Comments on: Without Reservations: The Travel of an Independent Woman

By: Millican_Jorrit

Millican_Jorrit — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:56:12 +0000

Thanks - great to hear this. So interesting to hear that the Pinochet years
are still throwing a shadow. It must have been fascinating living with your
professor. All the best with your future travels.

Jorrit

2009/11/10 Disqus <>

By: Danielle Alvarez

Danielle Alvarez — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:40:28 +0000

It's true, I feel as though more than inspiring us to travel, it brings us to questioning our own dreams and aspirations and what we have done to reach them. As someone embarking on a career in the near future I found that it was helpful as well.

By: Danielle Alvarez

Danielle Alvarez — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:39:07 +0000

I would love to get into books about travel in the east since I have not yet been there. I've found there's a certain personal affiliation that I have, a soft spot if you will, for places I have been. Perhaps it brings more meaning? Anyway, Santiago has definitely changed since Pinochet but I studied it a lot because it was the focus of our orientation program, Human Rights & the Southern Cone. Between my own host family, my professor (who had been a prisoner) and other Chileans there were varying sentiments but when asked they did express them. What never ceased to amaze me was how recent such violence and secrecy went on. And yes, Chile is a beautiful country, I hope to return as well.

By: Danielle Alvarez

Danielle Alvarez — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 16:36:13 +0000

Thank you, and so do I! I will be sure to pick that up once I make a dent in my own pile :)

By: Millican_Jorrit

Millican_Jorrit — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:34:42 +0000

Sound like a great book. My wife Nicky loves travel books like this, as do I. We spend most of our reading time with books on explorers, the Far East, and the tea trade. I'd love to know more about how you got on in Santiago. I was there in 1989 just after the Pinochet era. It was a strange time, with Chileans afraid to talk in raised voices in cafes for fear of being listened in to by security police. But what a beautiful country. I'd love to return sometime.

By: GlobalButterfly

GlobalButterfly — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 22:51:37 +0000

Nice review!!! I have a ton of travelogues that I'm trying to get through, but I will definitely check this read out as soon as I'm through them. I'm reading “Cuba Diaries” right now and it's fantastic!

By: Dave

Dave — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 22:13:25 +0000

Thanks for sharing such a thoughtful comment!

By: michaelapotter

michaelapotter — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 18:32:58 +0000

My best friend and amazing travel partner, Holly, introduced me to this book when it first came out back in 2000 – and it has been one of my favorites ever since. Though her travels aren't as adventurous as others, in my mind she was just as gutsy for doing something that no one expected of her – including herself – and that was to take a break to discover who she truly was.

As she writes “Over the years I had fallen into the habit – a quite natural one, I believe – of defining myself in terms of who I was to other people and what they expected of me as mother, as daughter, as wife, as ex-wife, as reporter, as friend. For a while, at least, I wanted to stand back from these roles and see who emerged.”

While reaching out to career breakers for my site, I was inspired to pick up this book again for another read, as Alice Steinbach, in my mind, is one of the great career breakers we should all aspire to be.

Thanks for sharing this wonderful book with more people!