The Torchlight Travel Blog

Where I get to muse about my travels, such as they are....and write about some of the fun places I've visited, that you might want to visit, too. This page is a cornucopia of all I decide to add under the blog concept, in chronological order,but you will also find dedicated pages under the main blog button above.

The primary Torchlight Travel Blog pieces you will find in the top right feed.

Tales from the Treehouse is a concept I've been playing with while developing a travel diary with the editor of a Luxury Lifestyle and Travel Magazine I've been writing for, (as yet in development.)

You will also find excerpts from my book, Each Wind That Blows, and the "I Hadn't Really Lived Until..." is where I collect moments that mattered to me and others but maybe don't merit a full length story.What's yours? I want to know!(And you might win a book.)

The Counting of Blessings

When I was a young girl in pigtails and dirty jodhpurs sprouting horsehair, someone gave me one of those little autograph books that were all the rage. I dutifully went around collecting the autographs of anyone I could think of, whether we’d been friends or not. Quantity over quality, the more, the merrier. Much like Facebook today, the term ‘friends’ took on a suddenly loose and creative interpretation. Some kids just scribbled their name, some added short salutations, and

I Hadn't Really Lived Until...

I crossed an African river on a simple ferry... ...the warm dry wind of the African winter cooling my face. Strung on cables, powered by what looked barely bigger than a lawn mower engine, serenely chugging from bank to bank, unmoved by the croc infested! Hippo congested! Dangerous waters through which it sailed. OK, I never saw any of said creatures, but it could have been!! What's your story? I want to know!! Send me photo if you have it, and your story in 250 words or less

I Hadn't Really Lived Until...

I was attacked by a Praying Mantis. Yes, really. There I was, minding my own business, mesmerized by the beauty of a flowering, fruiting papaya tree when I noticed this little fellow watching my every move. So, being the Nature Paparazzi that I am, I of course began photographing his every move like, you know - up close and personal. Well, he finally threw a fit worthy of Alec Baldwin, and flung himself at my camera at which point I let out a girlish scream and stumbled backw

I Hadn't Really Lived Until...

I watched the sun set over the Zambezi from a sky chair under a mango tree. Enough said. #IHadntReallyLivedUntill

I Hadn't Really Lived Until...

I saw the joy in the face of a little girl named Ellie, all because she found a turtle... Or is it a tortoise? Never mind. If those sparkling eyes and that smile don't make you feel just a little more alive than you did a moment ago, I can't help you. What's your story? I want to know!! Send me photo if you have it, and your story in 250 words or less, and if it floats my boat and blows my hair back, I'll add it to my collection and you win a Travelling Book Society copy of m

I Hadn't Really Lived Until...

I took a closer look at the beauty of the flowering papaya tree.. That was right before the Praying Mantis attacked me, so it was a two for one deal. It was a good day for living! What's your story? I want to know!! Send me photo if you have it, and your story in 250 words or less, and if it floats my boat and blows my hair back, I'll add it to my collection and you win a Travelling Book Society copy of my book, Each Wind That Blows! #IHadntReallyLivedUntill

I Hadn't Really Lived Until...

I saw this relic of a previous age and realized it was still a reality for some... Wandering through a quiet forest in Zambia, I came upon a simple hut, quiet except for the clucking of chickens. And there stood this iron, speaking of the simple times in which their inhabitants still lived. And for just a moment of madness, I almost envied them. What's your story? I want to know!! Send me photo if you have it, and your story in 250 words or less, and if it floats my boat and