind of like Halloween and pumpkins, or like Christmas and Carrols, some things are simply tradition. Just like Thanksgiving and Scuba Diving? Absolutely! For the past twelve years, we’ve lead a scuba diving trip somewhere in the Caribbean during the week of the American Thanksgiving holiday. Why?  Here are the top reasons:

 THANKSGIVING WEATHER

Well, if you look outside my door in Montana at the moment, it’s 15 degrees with about six inches of snow on the ground. THAT’S a good reason. It’s nice to have a good blast of warm water and warm sunshine, before plunging headlong into winter. It helps get you through those cold nights until the end of the holidays when you’re ready to head south again for another syringe full of sand in your toes.

Time to get out for a dive trip!

 SHORT WORK WEEK DURING THANKSGIVING

It’s a short week of work. So in order to take in a full week of bask on the beach Caribbean Heaven, you really only need to take three days off. But if you are thinking, OMG, the last thing I want to do is fly on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, listen up. Here is where we have become tricky with our Thanksgiving Dive trip. We run it Saturday to Saturday so you are home in the comfort of your PJs on Sunday morning while the rest of humanity is fighting TSA in some hub airport after just flighting it the other way on Wednesday night. Now THAT is a tradition I can miss!

 SOME PEOPLE SIMPLY DON’T LIKE THE HASSLE OF THE HOLIDAY

Some people don’t want the whole “family” thing at Thanksgiving. They’d rather not cook, not deal with the in-laws and don’t give a lick about the football games. It’s another holiday to spend in the kitchen cooking for people who probably don’t appreciate it and end up depressed by the 5lb you gained eating all that butter! And then….here it comes.. BLACK Friday. Wow, give me a lobotomy rather than shop on the day after Thanksgiving! I prefer to Christmas shop online from the comfort of my couch in front of the fire instead of having to put chains on my truck to get down my driveway and then fight the hoards in the mall. It seriously looks like opening day of hunting season here in the west!

 THANKSGIVING WEEK DIVE ADVENTURE

So for all these reasons and probably more, back in 1999, we began what we call, Turkey Day in the Tropics, a new Thanksgiving Tradition. It wasn’t a tradition to begin with, that defies the definition. But what we found was that year after year, the same people kept showing up for “Turkey Day in the Tropics”. It’s always a quick and easy one week getaway to the Caribbean. Mostly, it’s a relaxing week of sharing time with friends and always seems to include someone new to add to our “family”. We dive twice a day from an upscale resort where everyone is pampered to the hilt. The afternoons are spent exploring the island or relaxing in a hammock. The photographers thumb through their images and at happy hour at the bar every evening, I show video of the day’s underwater escapades. One of our diver’s wives who doesn’t dive, uses it as total chill out time. She brings a huge stack of romance novels and sits by the pool with an umbrella drink and lets the stress of her job melt away for seven glorious days! Another of our divers, Liz, buys herself a new dress every year just for the occasion.

Sharing time with great friends and meeting new ones!

Chilling out after the dives

It soon became an anticipated yearly tradition. And I refer back to my opening quote because it HAS become something comforting, something satisfying. It’s a feel good moment that you’ve carried something important into the future. It’s a way of belonging.

It became SUCH a tradition that back in 2009 when Ridlon and I were unable to make the trip, a few of our divers went anyway! They sent pictures with a Turkey Day sign they had made. Wow, it was an honor to know how this now twelve year old tradition can endure even without us!

The tradition continued even without us one year!

So, now, why am I writing this? It’s Thanksgiving week and I’m writing this from Montana??? Never fear, Turkey Day in the Tropics is happening right now on the beautiful island of Curacao! Ridlon is leading the group this year because number of divers didn’t allow for both of us to go. It’s a very sad state of our economy that this year many of our “same time next year divers” were unable to join us. But we will hold fast to our tradition and are confident that next year, those who couldn’t make it in 2011 will join us in 2012. The spirit of the Turkey Day in the Tropics tradition lives on!

Enjoying the Turkey Day Tradition on the dive boat!

Turkey Day Dive Trip 2011!

THANK YOU DIVERS

So thank you to all of you who hold Turkey Day sacred! It’s been a great run for twelve years and we look forward to making lucky number 13 the best one yet!!!!

 WANT TO JOIN US?

Where will it be? Ah, that brings me to another tradition. On every trip, we host a slideshow we call Shameless Self Promotion where we unveil upcoming trips. So during this week, the location of Turkey Day in the tropics 2012 will be revealed…. so I can’t divulge it ahead of time or I won’t survive until Christmas…

Stay tuned……

To Your Adventures,

Mantagirl

Fun Diving in Curacao

We woke up this morning with anticipation of a big day of climbing followed by our summit attempt tonight. It was still overcast and foggy but at some point in the middle of the night, the clouds cleared and during a nocturnal bathroom break, most of the team at some point had beautiful views. The trip was planned around the full moon with this in mind.

Today we first tackled Barranco Wall or what is commonly known as the Breakfast Wall. Shortly after leaving camp, we arrived at a vertical rock wall just under 1000’ tall. The trail turns to rock and it becomes and lesson in bouldering. You need both hands and feet to scramble up this wall. You also need good lungs at almost 14,000 feet to handle 1 1/2 hours of hand over hand climbing. The team folded up and put away their climbing poles and began the assault on the wall.

Val, Ridlon and I have all had rock climbing training so for us it was a fun challenge of where to grab the next hand hold. The rock was wet and while it wasn’t truly slippery it made the climb more challenging. Val commented that that’s the way he likes to gain vertical feet, fast and up! I kept thinking that I was immensely glad that I was feeling good today or there was no way I would make it up this wall.

1000' Barranco wall in front of us

Up the wall we go!

Normally, the reward at the top is a fantastic view but again today the sun eluded us and we stood looking out at the fog wondering what fantastic views were shrouded from view. Pete, we realized had never climbed anything like this before and he said that part way up he wondered what in the world he was doing climbing rocks like this. In the end Pete was standing a little taller than normal, proud of his accomplishment of the wall. The YES I CAN CLIMB was truly becoming its namesake!

But our day was just beginning and we didn’t realize what lay ahead. From the top of the wall we headed back down to the elevation we started at, losing all we had gained and just before lunch another 1000’ climb reared its head. But we knew lunch was on top so up we went again in the rain.

The second 1000' climb up to Lunch

From lunch we still had another 2200’ of gain. Since we knew we were attempting the summit tonight, we said, ‘Bring it on!”. We needed to get to Barafu camp to rest before our all night climb to the top.

Just at the last few hundred feet, now back out of the trees and onto rocky slopes, we spied a bit of blue sky. Like an airplane rising through the clouds we surfaced above the fog and mist and Kilimanjaro sat majestically above us bathed in sunshine. We almost ran the last few hundred feet up (except for the fact that we were at almost 16,000 feet!) and stared in awe!

Our last stop before the summit!

Our final ascent lay all too soon in front of us. Tired, happy and excited we unpacked into our tents for an afternoon nap and to contemplate the summit. For each one of us, the challenge is about us and the mountain alone and we would have to mentally prepare ourselves in our own way for the push to the top. The climb will begin at midnight and by sunrise each one of us will know where we will stand.

To Your Adventures!

Mantagirl

Thru the clouds to Barafu Camp at over 15,000 ft

I’ve written suitcases full of advice and tips on packing but my favorite type of packing  is for a multi sport adventure. It takes planning, precision and pruning to get it right and arrive with everything you need….nothing you don’t…..and here’s the MOST important part…. WITHIN THE AIRLINE WEIGHT LIMITS!!

This week I am packing for a climbing, diving and safari extravaganza in Africa! So let’s take a look at how it’s done.

Begin with the Airline

Yep, start your packing process by finding the baggage weight restrictions on the MOST restrictive flight you will be on. For example, I will fly to Mt. Kilimanjaro with KLM on an Airbus A330-300, so no worries, 2 bags, 70 lbs since I am a frequent flier with Sky Team. Ah but wait! I will fly from Tanzania to Mozambique on Precision Airlines, restrictions… 1 bag 23 kilos. Excess baggage fees $3.00 per kilo. Now I have my parameters for the trip.

Pull out everything essential for each part of the trip

Since you already have a copy of my travel planning book (what? you don’t? Get one here!) you have made packing lists for previous diving or climbing trips, or whatever your sport of choice is. So pull out those lists and pull out all the kit. Keep the piles separate for each part of the trip. Now, take a look and be overwhelmed by the amount of stuff you take for a single sport adventure.

Start the pruning process

What things do you normally take for a single sport trip that can double. Unfortunately, climbing and diving require almost completely different gear. For the safari portion of the trip, this time we’ll be doing it the easy way, by car so not much gear is necessary. A pair of binoculars and a couple of guidebooks which can be bought on site, a few printed out bird and mammal checklists from the internet and we’re good to go. So…now I go back and see what is essential. And this is hard.

Normally for a dive trip I would have my back up mask, my “save a dive kit” my parachute and reel…. well you get the idea. So, for this trip I decided to take strictly essentials, regulator/computer, mask and wetsuit. I have ditched the 6lb fins, my 4.4lb BCD and all the extras. For a few dollars I can rent these things and not carry them all across Africa. I have my safety parachute and dive alert. My wetsuit to me is essential since I become cold very easily and won’t rely on a rental suit. Already I have “saved” about 15lbs of gear.

When you pack for a climb you are acutely aware of weight already since you will carry it all on your back. This means you don’t take 15 pairs of climbing shorts, you rotate two. So climbing gear is already honed down to the bare essentials. Important, DO NOT to skimp on your safety gear for any sport endeavor.

Packing Clothes for a Multi Sport Adventure

This one can be tough especially for women. We want to travel light and efficiently but we want to look good as well. We’ll be on the beach for a week diving so I want a couple of sexy sundresses and heels, cute strappy tops and shorts. And as most of you know, I simply CAN’T exist without 8-10 bathing suits. Here is where the tough decisions come in. For me, I forgo the heels for flip flops and maybe, at the end of the packing if there is room, throw in a little black dress. Most of my climbing shorts and tops are fine for the beach. I have a couple of pairs of good wicking undies that, while not Victoria’s Secret, are sexy enough thanks to Patagonia. And this time, two bathing suits are the max, OUCH! Hiking boots and flip flops will have to suffice for footwear. Pack clothes that can be used for multi purpose. Sport gear companies like Patagonia, again, are great for this type of clothing. You can use your wicking tops for climbing or the beach but your cotton t-shirts would be a disaster on the mountain not to mention their hefty weight. Leave those at home.

Consumables

Now, remember that up until the end of the climbing portion, we will have arrived with luxurious baggage allowances. Therefore, I put all our consumables in a second checked bag (squashable duffel). That protein powder, powdered Gatorade, Snickers bars, vitamins, shampoo, etc….. will not be going onward to the restricted airlines. So I pack all my kit and then put the consumables in a separate bag. I know this stuff will be long gone before I hit the airline counter and I know the weight of my main bag will not change except for the few ounces of weight of my collapsable duffel.

Toiletries

If I were headed to a resort for a couple of weeks to lie on the beach, then I would take my favorite shampoo and conditioner, face creams and lotions and potions and perfumes and all of that. However, on a multi sport adventure, my sleeping bag is more important than my favorite shampoo. For a couple of bucks, go to Walmart and buy travel/trial sizes of deodorant, toothpaste and combo shampoo/conditioner. Your body won’t fall apart using these for a couple of weeks, trust me. Leave the big heavy bottles at home. And don’t ever trust those “travel bottles”. 99% of the time they will explode in your luggage and even if they are enclosed in ziplock bags, it will be a mess you don’t want. Remember, most hotels provide soap, shampoo, conditioner, hair dryers etc… even if it’s not your favorite brand. It’s not a pivotal point in history, trust me.

Sharing

If you are traveling with a spouse or buddy, what can you share? My husband and I are not so different in size that we can’t share t-shirts. We do this all the time. And for a trip like this, we’ll share most of our toiletries.

Weigh Early and Often

So finally you have everything narrowed down to it’s lowest common denominator, great. Weigh it. And weigh it again before you leave, just in case. Here are a few additional tips for keeping weight out of your bags.

•Be sure you have removed all unnecessary packaging from new items. (Ladies, don’t take the BOX of tampons, get the pearl size and put them in a ziplock bag.)

•Always leave 2-3lbs of leeway to account for the last minute “throw in” and difference in scales.

•Leave a sweater or book or something at the top of your suitcase. If you find your bag is over the allowed weight once you get to the airport, you can easily pull out a sweater to tie around your neck or a book to carry in your hand to offset the difference.

•Plan in advance what you will wear on the plane and wear what’s heavy! While the flip flops may be the most comfortable, those hiking boots probably weigh 5lbs. You can always take them off on the plane and yes, it will be more of a pain at security but it’s really not a big deal.

•Weigh your bag empty. A normal rolling suitcase can weigh up to 10lbs!!!! Choose wisely here.

•Often I get away with a heavy carry on.  It’s a risk sometimes but often worth it.

Many of the best trips I have taken in my life were multi sport adventures. Don’t let the packing process and a load of gear become overwhelming. Follow these tips and you’ll soon learn that not only is it easy but it’s a fun challenge to pack for such great adventures.

To Your Adventures!

Mantagirl

Many people ask me about working on cruise ships. I have spent six years working on board as part of a ship’s crew and many more years leading groups on board. All of my work has been on small ships meaning 300 passengers or less. I find it more personal to work in this atmosphere. If I was a 21 year old, I might feel differently and opt for a large ship with lots going on but the small ships fit better for me.

Here are five of my top reasons for choosing adventure jobs at sea.

World Travel With a Cruise Ship Job 

If you want to “see the world”, working on board a ship is a great way to do it. Especially if you choose a cruise line that has many varied itineraries, you can cover a lot of countries, perhaps even an around the world cruise. You travel while you work and travel while you sleep so there’s no “wasted” travel days. You don’t have to make any of the arrangements and you wake up in the morning with your office in a different place every day. How amazingly cool is that?

Now, with that said, how MUCH of a place you actually see will vary. If seeing the world is a top priority, then be sure to get yourself the type of on board job where you can actually get off the ship and see the port of call. If you work in an on board shop for example, then the shop actually must be closed while in port and if you don’t have other responsibilities, chances are you’ll have a great deal of free time to explore. Or perhaps work in the Shore Excursion department where some of your job may be to escort tours. Yes, you will be counting heads and keeping an eye on your guests but you too will be seeing the wonders of the world and get paid to do it!

get a job that gives you free time to explore!

Making International Friends With A Cruise Ship Job

Not that my friends at home are boring but it’s so mind opening to meet and develop friendships with people from around the world. The current ship I am working on hosts employees from Indonesia, Philippines, Ukraine, England, S. Africa, India, The Caribbean, Poland and the USA and this is a minuscule crew of less than 100.

Today I had lunch with a new couple just arriving to work in our casino. They are newlyweds and she is from S. Africa and he is from India. That may seem like an unlikely couple until you realize that they met on ships. Every day, our Ukranian Chief Engineer asks us about how things are going in the US and do people like O’Bama and how various things work. We learned that you can get any type of certification in the Ukraine by simply buying it and that it is outrageously expensive to learn to drive there. Every day, I have fascinating conversations with my international friends and learn just a little bit more about our diverse world.

Meet great International friends on board!

Family Atmosphere in a Cruise Ship Job

 This doesn’t mean bring your kids and get a job on a cruise ship. This means that all the crew I work with are like a family. Because we are a small ship we take care of each other. We celebrate the special holidays together no matter if we are Christian, Muslim or Hindu. On board a cruise ship, because you eat, work and sleep so close to each other the time frame to become close shrinks. I know more about the crew on board this ship in a month than I still know about friends I have had all my life at home who I meet once a month for dinner. We cover for each other when necessary and keep each other in line when needed. Everyone is welcome at our table at any time.

Intense work/Extended time off  With a  Cruise Ship Job

Working on board a cruise ship is very different than working a 9-5, Monday to Friday job. There are no “days off”. Cruise ships only make money when they are sailing with guests. You don’t drop off guests and have a couple days to recoup. We disembark at 8:30am and embark new guests 4 1/2 hours later. The work is intense and tiring but everyone’s pulling the hours so we all pull together. We work a six month contract so 180 days straight. Some crew members work as many as ten months straight. But, the reward for this is that I have two months off at the end.

Think about what you can do if you had two entire months free! You could do anything from volunteer somewhere to climb mountains to rent a villa in Italy to backpack SE Asia……the possibilities are endless. You are now not limited to 2 weeks out of 52 and then straight back to the grind. This is a HUGE advantage to this type of lifestyle. One vacation, we took a month and cruised all over Australia and then up to PNG to go diving. This vacation, we are leading a group to climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro, then heading to Mozambique to go scuba diving and then to S. Africa for a safari.

Extended vacation time!

Domestic Chores With a Cruise Ship Job

How much time do you spend doing domestic chores? Think about it and read my blog post, How do you spend your life? One of the great reasons to work on board a ship is that you do not spend ANY of your time doing laundry (I just stick it in a bag and leave it on my bed!- all ships vary). I also don’t clean my own cabin, make my bed or vacuum. And while I do like to cook, I don’t have to cook ANY of my own meals. Just show up, eat and hand someone the dishes to wash. If you were to calculate how many hours a week you spend doing all these chores and then multiply that by 50 (give yourself two weeks of vacation a year) you’ll be surprised at the number. Then think about what you could do with those hours? Learn a new language? Spend it on a beach with a margarita? Learn a new sport?

Look, I don't have to do the dishes!

Cruise ship life is NOT for everyone but if you are thinking about giving it a go, these are five great reasons to go for it.  Be sure to watch for my next post on my five top reasons NOT to get a cruise ship job!

To Your Adventures!

Mantagirl

You can have a great lifestyle on board

The other day, Ridlon posted a blog called “The Hidden Steps of Life”, with a great lesson about paying attention to life. It was a thoughtful and clever post and this morning as I finished reading a novel called, “The Walk”  by Richard Paul Evans, something in the book struck a cord that collided in my brain with his post.

The author writes, in the epilogue of the book, of a Brazilian folk tale in which the moral is, “We are either victims of circumstance or masters of our own fate but we can’t be both”. It started me thinking about where in life I had allowed myself to be the victim and where I had stepped forward to decide my own path. And where I still let the victim mentality run me.

 Lessons Learned from the Cruise Ship Life

In Ridlon’s post, he explains how guests on board a cruise ship continually trip on a step in the ship’s lounge. Then they complain that the ship should do something to change the step instead of learning to take a different path or paying more attention. In this case, the guests choose to be repetitive victims to the step.

Last week on board the same ship there happened to be lots of young children. This particular ship does not cater to children and so there is little for them to do except splash in the pool and hog the hot tub and generally annoy the adult guests. At the end of the week, the guest comment cards were full of complaints about the children. However, not once during the week did any of them take the matter into their hands. Not one person spoke to the children’s parents or the hotel manager or do anything to make their own vacation more pleasant. Instead, they allowed themselves to be victims of circumstance. Choosing at any moment during the week to become masters of their own fate could have changed the outcome of their entire experience to something more pleasant. Yet they sat and suffered in silence.

Why?

Why do we not all choose, every day, to be masters of our own fate in life?

You CAN have the adventurous life you want by simply choosing to be the master of your own fate.

Check out this Video and Trust in Who You Are

To Your Adventures,

Mantagirl