“The traveler sees what he sees. The tourist sees what he comes to see.” This was the theme of acclaimed travel writer and nationally syndicated columnist Doug Lansky’s lecture “Get Lost” on Monday in the C. Shaw Smith 900 Room. Using a wide array of photographs from his travels in more than 100 countries, Lansky conveyed his passion for exploring the globe and his conviction that the most memorable travel experiences are often those found off the beaten path.
After graduating from Colorado College and holding internships at “Late Night with David Letterman,” “Spy Magazine” and “The New Yorker,” Lansky declined a job from “The New Yorker” in favor of hitting the road for two years of travel. His big break as a travel writer came with the syndication of his humor-adventure column “Vagabond” in 1995. Featured in over 40 national newspapers including the Chicago Tribune and the Charlotte Observer and with a readership of over 10 million, “Vagabond” chronicled the seemingly fearless Lansky’s global exploits which included braving hotels in third world countries, mastering white water kayaking in Chile and pony trekking in South Africa.
Lansky is the author of the books “Last Trout in Venice” and “Up the Amazon without a Paddle” as well as the editor of a travel-humor anthology, “There’s No Toilet Paper on the Road Less Travelled.” All of these titles hint at the travel writer’s sense of humor and passion for experiencing travel in an unfiltered and uninhibited manner. In other words, you won’t find Lansky trudging through lengthy tours of renowned museums or adhering to an itinerary replete with mainstream tourist destinations. This veteran traveler claims “there is no such thing as the must-sees. It’s about taking your time and enjoying the journey, not just getting to your destination. Travel isn’t just about racking up the passport stamps.” Using his slideshow to illustrate his point, Lansky challenged the audience to think about travel in a new light. Case in point: for Lansky crossing the desert on camel back in Africa was much more memorable than snapping the cliché touristy picture in front of Big Ben.
“Think of things you’ve always loved to do” Lansky encouraged. “Take a cooking course at the Cordon Bleu in Paris, take a gondola driving course in Venice, take as many authentic looking types of transportation as possible, take in Carnival in Brazil, try on fantastic costumes, run from the bulls in Pamplona.” In Lansky’s opinion, integrating yourself into a destination through the pursuit of your individual passions will result in not only a better appreciation and stronger understanding of the culture, but also in organic friendships with the locals.
Lansky also hosted a travel documentary for the Discovery Channel/Travel Channel, which earned him the opportunity to visit the Ocean Dome, the largest indoor beach in the world, located in Japan. Interestingly enough this manmade beach complete with crushed white marble sand and surfable yet undertow-free waves is a mere 300 meters from the natural beach. Although Lansky is well versed in the wonders of the world and has visited many touristy venues such as this one, he said that “the best thing out there is the people that you meet.” Travel is a subjective experience, unique to each traveler since the mentality behind every carefully planned (or not) international excursion depends on what you are looking for. According to Lansky, “it may be some place you’ve seen in a postcard, some place from a movie, the most picturesque town, a secret spot, the cheapest beer, a souvenir to remind you where you’ve been, a new language or pushing yourself to new heights.”
Rather than inspiring his audience and then leaving them to navigate the globe alone, Lansky acknowledged some of the doubts that may arise in zealous yet inexperienced travelers. It may take some time to adjust to trekking around the world with his recommendation of only a 45-liter backpack and a negligible wardrobe selection. “Travel is a little bit like driving a car,” Lansky concluded. “At first you’re terrible but pretty soon you’ve got the whole thing going, you’re working the gas and the clutch and the brakes, and holding a Diet Coke between your legs.” Adopting this mentality very well may lead you to some outlandish encounters that rank up there with Lansky’s anecdotes. He honed his golf skills on an ice course in Finland as well as on a sand course in Dubai, played soccer on the deck of a passenger ship off the coast of Patagonia, acquired a “seventh grade wedgie” while attempting sumo wrestling, spent the night in an underwater hotel, visited the world’s highest ski resort in Bolivia, and even rode an ostrich in Australia.
Lansky provided tips for safe travel and staying in budget, while also working to disprove a few travel myths such as the need to avoid sampling the local cuisine for fear of getting sick and the common aversion to hostels. He encouraged travelers to avoid relying on brochures, which run the risk of falsely portraying a destination with their pristine photos and catchy phrases.
For example, take Washington State, which attracts tourists with the saying, “It’s the place you’ve been trying to get to.” “For me this conjured up images of senior citizens driving around Oregon in their RV’s trying to find their way into Washington,” Lansky joked.
Throughout the lecture Lansky constantly used this sense of humor to convey his knowledge of and passion for traveling the world. According to Lansky the difference between a tourist and traveler is not the guidebooks, cameras or goofy hats and tacky outfits: “The traveler is the one who constantly pushes themselves out of their comfort zone as often as humanly possible.”
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