-
SHARE YOUR STORIES
Welcome to Travel Talkers Toastmasters!
Join Travel Talkers Toastmasters on Thursday, October 8, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. Pacific (-7 UTC). The meeting theme is “Wine Country Trips.” Let’s travel to the world’s most beautiful wine regions. Share your adventures at our meeting.
Toastmasters offers members opportunities to improve their public speaking and leadership skills. And at Travel Talkers Toastmasters, we also learn about new destinations and share our travel adventures.
Our meetings are for all travel enthusiasts. Engage with fellow members to share your joy of travel. Build your public speaking skills and get valuable feedback in a supportive, Toastmasters-style environment. Let’s hit the road, share stories, and inspire each other to embark on new adventures. Mark your calendars for an unforgettable evening with the Travel Talkers community!
You are invited to join us and bring a friend. Thursday, October 8, 6:30-7:30 pm Pacific (-7 UTC).
Register for the meeting link: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
Join the Travel Talkers Toastmasters for a fun evening sharing your travel plans and trips.
We meet on Thursdays from 6:30 to 7:30pm Pacific Time (-7 UTC). Use the link below to register for our Zoom meetings.
Guests are always welcome at our meetings! We look forward to meeting you and hearing your travel stories.
Travel Talkers Toastmasters, club number 04670726, District 101, Division A, Santa Clara, California. We are an online club with members from all over the world.
https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
https://www.toastmasters.org/Find-a-Club/04670726-travel-talkers-toastmasters
-
Travel Talkers Toastmasters—Museums and Cultural Destinations
Meeting highlights
The July 30 Travel Talkers Toastmasters Club meeting theme was Museums and Cultural Destinations, and the meeting also featured the installation of new officers led by Area A4 Director Scott Bradley. The club welcomed several guests, including Elizabeth Garcia from Arizona, Shalini Suravarjjala from Santa Clara, and Mandi Judy from Jamaica. Meghan Burns, as the Destination Master, conducted a guessing game about a U.S. city with many art museums. Lisa Hamil delivered a prepared speech titled “Star Power” about cultural experiences including meeting Elizabeth Taylor at a hotel in Florence, Italy. The club also conducted travel-themed table topics where members discussed museum preferences and cultural attractions. The meeting also included evaluations of timing, grammar, and overall performance, with Elizabeth winning the travel topics contest for her response about wanting to speak with the Mona Lisa to discover why she’s smiling.
Club Officer Installation
Scott Bradley, the new Area A4 Director from Santa Cruz, California, conducted the officer installation ceremony for the Travel Talkers Toastmasters club. The new officers officially installed are: Helen Josephine, President; Jacqueline Maynard-Campbell, Vice President Education; Lisa Hamil, Vice President Membership; Helen Josephine, Vice President Public Relations; Avis Russell, Secretary and Treasurer; Jessica Rolle, Sergeant at Arms. Each officer agreed to perform their duties to the best of their abilities. The meeting included introductions from several guests, including Elizabeth Garcia from Arizona, who is spending a month in Irvine, California; Shalini Suravarjjala, a guest invited by Lisa Hamil; and Mandi Judy from Jamaica, who all found the club through different means, including the new directory of online Toastmasters clubs and ChatGPT. Helen Josephine took on the role of Toastmasters for the meeting since Jessica was unable to attend due to a power outage.
Destination Master
Meghan Burns introduced the Destination Master activity, providing clues about a U.S. city with a high concentration of art museums and inviting participants to guess the location via chat.
- This US city has one of the highest concentrations of art museums in the world, with nearly 100 museums
- Served as the capital of the United States until 1790
- Home to many famous artists, including Andy Warhol, Jackson Pollock, and Georgia O’Keeffe
- The homes and art collections of famous historic residents of this city served as the foundation of many of the art museums you can visit today
If you guessed New York City as the location, you are correct.
Cultural Experiences and Travel Topics
Lisa Hamil delivered a prepared speech titled “Star Power” about her cultural experiences. She shared cultural events and celebrities, including attending and singing in a Pavarotti concert in Verona and meeting Elizabeth Taylor at a dinner in Florence during an HIV conference. She described how these cultural experiences provided relief from academic stress, particularly during a challenging statistics class.
Museum Travel Topics
Helen led the Travel Topics session where members shared their responses to museum-related questions. Scott proposed opening an outdoor museum featuring petroglyphs and Native American artifacts, while Elizabeth expressed interest in speaking with the Mona Lisa to discover her secrets. Avis preferred guided museum tours over exploring alone, and Mandi highlighted how museums provide deeper historical context about a country beyond just experiencing its food or beaches. Meghan shared a bizarre museum artifact involving a Civil War bullet with unusual claims about its romantic history, and Judith imagined a future AI museum where paintings could come alive and interact with visitors.
Next Meeting
The theme of our August 6 meeting is “Dinosaur Adventures.” Join the Travel Talkers Toastmasters Club for a fun evening sharing your adventures. Engage with fellow members as we share our stories about traveling. This is your opportunity to focus on your public speaking skills and get valuable feedback in a supportive Toastmasters-style environment. The meeting is on Thursday, August 6th from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm Pacific time. We want to hear about your favorite Dinosaur adventure.
Guests are always welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like to join the club, contact Helen Josephine for an application form.
Register for the meeting: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
We look forward to hearing your travel stories! Join us to be inspired to take your next trip.
-
Travel Talkers Toastmasters–New Year, New Travels
We started 2024 with our first meeting of the new year on January 4th. Our theme was “New Year, New Travels.” Our Travel Topics Master, Meghan Burns, asked us about trips we want to take, places we have visited that we want to go back to, modes of transportation we prefer, and where we would like to celebrate New Year’s Eve in 2024. Helen commented that she would like to visit the gardens of Sissinghurst Castle in Kent and Kew Gardens in London during a trip to Great Britain in 2024. Samantha prefers road trips, especially road trips to visit National Parks. Our meeting Guest, Clare, wants to go back to Australia to see more of the outback areas of the country. Kit would like to spend New Years Eve 2024 with an unobstructed view of the Southern Cross constellation from a location in the Southern Hemisphere.
Sissinghurst Castle, Kent 
Roadtrip to Yosemite 
Southern Cross 
Australian Outback, Uluru, sometimes known by its European name Ayers Rock, Our Destination Master, Tym Myers, provided these clues for the mystery destination:
- Southern-most of the Windward Islands.
- At one time it was connected to South America.
- Its is 26 miles by 7 miles.
- It has the Western Hemisphere’s oldest tropical rainforest–called the Main Ridge Forest Reserve.
- Its currency is the TT dollar.
- It is known for its “Million dollar views and beaches.”
- Also know for Bacolet Bay, where the movie “Swiss Family Robinson” was filmed.
If you guessed the Island of Tobago you are correct!
Kit Myers’ speech at our meeting was about the workshops she gives on building gingerbread houses and other structures. In her speech, “There are No Mistakes in Gingerbread,” she shared the joy and creativity that is present in the workshops where anything is possible. Kit emphasized four main points about her workshops in her speech:
- Everyone is building Gingerbread structures, but more importantly they are also building memories.
- Workshops are playtime to allow everyone to think and create like an 8 year old, regardless of their actual age.
- There are no mistakes, anything is possible with Gingerbread.
- She encourages everyone to take the time to look around the room to see the other Gingerbread creations and enjoy the sense of community.
Gingerbread Chicken Coop, photo by Kit Myers Join us for our next meeting on Thursday January 11th from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Pacific (-8 UTC). The meeting theme is “Seek the Sun.” Are dark winter days getting you down? Time to seek the sun and head for an outdoor adventure. Where do you go to find the sun and recharge? Let’s hear about your adventures at our January 11th meeting. Guests are always welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like to join the club, contact Helen Josephine for an application form.
Register for the meeting: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
RSVP on MeetUp to let us know you are coming to the meeting. Guests are always welcome!
Looking forward to hearing your travel stories! Join us to be inspired to take your next trip.
Helen Josephine,
Travel Talkers Toastmasters
-
Travel Talkers Toastmasters–Winter Solstice
The theme of our December 21st meeting was “Winter Solstice.” We shared our memories and preferences for adventures on the shortest day and the longest night of the year in the Northern Hemisphere.
Our Destination Master, Kit Myers, gave us these clues for a city.
- This city is located in the North America.
- It is located on one of the Great Lakes.
- It is possible to see the Northern Lights in some years.
- It has many nicknames including, The City of Big Shoulders, The Windy City, The Second City
- The indigenous tribes called it Shikaakwa.
If you guessed Chicago, Illinois, you are correct!
Our speaker at the meeting, Meghan Burns, presented her Level 1 “Writing a Speech with Purpose” project speech. Megan’s speech was about her experience organizing and emceeing a company-wide awards presentation. The venue was at the all-inclusive resort, Planet Hollywood, in Cancun, Mexico. Meghan’s goal was to have an event that would be memorable and meaningful for all of the employees, not just those receiving awards. The purpose of her speech was to share the three strategies she used to make the event a success:
- She tied the awards to achieving the company goals for the year.
- She created a team to help nominate recipients.
- She planned every detail of the event and stayed on time by creating a script, practicing the timing, and remaining flexible.
Samantha Jamwal asked us Travel Topics about Winter Solstice traditions and activities. Several speakers commented on their experiences with viewing the Northern Lights including Tym’s experience viewing them from the cockpit of an airplane. Other traditions we heard about included the Japanese Yuzu Bath with Citrons floating in hot water, Christmas Markets in the US and Europe, and pajama parties. We enjoyed sharing our stories about Winter Solstice events and activities.
Join us for our first meeting of 2024 on Thursday January 4th from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Pacific (-8 UTC). The meeting theme is “New Year, New Travels.” Where are you traveling to in 2024? Share your travel plans with us. Be inspired to visit someplace you have never been before. Let’s hear all about it at our January 4th meeting. Guests are always welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like to join the club, contact Helen Josephine for an application form.
Register for the meeting: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
RSVP on MeetUp to let us know you are coming to the meeting. Guests are always welcome!
Looking forward to hearing your travel stories! Join us to be inspired to take your next trip.
Helen Josephine,
Travel Talkers Toastmasters
-
Travel Talkers Toastmasters–Winter Holiday Weekend
In between Thanksgiving and the end of the year is the perfect time to take a Winter Holiday Weekend. This was the theme of our December 14 meeting. Our guests and members had the opportunity to share where they would go and what they would do on their Winter Holiday Weekend. Our Travel Topics Master, Helen Josephine, asked the members and guests to describe their perfect winter holiday weekend, as well as how they would plan for the trip, who would take care of their pets, and would they prefer to travel by car, plane or boat.
The word of the day was presented by Natasha Barr. She introduced us to the slang variations of the word amazing, including lit, bomb, wicked, epic, rad, dope, sick, and stellar. She challenged us to use the word of the day and the slang variations in our Travel Topic responses and in our speeches.
Our Destination Master, Judith Ferber, gave us these clues:
- This is the 6th largest island country in the world.
- It became independent from Great Britain in 1947.
- It is famous for its fish, beaches and natural beauty.
If you guessed New Zealand, you are correct!
We had two speeches at our meeting. Raji Bandanapudi presented, “What’s That?”, a humorous speech about learning to drive as a teenager in India. She learned to master her ABC’s ( accelerator, brake, clutch) in a standard transmission car, but she had trouble with the pedestrians who did not pay attention to crosswalks or traffic. Nathalie Iglesias presented a speech to practice effective body language. She spoke about her career as an occupational therapist for geriatric patients. She also noted that she uses both supportive and analytical communication styles to help her patients understand their therapy exercises in a calm and helpful tone of voice.
Join us for our next meeting on December 21st from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Pacific (-8 UTC). The meeting theme is Winter Solstice. How will you celebrate the longest night of the Year? Do you want to chase the Northern Lights or stay inside by the fire? Share your travel plans with us. Be inspired to visit someplace you have never been before. Let’s hear all about it at our December 21st meeting. Guests are always welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like to join the club, contact Helen Josephine for an application form.
Register for the meeting: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
RSVP on MeetUp to let us know you are coming to the meeting. Guests are always welcome!
Looking forward to hearing your travel stories! Join us to be inspired to take your next trip.
Helen Josephine,
Travel Talkers Toastmasters
-
Travel Talkers Toastmasters–Sand or Snow
Planning a winter vacation is often a decision between somewhere sunny and somewhere snowy. The theme of our December 7th meeting was “Sand or Snow.” We found out which of our members and guests prefer a sandy winter vacation and which prefer the snow.
Our Destination Master, Kit Myers, gave us these clues for her mystery location:
- This is a beach on an Island located in the Pacific Ocean–not Wiamea or Waialea.
- It is famous for its Banyan tree.
- It is located in the 50th state of the United States.
- It is 11 miles east of an historic national monument.
- It is 5 miles east o.f Daniel Inouye International Airport.
- It is 3 miles west of Diamond Head.
- It is located on the Island of O’ahu, the state capital.
Pearl Harbor Naitonal Monument 
Diamond Head 
Banyan Tree 
Royal Hawaiian Resort at Waikiki Beach If you guessed Waikiki Beach in Honolulu, Hawaii, you are correct!
Helen Josephine presented a speech set in the snow of Alaska to illustrate the need for compassion in leadership. She told the story of the 2019 Iditarod Trail Dog Sled race, a thousand mile dog sled race through the snow and tundra from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska. During this race the dog team lead by musher Nicolas Petit was ahead with a 5 hour lead and they were less that 300 miles from the finish line. But then two of the dogs on the team had a disagreement with each other. Petit yelled at them to stop fighting and get going. After Petit yelled at them, the dogs refused to go any further and he had to drop out of the race at the Shaktoolik check point. Helen used this story to introduce the leadership principles of the Dalai Lama–be mindful, be selfless and be compassionate–from an article in the Harvard Business Review https://hbr.org/2019/02/the-dalai-lama-on-why-leaders-should-be-mindful-selfless-and-compassionate. She concluded that if Nicolas Petit had been mindful, selfless and compassionate instead of angry and frustrated his team of dogs might have responded in a totally different way to his request to get going. The outcome of the race for him and his team could have been different.
Tym Myers was the Travel Topics Master for the meeting. He asked us questions about our preference for snow or sand on a vacation. He also asked us to describe our first encounter with snow and our first encounter with sand. We enjoyed sharing our memories of family vacations at the beach and on the slopes.
Join us for our next meeting on December 14th from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Pacific (-8 UTC). The meeting theme is Winter Holiday Weekend. Where are you planning to spend your Winter Holiday Weekend? Let’s hear all about it at our December 14th meeting. Guests are always welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like to join the club, contact Helen Josephine for an application form.
Register for the meeting: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
RSVP on MeetUp to let us know you are coming to the meeting. Guests are always welcome!
Looking forward to hearing your travel stories! Join us to be inspired to take your next trip.
Helen Josephine,
Travel Talkers Toastmasters
-
Travel Talker Toastmasters–Meet the Family
At our November 30th meeting, we talked about travel to meet the family. Our members come from many different cities and cultures and everyone shared their stories during our Travel Topics session. Crystal Campbell lead our impromptu session by asking us questions about our family experiences. She wanted to know which family member we hated to travel with, when was our last family vacation, what was our most embarrassing family photo, and who is the funniest member of our family. We enjoyed hearing and sharing our stories.
Our Destination Master was Avis Russell. She shared these clues about a country that she hopes to visit someday.
This country is famous for:
- Rainforests, gorgeous coastlines and lively colorful city life.
- Pristine, white sand beaches, attractive seacoast, and abundant marine life.
- Spectacular architecture, rich culture, and historical artifacts.
- It is the world’s fifth-largest country by area and the seventh most populous.
- It has 4 time zones.
- Carnival
- It does not have an official national animal, but many people consider the jaguar as the national animal.
- One sport it’s known for is Soccer.
If you guessed Brazil, you are correct!
Our speaker was Kit Myers. She is working on her Level I educational pathway in Toastmasters. She gave a speech to entertain us and to share her story of the history, drama, love and kindness of family life. Her rule of “who you sleep with” is something she has shared with other family members to explain the growth and importance of the family unit living and sleeping under the same roof. This rule has helped Kit find balance in her life as her family and the world has changed over the years. Kit’s basic question is, “Who have you slept with the most in your life?” This will change once you leave your family home, start new life relationships, and find new interests. Kit feels that understanding the importance of the changing relationships with your family will guide your decisions in life.
Join us for our next meeting on December 7th from 6:30pm to 7:30pm Pacific (-7 UTC). The meeting theme is Sand or Snow. Where are you planning to spend your Winter Vacation, at the beach or in the snow? Let’s hear all about it at our December 7th meeting. Guests are always welcome to attend our meetings. If you would like to join the club, contact Helen Josephine for an application form.
Register for the meeting: https://tinyurl.com/TravelTalkersZoomLink
RSVP on MeetUp to let us know you are coming to the meeting. Guests are always welcome!
Looking forward to hearing your travel stories! Join us to be inspired to take your next trip.
Helen Josephine,
Travel Talkers Toastmasters
About Me
Telling a great travel story is my passion, sharing that passion with others is fun.
Follow Me On
Subscribe To My Newsletter
Subscribe for new travel stories and exclusive content.
