Free in-store events at our store in Seattle’s Wallingford neighborhood:
Wide World Books & Maps
4411 Wallingford Avenue North
Seattle, WA 98103
Tuesday, April 16th, 7 pm – Burma: A Cultural Awakening with Author Beth Whitman
All eyes are on this small Southeast Asian country as its political strings loosen and the country poises itself to become one of the most popular destinations in the region. For now, it is still relatively untouched. See golden temples and pagodas gracing the city skylines of Yangon and Mandaly and ancient monuments as they spread out over the vast landscape of Bagan. Visit tribal groups who live along the shores and on the islands of InleLake, where they produce traditional crafts and weavings and sell them at the local markets that are accessible only by boat. You’ll easily find yourself falling in love with both the landscape and the gentle people of this Buddhist country. Join Beth Whitman, founder of WanderTours and author of Wanderlust and Lipstick: The Essential Guide for Women Traveling Solo, as she takes you on a visual journey of Burma’s highlights.
Saturday, April 20th, 9 am – Gutsy Women
This informal gathering is for women to meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned on the road. Bring your coffee and your questions! This group meets each month on the 3rd Saturday.
Tuesday, April 23rd, 7 pm – Highlights of South American with Bradley Nehring
Wanting to travel to South America, but not sure exactly where to go or the best way to plan? Bradley Nehring has been an expert in the subject of South America travel since the 1990s. He and Juergen Keller founded SouthAmerica.travel in 1999, and their company is now a leading tour operator with offices in Rio de Janeiro, Buenos Aires, Lima, and Seattle. Bradley’s passion for talking about all things South American — from the wines of Chile and Argentina, to the scenery of the Atlantic Rainforest and the incredible bird watching in Brazil’s Pantanal — is contagious. Bradley loves to answer travelers’ questions, from logistics of planning a trip to his thoughts on the best place to find an authentic carioca meal in Rio de Janeiro. Come with questions, and be prepared to leave itching to travel to South America.
Tuesday, April 30th, 7 pm – Elements of Life with a Sherpa with Author Caryl Sherpa
Caryl Sherpa’s memoir, I Taste Fire, Earth, Rain: Elements of a Life with a Sherpa, begins in the spring of 1991, when 39 year-old Caryl leaves behind her posh home, difficult job as the manager of an interior architecture project, and a messy breakup and arrives in Kathmandu searching for a sense of purpose and in desperate need of change. On a trek, she quickly befriends one of her guides, Nima. While Nima is calm, assured, and strong of faith, Caryl is restless, full of doubts, and skeptical. Despite the language barrier and cultural divide, the two are instantly attracted to each other and risk a relationship. While a large part of Caryl’s book is devoted to stories about their love and marriage, she also delves into the more serious issues of cross-cultural unions and the frustrations they experienced while adjusting to a world that did not fully accept Nima or understand her feelings. Caryl and Nima currently live in Nepal and travel back and forth from Kathmandu to Solukhumbu, making arrangements for a new home and planning to open a retreat for artists and writers near Namche Bazar. Join Caryl during her visit to Seattle, and learn about the challenges and joys of her current life in Nepal.
Saturday, May 4th, 9 am – Solo Travelers
This informal gathering is for travelers who meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned on the road. This group meets each month on the 1st Saturday.
Tuesday, May 7th, 7 pm – Rowing into the Son with Author Jordan Hanssen
On June 10, 2006, Jordan Hanssen and three of his college friends stepped into a 29-foot rowboat as the only American competitors in the first North Atlantic Rowing Race, pulling across the northern ocean. From the first dreams of race planning to heaving through ocean waves, Rowing Into the Son: Four Young Men Crossing the North Atlantic takes the reader along with team Ocean Adventure Racing (OAR) Northwest as they head out from New York Harbor, catch the Gulf Stream current, and make the final dramatic push for the finish line, a narrow 50-mile wide “gate” at Bishop’s Rock Lighthouse off the coast of Cornwall. Hurricane-level winds, giant eddies, passing freighters, flying fish, and sharks are all elements of the journey, and the race comes to a tense head on day 17—with another 55 days to go—as the crew realizes their food supplies are running out and they must drastically restrict their eating. This is lead rower Jordan Hanssen’s intimate account of team OAR Northwest’s journey, set against the backdrop of Hanssen’s reflections on the teachings of both his stepfather and his biological father, who passed away many years previously. How Hanssen and his teammates cope within the confines of their tiny boat and their determination to push their limits will keep readers enthralled in this remarkable true tale of coming-of-age and adventure.
About the Author: Hanssen is currently with the CWF Africa to the Americas Expedition which left January 23rd from Dakar, Senegal to row unassisted across the Atlantic Ocean on a daring 3569 nautical mile journey to Miami, USA. Using human power to propel the boat, and solar and wind power to charge its instruments, the crew are conducting research on the ocean and themselves to share it in real-time to viewers world-wide. Follow their progress at http://oarnorthwest.com/.
Tuesday, May 14th, 7 pm – There and Back Again – Planning the Trip of Your Dreams with Tyler Stevens
Getting geared up to take the world trip of a lifetime? Planning on getting good and lost for awhile, in order to find yourself? Do you fastidiously prepare for every possible iota of a nuance that could happen on your travels? Or are you more likely to just go and hope for the best? It is said that fortune favors the prepared. And it also is said that fortune favors the bold. Let me help you improve your fortunes as a traveler by sharing insights about the importance of walking on both the critical path and the pathless path as your adventure unfolds. We will discuss the art of preparing for, diving into, and returning from a life abroad, from both a systematic and holistic perspective. The evening will be illustrated with short stories and practical advice from my recent 18-month sojourn around the world, from home in the United States, through India, Nepal, China, Vietnam, and back again. Regardless of the sort of travel you do or would like to do, there is something here for travelers of all stripes to learn. Come prepared with questions. In 2011, Tyler Stevens left his successful job as a project manager and gave away his car, his TV, and half his possessions in order to live his lifelong dream of traveling solo around Asia. His travel blog has been featured 3 times on the homepage of www.travellerspoint.com. You can find it at http://windwalker.travellerspoint.com
Saturday, May 18th, 9 am – Gutsy Women
This informal gathering is for women to meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned on the road. Bring your coffee and your questions! This group meets each month on the 3rd Saturday.
Tuesday, May 21st, 7 pm – Art of Traveling with Kids with Authors Bill Richards and Ashley Steel
Planning a family trip this summer? Based on their new book, Family on the Loose: The Art of Traveling with Kids, Bill and Ashley will present 1000 ideas for making any family trip smarter and more fun, such as making packing lists for non-readers, inflight entertainment for all ages, reflective journal writing, and proven strategies for successfully browsing museums with kids. Bill and Ashley have visited over a dozen countries with their kids. They hatched the idea to write a book when they over-prepared for a trip to Japan and discovered that their preparations actually made the trip particularly successful. They wrote the book while on a Fulbright Fellowship to Vienna, Austria. Reviews so far: “It’s not only a guide to family travel – it’s a complete guide to being an interesting, engaged, and intercultural family” (wanderingeducators.com); “A family travel Bible, of sorts” (Matt Villano, parenting.com); and “…does a good job of answering any questions you might have and answering a whole lot of others you should have had” (Tim Leffel’s travel.booklocker.com).
Tuesday, May 28st, 7 pm – A Journey to Pakistan with Author Maliha Masood
Maliha Masood went back to her native Pakistan after an absence of two decades and stumbled upon the adventure of a lifetime. Dizzy in Karachi: A Journey to Pakistanis an intimate account of Maliha’s experience living, working, and traveling within a country on the crossroads of enormous change. Travel mates include armed bodyguards, political agents, fashion models, mall rats, squatters, bootleggers, and domineering Aunties. From the urban hum of Islamabad to the dusty streets of Lahore, from remote mountain villages to the drug soaked parties of the pampered elite, Maliha provides a colorful portrait of her fractured motherland. She will engage the audience with a lively discussion on culture, politics, history, and what it’s like to travel in Pakistan as a woman, including practical information and insider tips. Maliha Masood is a writer, teacher, and educator on global affairs. Her creative nonfiction has appeared in Best Travel Writing by Women for 2011 and The Veil: Women Writers on its History, Lore and Politics. Maliha is also the author of the award winning travelogue, Zaatar Days, Henna Nights, based on her journey backpacking across the Middle East. B orn in Karachi, Pakistan, Maliha moved to the United States at the age of eleven and grew up in Seattle, WA. She is a graduate of Tufts University with a Master’s in Law and Diplomacy and has been featured on NPR and PBS. For more information, visit her website at www.dizzyinkarachi.com
Saturday, June 1st, 9 am – Solo Travelers
This informal gathering is for travelers who meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned on the road. This group meets each month on the 1st Saturday.
Tuesday, June 4th, 7 pm -Slides and Tell
We wrap up our events for the year with the annual “Slides & Tell”, where YOU get to be the star of the show. We invite customers to bring in 5-10 slides or digital images in a projectable format and the story that goes with them. We provide the laptop and digital projector (or traditional slide projector), so bring your images on a flash drive or DVD. Just call (206-634-3453) or send an email (travel@speakeasy.net) to help us know how many stories to plan for and where you’ll be taking us. Even if you’re not presenting, please come be part of the fun!
Saturday, June 15th, 9 am – Gutsy Women
This informal gathering is for women to meet and learn from each other’s travel experiences and share wisdom learned on the road. Bring your coffee and your questions! This group meets each month on the 3rd Saturday.
July and August – Summer break!
No events during this time – we’ll see you again in September!
