Susan Solo – Photographer | Traveler | Adventurer

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“Dear Travel Diary…”

All of the trips I’ve taken for the past fifteen years, whether for fun or for work, have been documented in a travel journal with the form of guided prompts like, “What I (We) enjoyed most,” and “Most memorable event.” I purchased this spiral-bound Journals Unlimited travel journal in Duck, North Carolina on my first vacation with Chris back in 1999. I’ve been using the book for every single trip ever since, and filling it out it has become a huge tradition with Chris and me, and also with friends when we travel together.

I think I misunderstood the layout of the book when I first bought it – I’m pretty sure each page was meant to cover one whole trip, but from Day 1 I used a single page to represent each day of a trip and have continued that format for the past 15 years (except for short weekend getaways). For that reason, I’m actually on my second copy of the spiral-bound journal and it’s nearly full.

While traveling, I wrap up the day by turning to a fresh new page in the book and answering each of the guided questions about the day’s events. When I’m traveling with someone else, I read the questions out loud and we answer them together. Now that I type it out, it sounds cheesy and maybe even painfully dorky, but somehow it ends up being a really fun way to recount the funniest, craziest, and most memorable moments of the day.

You might wonder why I write in a journal when I also write blog posts, but there are things in the journal that don’t make it into the blog posts and vice versa. The books are filled with odd inside jokes, hilarious quotes heard throughout the trips, along with accounts of travel shenanigans and unforgettable memories. I’ve always loved documenting in various formats and I want to remember as much of my travels as possible, so for me there’s room for both in addition to my photos and more recently my videos.

The hardcover journal with its giant spiral is heavy and awkward to pack and I wish the company made a more travel friendly design, but I still love the format and I’ve brought it with me on almost 60 trips. The last couple of times I’ve printed out the questions on a few sheets of paper and brought that instead to save space, but the tradition continues and I can’t wait to add 60 more trips!

What about you? Do you write in a travel journal or keep record of your trips in another way (scrapbook, blog, photo book, etc.)?

August 20, 2014
Top 10 Reasons We’re Traveling To Iceland
For some reason when Chris and I mention that we are going to Iceland, we often get the reaction, “Really?! Why Iceland? What’s there?” And my answer is an excited, “Evvveryyything!” Usually accompanied by a bit of jumping up and down.

Here are the top 10 reasons why we’re going to Iceland (please forgive the excessive use of exclamation points – I went back through and removed a few):
1. Iceland is a photographer’s playground and paradise. The stunning views and varied landscapes I’ve previewed online and in books/magazines are beckoning me to bring my wide-angle lenses and go to town. Or to outside-of-town, as we will.
2. It’s one of the adventure capitals of the world. Snowmobiling, scuba diving, mountain biking, and hiking with some of the most amazing scenery in the world. So this is right up our alley!
3. It’s only a six hour flight from DC. Did you know that Iceland is the closest European country to the U.S.? I have plenty of must-see places in far reaching corners of the world, but I’m always happy to have a short, direct flight to somewhere new.
4. The Ring Road consistently shows up on lists of the best road trips in the entire world. We are super excited to make this 800+ mile trek around the country with tons of adventures planned along the way. And I love the fact that we can pull over any time we want to explore and take photos.
5. So many epic movies and television shows are filmed there, we just had to see it in person. Some of the on-location films and shows include Batman Begins, Die Another Day, Prometheus, Game of Thrones, and my new favorite, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. I was so excited when that movie came out because I had already spent so much time planning and booking this trip, and seeing it made me even more excited to go.
6. Glaciers! Iceland has Europe’s largest glacier, and I’m just fascinated with them. We’re going to hike on one and snowmobile on another to get the full glacier experience.
7. Geysers! The original geyser for which all other geysers are named is just outside of Reykjavik and can be seen as part of the famous Golden Circle route.
8. Volcanoes! Thrihnukagigur is currently the world’s only volcano in which you can enter the magma chamber. The volcano has been asleep for 4,000 years, so we’re going to give it a whirl with fingers crossed that it stays dormant for another season, or at least while tour groups are inside.
9. Wildlife such as whales, puffins, lots of other bird species, reindeer, and Icelandic horses. We’ve already had an absolutely amazing whale-watching experience, and we probably won’t get to see a puffin since their nesting season was earlier in the year, but we will definitely see Icelandic horses since we’re going horseback riding.
10. We seem to have a thing for islands, so we figured we might as well see this one!
And a bonus item: the Northern Lights. Unfortunately we won’t be there during the best time of year to see the Aurora Borealis because we wanted to drive the Ring Road with as few weather-related issues as possible (so that means not in the snowy/icy winter), but Iceland is one of the best places to view this beautiful phenomenon.

P. S. I recently saw someone mention on a certain social media site (rhymes with “Shmacebook”) that they wish people would stop posting Top 10 lists. I love making lists! And ten items seems like such a nice, natural number. So I hope you, dear readers, don’t mind yet another Top 10 list out there.
August 18, 2014
Photo Friday – Meet Marty

Introducing Marty! I meant to post a photo sooner, but I kept getting sidetracked, so today’s Found Photo is one I took a few weeks ago of the new baby, Marty. He came home with us on Memorial Day this year. Marty (a.k.a., Martypants) is still warming up to us, but he’ll step up onto my finger briefly, and he’s starting to explore his cage more. In this photo his feathers look just a little bit ragged because his wings are still clipped, but I think he’s quite handsome. More Marty photos soon!

August 15, 2014
Tourist at Home: The Lion King at the Kennedy Center

This past weekend, Chris and I were happy to take advantage of our proximity to D.C. to see The Lion King playing at the Kennedy Center. We were also thrilled for the perfect opportunity to try out the new Silver Line on the Metro! We hopped on at the Wiehle-Reston station, which is much closer to our home than the stop we usually use in Vienna. Taking the Metro saves us the huge hassle of trying to find parking anywhere in the city, especially since the weather threatened to be rainy. We almost never drive into D.C. solely for the parking reason, so we can’t wait for the Silver Line to extend all the way out to Loudoun County in a few years. Hooray for accessible public transportation!

We’ve been to The Kennedy Center a couple of times now, and I can officially say I love this venue for musicals. It’s easy to get to with good parking if you do drive, and it’s a beautiful building with comfortable theaters. We used their complimentary shuttle to and from the Foggy Bottom Metro stop. The shuttle runs every 15 minutes before the show, and then afterward we all queued up for the return shuttle which seemed to pick people up in groups every 10-15 minutes. Thankfully it never rained, so we were fine to wait for the ride back. The last time we were at the Center, we saw Legally Blonde and we parked in the underground garage. Easy breezy.

As for the show, it was absolutely wonderful. If you have the opportunity to see it in the next few days while it’s in D.C. or on one of their upcoming tour stops, I highly recommend it! I was blown away by the whole production, and felt mesmerized by the voices, costumes, and puppetry. Tshidi Manye simply crushed it in the role of Rafiki. I didn’t know anything about the show before we went and I barely remembered the animated movie, so I had no idea how it would translate onto the stage. The answer: flawlessly. If you want to experience magic, wonder, and thousands of goosebumps like I did, go see The Lion King!

The Kennedy Center has a strict policy on no photography or video inside the theater so I don’t have any photos to share, but I did take a very quick no-flash iPhone photo before the show started just to show where we were sitting. (I was guessing that the rule is to prevent anyone from distracting from the performance and/or violating copyright rules, so I think this photo is okay?!) This is one of my very favorite spots to sit – first row in Tier One, so that no one sits in front of us. Of course, I wouldn’t say no to a pair of front-row tickets in the Orchestra section, but these are a little more affordable and easier to find. I waited a little too long to buy the tickets so I did end up having to buy them from eBay, but it worked out great. Hakuna matata‬!

August 13, 2014
Getting Wild at the Keenesburg Animal Sanctuary

Like a lot of my fellow animal lovers, I’m really picky about experiences involving wild animals in captivity, and I always try to do some research before visiting a zoo or sanctuary to get a feel for how the animals are treated. When my mom suggested a trip to the Wild Animal Sanctuary in Keenesburg, (30 miles northeast of Denver) I instantly hopped onto their website to learn about their program. The sanctuary’s main focus is to rescue and care for exotic and endangered species who have been subjected to illegal trade and abusive, cruel conditions. The animals are brought to the sanctuary where they spend a period of time in secluded areas (see tiger photos below) to get adjusted and rehabilitated. Their permanent homes are open spaces similar to their native environments and they receive veterinary care as needed. The rescue stories are absolutely gut-wrenching and heartbreaking, but a visit to the sanctuary uplifted my spirits to see the beautiful animals in a wonderful second-chance situation.

Strolling along the walkway above the open habitats is a great way to spend an hour or two on a nice day. The self-guided tour is approximately two miles of easy walking if you traverse the raised walkway end-to-end. You can do the whole tour in an hour, but if you want to read all of the rescue story signage and pause to watch and photograph the animals, I would plan for almost two hours. If you can, try to go in the morning (or maybe in the evening?) when it is cooler. All of the animals were out when we visited at 9am, but as we were leaving the animals were starting to retreat to their caves and hiding spots because the sun was getting warm. We saw African lions, black bears, a grizzly bear, leopards, mountain lions, tigers, and wolves. Several of them were enjoying a lazy, restful morning (i.e., the easiest to photograph with an iPhone), but some of the animals were eating, running, and playing.

If you plan to take photos, bring a normal lens and a telephoto lens! Because the animals are in open spaces, they are sometimes quite close to the walkway and other times they are off in the distance. I only brought my iPhone with and it sometimes just didn’t get the job done. I didn’t even photograph my favorite part of the sanctuary – the Bolivian lion house. Watching the huge, full-grown lions play like kittens, I was simply too mesmerized to take photos! I’d love to go back another time with my SLR and lenses to grab some better shots of these majestic animals.

August 11, 2014