As published on Chic Savvy Travels Blog, January 30, 2011.VAWN HIMMELSBACH, Chic Savvy Travels
At this very moment, the thought of lying on a beach somewhere sipping rum-based drinks sounds incredibly appealing. In reality, though, I get bored of that scene pretty fast. And that’s a trend we’re seeing (well, at least according to my own personal observations): More women are looking to travel with a purpose, whether it’s learning to paint in Portugal, hiking to Machu Picchu in Peru or volunteering their time and energy to a charitable cause abroad.
In February, Tamara Kaftalovich — a friend and fellow traveler — will be heading to India as part of a volunteer bed kit distribution trip with Sleeping Children Around the World (SCAW), a Canadian non-profit founded by the parents of hockey legends Dave and Ken Dryden. (Basically, a $35 donation to SCAW provides one child with a bed kit consisting of a mattress, mosquito net, school supplies and clothing.)
Tamara got her first real taste of travel a few years ago when she traveled to Africa and trekked up Mt. Kilimanjaro. Since then, she hasn’t been able to stop — her travel adventures include trekking in the Himalayas, embracing the culture in Barcelona and exploring one of the happiest places on earth: Bhutan.
Up next? For two weeks in February, Tamara will be traveling through southern India with SCAW, distributing 4,000 bed kits to children in need. And she’ll be blogging about her adventures on Chic Savvy Travels — including what it takes to pull off the distribution of thousands of bed kits in only two weeks, the stories of the children and families she meets along the way, and what it’s like traveling with six strangers (her team members) through rural India.
Tamara sums it up well: “There are so many different ways to travel and I’d like to encourage people to get out of their comfort zone and look at doing more when they travel than go to restaurants, visit museums, relax by the pool or beach — a more meaningful way of traveling.”
Stay tuned…
Vawn
