Notes of a Naive Traveler

I never thought I would have reason to say to someone, "Sorry I'm late, it took longer to dismember the goat than originally planned."

I was twenty-six years old, worked at a well-paid job, rented a fantastic apartment, and enjoyed a large circle of friends. I had everything, except I didn't. I couldn't shake the feeling I was missing out on the experience of living.

Part guidebook on culture and travel, part journey of self-discovery, this travelogue takes you on a backpacking adventure through Nepal and Thailand and provides a firsthand account of one volunteer's experience teaching in a Nepali school and living with a devout Brahmin family.

Trek with me through the bamboo forests and terraced mountaintops of eastern Nepal, take a wild river-rafting ride in class IV waters, go on an elephant ride and encounter a charging rhinoceros on jungle walks in Chitwan National Park, sea-kayak the surreal waters of Krabi, and snorkel in the Gulf of Thailand. Join me on some of the scariest bus rides you could imagine, explore beautiful and intriguing temples, experience religious rituals unknown to most Westerners, and visit mind-blowing places not mentioned in your typical travel guides.

Notes of a Naive Traveler is a must-read for those interested in learning more about - or wishing to travel to - Nepal and Thailand. I hope it inspires you to see these amazing countries for yourself.

Includes 25 photos of Nepal and Thailand I took during my trip.

Winner of a Readers' Favorite 5 Star Medal.

Jennifer S. Alderson was born in San Francisco, raised in Seattle, and currently lives in Amsterdam. Her love of travel, art, and culture inspires her ongoing mystery series, the Adventures of Zelda Richardson. Her background in journalism, multimedia development, and art history enriches her novels. When not writing, she can be found in a museum, biking around Amsterdam, or enjoying a coffee along the canal while planning her next research trip.

In Down and Out in Kathmandu, Zelda gets entangled with a gang of smugglers whose Thai leader believes she's stolen his diamonds. The Lover's Portrait is a suspenseful "whodunit?" about Nazi-looted artwork that transports readers to wartime and present-day Amsterdam. Art, religion, and anthropology collide in Rituals of the Dead, a thrilling artifact mystery set in Dutch New Guinea (Papua) and the Netherlands.

The Lover's Portrait was Chill With A Book's January 2018 Book of the Month and won the Silver Cup in Rosie's Book Review Team 2017 Awards, Mystery category. The Lover's Portrait also won a Chill With A Book Readers' Award, Readers' Favorite 5 star medal, was one of The Displaced Nation magazine's Top 36 Expat Fiction Picks of 2016, and came in at 14 in BookLife's 2016 Prize for Fiction in the Mystery category. It was also one of Women Writers, Women's Books magazine's Recommended Reads for April 2017.

Her travelogue, Notes of a Naive Traveler: Nepal and Thailand, is a must-read for those interested in learning more about - or wishing to travel to - Nepal and Thailand. It was also awarded a Readers' Favorite 5 star medal.

Learn more about Jennifer and her books on her website (http: //www.JenniferSAlderson.com), Facebook (http: //www.facebook.com/JenniferSAldersonAuthor), Twitter (@JSAauthor) or Goodreads (https: //www.goodreads.com/JennifeSAlderson).