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Hello from Buenos Aires, Argentina! (The lion was in Kenya last month–more on that later!) We're at the very beginning of a 6-month stint in South America, exploring for future itineraries (with our sold-out Galapagos trip right in the middle). Iguaza Falls, Patagonia, even Easter Island–well worth the 24 hours of flying time (36 hours total travel time!) to get to Argentina from India a few days ago.
I suppose this pre-Thanksgiving time is the perfect opportunity to express the gratitude we feel! We just finished our inaugural 'Walking with the Buddha' journey around India and Nepal, following in the footsteps of the Buddha (some photos here!) For most of our guests, it was their first time to India, and we got well off the typical mainstream tourist path on this trip. We are so thankful they placed their trust in us: to keep them safe, fed, and well-rested; to help them engage with and learn about these new experiences enveloping their senses; and to empower them with the tools & confidence to explore on their own! We don't take that responsibility lightly, and we're grateful for that privilege that every single one of our guests gives to us when they join us on a journey!
On that note, one of our wonderful repeat guests (who is joining us on our 2020 World Wonder tour!) just sent me this quote by Anthony Bourdain, with the following note—
My favorite quote, because it explains why I love traveling with you:
“When dealing with complex transportation issues, the best thing to do is pull up with a cold beer and let somebody else figure it out.”
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In this issue:
- Mongolia deadline & sale...and giveaway!
- Galapagos 2021~save the date
- Faking a pregnancy: a very special "carry-on"
- Around the World: World Wonders
- Kenyan safari teaser (and iPhone safari video!)
- #OptOutside on Black Friday
- Ladakhi dog adoption update
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Mongolia: Steppe by Steppe sale & deadline
Listen–I know that Mongolia might not be on your radar, but please believe me when I say it SHOULD be! We've carefully created an itinerary to show you the best of this country while not driving all over creation. We've even included a local Naadam, a festival highlighting the iconic Mongolian sports of wrestling, horse racing, and archery.
Since we're using such small, boutique eco-camps (and renting out almost the entire camp!), we need to reach our minimum number of guests by December 7 or we may have to postpone the trip. We're extending the sale price of $300 off the early bird price (so, that's $3999!) until December 7th. If you've ever wanted to travel to Mongolia, NOW is the time! Browse through our photo album from this August for some visual reminders about how incredible this country and culture is!
Mongolian Giveaway!
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To get you in the mood, here's a truly Mongolian giveaway—sheep ankle bones! Wait, we're serious! Called Shagai, they are used for games and even fortune-telling. Included in this cute sheep wool felt miniature "ger" (Mongolian yurt) are four bones, a mat to roll them on, and a questionably-accurate-English translation card if you are using them for "divination." They are quintessentially Mongolian, and they can be yours if you reply to this email and tell me the name of the author of the book I am recommending on our Mongolia trip page! We have two sets to give away, so reply by November 30 and I'll pick two winners the first week of December!
In case you missed it in our last newsletter...our Mongolia trips are incredibly different from other itineraries you might find online. My jaw literally dropped when I saw that so many of the big tour companies put 6 to 8 people in one ger tent(!!!). On our trip, two people is the max, and you can have a single room if you wish! We also use comfortable, air-conditioned vehicles, not the iconic-yet-wildly-uncomfortable-and-dusty Russian vans so many other companies use. We also keep driving times to a minimum while covering a lot of different terrains, unlike the 9 to 10 hours in a vehicle (almost daily!) on other tours. These reasons are just a small part of why we're so excited about this journey, and we're so confident you'll fall in love with Mongolia like we did!
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 We also have just a few more spaces open for our Pilgrimage to Mongolia with Tricycle and Jakob Leschley, July 31–August 12, 2020. See details about this Buddhist tour by clicking the button below.
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Galapagos 2021 ~ Save the Date!
We're not ready to start registration juuust yet (and our waiting list gets first crack at it!) but we wanted to let you know the dates for our 2021 Galapagos journey are January 9–20, 2021! We're still waiting on some final pricing from our hotels and partners, but we'll have all the details for you in the next newsletter!
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Giving birth to a ...laptop?
 Baggage fees are a bummer, I know, and weight limits on carry-ons are sometimes comically low. But this travel writer took things to another level when she faked being pregnant and stuffed her 'baby bump' with her excess baggage! For those of you with an overactive justice streak like me (!), she was caught and charged the overweight carry-on fee, but there's still something remarkably...inspiring? hilarious? insane?...about this story! (Photo from CNN)
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Around the World in 2020:
World Wonders edition!
We can hardly wait–we're now less than a year from our epic 'World Wonder' Around the World trip, but you still have time to take advantage of the early bird discount!
We're so pleased with this itinerary that really does allow us to enjoy each destination without rushing around; while it is indeed an efficient journey, it's not harried or hustled! If you have 25 days to spare with us next autumn and you've always wanted to see the most iconic spots on our planet, please do take a look at RetreaTours.com/RTW2020. There are so many little moments I'm looking forward to sharing on this journey: standing in front of the Sphinx at Giza, showing you our favorite pizza spot in Rome (omg, do you like truffles?), exploring the lesser-known temples around Angkor Wat, away from the crowds (as well as the gelato place in Siem Reap that serves a dark chocolate gelato with Cambodian Kampot black pepper!) And if you're feeling extra floaty, we spend one night at the Dead Sea in Jordan–words can't describe the crazy buoyant sensation when you get in the water! And did you know that you can toboggan down from the Great Wall at Mutianyu? If the Secret Service let Michelle Obama do it, I figured it was safe (it was and I loved it!)
This is a perfect trip for solo travelers, couples, or friends; we have found our Around the World trips a good way to kick start a recent retirement or celebrate a milestone birthday or anniversary!
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Kenyan Safari teaser!
We went directly from our amazing Kenyan exploration into our Walking with the Buddha tour, but we've finally had some time to put some photos together for you! You can see them directly on Facebook here or on our website here.
We're designing some fantastic Kenyan safari itineraries, so stay tuned for our next newsletter (or reply to me now if you just can't wait another minute–I know a lot of you have been waiting a LONG time for this). We're looking at mid to late September 2020 for our first go 'round. Stay tuned!
(This my photo of Tim the elephant in Amboseli National Park–you can read more about him here, and you can read about his nearly fatal run-in with a mud pit in 2018 here! You can bet we'll look for Tim again when we are in Kenya with you!)
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Click here to see what an iPhone safari looks like!
In addition to using his Fuji XT3 camera, BJ made sure to take a lot of iPhone videos and photos to show that you DON'T need a fancy camera to capture the amazing sights on safari!
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2020 Journeys
Please click the links below to learn more about our trips open for registration that we haven't mentioned yet:
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#OptOutside on Black Friday!
This marks the 5th year that REI has been closed on Black Friday, and this year they've upped the ante by providing a 52-week "Opt to Act" plan for their customers (you can find it here). We're lucky enough to be out of the country on Black Friday to avoid the omnipresent temptation & manipulation ("I can't afford to NOT buy that!"), and we think this is an important message from REI (and a bold move). We thought some of you might like this "Opt to Act" plan and the whole #OptOutside mentality. Remember, the gift of experiences (like travel!) is far more impactful than "stuff" that inevitably ends up in a landfill (or the ocean).
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We can't get enough of these photos of Norbu, flown from the Himalayas in Ladakh, India to Montreal, Canada and adopted this summer during our Treat, Spay, Love journey. The bottom right photo is Monica when she found him at Live to Rescue's center in Ladakh and knew he was 'the one'; the other photos are Monica visiting him at his 'forever' home in Canada recently. What a handsome, lucky, loving boy!
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Thank you for spending some time with us today—it is truly appreciated. We look forward to bringing you some images from South America (first stop, Iguaza Falls later this week) over on our Facebook page (and I'm trying to better on Instagram, guys, I promise!) The next time you hear from us, we'll have some new trips to formally announce!
We'll leave you with a photo of us at Mt. Kilimanjaro at sunrise in Amboseli National Park (' slightly' photoshopped since we were in some dark shadows!) We were so lucky that we got to see the mountain on four separate occasions in less than 3 days–some people spend weeks there without seeing it once because of the dense cloud coverage! We're pretty good luck, you know...just one more reason to travel with us ;)
Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
 Until next time...
Safe travels & happy trails,
Lauren & BJ |
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Many thanks to our friend Ranjan for the photo & showing us around Kenya!
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