Julina rushes outside from the workshop to give a strong ringing of the gold hand bell. She’s smiling ear to ear because she just made her next shoe sale. It’s a big deal here. Julina and 13 other full-time workers make leather shoes, hand-crafted from old rubber tires they manage to collect from the sides of the road in Port-au-Prince. […]
Sustainable and Adventure Eco-Lodges in Costa Rica
Choosing what to do and where to stay when you travel can have direct social impact on the destination and community you visit. In Costa Rica, the government and local ticos believe in sustainable eco-lodges where you can sleep, eat, and travel in a more conscious way, and where your tourism dollars help support the local development. The Costa […]
So We Bought an Apartment in Europe
If you’ve been following me on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook you may have noticed things have been a little quiet on my end. I’ve been off the radar the last little while. Truth is, Dan and I have been working on making a (crazy) idea, a reality. It’s something that we both thought was virtually unimaginable – […]
Giving a Family a Concrete Floor
I walk on a solid floor in my house each day without a single thought. My kitchen is tiled and my bedroom is a sturdy, oak hardwood. I admit I take my floor for granted. Until I took a Fathom cruise to volunteer in the Dominican Republic, I didn’t realize how important something as simple as a solid structure […]
Bringing Clean Water to the Dominican Republic
Frank has to store his water in a big tank because water is turned on only three times a day where he lives. He knows tap water is not well-maintained in the Dominican Republic and just hopes that it will pour out cleaner than the day before. Forget collecting rainwater. The metal-sheet roofs the rain trickles down from […]
Social Impact Travel with Fathom
I’m the first to admit, I’m not your typical cruiser. Beach-hopping is relaxing yes, but resorts rarely get you out of your comfort zone and the “all-inclusives” are designed to make you feel like you never left home. Typical cruises and resort life give you little insight into local living. Fathom, I discovered, is not your typical Caribbean cruise. […]