Dar Le, our Myanmar Country Director, is currently traveling on her first tour of the United States with one of the busiest itineraries we’ve ever seen. That said, she left enough time in her schedule to come visit the US office on Monday, and the US office team took her out to see Lake Tahoe and enjoy an American BBQ lunch. Our Spring weather this year is very temperamental, so we missed the typical stunning Tahoe-blue colors and warm sunshine, but Dar Le did get to experience our famous frigid winds and snow! She even made a snowball to celebrate the occasion! On this trip Dar Le has visited Niagara Falls, flown in a helicopter over the Grand Canyon, attended a baseball game, rode the gondola up to the top of Squaw Valley, visited national historical national monuments on the East Coast and enjoyed shopping at Scheels, among many other highlights. We are so glad that she had the chance to visit and say ‘hi’ in person!
Due to some scheduling issues, I recently found that I was going to be in Sacramento, California – 100 miles from my home and office in Truckee – without a car after a breakfast meeting.
Waiting for my train.
Rather than give up on my carpool down there and take a second car, I thought that I could use a little adventure and I booked my return trip on the Amtrak train from Sacramento to Truckee. It was just a three-hour train ride (through a beautiful area), and it ended up being a much-needed soul recharge.
As I started to think about why this silly little adventure had turned into a highlight for me, it made me think about how our travelers could really get the most out of trips with Journeys Within as well. So here are my top 5 ways to embrace the adventure and get the most out of every travel experience (written from the train).
Do something new: I’ve driven between Truckee and Sacramento more times than I could count, but taking the train was a whole new experience for me. I wasn’t sure where to catch the train, how long it would take, or how it all worked, but I got on Amtrak.com and then called friends I knew had taken it before and I worked it out.
Traveling with the kids.
Remember: I’ve spent a lot of this train ride with memories. I remember my Grandma telling me about the train ride she took to her new home in Malawi when she moved to Africa. I remember riding the train as a kid in England with my mom and sister. I remember riding the trains in China and Vietnam with Brandon, of course in the cheap seats and meeting fascinating people. I remember other trains in Vietnam – to Sapa when my kids were small, and to Hue with Anna (when we acted like kids). Having experiences that connect you to your past and then reveling in those connections is a wonderful way to make travel timeless.
All-in, with my grandma’s hat on
Go all in: You know we’ve all rolled our eyes at the tourists dressed up in saris in India and the many conical hats we’ve put on in Vietnam, but the truth is, when you really embrace the experience and show that you’re all in, you get more out of it. I have an old hat my Grandma told me was her train hat. When I booked the train ticket I couldn’t help but think about it, so I packed it and this morning I put it on. Somehow this just made the adventure feel all the more exciting. It helped that I had Anna with me and we had fun with some old photos, but everyone stopped and mentioned my hat. The conductor even sat with me and told me interesting facts about the train I was on. You see, I think people saw me embracing the experience and wanted to be in that moment with me. It was fantastic and I’m so glad I was willing to be a bit embarrassed to really be all in.
Want to really get to know someone? Take a long train ride with them.
Talk to people: When the conductor commented on my train attire, I explained that I love trains and that it makes me nostalgic and he immediately agreed and we started chatting. He answered all my questions about the train and how it runs, who takes it and how he became a conductor. Isn’t that the experience we all want when we travel, to meet the people and really feel like we made a connection. All it takes is asking questions and then really listening.
Be thankful: This is my new motto for life, but it really becomes true in travel. Appreciate the experience you get to have – whether it’s a three-hour train ride through the Sierra Nevada mountains, or a three-week trip to Southeast Asia – be thankful for those that make it possible and enjoy the moment. When I get back to Truckee I have to go to work; I have to pick up the kids; I know I have to clean the house and the laundry is all there; but for now, I’m on a train cruising through some of the prettiest scenery in the world and I’m wearing my Grandma’s hat. And that’s a moment I’m thankful for.
Elite Traveler: Journeys Within Cultural Support in Southeast Asia
LA Times Travel & Adventure: How to Positively Impact the World Through Travel
Key Hires:
Nicole volunteering at Phik Noy school in Luang Prabang
Nicole Long:
What year did join Team Journeys Within?:
I joined in 2008. First, I joined the Journeys Within Our Community team in July of 2008 by heading the first branch out of our projects from Cambodia into Laos. Then in December of that year I joined the Journeys Within Laos office officially as Country Director.
What were your thoughts of the company that first year?:
I felt very excited to have an opportunity to work with this grassroots company that had a huge philanthropic heart in a country that was extremely unfamiliar to me. Sure, it was a difficult at times adjusting to a completely different world than the one I knew for the last six years working in NYC. However, being in this exciting and sometimes overwhelming position taught me a great deal personally. It all forced me to reassess expectations and adapt myself to the ways and culture of Laos. It almost felt like my freshman year of college all over again!
Phaeng in Luang Prabang with a view of the mighty Mekong River
Houmphaeng “Phaeng” Phommaly
What year did join Team Journeys Within?:
2008
What were your thoughts of the company that first year?:
I am so excited at that time so I know this company would grow.
Special Memories from 2008:
Phaeng and John head by motobike to look for office space in Luang PrabangPhaeng, Seila and Kristina on a tour of the Mekong River in Luang PrabangSeila and Phaeng at the Pak Ou Caves in Luang PrabangPreschool kids at Phik Noy School (which is sponsored by JWOC) excitedly wait new school uniformsStudents at Phik Noy School in Luang Prabang. Look at those smiles!!Neon green rice paddies in LaosA Buddha’s silhouette at Pak Ou Caves, LaosKhoa guiding a tour on the Mekong DeltaPhaeng, hard at work in the JW Laos officeSunset on the Mekong in LaosTui, April and Gavin giving alms to a monk in Chiang MaiApril’s son Gavin (2 years old) at a temple in Siem ReapApril and her husband Chris visit Angkor Wat for the first timeNarla, Jill, Seila, Sours, Makara meet at the lobby of Journeys Within B & B
They may not be located in Southeast Asia, but our California-based office know the region and the experiences that our guests are searching for better than anyone…
The Journeys Within Tour Company office in California is small but mighty. This hard working group interpret what our guests are looking for so that those staff on the ground can make it happen. Here they talk about some of their favourite memories, the past and of course, Journeys Within’s future.
Andrea Ross:
Andrea’s children, Couper and Callie, with their Journeys Within friends!
What are your thoughts about Journeys Within now?
I really could not be more proud. I love working with guests to create the perfect itinerary for them and I love that I have such faith in my team in Southeast Asia that I know that perfect itinerary will become the perfect trip. The last 10 years for me have had a lot of ups and downs, but I think the company has gone from strength to strength. For me, this company really is a representation of the people that are in it…from the drivers to the guides to the amazing staff in each office, we really just have the most amazing team!
What are your thoughts on the next ten years for Journeys Within?
While I’m sure there will be changes and growth in the next ten years I think our bottom line of providing exceptional experiences throughout Southeast Asia will continue.
What is your favorite memory working with Journeys Within?
Of course there’s no possible way to come up with just one, but the truth is that most of my favorite memories involve my family and my team; visiting Southern Cambodia with April and eating fresh crab on the ocean, different trips to Singapore with Linda and Narla, taking Kaio and Toung to Bangkok and taking all the Journeys Within Boutique Hotel kids to Phnom Penh and Kep! Guide training with Anna and watching Nicole slide down a hill in flip flops while supported by our guides! Exploring the Mekong Delta with Khoa and Michelle and all our kids. Taking a bike ride in Hanoi with Tracy and all our Northern Vietnam guides and taking cooking classes in Bangkok and Chiang Mai with our Thailand team and guides. Having Kanika and Linda and Leak and Narla and Makara visit us here in the US and really get to see them understand where our guests come from and the differences, and similarities, in our worlds. And my kids of course…watching Callie bathe an elephant, Couper’s first ride on an ATV, trekking with them in Myanmar and exploring with them in Laos and Vietnam and watching them grow up in Cambodia. I love this region and seeing it through my kids eyes has given me a whole new appreciation for it. And of course, that first flight into Cambodia over the flooded rice fields that led to those first months with Brandon where we had to play charades to get a pillow made or a rose bush ordered and our lawn got planted one blade of grass at a time, by hand. My Journeys Within memories aren’t just those moments, but a collective of that region that became my home and the people that became my family.
April Cole:
April and her son Gavin on his second birthday.
What are your thoughts about Journeys Within now?:
Journeys Within has had a magical way of growing while still feeling intimate. With every step and every big change, Journeys Within managed to do it at the right time, in the right way and really be on the cutting edge of the industry. I am more proud today of Journeys Within and the team than when I first started.
What are your thoughts on the next ten years (or just the future) for Journeys Within?:
I envision Journeys Within in the next ten years, finding innovative ways to show our guests the countries which we all know so well and I see us expanding to new countries so our guests can continue to travel with Journeys Within, but travel to places outside of mainland Southeast Asia.
What is your favorite memory working with Journeys Within?
This is a really, really hard question! I would have to say though, my favorite moment working with Journeys Within was having my son celebrate his 2nd birthday in Thailand and Cambodia. He had a birthday party at Journeys Within B & B in Siem Reap with Couper, Callie, Srey Nut, Sabai and all the other kids and then he celebrated his actual birthday in Thailand. What an incredible story he’ll have to tell as he grows up!
Courtney Ridgel:
Courtney cruising the Cham Islands.
What are your thoughts about Journeys Within now?:
I am so impressed by how Journeys Within tours interact so deeply with the local communities, either through JWOC or through home-visits or seeing the local villages. It was so meaningful to speak with so many locals and members of the JWOC team about their personal lives; their dreams, their families, their history. I also really loved getting to meet the team in person! There are so many hard workers who accomplish miracles for our guests and I am honored to know and work with them all. I must also say that our guides are fantastic with lots of knowledge and humor – they are absolutely great!
What are your thoughts on the next ten years (or just the future) for Journeys Within?:
It is only up from here! I am really excited for the new tours that are being developed and I would really like to see more locals from the Truckee/Tahoe area (where our US office is based) travel with Journeys Within. I think it is a bit of an untapped market and I think many people here are naturally adventurous, curious and caring – perfect JW guests! I also hope to see us develop more “adventure travel” – i.e. active and sporty tours such as bringing more visitors to the caves in Vietnam (and more divers, more hikers, more cyclists and more kayaking. etc) Southeast Asia is so naturally beautiful that I think our outdoor-oriented Truckee locals would absolutely love it!
What is your favorite memory working with Journeys Within?
Visiting Southeast Asia and meeting our team in person! (I had been working with everyone by email for a year.) It was really neat to visit our main office in Siem Reap and see the town (the bbq was delicious!) and to visit our multiple offices in Vietnam. I had the most fun hanging out at the end of each day with out team members and their families. My favorite tour experiences were seeing Halong Bay (just surreal and very beautiful), touring Saigon by motorbike with all of the pit-stops and hanging out with the crew in Saigon (I felt like the coolest person on planet Earth!), marveling at the sheer numbers and size of the ancient temples in Cambodia, touring the countryside by ATV, whizzing through the jungle on a zip-line and seeing the gibbons, shopping in beautiful Hoi An, taking in the beautiful Vietnamese countryside and the peaceful Thien Vien Truc Lam Bach Ma Pagoda, cycling through Dong Ngac village and meeting the locals in their homes and exploring Siem Reap by tuk-tuk. (I found I absolutely adore tuk-tuks and motorbikes!)
Dudley Nigg:
Dudley and his wife Phillipa with their grandchildren Couper and Callie in Vietnam.
What are your thoughts about Journeys Within now?
It is inevitable for me to think back 10 years and those early days when we opened the B&B in Siem Reap. So when I look at Journeys Within today and how far we have come over the last 10 years my thoughts go to the people that have made this possible. What then comes to mind is how many of our key staff have been around for so much of the 10 year history. In this modern age it is rare to find such loyalty and commitment over such an extended period. I think what makes Journeys Within special is this core group of wonderful employees who have shown such dedication over so many years.
The other thought revolves around the concept of “customer service”. Many institutions claim to put the customer first but I feel that one of the unique aspects of Journeys Within is its true commitment to its clients. We really do put the customer first, and I feel that even though we have grown so much we still keep our clients interests at the forefront.
What are your thoughts about the future of Journeys Within?
I believe that the secret to our success is based on maintaining a focus. Our focus has always been on Southeast Asia and on providing customized travel within our chosen region. When we introduced Journeys Within the idea of customized travel was very innovative and even today we still on an industry leader in this concept of providing individual customers with exactly what they’re looking for in terms of their travel agendas. I believe that more and more individuals are going to look for travel opportunities that are tailor-made to the requirements. Travel is increasingly moving in our direction and this should ensure that our future is bright. We need to continue to provide the same quality and service commitment that we have shown for the last 10 years into the future. If we do this then we will continue to grow and prosper.
What is your favorite memory working with Journeys Within?
This is not one memory but a whole host of memories. I am working away downstairs in the Tour Company offices in Seam Reap. I am surrounded by the staff that I have come to know so well and as usual we are laughing at the joke of the moment. It is this sense of camaraderie and enjoyment that is my lasting memory of Journeys Within. That sense of working together as a team to achieve our objective but at the same time enjoying each other’s company and life in general.
