The following was published in the Travel section of the Chicago Tribune, January 7, 2007:
Web Puts Travelers Together— In Person
It’s a Tuesday evening, and about a dozen men and women sit around tables in a back room at Goose Island Brewpub in Lincoln Park. Peter Wagner, a professional photographer, talks to the group about his experiences with travel photography. He offers tips on how to use the knowledge of local people to scope out a good vantage point for shots, what time of day offers good lighting, and how to approach someone you want to photograph.
The groups listens attentively. One woman jots down notes. At the end of his talk, Wagner shows a handful of his photographs, with scenes from Chicago and Fort Wayne, Indiana, to Paris, Lucerne, and Venice.
All in the name of travel.
It’s the monthly meeting of the Chicago Travel Meetup Group, a social gathering for travel enthusiasts. The group is one of many offered through meetup.com, a national Web site that indexes theme-based groups you sign up for online and attend in person.
The Chicago Travel Meetup Group, now over three-and-a-half years old, attracts those struck by wanderlust or at least bitten by the travel bug. The group, one of meetup.com’s most popular in the Chicago metropolitan area, at press time claimed 665 members— though only about 100 of them are actively involved, says Paul Kaufmann, who heads the group. Participants range in age from young adults to those above retirement age, according to Kaufmann.
Meetings cost just one dollar to attend (a standard administrative fee for the organizer of a meetup.com group), and the format usually consists of socializing, followed by a presentation of photos or a talk by one or more participants, and in the end, more socializing.
The Chicago Travel Meetup Group is open to anyone with an interest in travel, though it tends to have an international focus to it. Kaufmann, who works for Rail Europe in Rosemont, has traveled to some 40 countries, including just about every one in Europe. “The great thing,” he says, “is that there’s a lot of other people in this group that have, you know, a lot of experiences. All sorts of off-the-beaten-track places, like South America and Asia and Africa.”
“People are, you know, looking for new experiences,” he says, “We’ve got a lot of people here who […] can give them information.”
Most here tonight are joining the group for the first time. Those in attendance have visited anywhere from several to 73 countries.
Babs Ryan, who holds the record of 73 (a number that draws exclamations of “oooh” and “mmm” from the crowd), grew up in the Boston area and lived in London for 11 years. An inventor and international trends analyst, Ryan has been to Iran, has traveled from London to Australia almost entirely by land and water, and hopes some day to join the Travelers’ Century Club, an organization whose members have visited at least 100 countries.
“I love seeing the photos, but I like the stories behind the photos, too” she says. “I like to see places I haven’t been,” she adds, “so I know where I want to go next.”
Marilyn Williams, assistant organizer of the Chicago Travel Meetup Group, is an artist and retired French teacher. A veteran traveler, she says in introducing herself that she’s taking off for Egypt in a few days. Chris Beukema, a teacher, participates in home-exchanges with other travelers and has just returned from a month in Thailand. She recalls her surprise at seeing 7-Elevens upon first arriving in that country.
Group members tonight have been to such places as Madagascar, Spain, Indonesia, and China. A few have lived abroad, and a couple— including Wagner— have brought pictures to show the others. If there’s one thing everyone seems to share, it’s a camaraderie in talking about travel experiences— or anticipating an upcoming trip.
David Davidson was stationed in Woodbridge, England, for three years while in the United States Air Force. A self-proclaimed Anglophile, he’s been back-and-forth to England over the years. “Now that I’m retired,” he says, “I’m ready to branch out.” He adds that his “big dream” is to go to Peru next year and travel the Inca Trail.
“You know,” replies Kaufmann, the group organizer, “we had someone last month that— he might be here tonight— who did that.” He adds that the man posts a lot to the group’s Web page.
“You can send him an E-mail,” suggests Kaufmann. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to […] exchange some information.” ◼
