an ongoing project by Laura Nanni
So its cold right now..... thinking of a HOT getaway? Check Out Laura Nanni's Travel Advice For Strangers...to dream up your next vacation.
WHAT STARTED IT:
In early September 2009, I was walking along Brunswick St. (or Major?), when I came across a boy around six or seven who had set up a 'FREE TRAVEL ADVICE' stand on the sidewalk. A woman gardening behind him, who I guessed was his mom, noticed that I had crossed the street to take a closer look and assured me, "He's serious." Intrigued, I asked him about his travel tips for Nova Scotia, a place I was eager to visit. Why not, right? After consulting an atlas, and asking me a few questions: "What time of year were you thinking?" "Do you have any allergies?" "Have you ever been to Yarmouth?" he suggested a 6-day itinerary that included a traveling from Halifax to Inverness at night, 3 days of hiking along the northern shore, a shopping trip, a boat tour and a visit on the last day to Lunenberg where the Bluenose was built. After this I thanked him and asked if he had ever traveled to Nova Scotia. "No" he told me, "But my grandmother did." I told him I thought he'd really like the place, that I would keep his advice in mind and then I said goodbye.
WHAT HAPPENED NEXT:
I decided to take my trip to Nova Scotia this summer. I arrived without a map or plan except for the itinerary the boy suggested. Along the way I retold the story of the boy, asked for directions, collected many hand-drawn maps and depended on the kindness of strangers. The journey was eye opening, challenging and magical in many ways.
I never caught this boy's name or made note of his address, but have since decided to begin a search to find him again. First, to thank him for the advice and let him know how the trip went and second, to ask if he'd be interested in joining me to create an adventure, a set of directions for strangers to follow in the city, along the lines of some of the other work that I do.
This past summer and fall, I set up a mobile 'FREE TRAVEL ADVICE' stand in and around the Annex, retelling this story, sharing accounts from my trip to Nova Scotia and asking others for help to find the boy. Postcards and letters were also written to help with the search and handed out as I traveled door-to-door.
I also decided I wanted to create a piece for the boy to experience. While the search party began, I started collaborating with three 'experts' of: land (a geologist), sky (an astrophysicist) and sea (an oceanographer), to create a set of journeys in Toronto, meant for this boy to experience and test out, with the following criteria for each one: it must allow him to navigate, to make choices that influence the outcome of his journey, it must give him the opportunity to see his city in a new way and it MUST be fun.
WHAT NOW:
Recently I moved online to help spread the word through facebook:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Free-Travel-Advice-for-Strangers/173267369372605
If you know anyone who lives in The Annex or used to, that might know the 'young travel advisor' or have seen the 'FREE TRAVEL ADVICE' stand on that street please send them to this page. The page is also place for documenting the search for the boy (a.k.a. young travel advisor), the creation of adventures to be taken in the city and to share creative tips for travel from me and others, all in the spirit of 'free travel advice' FROM and FOR strangers.
Through this page I'm also letting people know of events related to the project i.e. where and when the travel advice stand is set up next, if an adventure tour is taking place, if there is a lead in the search, if the boy has been found, etc. I welcome questions and comments. The next impromptu set-up of the FREE TRAVEL ADVICE stand and Annex search will be early next month. Stay tuned...
Cheers!
Laura
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