Who/What/Why?
Hello! I’m Rebecca, a food and travel journalist currently based in Louisiana, but often elsewhere. You can read some of my published work here.
This newsletter is an extension of Curiosity Magazine and a place for me to share stories that don’t make it into publications, as well as my thoughts on how to be a better traveler.
What does that mean? It means learning about the place you’re visiting aside from what to see/do/eat. It means looking at history, colonialism, and foodways. It means least a basic understanding of politics, social issues, and how that place interacts with wherever you’re coming from. (Can you imagine someone visiting the U.S. and not knowing who the president is? Yet Americans visit countries without knowing that or other basic facts all the time.) It definitely means acknowledging that travel is a privilege, and while it can and often should be an escape, it can also negatively impact destinations and communities.
This newsletter covers big travel issues like sustainable travel and overtourism and whether to visit countries with terrible human rights records, as well as more practical tips like why touristy things are actually worth doing, how to walk through Provence in 10 days, why you shouldn’t trust TripAdvisor, and the truth about female solo travel.
I mostly travel for the food, as you’ll learn, and the Be a Better Eater section features dishes, restaurants, fun facts, and ingredient spotlights. We also learn about a new wine each issue. To be completely honest…half the time this is more of a food newsletter than a travel newsletter, but food is such an important part of travel and even at home it’s a great way to learn about the world!
Each newsletter includes LOTS of links to my favorite articles, books, podcasts, YouTube videos, Instagram accounts, and more covering these food and travel topics. Every other week, expect an interview with a chef, journalist, or someone in the travel or food industry.
A few popular posts so far:
Why You Should Visit Eastern Europe This Summer
The Best Sparkling Water In the World
Stay up-to-date
This is a biweekly newsletter, coming to your inbox every other Wednesday.
Join the Be a Better Traveler crew
Free subscribers get access to the ‘be a better traveler’ portion of the newsletter.
Paid subscribers get:
Access to full guides (including itineraries, info on politics and social issues, helpful phrases, packing lists, where to eat, etc. ) Here’s a great example on Venice.
A one-hour zoom call per year to talk about an upcoming trip. I’ll help you plan it, send any specific recommendations I have, do some research for you, talk through ideas if you’re not sure where you want to go yet, etc. Paid subscribers will fill out a form before each call so I can prepare.
Occasional discount codes and giveaways.
Access to the wine of the week, links, and recommendations section of the newsletter
