Tag: travel

creativity

A Year of Yes: A bit of a day…

Christa Avampato

Yesterday was a bit of a day, as Lin-Manuel Miranda says. Some tough, some good, a lot confusing. In other words, it was a Monday. I ended the day by celebrating a dear friend’s birthday. That friend and I will be in magical Iceland 3 weeks from today and that’s enough to get me through.

And don’t worry. Between this blog, my Twitter, and my Instagram, I’m taking you all with me. I can’t wait to show you around and introduce you to all the sights, sounds, and wonders we’re visiting. Get ready for the trip of a lifetime!

creativity

A Year of Yes: Iceland in 3 weeks

Christa Avampato

I’ll land in Iceland 3 weeks from today! My mom told me my Grampy, Alfonso Francis Lupinacci, dreamed of going there. He read all he could about it in National Geographic magazines. I didn’t know that when I booked this trip. He died on my 6th birthday without ever seeing Iceland so I’m taking these pictures of us with me to show him around. I hope that somewhere along that path I feel his presence and that we get a chance to share a moment, standing in awe of that beautiful landscape together, after all these years. And I hope I can be the tour guide he always wanted to have.

creativity

A Year of Yes: Travel is the best part of writing

Christa Avampato

The very best part of being a writer is that your daily work takes you anywhere you want to go. Today alone, I’ve been to the depths of the ocean with a whale & a squid army, New York City in 1920, New York City in 2300, the Dark Hedges of Ireland, & an Amazonian jungle searching for buried treasure. The imagination is a swift vehicle.

creativity

A Year of Yes: Oh oh, I’m more than halfway there…

Christa Avampato

My year of yes is more than halfway done and I’ve got to say that saying yes to everything I possibly can has been both exhilarating and exhausting. It has led me down strange paths that I never would have explored, or would have explored eventually after spending many long hours of planning. In this year of yes, I’m just going for it, perfect or otherwise. (And it’s almost always otherwise.) But I’m also learning to let go of outcomes at breakneck speeds. I’m learning the power of staying present and doing what I can and want to do in the moment. It’s made me much more spontaneous. It’s making my curious brain and extroverted personality to try new things just for their own sake and value and not what they may lead to. And that has been a gift, albeit it a tiring one, that I’m very grateful to receive.

creativity

A Year of Yes: Off to Ireland to research and write my second book

Christa Avampato

I’m off to Ireland today to do research for my second book in the Emerson Page series. When I booked the trip, I didn’t know that one of the most historic votes on human rights would happen during my trip. I also didn’t know that the Dublin Literary Festival was happening while I was there. These are synchronous events where I will meet so many people and be able to bear witness to subjects and issues that mean so much to me.

I’ll be doing some on-the-ground reporting, and sharing pictures, encounters, learnings, and experiences. You can find those on Instagram at https://instagram.com/christarosenyc and Twitter at https://twitter.com/christanyc. See you there!

creativity

A Year of Yes: Leaving pieces of my book about Emerson Page all over Dublin and Northern Ireland

Christa Avampato

unnamedIn two weeks, I’m going to Dublin to do research for my second Emerson Page novel. As a gift to Ireland, I’m leaving silver charms with the quote, “She believed she could so she did”, and rose gold keys in all the different places I visit for people to find. I’ll tuck them away in museums, gardens, historic sites, bookstores, libraries, and pubs I visit in Dublin and on excursions I’m taking in Northern Ireland to Newgrange, Hill of Tara, Giant’s Causeway, Dark Hedges, the ruins of Dunluce Castle, and on the Carrick-a-Rede Rope Bridge. I can’t wait to see who finds them. They are a perfect token of Emerson’s spirit. And after all she’s given me, I wanted to return the favor to the world. Happy hunting, Ireland!

creativity

A Year of Yes: What you see, you feel – why I collect art

Christa Avampato

“What fills the eyes fills the heart.” ~Irish Proverb

Is it wrong to realize you may need to get a new apartment to fit all of your art? I still have a fair amount of wall space, but honestly at the rate I acquire and make art, I’m going to need a new place at the end of my lease. It’s starting to look like the old Barnes Collection in here but I can’t help it. I love to make art, and to support artists by buying their work. My art makes this apartment more than just a place to sleep. It’s the place where I do most of my creative work. I wake up every morning surrounded by work that makes me happy. When I travel, I always make a point to buy art from the places I visit. It supports the local artists and provides me with a way to relive my travel memories every day. I acquired these four pieces in Vancouver, all by Native artists.

 

 

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A Year of Yes: Museum of Vancouver’s Haida Now exhibit

Christa Avampato

I understand that museums have engaged in some unfortunate practices when it comes appropriating items from other cultures. It’s impossible to erase the past; we can make amends with respect, understanding, and concern. The Museum of Vancouver has begun the process of repatriation with the Haida Now exhibit, a thoughtfully curated exhibit done in collaboration with the Haida people. I was fortunate enough to see the exhibit while I was there this weekend. I’m still processing my thoughts and feelings about everything I learned, and I wanted to share these photos with you. Visit the exhibit’s website by clicking here.

 

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A Year of Yes: Finding your light

Christa Avampato
“Your greatness is revealed not by the lights that shine upon you, but by the lights that shine within you.” ~Ray A. Davis
I’m off on a business trip to San Francisco today. Over the course of my life, I’ve almost moved there several times. For a long time I thought my future was there. It was my dream city to live in when I graduated from college; when I first visited, it felt like a place where I could find my light. It wasn’t meant to be, and I ended up moving to New York. I couldn’t be happier that things didn’t work out the way I planned because in New York, I found the light within me. Still, it will be nice to see my old friend, San Fran.
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A Year of Yes: Treat yourself and travel

Christa Avampato

“Stuff your eyes with wonder. See the world. It’s more fantastic than any dream made or paid for in factories.” ~Ray Bradbury

This weekend I started planning my trips to Vancouver, Ireland, Iceland, and the Galápagos, and this quote ran through my mind over and over again. To stuff your eyes with wonder? There isn’t any higher goal or better way to live. I love to be amazed. It makes every day an adventure. Stay curious.