The Life-Changing Magic of Throwing out the Bucket List

“Did you know that train fanatics are called “foamers?” That’s one of the many delightful things I learned when AFAR contributing writer Chris Colin told a Travel Tale about riding the Coast Starlight train from Seattle to L.A. Along the way, he met those foamers (there are some real characters), learned how to sleep in the Transformer-like cabins on Amtrak, and bonded with his teen daughter.” - Aislyn Greene

AG: “This was one of the most meaningful stories I’ve ever worked on. Lavinia’s late father was a well-known flamenco player and until she was a teenager, she had trained to follow in his footsteps. After a falling out, Lavinia walked away from music—and her relationship with her father never recovered. After he died, Lavinia wanted to travel to Spain to meet with the tocaoras, female flamenco players, now leading the way. It was a journey of healing, of grief, and music. Soon after, she also shared it as a Travel Tale, complete with some of the very music she traveled to find.”

AG: “This lengthy piece—about the only woman sailing around the world as part of the Golden Globe Race—is like a great novel: You just can’t stop reading. Susie Goodall’s passion for sailing, for adventure on the high seas is catching, and I gobbled up every sentence, wondering how her adventure would end.”

AG: “Sustainability might not feel like an obvious travel passion, but five years ago, I had the chance to sail to Antarctica. Ever since, I’ve been deeply invested in the “how” of travel in this fragile place. We can protect the places we visit by understanding how getting there—and staying there—have an impact, and I loved Elaine Glusac’s take on the matter.”

AG: “In other fun podcasting advice, run, don’t walk to listen to this episode of Not Lost by Brendan Francis Newnam. His premise for the show? To travel to cities across North America and attempt to convince people to invite him to a dinner party. It’s wacky, honest travel fun.”

AG: “I love an offbeat travel passion, and this ode to gas station food and road snacks fits that to a T. It’s a utilitarian guide to eating well on the road, yes, but more importantly, it captures stories: The history, and importance of, Black-owned gas stations in the South, and the reason that Hawaii’s gas station fare is so freaking good.”

AG: “I’ve always found Brendan George Ko’s photography arresting, but this celebration of the monarch butterfly is outstanding. Nature lovers, it doesn’t get any better than this.”

AG: “’She sent me home to find a reason to live and I chose Icelandic horses.’ Sometimes, all it takes is a sentence to hook you on a story, and that’s the one that did it for me in this Outside piece by Pam Houston. On a seven-day ride in the Icelandic highlands, Pam explores the mysteries and pleasures of these wild creatures.”