Tracing the first steps of a fantastic voyage FacebookTwitterEmail I've been writing about travel for 30 years, and one of the most frequent questions from readers is it how it all started and how I ended up with what many people (including me!) think of as one of the best jobs in the world. I am a self-taught world traveler, and my education began way back in the 1960s. In those days, there was no internet, and among the few ways for kids to learn about the world beyond their hometowns was the stack of World Book encyclopedias that nearly every mid-century household stored unread in a dusty corner, and the monthly issue of National Geographic magazine. I was a voracious reader of both as my young mind dreamt of escape and adventure.