Years ago when I was writing for an on-line travel site all of our submissions on a place, destination or  activity had to consider the future traveler.  Would he be comfortable or at a loss?  Would the experience enhance her view of the world or scare her silly?  Our editor believed that all travelers fell into two basic groups: risk-averse or care-free.

Perhaps because my children are no longer children, I welcome a little fright. I have that adrenalin rush that I used to think was for teenagers, when faced with a little danger.  It’s not that I don’t look at the State Department warnings, it’s that I don’t always  assume they are meant for me.   However, I  do consider safety precautions before doing something adventuresome in a third world nation.  For example, I don’t  think I would bungi jump in Myanmar.

I have, however, gone cage-diving with great white sharks in South Africa, jumped out of a plane in San Diego, crossed the street in Ho Chi Min city, was driven by car in India, rode a mountain bike down Cotopaxi and climbed a few mountains.

When I trekked Kilimanjaro and paid a big sum for the insurance I was taken aback when I saw the method used to get someone back down in an emergency…it was a stretcher attached to a wheelbarrow!