As a child my hero was Indian Jones! I wanted to travel to distant lands filled with adventure in search of lost relics. But my childhood was not one of much travel. My family did not take the typical “family vacation”. As I got older I started branching out to local trips and camping on my own.

My first international trip was in 1991 when I went to Belgium for school for 6 weeks.  During that 6 weeks, most of my time was in the town of Mons, Belgium in the southern part of the country.   We had three day weekends allowing me to escape to nearby destinations which included Paris, Luxembourg, London, and Amsterdam. 

Unfortunately, these were in the days prior to digital camera and being my first time to travel internationally, I was not bitten by the travel bug so there is very little in the way of photographs. But I remember vividly landing in Europe, getting off the plane and could not fathom that I was actually across the Atlantic in another country, another continent. But from the moment I arrived in Europe, I was in love with travel. Overcoming the language barrier, convertine the currency, learning about new foods and customs, it was all so tantalizing to me.

It was not until 1998 that I returned to Europe visiting Vienna and a few cities in Poland. However, this trip was primarily for genealogical purposes and family reunion so most photos from that trip pertained to family gatherings and genealogical information.

It was in 2001 that I was bitten by the travel bug.  I was supposed to go to Italy with a friend of mine but she cancelled two weeks prior to departure. I was so nervous traveling overseas alone as the previous two times I was with friends, family and peers.  It was during my two week trip to Italy I was bitten by the travel bug.  I found that I loved traveling alone…going where I wanted, when I wanted, and staying how long I wanted.  It forced me to meet locals and some even invited me for a bite to eat or to stay in their homes.  It was during this trip that I found traveling is not just seeing the “tourist sites” but mingling with the locals, soaking up local color, and no pun intended “when in Rome, do as the Romans”   Although I took many pictures, this was still prior to my “digital age”.  The next several years and trips I was still in the twentieth century using 35mm.  It was not until 2 years ago that I got a digital camera which increased my photo taking tremendously.  No longer did I have to worry about running out of film, the cost of film, and the other pitfalls of 35 mm photography.  While I still have a great appreciation for 35 mm photography and would never think less of traditional photography, I have found on my recent trips that digital photography has helped me to be less intrusive with “slice of life photos”, allows me the ability to take photos in places where “flash” is not permitted, and lastly allows me to generate hundreds of photos on these trips.

With that said, photos prior to my Italy Trip tend to be on the skimpy side.   From 2001-2004 the photography improved with subject matter, composition, and volume.  However, it with photos from 2004 onward, that I am able to generate much better quality and volume of photography including various subject matters.

It was also in 2004 that my travels took on a new direction. Due to several life issues regarding family and health problems which culminated in my fathers death, I began to realize that so often I live in fear and miss living life. I worry about this, worry about money, worry about health, worry about death. Or I spend time thinking….when I get this job, or when I buy this item, or when I find the right person…then I will live happily ever after. It was due to certain crisis in my own life and my passion to travel that I realized that life is not about a destination and neither is travel. They are both journeys and both compliment each other.

It was then I decided to live life to the fullest and seize opportunities to explore the world. By exploring the world I’m living life. I’m growing emotionally, mentally, and spiritually. The more I’ve traveled the more I realize the interconnectedness of all people and how certain things transcend all people no matter what race, religion, or gender…the yearning to laugh or to cry, to love or to be loved, to feel hurt, rejected, isolated or lonely or to feel giving, courage and faith. These things I have found in every person I have met on my travel adventures. I hope that I continue to grow and to learn and eventually put all of my learning and enlightenment to paper to help others.

Rhoades Less Traveled (RLT) is one more stone on the path of my journey. During my trip to the Middle East in 2006 a friend of mine (who designed and created this webpage) came up with the idea of putting a webpage together to showcase my travel writings, articles, photography, and thoughts to reach a wider audience and to expand my purposed in traveling. Thus, RLT was born and is now serving to pave the way to help me with my travel writing career as well as helping other travelers explore the world we live in!