I finally saw Eat Pray Love, the travel it-movie of the year based on the best-selling memoir from Elizabeth Gilbert, last weekend. For the few people out there who aren’t familiar with the plot, Gilbert spends a year recovering from a failed marriage and relationship by eating pasta in Italy, meditating at an ashram in India and finally finding new love in Bali, Indonesia.

I didn’t care for the Gilbert’s book, primarily because I disliked the narrator. Self-indulgent and whiny, she reminded me of the type of woman who might go to the museum with you, but spend all her time craning her head for cute boys. Someone who would leave you stranded without a ride home because she sneaked off with the guy who bought her a drink. Someone who tells you all about their drama over too many glasses of chardonnay but never asks you a single question. Definitely not a person who I’d want to to take on a trip.

I thought I’d like the movie better, if only because Julia Roberts always seems like someone who would be fun to have dinner with. Plus I figured I wouldn’t be able to resist the  money shots from the different countries, as most of the movie was shot on location.

But I knew I wasn’t going to like it when the opening lines told us that Gilbert, a traveling writer, has gone all over the world – and found that people she met mostly talked about their relationships, despite their culture. Really? She must be hanging out with the wrong people. In my travels, I meet men and women alike who talk with passion about their businesses and their hobbies, their friends and children, books they’ve read and places they’ve seen. And sometimes, their relationships, of course. But it’s usually not the sole topic of conversation.

The other thing that struck me is that while Gilbert’s character has often been held up as being brave for leaving home and traveling solo, her trip was really one of the least ballsy choices that she could have made. Think about it: she already was a  well-traveled writer, used to be sent on assignment to different countries. She had been to Indonesia on her own before, the movie points out, and those of us familiar with her story know that she left with a book contract about her upcoming adventures under her belt. During times of stress, her instincts led more toward flight than fight.

For someone with this personality type, taking off isn’t the hardest thing to do. Staying put is. Watching Julia Roberts flit from one guy to another, I thought that marriage counseling would have been the far more courageous act for her than a round-the-world plane ticket.

Now that’s not to say that the people who have found inspiration in Gilbert’s tale have been hoodwinked. For many people, setting off on an extended trip by yourself is a challenging prospect, one that will both inspire and madden and force you to grow. Travel can provide valuable life lessons. But so can commitment. Or being a long-term caregiver or a parent or a community activist or, really, having any type of career that you love.

The times when you find yourself really making a stretch are the ones where you purposefully make hard choices and live with the consequences. And the movie made it seem that Gilbert was following her default defense mechanism instead of confronting her real issues.

I’m interested in knowing what you think of Eat, Pray, Love, either the movie or the book. Did you relate to Gilbert and her quest, or not?

Elizabeth Gilbert’s Eat Pray Love: Does Travel Equal Courage? is a post from: Chris Around The World: A Journalist's Travels on the Road

Last year, the group – led by Debbie Dubrow of Delicious Baby, Beth Whitman of Wanderlust and Lipstick, Michelle Duffy of Wandermom and Pam Mandel of Nerds Eye View - raised nearly $30,000 to build a school in Preah Vihear, a rural area in northern Cambodia. Because Passports With Purpose reached more than double their goal of $13,000, they were also able to provide the kids there with a school nurse, clean water, and at least one complete meal a day.

LAFTI building project, courtesy of http://meerashanti.blogspot.com/

This year, PwP is setting its sights on India. At last night’s kickoff, sponsored by SCOOT (Seattle Consortium of Online Travel), the organizers told us more about the 2010 fundraiser recipient, Land for Tillers’ Freedom (LAFTI), a non-profit organization dedicated to changing the conditions of the Dalit Caste, India’s poorest of the poor.

Dalit home, before LAFTI (courtesy of LAFTI.net)

David Albert, a board member of LAFTI’s U.S.-based non-profit branch, Friends of LAFTI, told us about the dismal conditions experienced by the Dalit caste, also known as the “untouchables.”At one time, a Dalit was not allowed to let their shadows fall upon a non-Dalit caste member, and employers threw coins at them out the window rather than risk contamination by handing them money. The Dalits were segregated in huts built of mud and straw outside of main villages and foraged for food; people considered roasted water rat a delicacy, Albert said.

LAFTI’s founder, a woman named Krishnammal, is dedicated to building real homes for this landless group. About $2,000 in donations can build a home, Albert said (the construction is partially subsidized by the government and some Indian interests). If PwP meets its goal of raising $50,000, it can build an entire village.

Dalit home, after LAFTI (courtesy of lafti.net)

Want to get involved? Here’s how the PwP process works: Each participating blogger secures a prize (either travel related or non) for the fundraiser from a vendor. Readers can bid on prizes by making $10 donations for the items they want. Judging by last year’s results, organizers said, the money can flow in quite fast, particularly when prizes involve trips to Belize or hotel stays.

(PwP could also be a good avenue for people who are trying to map out their 2010 tax deductible donations. I know that my company matches personal charitable donations so I hope to steer a little bit of that corporate largesse their way).

In the next few months, bloggers will be searching for prizes to give away. For those PR folks out there who read this blog, this could be a great opportunity to connect your client to active social media exposure (because you know this group is going to tweet/Facebook/Stumble/blog the heck out of it!) Sponsorships are also available for any companies out there who want big time exposure in the travel blogosphere.

To sign up, bloggers should visit the Passports With Purpose website. The drawing starts in November and runs through December.

(I’m excited to participate; last year, I wasn’t in a position to get involved in anything remotely resembling activism. I’m glad that’s changed. As Michelle Duffy of Wandermom said last night, sometimes it’s good for bloggers to get out of their me-me-me world and participate in something aimed at the greater good).

Passports with Purpose 2010: Travel Bloggers Raising Money Together is a post from: Chris Around The World: A Journalist's Travels on the Road

But in case you want to look beyond Mrs. Andy Roddick (cover model Brooklyn Decker), Bar Refaeli (Leonardo DiCaprio’s squeeze) and others, here are the hotels where the sexy photos were shot, according to the Sports Illustrated website (full, um, story is here). Consider it hotel porn for the rest of us.

Maldives (cover shot with Brooklyn Decker): The Anantara Dhigu Resort & Spa and the Naladhu Maldives on the South Male Atoll looks like everything that Maldives getaways are known for. Over-the-water bungalows. White sand, turquoise waters. No wonder it’s the cover – a place like this is bound to keep the A-listers happy (because, with rooms starting at $880 per night, they may be the only ones who can afford it).

Whistler, British Columbia: Pity the poor models who were assigned here instead of the Maldives. Still, they got great digs in the impressive Fairmont Chateau Whistler. With prices starting at $150 Canadian, this is probably the most accessible hotel on this list.

Atacama, Chile: A press release sent out by Alto Atacama Lodge says that it took two days of acclimatization before shooting could begin at Salar de Tara and the Tatio Geysers, high above the lodge. Models such as Irina Shayk went up 14,000 feet and were nuzzled by llamas. Hm. Again, not as good as the Maldives, but I’d love love love to visit this area of Chile (which was also featured in the last James Bond movie Quantum of Solace).

Lisbon, Portugal:  Portugal is considered a hot destination these days, with tons of quality budget accomodation. But that’s not where the swimsuit models stayed, of course. They were put up at the Four Seasons Lisbon.

Rajasthan, India: This area in northwest India is known for its two national tiger reserves, as well as Jaipur, the Pink City. The models did it up right here, staying at an Aman resort, the Amanbagh. Rooms start at $550 per night - and that’s not for one of the gorgeous pool pavillions.

Palm Springs, Calif.: The only location in the shoot that doesn’t involve a hotel, the models here are at the Palm Springs Air Museum. The museum has one of the world’s largest collection of WWII aircraft (which I’m sure the models were interested in).

UPDATED: I’m not the first person to write about this, nor will I be the last. After I posted, I noticed that one of my fave sites, Jaunted, has a story up (read it here) as does their sister site, HotelChatter (read that story here).

Of the locations above, where would you most like to stay? I’m dying to go to the Maldives, but would easily settle for Chile, so I could see those amazing desert rocks.

SI Swimsuit Issue locales is a post from: Chris Around The World: A Journalist's Travels on the Road