Bits and Bites

Hell, there are no rules here - we're trying to accomplish something. 

- Thomas A. Edison 

The Brand

We hit a major milestone over the weekend with the number of page views to the blog -- so a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has read and continues to read our little messages in a bottle thrown into the great ocean of the internet. Without you this would be nothing more than a private journal with pictures, and that's at the extreme opposite end of what we're trying to accomplish here.

So..you may ask.. what IS it we're trying to accomplish. other than maybe putting up a bunch of pretty pictures with halfway intelligent observations to accent their visuals? "Trying to take over the world"?

Well, no. Stopping well short of that famous line from the utterly consciousness-changing television program The Animaniacs, what we're trying to do is relatively simple: make an interesting and useful new brand of travel information.

The internet is utterly rife with a variety of sources ranging from the absolutely professional and informational, such as Concierge.com and other travel publication sites, to the user-supplied review sites such as Tripadvisor.com and Fodors.com. Then, of course, there are the advertising and booking sites for the various travel-ralted companies. Airlines, cruise ships, etc. All of them generally very useful and appropriate when needed.

So why add to the clutter? Simple: I wasn't finding a site that offered both objective opinions on sites backed up by a personal library of photographs which allowed for a visual perspective. Not to pat myself too enthusiastically on the back, but most travel photographers aren't good writers, and vice versa. I like to think I have something to offer in both categories, hence The Thumbnail Traveler.

The blog, Facebook page and Twitter are but three of an intended five aspects of a web presence we're completing out over the next six months. In addition to these sites, you'll also see a new and more comprehensive Thumbnailtraveler.com, which will feature full pages of photographs, write-ups and links to important travel sites all built around a single destination. At the moment the site has a handful of galleries up, but none of the write-ups. This will be finished out in the next few months, and then additional pages will be added as we add destinations to the overall portfolio.

Once this is all up and running, we're planning on adding interactive Forums to the entirety, so that we can all talk about the various experiences, journeys, and suggestions when it comes to our trips. I want to make this a complete community of travelers built around the concept of the adventure, but more importantly sharing it with others.

So cool stuff to come, and we hope you enjoy and can make use of the sites.

And this brings me to the next phase.

I used the word "Sharing" in the paragraph above. I use the word "Share" in the tag line for the Thumbnail Traveler: "Share the Adventure".

I need you to share. Not in the touchy-feely getting-in-touch with you inner traveler sort of way, but in a direct, open and interactive fashion here and elsewhere. If you like the blog, tell someone else about it. If you like one of the posters I put up to illustrate this column, feel free to copy them -- copyright free -- and send 'em out to your friends. We want to get the word around.

Now, flipside (and it's all about YOU): See the section at the bottom of this page marked "Comments"? Please, please feel free to add an intelligent thought or experience or comment. We want this to be a two-way communication. Not only feedback, but your own opinions.

The same with the Facebook page. Feel free to post your own thoughts, recommendation and links. It's a lot more fun that way!

This year is already shaping up to be a truly fun one for travel. We just got back from a marvelous visit to Las Vegas -- where we had a blast and several shots from the trip will feature prominently in the next blog entry -- as well as future plans that will take us throughout the Southwestern United States and later through Northern Europe.

It's gonna be a banner year, so please join us and SHARE THE ADVENTURE.

Thank you.