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JULYAUGUSTOUTPOSTMAGAZINE.COM

PRAGUEFrom

I WALKED AMONG THEMBraving India’s Famed Rat Temple

toPERU

Who’s Deadin the World’sGreat Cemeteries

Big Sky Andean Country

Iconic Bohemian Europe

How to Flash PhotographHow One Little Fishy Beat the OddsHow to Work Smart When TravellingP

LU

S+

MALAYSIA’S Smelliest FoodMakes GreatCHEESECAKE

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PERUCondor

In Theof TheValley

©Marita Abad

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PERUAs I sit on a bench, with my head in my hands, noticeably palefaced

and feeling dizzy, three village children play around me, giggling to each other. “How can they run around like that when I can’t even breathe?” I think to myself, jealous of their ability to function here. The bravest and smallest one, rosy-cheeked Stefania, eventually sits down next to me. After staring for a few seconds she shyly asks, “Do you have soroche, señorita?” I guess the absence of colour in my face must’ve given it away. It takes a lot of energy just to nod. She grabs my hands. “They’re so cold. My mom can sell you some water if you want,” she says, pointing to a smiling merchant a few feet from us. The pint-sized doctor with a hidden agenda makes me laugh and momentarily forget the discomfort. We go on to have a distracting conversation about her school and friends. She’s playing with a little box, pretending it’s a cellphone. She informs me that she’s unable to make any phone calls, not because of the true nature of the object, but because she doesn’t have “any credit.” We may be in Chivay, a village deep in the Andean highlands of southwestern Peru, but in many ways Stefania is just your typical six-year-old with a vivid imagination.

Not far from Arequipa, Peru’s second largest city, is the Colca Canyon, where ancient villages lie on terraced slopes and the Andean Condor is known to soarCondorStory by Carla Bragagnini

Photo by Marta Abad andChristopher Plunkett

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KNOWLEDGE

Presented by

oneDayadventure

The Great Canadian

Press •REC and WINA ROUNDTRIP FLIGHTFROM SELECT CANADIAN HUBS

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GOT an action Cam?Camcorder? Smartphone?

Somethingto record youradventure on?!Just

send us avideo of yourself—or someone else!—in action to show ushow KEEN you are on ADVENTURE.

What can you WIN?a Roundtrip Flightfrom select Canadian hubs

One of manyGreat Canadian One-Day Adventures and a fabulous PAIR OFKEEN CNX FOOTWEARto keep your feet in stepwith your adventuring spirit!For rules and regulations, and how toenter the Outpost KEEN Great CanadianOne-Day Adventure contest log onto

outpostmagazine.com

2:25 / 4:00Supported by:

CC

ECO-ADVENTURES

LONG POINTLONG POINT

Presented by:

A ROUNDTRIP FLIGHTFROM SELECT CANADIAN HUBS

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PragueMy Week in

Story and Photos by Chris Mitchell

Once the throne of Bohemian kingsand more than a thousand years old, this central Czech city shines in time

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PragueIconic Prague Castle, also on this issue's cover of Outpost

The stunningly Gothic Church of Our Lady before Týn located in the heart of Prague

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HOSTELLING INTERNATIONAL CANADA BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALBERTA REGIONS

BACKPACKER BUZZ

How to Bea Travel Writer

Continuing our series from our favourite travel writers and bloggers, Fiona Scott, a.k.a “Babe with a Backpack” shares useful tips on how to become a travel writer.Usually when people find out that I’m a travel writer, they make a big fuss. They “oooh” and “aaah” and ask if I bring my laptop to the beach. They go on and on about what a dream job it must be, to have everything paid for as I’m guided around the globe. What most people don’t think about are the hours in transit, the hours searching for WiFi to meet an editorial dead-line, and the bank account balance that has a few digits within it—but never enough to opt for First Class. Yes, it is a dream job as my experiences from country to country are irreplace-able—but it’s a hard slog of a job.

I didn’t study to be a travel writer, nor did I seek the profession. But as an active traveller with a love for writing, it all seemed to fall into place, and I dedicated my time to making my mark within an industry teeming with new writers every day.

So where do you start? It’s actually blaringly obvious, but a lot of wannabe writers do seem to forget the basics.

Step One: You’ve Got to Write Content!Talking the talk and romancing the places you’ve seen and experienced is irrelevant if you don’t have any written mate-rial. Keeping a notebook with you and taking notes can create enough content to fuel an article. When note-taking ask your-self the same questions in every new environment you write about. Think about details that create a picture, details that inspire readers to experience more of your story.

Describing your senses is an automatic catch for most readers as they can recreate your surroundings in their mind.

HOSTELLING INTERNATIONAL CANADA BRITISH COLUMBIA AND ALBERTA REGIONS

• What does it smell like? Salty ocean air, rich woody forests or smoggy congested streets?

• What colours do you instantly see around you? Stormy skies above, a cherry-red store awning or a sea of honking yellow taxis?

• Is it incredibly loud, or eerily quiet?

• Is the seat sticky to touch—does the sand leave a dusty residue on your hands?

Forming a daily routine of detailed writing is the best step to creating a portfolio. And it leads you to the next step in becom-ing a travel writer.

Step Two: Polish Your Writing Style and Find Your NicheWhen you open up the travel section of a newspaper these days, the variation in articles is incredibly diverse. For myself, I found the niche of being a single female traveller on a tight budget most appropriate. And guess what? I’m a single female traveller on a tight budget! Sticking with what you know will authenticate your words.

Finding your own writing style will also separate you from the cookie cutter writers out there who simply supply informa-tion. It’s still important to provide the basic facts about travel, as logistics are a main component in building any itinerary. But doing this with a smile in your writing will have read-ers seeking your material specifically. With the generic travel

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Work your way aroundthe world

As Canadians we are a lucky bunch. First off, we live in this awesome country; secondly, we are Canadian! And thirdly, we have the chance to legally live and work in many countries around the world, thanks to the bilateral agreements that have been set up by our government. For many young adults, living like a local on the other side of the world is a dream come true. I am one of those young adults who jumped at the chance to take this trip of a lifetime.

next 12 months. I was looking for a more career-focused job, and it seemed that Auckland had quite a few on offer. When I first arrived in the city I stayed at a long-stay hos-tel, which was an excellent base and a great way to make friends. I found a job in about five weeks, which I suppose is quite a long time, but I was being pretty picky. If I was looking for more casual work I would have found one a bit quicker.

After five weeks at the hostel, two friends and I moved into a house right next to the beach on the North Shore. I have to say that this was really one of the highlights of my NZ experience. Being so close to the beach was such a luxury. I would head down there after a long day at work and catch the last few hours of sunshine, or just jump in the ocean for a swim. This was the life, the Kiwi way of life. If I was trav-elling I would never have experienced this—yeah, I would have hung out on the beach and gone swimming, but it was the fact I was doing this after work, like all New Zealanders do, that really made the experience better.

I decided that I would spend a year working and living in New Zealand. It was a great experience, totally different than if I had just gone there travelling. Living and working in a country and doing the daily grind does open your eyes more to a country’s traditions, customs and lifestyle. You also really get to mix with the locals, much more than you would just travelling.

I found the transition into Kiwi life quite easy. Probably one of the hardest decisions I had to make was where I would base myself in NZ—with so many amazing places to choose from it was not an easy decision. After much contemplating I decided that I would like to call Auckland my home for the

Writing and photos by Ceri Jones-Chong

Auckland

Mount Cook

Ceri and Ianat the All Blacks

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