About Barbara Weibel

Barbara Weibel After years of working 70 hours a week at jobs I detested, I felt like the proverbial "hole in the donut" - solid on the outside, but empty on the inside. Searching for meaning in my life, I abandoned my successful but unsatisfying career and set out on a six-month solo backpacking trip around the world to pursue my true passions of travel, writing, and photography. My blog features stories about the destinations I visit, people I meet, the crazy things...Read more here....
  • Eiffel Tower, Paris, France
  • Angkor Wat Cambodia
    Angkor Wat, Siem Reap, Cambodia
  • Hill Tribe Chief Northern Thailand
    Hill Tribe Chief, Thailand
  • Machu Picchu Peru
    Machu Picchu, Peru
  • Franz Josef Glacier New Zealand
    Franz Josef Glacier, New Zealand
  • Olympic National Park Washington State
    Olympic Peninsula, Washington
  • Damnoen Saduak Floating Market Thailand
    Damnoen Saduak Floating Market, Thailand
  • Maasai Tribe Ngorongoro Tanzania
    Maasai Warriors, Ngorongoro, Tanzania
  • Lion Serengeti National Park Tanzania
    Serengeti National Park, Tanzania
  • Chichen Itza Yucatan Mexico
    Chichen Itza, Yucatan, Mexico
  • Wat Xieng Thong
    Wat Xieng Thong, Luang Prabang, Laos
  • Feast Central India
    Traditional Feast, Central India
  • China Shangahi Skyline Pudong
    Pudong Skyline, Shanghai, China
  • Honeymoon Beach Florida
    Honeymoon Beach, Florida
  • Great Wallof China Jinshanling Beijing
    Great Wall, Jinshanling, China
  • Lake Louise Banff National Park Canada
    Lake Louise, Banff National Park, Canada
  • pura ulun danu temple batur bali
    Lake Temple, Central Bali
  • Galapagos Islands Ecuador
    Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

Last year I was contacted by author Mark Chimsky, author of 65 Things To Do When You Retire, an anthology of short essays by prominent retirees such as President Jimmy Carter, Gloria Steinem, and Mort Greenberg which The Wall Street Journal called “one of the year’s best guides to later life.” On the heels of that widely acclaimed first effort, Chimsky was planning a follow-up book named 65 Things To Do When You Retire: Travel. He asked if I would be willing to provide a story for this second anthology. Since the royalties generated from the sale of this book will be donated to nonprofit organizations dedicated to preventing and curing cancer, I agreed to do so.

65 Things To Do When You Retire: Travel benefits cancer research and prevention

65 Things To Do When You Retire: Travel benefits cancer research and prevention

65 Things To Do When You Retire: Travel was released last week. In it, more than 65 writers and travel experts reveal their own personal adventures and offer practical advice about how retirees can have the time of their lives, whether traveling with a group, spouse, partner, or on their own. The essays describe glorious getaways, the best places for retirees to visit (or relocate), how to plan for a “great escape” without breaking the bank, or, as in my case, how to enrich your travel by making a local connection. Other contributors include Andrew McCarthy, actor, director, and award winning travel writer and author of the travel memoir The Longest Way Home; Elizabeth Berg, best selling author of Talk Before Sleep, and Open House, an Oprah’s Book Club Selection; and John E. Nelson, co-author of What Color is Your Parachute For Retirement. The essays cover fascinating trends such as taking a “golden gap year,” going “glamping,” and living a nomadic lifestyle.

65 Things To Do When You Retire: Travel is a 5.5″ x 8.5″, 400 page, softcover book is available in bookstores or through Amazon.com.

Hole In The Donut now available on your Kindle

Hole In The Donut now available on your Kindle

Kindle users LOVE their e-readers, so when I learned that Kindle is now making popular travel blogs available on their devices I rushed to sign up. I am happy to announce that Hole In The Donut Cultural Travel is now available for download to your Kindle for the low subscription price of $0.99 per month through Amazon.com.

When you sign up, Hole In The Donut will be auto-delivered wirelessly to your Kindle and updated throughout the day. It’s risk free—all Kindle Blog subscriptions start with a 14-day free trial and you can cancel at any time during the free trial period. If you enjoy your subscription, do nothing and it will automatically continue at the regular monthly price. To get started, click on the image at left or go here.

Renowned author Elizabeth Gilbert, who is probably best known for her New York Times Best Seller “Eat, Pray, Love,” recently spoke at the annual conference of TED (technology, entertainment, design), where the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers are challenged to give the talk of their lives in 18 minutes. In her speech, Gilbert suggested that we need to look at genius in a new way. She proposed that, like the Romans, we accept the premise that creative people are not geniuses, but that creative people have access to genius.

There is no doubt in my mind that she is correct. When I write – when I am truly in the zone – I am all too aware that the words are not mine. They come from somewhere else. Gilbert tells the story of a 90 year old poet whom she interviewed. The poet described how the words would come thundering at her from across the land when she worked in the fields as a young girl. Each time, she ran for the house and a pencil. If she got to pencil and paper before the words passed her by, she would have her poem. If not, the words would Continue reading

I didn’t see the lunar eclipse yesterday. It occurred around 8 am. and the sky would have been way to bright (I say “would have been” because at 8 a.m I was still sound asleep, having worked on various writing projects until 3 a.m.). But I didn’t need to see it. I could feel it, and that was quite enough.

Yesterday was just plain Ugh! My energy was so low I could barely function. Everything seemed a giant struggle. Every time the phone rang I wanted to throw it at the wall, because I just knew it would be another problem. I couldn’t write. Heck, I couldn’t even think. They say that the energy of a lunar eclipse is about leaving the past behind and looking forward, but I just felt stuck.

This came on the heels of a month of compete indecision over where to take my life next. I know Lonely Planet is seeking an editor for their Laos guidebook. Should I go off to Laos and Malaysia for a couple of months? To Scandinavia to try and see the Northern Lights? Some time prior to June 15th I need to return to North Carolina to complete my annual real estate continuing education requirement. My father wants me to come back to Illinois for a couple of weeks this summer. I’m thinking about going to a Yoga retreat somewhere, although I don’t know where. Yet with so many options, I was incapable of figuring out what to do.

This morning, even though I’d been up until nearly 4 a.m again, I virtually Continue reading

If you have noticed the UpTake badge on my sidebar at the right, you may be wondering what that’s all about. UpTake.com is a travel search start-up company based in Palo Alto, CA. The company’s mission is to improve online travel searches by offering vacation information about where to go, what to do and where to stay within the United States from local travel experts and writers. And guess what  – I am one of those travel writers!

Today UpTake officially launched their Travel Blog Network, which provides travelers with the ability to browse and search expert blogs across six categories that include attractions, beaches, hotels, lodging, restaurants and travel industry news. I write for both the Attractions Blog and the Beaches Blog (anyone who know me is aware that I am addicted to beaches).

In preparation for the company’s announcement I provided them with a personal photo and a bio, which they then included in a major article about the launch of the network. I must admit that it is a bit unsettling to see my face plastered across the Internet – I really never expected that my writing would lead to me being promoted. But frankly, anything that provides me with a platform where I can write about travel and show off my photography makes me very happy!

howuptakeworks

Use UpTake to ferret out great travel destinations, hotels, restaurants, beaches, and attractions

The next time you feel the need to get away but just don’t know where to go, check out the blogs at UpTake.com. You’re sure to come away with some fascinating ideas for day trips, weekend getaways, or full vacations.

midlife-magic

Follow Laura Lee Carter through a midlife crisis with a happy ending!

A while back, my friend Laura Lee Carter over at MidlifeCrisisQueen.com asked me to review the manuscript for a book she had just finished writing. Aptly titled, “Midlife Magic: Becoming the Person You Are Inside,” Laura Lee’s book treats us to the roller coaster ride that was her life, beginning at age 46 when she left a loveless, destructive marriage of many years; through the sudden and unexpected loss of her job two years later; and then follows her as she remakes her career and life, in the process discovering who she really is.

Laura Lee had asked me for a quote that she could use, if I was so inclined. I wrote:

“Hang on, it all changes!” Laura Lee’s mantra provides hope to all who are struggling with midlife crises. By reading her story, I realized that I am not alone, and it is OK to ask for help. Thanks, Laura Lee.”

I was absolutely delighted when she wrote back, telling me she had chosen my quote for the back cover. Over the holidays, Laura Lee told me her book would soon be out in print and asked if I would review it on my blog. I happily agreed, although I decided to read it one more time, since it had been Continue reading

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