Around the world in 80 Pages - Navigator Global Writing Contest is open to all individuals over 18 years of age.
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1
st phase - submission
- Text proposals shall be submitted directly on the website.
- All texts must be submitted in English and have up to 2500 characters (including spaces).
- Candidates shall assign a title to the story and identify the country where it took place. Candidates must ensure they have secured the appropriate rights and clearances for the texts and images submitted. Navigator will not be liable for any copyright, trademark, patent infringement or for non-payment grievances held against entrants.
- Winners agree to transmit all copyright for their proposals to Navigator.
- Entries received after 23:59 (GMT) of the 31 st of December 2017 will not be considered valid.
- Every person can participate with more than one story, as long as the narratives of the episodes take place in different countries.
- The contact for queries related with the contest is contact@navigatoraroundtheworld.com 2 nd phase - 80 best stories announcement
- From the universe of texts and photos submitted, Navigator will select 80 stories and 1 picture,
based on the following criteria:
- Ability to engage and inspire the reader;
- Ability to convey the experience;
- Originality of the style;
- Creativity;
- Realness: Real stories told by real people;
- The authors of the 80 stories selected will be revealed on the 15 th of January 2018 at www.navigatoraroundtheworld.com. They will also be notified by e-mail.
- Navigator reserves the right to publish these 80 stories (and respective pictures) in a Navigator book, edited under this contest purpose. The same applies to the winning picture, if it isn’t among the first 80. 3 rd phase - winners announcement
- The 80 texts selected will be assessed by an independent jury panel, who will select the 9 winners based on the same criteria referred above. The 9 winners will be announced on the 1 st of March 2018 on the contest website.
- Prizes will be delivered to the winners by a Navigator representative. When not possible, Navigator will guarantee its delivery by post or DHL.
- Navigator reserves the right to use the winning proposals (texts and pictures) in the promotion and communication of the Around the World in 80 Pages - Navigator Global Writing Contest – in 2018 and following years.
- Navigator reserves the right to make any necessary changes to the 80 proposals selected, in order to guarantee that these meet proper English spelling and grammar rules.
- Decisions made by the jury are final.
1 st Place: 2.500€ voucher for a destination of winner’s choice.
2 nd Place: 1.500€ voucher for a destination of winner’s choice.
3 rd to 8 th Place: 1.000€ voucher (each) for a destination of winner’s choice.
All 80 writers selected stories: will be published on Around the World in 80 Pages book!
The best photo will win a Nikon D5500.
Thank you!
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A solo desert adventure
The road turned into a sideways washboard, a sharp contrast to the gravel I had started out on. Could the van make it? I was hours away from anyone, without cell signal, in the desert in Utah.
That night I slept amongst the stars. I was really, truly, totally alone. It was the first time I could remember that being true. The next morning, a 200-foot rope around my shoulders, I hiked through the sandy desert and solo rappelled down into Coyote Gulch. Was I insane to do it solo?
I touched down on solid ground, and couldn't believe my eyes as they settled on the giant orange Jacob Hamblin arch. I’d made it.
Kristin Addis is a solo female travel expert who inspires women to travel the world in an authentic and adventurous way. A former investment banker who sold all of her belongings and left California in 2012, Kristin has solo traveled the world for over four years, covering every continent (except for Antarctica, but it’s on her list). There’s almost nothing she won’t try and almost nowhere she won’t explore.
"In the beginning was a thumb"
Two lone figures ground the junction to a standstill.
Their thumbs were the cause, a cardboard sign the catalyst: it bellowed the stenciled ‘Morocco’ it pleaded to be transported to – despite inciting motionlessness in some comedic irony Londoners did brake to spectate.
A lorry sighed and halted the traffic; the offer was to take them as far as the ferry to France. The end lied yet afar, but their journey had finally sought its beginning.
I may have since crossed continents and reached many destinations, yet forget not will I ever the first time I hitchhiked.
Dylan Lowe
Dylan Lowe is a travel and food writer, photographer and storyteller. Since founding The Travelling Editor almost eight years ago he has dedicated his work to the craft of storytelling.
Born in Hong Kong and matured in England, his multinationalism as well as constant exposure of empathy have led him to explore the intricate nature of travel, whether they are footprints of the past such as food anthropology or impact of tourism to our environment in the present.
He and his wife currently resides in London, with whom he is setting up an urban food garden and hosting popup dinner events, where guests may savour a taste of their "edible storytelling" experiences.
We travel so as to discover the two most important facets of our lives: the world around us and the world within us. The first is well mapped and trodden daily by millions of tourists. However in the latter case it’s a complete adventure. Who knows what depths of our soul will be revealed when we set off on our travels?
We grow up surrounded by certainties. But when we travel, these certainties are called into question. Portuguese food is the world's best, but only for the Portuguese. “Saudade” is a word that can only be expressed in Portuguese, but if an Eskimo does not feel nostalgia why would he need a word to describe it?
Travel changes our way of understanding who we are. Often we come across concepts that suddenly shed light on a problem that we didn't even realise we suffered from, and which is common in other parts of the world. For example, meteoropathy. As far as I know, the word "meteoropathy" does not exist in the English language. However, for Italians living in Liguria, it’s a recurrent theme. Meteoropathy refers to a set of mental and physical disorders caused by changes in weather conditions. In my case, low atmospheric pressure affects my mood, saps my energy and makes me feel depressed. In Portugal, the low pressure fronts that bring rain appear gradually and are a regular yet infrequent feature during winter; in India, they occur once a year and represent renewal and fertility. In either of these countries, it would be difficult to associate the arrival of a cold front with a sudden mood change. It would be rare for anyone to learn they were meteoropathic.
But in Liguria we discover the extent to which we can be meteoropathics. Everything that affects the Mediterranean skies seems to converge and focus there, causing sudden and unexpected changes in pressure and weather. The winds rise from the Sahara, descend from the Alps or advance from the Gulf of Lyon; humidity shrouds us like a fog mantle; clouds appear like magnets attracted to a refrigerator door. The weather is an unpredictable and extreme succession of all the climates in Europe and Africa. It was in Liguria I discovered this part of my essence hitherto unknown.
Liguria is a prime tourist destination: Its cuisine and wines. Its history and landscapes. I invite you to see for yourself how wonderful these places we already know exist truly are. But above all, enjoy the trip to explore this dark side that exists within you. This is why we travel. And if you happen to discover any pill against meteoropathy, do let me know.
Gonçalo Cadilhe
Gonçalo Cadilhe was born in 1968 in Figueira da Foz, where he has been living with his wife and son. He started travelling and travel-writing professionally in 1992.
Author of several TV documentaries, he has been collaborating with the major Portuguese press publications and has published eleven travel books. Surfing, travel, historical biographies and life events are his favorite themes.
In 2003-2004 he made a round the world trip by land and sea. In 2007 he made another following the footsteps of Fernão de Magalhães and in 2008-2009 another one while chasing his favorite surf waves.
Each time he’s asked about his most memorable trip, the answer is: “the next one!”.
Ricardo Ferreira
Ricardo Ferreira is responsible for one of the most international Portuguese brands, Ricardo has been managing Navigator for the past 7 years and has played a key role in reinforcing Navigator's position as the leading premium office paper brand around the World.
With a degree in Industrial Business Management from the Portuguese Catholic University and a General Management Course from Nova School of Business and Economics, he joined The Navigator Company in 2002.
António Quirino Soares
António Quirino Soares is The Navigator Company’s Marketing Director. With a degree in business administration and a Master of Science in Economics, by the University of Exeter, UK, he has worked at NTC Research in the UK and ICP (now ANACOM) before joining The Navigator Company in 2002. Before assuming his current position, where he is responsible for the company’s global marketing decisions, he has worked as a Project Value Leader, an International Key Account Manager and as an Analyst.
António Redondo
António Redondo started working at The Navigator Company in 1987 and has held several management roles throughout the years. He is a member of the Board of Directors since 2009.
Qualifications: Degree in Chemical Engineering, University of Coimbra (1987); attended 4th year in Business Management at Universidade Internacional; MBA specializing in marketing, from the Portuguese Catholic University (1998).
I thought back to the air-condoned bus, where I had wifi to show me where exactly my hostel was located. Now I was just lost in a stinky street of Ho Chi Minh City. The city I had originally wanted to avoid. The city that I kept hearing horror stories about; stories about local men on motorbikes who whizz by and snatch the bags, phones, or other belongings from the hands of distracted tourists.
I glanced again at my phone, at the screen shot I took of my hostel’s address. There was supposed to be an alley right in front of me, but I saw only a small market lined with rickety stalls made of bamboo beams and faded umbrellas. I felt the tears sneak into my eyes as I sighed in frustration. “It’s ok” I told myself. “You’ll find it soon.”
I brushed off yet another local offering me a ride. My ‘no thanks you’s’ were getting more surly as time passed, and yet they still kept coming; clapping or snapping to get my attention in the hopes of getting my money. After an hour of this I was done. I wanted to do nothing more than throw my bag down and sit on the filthy street beside the murky puddles of mystery liquid that could be been water as easily as they could have been urine.
That’s when she found me.
She wasn’t a fellow backpacker or a local market vendor, at least not one that I had noticed. She was just a tiny Vietnamese woman wearing what looked to be mint green pyjamas. Deep wrinkles creased her face and her silvery grey hair was done up in a neat bun at the nape of her bent neck. I had no idea where she came from but she quickly got my attention by tapping my arm and pointing at my phone questioningly.
With nothing to lose I showed her the hostel’s address. She looked at it before nodding and waved for me to follow. I fell into place behind her, slowing my speed to match hers while avoiding the cesspool puddles along the way. We didn’t go far, just behind the market, when she pointed to a hidden alley.
There it was, the sign for my hostel.
I thanked her profusely but she just patted my cheek affectionally and smiled before shuffling away, disappearing as quickly as she came. My Vietnamese guardian angel”.