Action In Relaxation

Brussels, Belgium

Tyler — Sun, 31 Jul 2011 07:01:06 +0000

Global Domination Comrades,

Apologies…I have been blog-slacking in the midst of busyness, business, and bees-knees-ness. The summer season with Rustic Pathways is worthy of a blog in and of itself, which would land somewhere between Unicef, Anthony Bourdain – No Reservations, Invisible Children, and Gossip Girl. Life is grand and I do love my job. I’ve also stayed quite busy on a few life projects and recently acquired a loft in Riverfront Park, Denver to have as a vacation rental and “permanent home”, and am getting Elick.com up and running. Excuses, excuses – I know. Justified or not – it’s been great work/fun.

Brussels, the topic at hand, was a complete surprise – in the best way possible. It’s a sleepier version of Paris , a unique blend of modern culture and historical context ^TM. (Lonely Planet better not steal that trademarked line) I thoroughly enjoyed my first airbnb.com accomodation, street footy with the homies, mussels in Brussels, photo ops, and the Royal Museum for Central Africa – where the British School of Brussels so kindly hosted me at a fundraiser for their Best of Both Ghana Campaign. This unlikely international spot on the Euro tour has to be coined with none other than the usual travel and box office quotable “A Must See!” (I’ve gotten a bit rusty at this and am borderline traveler guide corny – meh, oh well) Mo and mo betta posts to come soon…

The proof is in the photo pudding, and the song could have been nothing else.

Enjoy!

England

Tyler — Sun, 22 May 2011 18:00:51 +0000

Global fam,

I honestly don’t want to be writing this post because I’d rather be surfing in Bali – no offense. So here we go, the up and clean.

The trek from Nice to London was a bit brutal (20 hour drive); luckily I had Anago and Chio as copilots until we parted ways in Paris. After sleeping 3 hours in the now “well seasoned” (with roadtrip snacks) Citroen I was pleasantly greeted in sunny London town (London fog is a a well-executed hoax to keep tourists away…) to the Manchester City @ Chelsea game. This greeting was epitomized by my pregame ballyhoo at a local “Chelsea ticket holder’s only” pub near Stamford Bridge, where I thoroughly enjoyed the conversation, comradery, and crushing of Fuller’s London Pride pints with some proper English hooligans. This banter and wit eventually led to dealmaking which then landed me an incredible season pass seat via one of the lads, Martin (row 12 on the 18 yard box). The game, deemed the most expensive in history (due to the price-tag of each player on the pitch, and the uber-weath of each club’s respective owner) was nothing short of an epic battle, and I was buzzing about it for days. This experience was worthy of two cliché’s combined = “A childhood bucket list realized and crossed off the dream”. There’s so much I can say here but I’ll let Facebook, Twitter, and most general conversations that turn to the brilliance of the EPL do the talking. The rest of my limited free time in London was spent on a jaunt around Greenwich = GMT = 0°0’0.00” Latitude, and some good fun with my London-based Rustic Pathways counterpart Shar.

England Round two was a month later than Round one due to scheduling “delays” and in hindsight, I can’t be more thankful for these timing and process difficulties. Round two was also bucket dreamable when I took a Saturday to visit the largest Land Rover – Defender 90/110/130 sales and tuning shop in England – the Tyler car – as I like to call them. The movie Big had nothing on this day. I spent much of my free time having early morning convos with Pete (I crashed at his new flat in the Shoreditch district) and hanging with Edward and his girlfriend Nicola. We had the opportunity to enjoy a few nights at the Berkeley in Knightsbridge where our connection to this incredible (and free) lodging gave us the simple recommendation to “milk it.” That we did (all maturity and inhibitions aside). The exclamation point of the trip was the Liverpool @ Arsenal game where I was able to see my two favorite teams face off and finally decide and confirm my sole EPL allegiance to The Arsenal Gunners. What a match!

The ocean is calling and you really don’t want to read any more of this half thought witless post. Enjoy the pics…and enjoy today!

Round 1 – London (Chelsea, Kensington, Greenwich, Shoreditch, New Cross, Brixton)

Round 2 – Cambridge & London (Shoreditch, Knightsbridge, Highbury)

Kim & Patty Elick – a note from their proud Son

Tyler — Sun, 15 May 2011 07:15:56 +0000

Since finishing undergrad in 2006, and even during grad school, I have pursued a deliberate lifestyle, and have had the unique opportunity for extended world travel. In the past 5 years, I have been able to experience culture, learning, adaptation, and adventure in 35+ countries. I created www.actioninrelaxation.com to share these experiences in hopes that others may be inspired to stretch their wings and simply “join in the fun”.

I am elated to post today, because my ever-so-loving and supportive parents have made the life-changing/perspective-shifting decision to take a 3 month work sabbatical, and travel Asia for 6+ weeks (I reckon they’ll delay their return flight). I am so very proud of my parents’ decision and willingness to take a significant perceived risk, at the fine (like wine or whiskey) age of 55+ years young. I am currently headed to meet them in Bali for some of my own vacation time; and am hoping to regain my nonchalant composure (and somewhat normal sleep schedule) with a bit of R&R in my favorite destination – Uluwatu, Bali.

I will be meeting my parents tomorrow and will probably have to teach them about the oddly fulfilling joys of blogging, and may even give ‘em a crack at a few guest posts.

Coincidentally, because Rustic Pathways has a full time presence in the 22+ countries we serve, we also facilitate Gap Year travel and service projects for those 18+ years old…

I guess it’s never too late to take to take a Gap Year.

(Yes, I do know, almost every number in this post is followed by a “+” sign, because it is a “+” kind of day)

Selamat Pagi,

Kim and Patty Elick’s son, Tyler

Posts soon to come (hopefully during vacay time):

1.London & Cambridge, England
2.Brussels, Belgium
3.Amsterdam, Netherlands
4.Luxembourg
5.Berlin, Germany
6.Prague, Czech Republic
7.Geneva, Switzerland pt.2
8.Glasgow & Glenmore, Scotland
9. Barcelona, Spain pt2
10. Istanbul, Turkey

Ok – I’m a little overwhelmed after seeing that list – it’s been quite the 3 months – I’ll post England in the next week and go from there…

I’m posting a few pics (mostly unflattering from family events – we’re a pretty casual bunch) so you can get used to their mugs.

French Riviera – Nice, Monaco, Eze

Tyler — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 10:06:46 +0000

Fam,

Six weeks behind on posts and the French Riviera feels like some sort of passed-by whimsical dream. A quite lovely dream that I don’t mind reliving…

As far as things go, work has been going gangbusters and I have been fortunate enough to be busting up gangs all over Europe. In all honesty, I feel incredibly blessed with my current work situation and usually reply to the typical “What do you do?” with, “I talk. I simply talk about what I love: travel, humanitarian service, experiences, developing countries, and the opportunity for transformation.” These talks may be a full-on presentation to the student body of an international boarding school, a coffee meeting with a university headmaster or community service adviser, or even a nice dinner at an interested family’s home. All in all, I talk. The perks of my vagabond occupation (oxymoron?) include leisure evenings and weekends in unique places with chances to encounter interesting people, and discover. Just discover.

Back to the point, the French Riv is beautiful and the weather was absolutely not un-incredible (triple negative = unbelievable = 24 degree centigrade days in early March). Along my fortunate discovery (wow that sounds cheesy, too much Thoreau) I was accompanied by a few not un-lovely girls including Nicole and Megan (from previous post in Paris) and later by Rocio ‘Cio’ and Ana ‘Anago’ (also made a brief debut in Paris).

The pictures convey our enjoyment with much more accuracy and enjoyment than my written circles (did you catch that one?). So please, as usual enjoy and send me a thought or post a comment.

> I am going to try something new to keep things so fresh and so clean for ya. As I go along I am constantly adding new music to the iPod and have acquired quite the Euro trip soundtrack. Listening back takes me to a distinct place in time and location, so I figured I’d share a song at the top of each photo section for a little viewing music (at the risk of potentially being cheesy). *note: I am a huge hip hop head, but will keep the beats and rhymes to myself as I know many of you may not be the most keen on the Rock ‘n’ Roll of my generation. (click the play triangle icon in the little audio egg below)

That about says it for now. Off to rent a bike in Berlin and see what Saturday has in store.

Ty.E

An evening in Monaco with Nicole and Megan.

Weekend with Cio and Anago in Nice, Eze, and Monaco.

Paris and Épernay

Tyler — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 17:18:20 +0000

Fam et alia,

I am over a month behind on blog posts so bear with me and my crazy schedule of travel, business, and gallivanting (in the most innocent sense of the definition). I found myself back in Paris, in a new location of this ever-diverse city, with new friends and an entirely different experience.

To keep it short and sweet. I enjoyed the hospitality of my good (and now better) friend, talented designer, and fellow creative acrobat Eric Benjamin. The creativity and acrobatics are evident in the random couch photo session to follow…on the way back from a football (true to the moniker of football – the one played with your feet) game “Hey do you need a couch? No, but we do have cameras and a bit of time today. Let’s take some photos!”

Eric and I were later joined by San Diego blond and brunette beach beauties (in the classiest and most respectful sense of the definition) Nicole and Megan. The four of us enjoyed macaroons with Moet & Chandon champagne in Epernay, as well as some lively dinners in the City of ?Light? (more like City of better say Bonjour before you Speak, Expensive Boutiques, and easily angered Turkish Creeps)

The final note and major mentionable in this second visit was Luis, the fresh prince of Barcelona, and his lovely Spanish friends Anago, Chio, and Paloma. We also all had some great dinners with a most memorable evening spent at Luis’ humble accommodation, so generously provided by the prior Spanish ambassador to France. This place was unreal and pictures cannot do justice to the history in the guest book, original art on the walls, and the coveted (by Eric) 1930s LV Trunk. A direct quote is, “Dude! I literally just saw one of these at the Luis Vuitton museum on Champs-Élysées surrounded by glass and alarm systems!” – E

Enjoy the pics and share in the fun.

Bonsoiree,

Spain

Tyler — Mon, 14 Mar 2011 23:31:34 +0000

Friends,

I love Spain and will live there at some point in my life. Done and done. Vale. After weeks of butter, bread, and coffee, I arrived in Spain, met Oliver (the most savvy host one could ever ask for) and ate some of the most amazing seafood, meat, and vegetables. Fueled by protein, friendly locals, and a culture that doesn’t believe in sleeping, beautiful days (at work) and entertaining nights (at play) were nonstop in Spain.

My most accomplished streak of Spanish cultural immersion was a mere 4 hours of sleep in a 51 hour period. I guess I’ll sleep when I’m dead, or at least when I’m back in my bed (Wait…my bed is in a storage unit in California)

Spain is undeniably full of wonderful food, art, design, culture, language, and energy; but what truly made my time here were the amazing people. Big shout out to Oliver (the Closer) and the gang – Vicente the Suave, Alvaro the Honest, Manu the Hilarious, and Ignacio the Passionate + a hilarious Barcelona crew of kneecap appreciating inside jokesters – Josiah, Bryan, Melissa, and Christine + fellow experience industry buffs - Gordon, Luis, Frank, and Rosie (they each paid me a large sum of money to put these links in, so click them as many times as possible, whenever you have a free moment, and I’ll be rich!!!)

I’ll let the pictures do the rest of the selling…

Caio!

Switzerland

Tyler — Sun, 20 Feb 2011 09:53:26 +0000

Travel addict support group,

For our two weeks in Switzerland, Sammy and I hit the road like bandits and were all over the country. During this perpetual road trip, we came to find Switzerland has by far the nicest gas stations (sorry no pics) with full fine dining and an appropriately fine price tag. We learned a bit about price tag checking upon purchasing a 7.00CHF Gatorade, as well as two 5.60CHF glasses of water to accompany our sit down rest stop burgers. When we brought this atrocity to the attendant’s attention he replied with a cool, “Welcome to Switzerland”. Price tags and whining aside, Switzerland is a beautiful country; we landed some incredible weather; and we both felt so very fortunate to be in this place at this time.

The places:

Geneva: The place for timepieces, banks, and Middle Eastern airline storefronts, Geneva is small city at the foothills of the Alps (think Denver with a lake). The lake is a perfect buffer that balances the city life with a clearly serene vibe. *Rick Steeves, eat your heart out.

Nyon: We dropped by this lakeside town for lunch after an incredible school visit to the International School of Geneva. Intriguing mix of modern art and historical culture.

Bern: Quick stop, wish I could’ve spent more time and rented a bicycle to cruise the city that’s for the Bears.

Interlaken: The adventure capital of Switzerland, think Queenstown, NZ of Europe. I’d love to see this place in the summer

Liechtenstein: Actually a country. The locals are called Liechtensteiners, enough said.

Zuoz: Wondrous and secluded mountain town situated in the connection of the French and Italian Alps, this is the Aspen of Switzerland. The old world charm was inescapable – embodied by the ornate hand carved stucco accents.

Zurich: Blending the hip, modern, and historical, Zurich was the biggest city we encountered. My German is lacking, gotta prep for Germany…

Not sure how much I like the travel guide rundown, but I’m going to keep it for now. The sun is finally peeking through the clouds in Madrid, so it’s time to go.

Auf wiedersehen,

Ty.E

Paris

Tyler — Tue, 08 Feb 2011 23:08:22 +0000

Friends, Family, and Fun-lovers

I am back on the road and in the travel blog saddle again, sure feels great. It’s been way to long and I’m still polishing my writing skill boots and sharpening my spur of a pen.

The why behind this 3.5 month trip, is my current employment opportunity with Rustic Pathways. This is a conversation worthy of a few cups of any choice beverage whether coffee, water, beer, soda, or fourloko.

For now I’m going to leave it at
one title: International Manager
two missions:

I. TRAVEL Western Europe and meet with top tier International/British/American schools to join us on one of our 140 travel programs to over 22 countries, and

II. DEVELOP international bases and resorts for RP using my commercial RE background and passion for the hospitality development industry. (We have a full-time presence in a majority of the countries in which we travel)

Pretty much ideal Tyler-style work, and proof that if you do what you love to the best of your ability (even for free at times) something will crack – in most cases it’s an opportunity and not your skull.

For the most part, my postings will be less entertaining, creative, and verbose because I have a full plate of responsibility this time around. (always under-promise)

Enough intro: Paris blew me away. You always hear London, Paris, Rome, Aurora (Colorado) as far as THE cities of culture – I just wasn’t quite ready. I had a free weekend before Sammy my Hungarian copilot arrived and had an amazing time touring the city of Citroens and cigarettes. I missed the Louvre, the Mona Lisa, the Thinker, and many historic landmarks as I found myself captivated by the new hip Paris. These include cultural design centers like the Marais district, Latin Quarter, and St. Germain. (I have always been 100x more fascinated by the present and future than the past, sorry mom)

Walked, crepe’d, rode the metro, espresso’d, photo’d and soaked up Parisian lifestyle as much as possible. Enjoy the visuals…

Tyler

Indonesia Round 3

Tyler — Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:46:13 +0000

I know you’re going to get sick of posts about Indonesia, especially Bali, but I had to come back for round 3. Shaun and Meggie came to Asia to meet up, so I knew if I was going to be a proper friend/tour guide/3rd wheel I’d have to take them to Bali. It has become my home in Asia; of my 5.5 months of travel, I spent almost half my time here.

I’ve never stayed in a hotel/villa/home as nice as our accommodation here; but don’t think for one second that our five star status stopped Shaun and I (and usually Meggie) from acting like wild Balinese five-year-olds. The three of us enjoyed spectacular views, infinity pools, and grandiose food while jumping through waterfalls, off of trees, and cruising the travelator (diagonal outdoor elevator). Dharma and Adi joined us at The Ayana for a good night at the Rock Bar and sushi; with the world famous delicacy of garlic clove, smothered in wasabi, and wrapped in ginger. I must again say thanks to Shaun for footing the bill, and to Amex for the hospitality upgrade.

Shaun and Meggie left way too soon (guess they’ll have to come back) and I was out of the entourage and back on the streets to fend for myself; this is when Dharma took me in and gave me a roof over my head. I was in awe at his garage which included a car, motorbikes, chickens, chicks, roosters, ducks, and his dog Chang (who supposedly has an STD *is that possible?). From Dharma’s house in Denpasar I headed back to Kuta to look into future possibilities for business, housing, long term visas, and had some great meetings with a general contractor/architect, beach soccer players, government officials, food/surfboard/beverage vendors, land owners, MBA travel guides, zoning officials, and the lovely staff at Kedin’s.

Time always flies in Bali and 2.5 weeks was a blur. Enjoy the pics.

Already back in the states for the holidays,

Tyler

Hong Kong

Tyler — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 00:47:40 +0000

Should I keep writing a greeting here or just be honest that this is no longer an email blast and is now a blog post?,

Hong Kong is the world’s mall. It is like all of New York’s fashion/finance/entertainment/shopping concentrated onto two adjacent island waterfronts, Hong Kong, and Kowloon. Every main transportation/tourist/entertainment/lodging center is attached to a world-class mall (Rodeo Drive meets the Minnesota Mall of America). I literally walked passed all of the i’s in the marina-mall within 2 minutes of disembarking the jetboat from Macau (the i’s include: Gucci, Fendi, Versace, etc.) Hong Kong’s Italian designer store to actual Italian person ratio has got to be the highest in the world (estimates for 2008 are Hong Kong 15:1, Italy 1:15,000).

So what did I do in a place like this? Buy, buy, buy. Actually, NO. I looked, looked, looked and walked, walked, walked. In Kowloon there are also the typical Asian street markets, where price haggling is key and scamming is part of business. I figured I’d try my luck at one of the ever-abundant electronics stores, because I’m aching for a 10.5mm Nikkor fisheye lens. I was a major O-fer at this task. If I were keeping track I’d say I went 0 fer 4 attempts to buy this lens. Here’s their “business strategy” breakdown:

1. Entice a potential customer with a believable, but low price on the actual product. Ex: $400 for the genuine Nikkor 10.5mm lens

2. Let the customer see and use the display model

3. Write up a sales receipt so the customer thinks he’s all but out the door with is great new purchase

4. Wait for another employee to pull the new, boxed lens from the back

5. Wait and make small talk

6. Wait and make technical camera talk

7. Offer this “amazing” and “better” fisheye lens attachment for only $50 more. What a steal!

8. Sell, sell, sell

9. Get denied by any smart customer who knows the lens attachments sell for $150 on Ebay, not $450

10. Anger/Nervousness/Frustration

11. Rip up receipt, “No Sale!” ,”No Sale!”, “No Sale!”, “Get out!” or say “My boss just called and the 10.5mm lens is actually $700”

12. Scowl and ignore the tourists entertained laughter and smile while exiting and shaking his head. In the words of Matt, “Clown show”.

ps. You can’t out-scam scammers, I even tried buying the display model and it made matters worse.

I have to say the best entertainment in Hong Kong would have to be the acting and showmanship in the electronics store.

I was only in Hong Kong for 3 days so the pictures are few: 1 at Kowloon and 2 in Sentral HK where I met up with my good friend Shaun and his girlfriend Meggie. Shaun came out for business in Hong Kong and got an extended weekend so I could show him around Bali (still to come). Yes I was the third wheel, and did a fine job as a week-long sidecar to their relational motorcycle. For the most part, I appointed myself tour-guide, photographer, and tie-breaking vote. It worked well: Meg and I toured and shopped while Shaun was working, and Shaun and I hit the town when Meggie was jetlagged and felt like, “somebody injected me with concrete”.

One night in Kowloon and Two in HK Sentral; I literally laughed aloud at both of my lodging situations. The first pitiful chuckle was how ridiculous and badly I failed by pre-booking my $30/night room, located in literal project housing of Kowloon: finishes included one elevator to service 5 of the 40 floors, Pokemon sheets, and a special ergonomic bed cutout (so the door could open). The second was a thankful and astonished crack-up at how ridiculous and surreal the 39th floor of the Four Seasons was: incredible design, impeccable detail, yacht status. The contrast was…well…laughable.

Enough talk. Some quick pics. Enjoy.

Gratefully sharing experiences,

Tyler