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In her new book, A Renaissance of Our Own, the activist and educator Rachel E. Cargle devotes a chapter to the reimagining of rest and relaxation. Travel is one such way Cargle—who also founded the Loveland Foundation, which offers free therapy to Black women and girls—calms and reconnects with herself. “In Puerto Rico, I found this butterfly garden, and in Japan it was at the bathhouses. In Jamaica, it’s by the river,” she says. “I’m very inspired by finding new ways to get grounded and be restful in my relationship to exactly where I am.”
With her self-described “memoir and manifesto” out this week, Cargle spoke with Condé Nast Traveler about crafting in airports, hotel swims, flying solo, and more.
How travel helps her writing process:
I find myself to be a very curious person, and travel is one of the clearest ways to indulge in that. I’ll also say that as a writer, travel seems to be a portal for my creativity, because I do some of my best writing when I’m on a plane, a bus, a train, going from one place to another.
The way she makes herself at home on the road:
I like to try to completely unpack. I really love music—it grounds me—so I usually bring a little speaker with me. I have a morning playlist that I really enjoy at home while I’m making my coffee. It’s very jazzy. And then I have a get-ready playlist with a little more pop music. Obviously you can play it through your phone, but when I have the music filling the room with a mini speaker, it gets me in the place I want to be.
What she brings on the plane:
In my carry-on bag is usually a book, a crossword puzzle, my lotions, and my lip glosses—the things that will keep my skin comfortable. Earphones, usually some sort of vitamin, an immune-something that will ease me when I hear people sneezing all around me. I also really love to bring yarn and a needle, because I like to crochet while the plane boards.
The most memorable trip of her life:
In 2016, I got fired from a job and I decided to just travel the world for a while. All I had was a carry-on, and I was doing virtual work. I asked people if I could be a virtual writer for them, or a content creator, and I found a few who said yes. I was living literally paycheck to paycheck; as soon as I’d get paid, I’d buy another ticket to somewhere new. You remember Workaway, where you stay at hostels and work for your room? I was working the front desk and cleaning. I went to Hawaii and Phoenix; in Japan, to Osaka, Tokyo, Kyoto; and then I went to Thailand. That was my first time traveling internationally and I was by myself, and I had a really wonderful time.
