Getting Global with Tales of a Female Nomad, Rita Golden Gelman. In Episode #21 Lainie & Miro explore the concept of long- term travel, or being a nomad. Then, Lainie has the great honor of speaking with one of her personal heroes, Tales of a Female Nomad author. Rita Golden Gelman shares her thoughts on humanity, travel, trust and her new project, ‘Let’s Get Global’.
“I am a modern-day nomad. I have no permanent address, no possessions except the ones I carry, and I rarely know where I’ll be six months from now. I move through the world without a plan, guided by instinct, connecting through trust, and constantly watching for serendipitous opportunities.”
Sitting on the beach in Monterrico, Guatemala in 2009
No, those aren’t our words, but they could be, because they so accurately describe our path too. Those words were written by Rita Golden Gelman, the author of Tales of a Female Nomad and one of my personal heros.
A year and a half ago we headed to the pacific coast of Guatemala to the beach town Montericco. We had been living in Antigua, Guatemala for a couple of months at that point, and had been traveling just under a year. After a couple of months in the mountains, we were ready for a little beach time.
But when we got there, I spent the weekend with her hands glued to a book, that Roxanne, our roommate had given to me. Every time my son looked over at me, I was lost in the book, it didn’t even matter that we were in the middle of one of the worst tropical storms to hit Central America in a couple years. That was tropical storm Agatha that ended up causing much damage in Guatemala.
At one point, I was laying in a hammock reading Tales of a Female Nomad, and there were tears rolling down my cheeks. When Miro asked me what was wrong, I said “Nothing, is wrong. But for the first time since we started traveling, I understand why we are doing what we are doing, because there’s someone else out there who feels the same things I feel.”
Miro didn’t understand exactly what I meant at that point, but when I finished the book in the long shuttle bus ride back to Antigua, I told Miro all about the book, and he know it a complete change had happened to me. For me, what mattered was the connection I felt with Rita and her story, and for the first time since I had closed my business, got rid of all of our things and took Miro on an indefinite journey, I did I not feel alone.
Rita writes:
“People are my passion. Unlike a traditional nomad, when I go somewhere, I settle in with the locals long enough to share the minutes of their days, to know the seasons of their lives, and to be trusted with their secrets. I have lived with people in thatched huts, slept in their gilded palaces, and worshipped with them at godly ceremonies and dens of black magic. I have also cooked with women on fires all over the world.”
And those words have influenced me. When I sent her an email a couple of weeks ago, asking her if I could interview her for the Raising Miro podcast, I had butterflies in my stomach as I typed that email. Rita Golden Gelman is one of my personal heros and this connection was so important to me. And in less than 24 hours of hitting the send key, she replied back with a “I’d be happy to speak with you, Lainie”.
I was so excited!!
Rita Golden Gelman Quotes from our interview
We hope you are here at the page because you are listening to the podcast interview now, but incase you need some urging, here are some wonderful Rita Golden Gelman quotes from the interview and some of my favorite moments:
Rita’s 4 travel tips, (and we try to live by these rules):
“Smile a lot, talk to strangers, accept all invitations and eat everything you’ve been offered.”
“…And I live on trust.”
Rita explains how her quote was printed on Starbucks Tall cup #31. Her quote is:
“Risk taking , trust and serendipity are key ingredients of joy. Without risk, nothing new ever happens. Without trust, fear creeps in. Without serendipity there are no surprises.”
And my personal favorite:
“It’s hard to drop bombs when you realize the people you are dropping bombs on are just like you.”
I love you Rita, thank you so much for speaking with us!!!!
Rita Golden Gelman is the author of more than seventy children’s books and two adult books. Her memoir, “Tales of a Female Nomad, Living at Large in the World,” was published in 2001 by Crown/Random House and it is still selling widely in paperback. In 1987 Gelman decided to sell all her possessions and become a citizen of the world. She has never returned to a settled life; she calls herself a “modern day nomad.” She still has no home and few possessions. In “Tales…,” she writes about the first fifteen years of living around the world, mostly in developing countries.
Gelman’s most recent book (June, 2010) is an anthology, “Female Nomad and Friends, Breaking Free and Breaking Bread Around the World.” Forty-one authors, all but two of them women, tell their stories of “connecting across cultures.” Gelman has eight stories in the book. There are also thirty three international recipes. All the author royalties from this anthology are ssending high school graduates from slums in New Delhi to vocational schools. Rotary International is facilitating the scholarships in New Delhi via US Rotary in Leonardtown, MD.
Gelman’s children’s books include “More Spaghetti, I Say!” about Minnie, a monkey who can’t stop eating spaghetti, and “Body Battles,” about how our bodies fight off viruses and other threats to our health, like drugs and poisons. The spaghetti book is a staple in most first and second grade classrooms.
You can find more information about Rita by visiting her site RitaGoldenGelman.com.
Lainie Liberti is a recovering branding expert, who’s career once focused on creating campaigns for green – eco business, non-profits and conscious business. Dazzling clients with her high-energy designs for over 18 years, Lainie lent her artistic talents to businesses that matter. But that was then.
In 2008, after the economy took a turn, Lainie decided to be the change (instead of a victim) and began the process of “lifestyle redesign,” a joint decision between both her and her 11-year-old son, Miro. They sold or gave away all of of their possessions in 2009 and began a life of travel, service, and exploration. Lainie and her son Miro began their open-ended adventure backpacking through Central and South America. They are slow traveling around the globe allowing inspiration to be their compass. The pair is most interested in exploring different cultures, contributing by serving, and connecting with humanity as ‘global citizens.’
Today Lainie considers herself a digital nomad who is living a location independent life. She and her son write and podcast their experiences from the road at Raising Miro on the Road of Life.
