When I was in Vietnam, I had the strangest experience one morning. It was my first morning there, and I was excited to get out and explore Ho Chi Min, but because of my jet lag, I was probably more excited to eat breakfast. I sat down at a table at the small restaurant in […]

You can tell everything you need to know about a culture by taking a quick peek at one room – the bathroom. The toilet, the W.C., the loo, the head, and the “shitter,” whatever you call it, it’s full of cultural insights. You can learn what importance the culture places on privacy, cleanliness, technology, and […]

It’s an odd phenomenon to travel by automobile in a second or third world country. There’s no need for radio. In fact, during your entire time in the car, other drivers will serenade you. You (or your driver), will most likely add to the aural deliciousness. Everyone, it seems, is blowing his or her horn. […]

I love a massage. Seriously. I have had hot stone massages, Indian oil massages, Thai massages, Swedish massages, Chinese massages, and once a kindly old lady on a subway car in Berlin even rubbed my shoulders when I was looking particularly haggard. It was in Istanbul, though, that I asked for a massage, and ended […]

This is the third in a series of articles about the transformative power of traveling.  No one really knows the impact a trip is going to have on their life.  It can be a restorative escape, educational, or thought provoking – often all at the same time.  Sometimes the experiences a person has while traveling, […]

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    Buy the Toland Travels app for iPhones – Toland Travels Postcards – A 5 STAR APP! Get it here: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/toland-travels-postcards/id798997682?mt=8&uo=4 “Like” Toland Travels on Facebook. Follow me Instagram – Tolandtravels On Twitter @Tolandtravels   All photos (C) Brad Toland  

I’m back! A couple of weeks ago, my friend Keith and took a trip through Southeast Asia, I have so many stories and insights to share over the next few weeks, but for now, a quick rundown of the trip will have to do. I’ve been through Japan and China before, and even India, but […]

I had a brief cooking lesson while I was in Cambodia.  It’s quick, easy, and completely delicious.  I really, really want to help this woman to open a franchise!   Follow Toland Travels on Facebook Toland Travels is on Instagram Tweet me @tolandtravels  

I’m “Southern,” so there are certain realities about myself that I have come to accept.  I sometimes drop the “g” from the ends of words.  I’m never “about to” do something, but rather, I’m “fixin’ to,” and yes, I enjoy the occasional fried food.  However, one of the things that I think most defines southern […]