I traveled the entire Jersey Shore last year for one of the most memorable trips of my life. Photographed at Long Beach, New Jersey, on Monday, Aug. 12, 2024.Karim Shamsi-Basha
We all love traveling, especially when the days are long and hot and when most of humanity converges onto beaches, mountains, campgrounds, motels and five-star hotels.
And the Jersey Shore? The parkway and turnpike over the summer are basically parking lots! I know. I traveled from Sandy Hook to Cape May last year and wrote this fun account!
Besides, what else are you going to do with those rambunctious kids without school to keep them busy? We also travel to see the world, to recreate and bask in time away from work and the busy demands of everyday life.
Traveling, however, can result in a myriad of failures. The Titanic and the Hindenburg come to mind. I’ve had my share of mishaps while I traveled for work and pleasure, alone and with people. Nothing mattered. Sometimes, disaster will strike, regardless.
Sailboats take on the Gulf of Mexico at the Southern tip of Mississippi in May of 2002.Karim Shamsi-Basha
Once, my flight was delayed at the airport in Gulfport, Mississippi, for 14 hours. I had my 9-year-old son, Zade, who passed the time by checking all the payphones for quarters. (Remember payphones?) Zade ended up with a few dollars, while I basically lost my mind from boredom.
Airports are so much fun. If you’ve flown out of Newark lately, you know what I’m talking about. Although things have gotten better, I’m told.
In Paris one summer, I photographed a man who was being painted on the street. He covered his face to block me, then he got up and chased me while yelling in French. The irony!
This man was unwilling to have his picture taken while being painted at Place du Tertre in Paris during the summer of 2006.Karim Shamsi-Basha
In Italy, I took the train from Rome to Pompei to photograph the famous volcanic eruption. I was spending a couple of nights at a hotel there, and I left my suitcase in the train luggage cart that was coming with me, except it wasn’t! It was a storage cart that stayed in Rome. I wore the same clothes for three days. If you’ve never done that in the hot summer, try it. You’ll have plenty of times with no one near!
Speaking of trains, while in Chile one year, I took the train that was supposedly taking me to the picturesque shore town of Valparaiso, except this train was headed in a Northern direction. I found out we were going to Humberstone, a few hours from where I needed to be. I trekked back and arrived late, but I did find a gem of a different story on the way. Things have their own chaotic way of working out sometimes, for me at least.
A bullfight, photographed in Cancun, Mexico, in 2002. Karim Shamsi-Basha
I’ll share one more that I will never forget. A magazine sent me to Xi’an, China, to photograph the terracotta soldiers discovered buried with the emperor. Those 10-foot clay soldiers are considered the eighth wonder of the world. I was thrilled and spent three weeks there reveling in a country as old as time itself.
While in distant lands, I try local and authentic foods. You know where this is going! On the street in Xian one night, a man was selling skewers of grilled meat that smelled amazing. My interpreter bought a couple, and despite being a vegetarian, I took a couple of bites just to be friendly. Afterward, I asked him what I had just eaten. My interpreter looked at me with a sinister smile, then barked, “Woof. Woof!!!”
A street scene on the Asian side of Istanbul, Turkey. If you cross the bridge over the Bosphorous Canal, you'll be in Europe! October of 2012.Karim Shamsi-Basha
I recovered after a while, and after realizing that dog meat pretty much tasted like chicken!
Of course, there are all those other times when my luggage didn’t make it on time when I misread a sign on the highway and got off at the wrong exit, and the many instances when I was lost! Somehow, I find my way back to my hotel room and, eventually, back home. I always manage to come home. Don’t we all, despite it all?
How do you avoid epic fails like these?
If you are absent-minded like me, write everything down. Do your homework before the trip and research your destination. Triple, no, quadruple-check all dates, locations, and all the details involved. Photocopy your passport in case it’s lost. Always lock your hotel room. Carry your luggage on the plane. Believe me, it’s worth the hassle.
AAA has this informative article about avoiding travel disasters. And for god’s sake, don’t eat strange meat before knowing what it is!
Stories by Karim Shamsi-Basha
Karim Shamsi-Basha may be reached at kshamsi-basha@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter & Instagram.
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