One local I met on my walk around the Mediterranean is the goddess Athena.
One reason that I’ve walked over 6,650 kilometers around the Mediterranean Sea is to connect with local communities and be exposed to new people, places, cultures, cuisine, ideas and socio-political idiosyncrasies.
Though I hope to circumnavigate the entire sea within twenty years, which is the amount of time it took Odysseus to return to Ithaca after the Trojan War, I’ve got no agenda. The pace is mine to set. If I like a particular place, or a particular person, I’ll take a break from my MedTrek, which is what I call this form of serendipitous walking, and go local for a while.
It doesn’t take much to stop me in my tracks, especially when I’m walking solo.
When I hiked onto the ‘Nudism Obligatory’ beach at the world’s largest nudist colony in Cap d’Agde, France, I liked the look and feel of the place so much that I stayed. When I stumbled upon a bronzing Spanish sorcercess on a beach in Aguilas, Spain, she introduced me to her family and friends and MedTrekked with me for a month.
Continue reading this article on the Follow the Idiot blog
What a good article! I loved the swimming hole picture and the references made to Odysseus. I could not agree more with Joel when he wrote that he always took the time to do something local. Visiting one place is much more than staying on luxury resorts and take pictures, is interacting with locals and fill your visit with several memories and experience being a part of the place even for a few days…
I’m looking forward to read more of your adventures Joel!
Posted by Karem M | June 17, 2010, 2:12 am