Some people think of me as the “Traveling Librarian,” as I have worked at all six of the LMLS libraries during my employment, and even though Gladwyne is now my home library, I still show up at other branches from time to time. (I think of myself as the library Whack-A-Mole, since you never know where I’ll pop up.) But I also enjoy traveling to destinations far beyond the Township’s borders (BTW, did you know that “traveling” is the preferred spelling in the U.S., while “travelling” is the preferred spelling in the U.K.? Well, now you do.) and my traveling companion of choice is Maria Lerman, head reference librarian at the Bala Cynwyd Library.

It all started when I was working at the Bala Library and we expressed to each other a longing to visit Ireland. Neither of us had ever been there, and it was on both of our bucket lists. Unlike one of our colleagues, though, neither of us felt very enthusiastic about traveling solo. After saying this to each other a number of times over many months, the idea finally occurred to us that we could travel together! Neither of us was too keen on driving on the left side of narrow country roads, so we thought that a tour group would be the way to go. I had heard good things about the Road Scholar travel program. I decided to take a week-long trip to Puerto Rico with that organization so I could report my general impressions back to Maria. (Hey, sometimes you have to take one for the team.) The trip was a great success—very well organized with friendly, well-informed guides and the other members of the group were welcoming and interesting. I suggested that we look for a Road Scholar trip to Ireland.

We found a small group tour with an appealing itinerary, taking us from the Cliffs of Moher, Galway and the Dingle Peninsula in the west, meandering back across the country to Dublin. We had a fabulous time; the scenery more than lived up to expectations, the lead guide was a hoot, and the food was generally delicious! (Loved that Irish Soda Bread, but poor Maria is gluten-intolerant, so she had to miss that particular pleasure.) We found that we were compatible traveling companions and we were itching to plan our next trip almost as soon as we got back.

Since then, we have had a travel adventure each autumn. Our next trip, also with Road Scholar, took us to England, where we visited Salisbury, Stonehenge, London, Cambridge, Durham Cathedral, among other destinations. The following year, we took an unescorted trip for a change, this time to Central Europe, with stops in Budapest, Vienna and Prague—all fascinating and beautiful cities. This past fall, we were back with Road Scholar, this time for a trip that was called “A Walking Adventure Along the Amalfi Coast.” We were looking forward to long, beautiful walks that would help us work off the extra calories we would be picking up with all the gelato we would surely be eating, but we were in for a surprise. “Walking” did not describe what we were doing. It was more like “hiking and climbing” over very steep and difficult terrain. We were often among the stragglers in the back, huffing and puffing as we looked with awe at the elderly couple who were usually zipping right along in the front. The views and the food were our reward. We already have our next trip planned: Banff and surrounding areas in Alberta, Canada.

I feel so lucky to have found a fun travel companion in Maria. Every time a patron checks out a travel book with a beautiful picture on the cover, a wave of wanderlust sweeps over me. I hope that Maria and I can go on being the Traveling Librarians for many years to come. Feel free to share your travel experiences when you see us. We’re always open to new ideas for our next adventure.

While planning your next trip, check out LMLS travel guides and DVDs like Rick Steve’s in any LMLS library. Search our catalog of items and place a request.

There are also resources to download from Overdrive. Prepare for your trip by learning a new language with free online tutorials from Mango. Check out free magazines like Conde Nast and National Geographic from RB Digital. Please visit our web page WWW.LMLS.ORG to see all the online resources we offer.

Marjorie Goldman, Library Assistant, Gladwyne Free Library

Tales of the Traveling Librarians

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Some people think of me as the “Traveling Librarian,” as I have worked at all six of the LMLS libraries during my employment, and even though Gladwyne is now my home library, I still show up at other branches from time to time. (I think of myself as the library Whack-A-Mole, since you never know where I’ll pop up.) But I also enjoy traveling to destinations far beyond the Township’s borders (BTW, did you know that “traveling” is the preferred spelling in the U.S., while “travelling” is the preferred spelling in the U.K.? Well, now you do.) and my traveling companion of choice is Maria Lerman, head reference librarian at the Bala Cynwyd Library.

It all started when I was working at the Bala Library and we expressed to each other a longing to visit Ireland. Neither of us had ever been there, and it was on both of our bucket lists. Unlike one of our colleagues, though, neither of us felt very enthusiastic about traveling solo. After saying this to each other a number of times over many months, the idea finally occurred to us that we could travel together! Neither of us was too keen on driving on the left side of narrow country roads, so we thought that a tour group would be the way to go. I had heard good things about the Road Scholar travel program. I decided to take a week-long trip to Puerto Rico with that organization so I could report my general impressions back to Maria. (Hey, sometimes you have to take one for the team.) The trip was a great success—very well organized with friendly, well-informed guides and the other members of the group were welcoming and interesting. I suggested that we look for a Road Scholar trip to Ireland.

We found a small group tour with an appealing itinerary, taking us from the Cliffs of Moher, Galway and the Dingle Peninsula in the west, meandering back across the country to Dublin. We had a fabulous time; the scenery more than lived up to expectations, the lead guide was a hoot, and the food was generally delicious! (Loved that Irish Soda Bread, but poor Maria is gluten-intolerant, so she had to miss that particular pleasure.) We found that we were compatible traveling companions and we were itching to plan our next trip almost as soon as we got back.

Since then, we have had a travel adventure each autumn. Our next trip, also with Road Scholar, took us to England, where we visited Salisbury, Stonehenge, London, Cambridge, Durham Cathedral, among other destinations. The following year, we took an unescorted trip for a change, this time to Central Europe, with stops in Budapest, Vienna and Prague—all fascinating and beautiful cities. This past fall, we were back with Road Scholar, this time for a trip that was called “A Walking Adventure Along the Amalfi Coast.” We were looking forward to long, beautiful walks that would help us work off the extra calories we would be picking up with all the gelato we would surely be eating, but we were in for a surprise. “Walking” did not describe what we were doing. It was more like “hiking and climbing” over very steep and difficult terrain. We were often among the stragglers in the back, huffing and puffing as we looked with awe at the elderly couple who were usually zipping right along in the front. The views and the food were our reward. We already have our next trip planned: Banff and surrounding areas in Alberta, Canada.

I feel so lucky to have found a fun travel companion in Maria. Every time a patron checks out a travel book with a beautiful picture on the cover, a wave of wanderlust sweeps over me. I hope that Maria and I can go on being the Traveling Librarians for many years to come. Feel free to share your travel experiences when you see us. We’re always open to new ideas for our next adventure.

While planning your next trip, check out LMLS travel guides and DVDs like Rick Steve’s in any LMLS library. Search our catalog of items and place a request.

There are also resources to download from Overdrive. Prepare for your trip by learning a new language with free online tutorials from Mango. Check out free magazines like Conde Nast and National Geographic from RB Digital. Please visit our web page WWW.LMLS.ORG to see all the online resources we offer.

Marjorie Goldman, Library Assistant, Gladwyne Free Library

Tales of the Traveling Librarians