SPECIAL PLACES - Mountain Lodges of Peru                                                 

Normally we share special places that we've experienced first hand in this section but the excitement is so great we couldn't wait!  This trek has all the ingredients that we love in our travel experiences- great beauty, few tourists, challenging yet doable, comforts along the way and a supplier that cares about the environment and local community.

Until now, most people have visited Machu Picchu by trekking on the Inca trail, a wonderful but trodden and camping only option, or by train.  However, a Peruvian entrepreneur has recently developed a lodge-to-lodge trek, the first of its kind.  Not only is it a new trail, but we stay in comfy lodges along the way.  It is brand new this year and we're going to be some of the first to experience it and at a special price!

Here is your chance to take part in this unique, specially priced trip in September. For more information check out the Outside Traveler Magazine article, the Mountain Lodges of Peru website and to see the Global Sojourns itinerary, click here.

TRAVELTIPS - Tips for "Traveling LIght"                                                       

TOILETRIES....

• First of all check out: http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtravel/prohibited/permitted-prohibited-items.shtm to get the latest update on what is and isn't allowed in your carry on luggage.

• Follow the rules- this way you don't have any hassles with security.  I've seen a number of people with about 1 oz. of toothpaste get it tossed because it was in a 5 oz. tube of toothpaste that has been rolled up.  Sounds logical to do this but it doesn't "comply" so know the restrictions and follow them.

• Key: have 3 oz. or less containers!  You can purchase "sample sized toiletries" at most pharmacies.  You can also purchase 3 oz. (and smaller) empty containers at REI, the Container Store, etc. and fill them yourself.
  

• Put all your toiletries into a clear quart sized baggy for presenting to security.

Okay so I like my moisturizer!  Note: there was room for more!  For contact wearers like Peter, put your saline solution in a 3 oz. container (use 2 containers if needed).

RESPONSIBLE SOJOURNER                                                                             

Are you a responsible traveler?  And what is RESPONSIBLE TOURISM anyway? 

Terms like eco-tourism, sustainable tourism and community-based tourism are increasingly used in the travel industry today.  So what does it all mean? In general, they all fall under:

RESPONSIBLE TOURISM- travel designed to respect the natural and cultural environment and contribute in an ethical manner to local economic development.

As a traveler, you can create a lot of good and often unknowingly, cause quite a bit of harm to the environment and local communities. We encourage all travelers to examine the impact of their travels and strive to be active footprint reducers.

As traveling responsibly is core to Global Sojourns, we are more than happy to discuss these topics with you and provide examples and resources to help make your next trip both beneficial to you and your surroundings.

Check out these links for more information:

Global Sojourns Website/   Sustainable Travel International/   Ethical Traveler/   Ecotourism

SOJOURNERS' FAVORITE TRAVEL MEMORIES                                              

    Global Sojourner Taylor Byrant from Seattle recalls her trip to Kenya in        2006 with her family at age 12:

"Africa intensifies your wakefulness, acuteness, and intelligibility. You  scoot to the edge of your seat just to experience the marvel and spectacle one inch closer. The dramatic escarpments, the rich culture, the encompassing hills, the forceful animals, the vibrant lifestyle, the intense sunsets and sunrises, are truly powerful in a way that words cannot convey or herald.

The real Africa is impressive on the memory and hard to digest, not something you see in glossy magazines. I am thankful for such an opportunity and the fulfillment it has given me. I don't think my family has ever been accommodated to our niggling personality so well in the ways that your travel service provided. My lifestyle has completely been rearranged because of the things I experienced in Africa. Now I make an effort to not take all the things I did for granted, and to be more grateful for the components that I usually overlook.

It's a stirring thing to be forever changed by a trip, and that's what Africa has done for me.  Changed me forever."