LiteraryTraveler.net

If you are coming to Key West inspired by Ernest Hemingway, then you should look into getting the Hemingway Retreat at the Suite Dreams Inn in Key West. The Inn is run by a wonderful couple Andy and Jaime Laba. There are six gorgeous suites and they are impeccably clean, convenient and original. The Hemingway Suite was perfect for all we needed. A great living room in the style of Hemingway and with large kitchen and dining area along with plenty of room to sleep 6. One of the great aspects of suite was the private heated pool with mini waterfall. Perfect for relaxing and reading Hemingway or resting in Key West. And even better for writing in the spirit of Ernest Hemingway! This is the Ideal Key West Vacation Suite!

The Suite Dreams in is on Von Phister Street, close to the beach and close to Duvall street. contact Jaime Laba today at (305) 292-4713

I just read a column The Life Report by David Brooks in the NY Times. He suggested that readers over the age of 70 submit a report of their lives and describe the things that have been important to them and how well they believe they have done them. He references some essays by a Yale graduates on their 25^th and 50^th anniversary graduations.  

Many regretted the risks that they didn’t take and the conventional aspects of their lives but I suppose that’s what makes up the vast majority of life, is the every day – those things that you do and the people that you see and the fabric that becomes your life. Friends and Family, school, work etc.. If you are a risk taker then maybe you get the rewards or maybe you suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune.

In my case I have certainly had plenty of risk and taken a few chances that have paid off and some that haven’t (and there are still some that I am holding on to and some I have to pay back.)  As someone whose passion is traveling and reading, I get to travel a bit – not as much as I would like but the times I do get to travel can be pretty cool. One regret is that I don’t get to read as much as I would like, but when I do, I love it. I would suggest that risk taking is best when done as much or as often as possible. It’s those times when we stop taking risks or stop trying that we cower back into mediocrity while we wallow in our defeats.

I am suggesting to David and to everyone else that we don’t wait untill the age of 70 but that everyone write our life reports today, no matter how old or young we are and split it them into two parts. One an inventory of what we have done and then second what do we want the second act or third act to be about. My second act would be a bit of a travel report and list all the places I have never been but wanted to go.  First stop Montreal. Please send us your travel reports at Literary Traveler submissions@literarytraveler.com

I am very excited to announce Key West Fridays at Literary Traveler. We are taking a trip to Key West in January. To celebrate that fact we are launching a new tradition of Key West Fridays.  We are going to share ideas and thoughts and the great stories of Key West to help get you excited about visiting Key West.

Why Key West? In the spirit of Key West - Why not? One of the first literary trips we took involved a long drive to Key West. It was one of the experiences that inspired us to start the website. Key West just has a unique blend of natural beatuy, spirit and literary history that few places possess. And this January, the editors of Literary Traveler will be traveling on a tour with Ann Kirkland of Classical Pursuits to Key West to discuss great books, shoot video and have fun.

Key West is one of the islands that make up the Florida Keys, a tropical coral archipelago known for its beautiful geology and fossil life. It has a fascinating history of politics and immigration, literature and innovation, arts and language. And we hope to bring it to you on Key West Fridays.

One of the great things that we get to do as part of Literary Traveler is take a neat trip now and then. Not all of the time mind you, but sometimes everything aligns and we get to take a once in a lifetime trip.

It’s even more special when you travel to a place you remember but have never actually been. This happens when you are traveling through a landscape that you have only read about. This was the case for me when I was invited by the National Trust for Historic Preservation to help lead a trip on the Historic (A National Historic Landmark) Delta Queen Steamboat.

The trip was to celebrate Mark’s Twain’s Mississippi and was ten days at the beginning of July a few years back. We went from St. Paul to St. Louis and stopped at number of memorable places as we wound down the river.

The trip combined travelers from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Stanford Alumnae and Smithsonian. We had some great people on that trip including the travelers, the presenters and the people behind the scenes who made it all happen.

Sadly the Delta Queen is not currently riding the rivers and is docked in Chattanooga, TN. As part of a series of ongoing videos that we are producing at Literary Traveler, we wanted to share the magic that we felt on the Mississippi.

Welcome to our new community site. If you are visiting us for the first time, please consider joining our beta and blogging with us. We will be blogging about articles on Literary Traveler, and featuring other blogs, blogs like yours! That’s right you can get your very own blog on Literary Traveler. Send an email to francis @ literarytraveler.com with the subject line  “blog.” For a limited time we will be running a beta on this site and will be signing users up for blogs manually. Join us and tell us what you think.

Sincerely

Francis McGovern
Literary Traveler

Welcome to Literarytraveler.net. We are preparing to launch a new community site for Literary Traveler. We will be launching very soon.

Save the date for the Literary Traveler Conference. The conference will be held at The Hotel Marlowe in Cambridge, MA. More details to follow along with registration information.