Sharing Travel Experiences

Looking Through the Hole in the Donut

by Andy Hayes

If the headline grabbed you, so will today’s interviewee. She’s treading her own path behind what must be some of the web’s most unique branding! (And what’s with this week’s food themes – first chocolate travel, now donuts?) Anyway, without further ado….

Let’s start with a bit of an introduction?

My name is Barbara Weibel, although I am probably known better as “Hole In The Donut.” Who am I? Well, opinions differ. When I decided to pursue a life as a full-time travel writer and photographer my friends labeled me a lucky devil. My family, on the other hand, thought I was irresponsible and perhaps a bit crazy. The truth lies somewhere in between. Since this is such a tough way to make a living I have to be a little crazy, but I’m also incredibly lucky that I get to do what I love every day of my life. When I’m home, I reside in Sarasota, Florida but I’m on the road about 60% of the time, ferreting out interesting stories about people, events, and unique travel destinations.

Hole in the Donut… sounds like a colourful story. Care to give us the low-down?

After years of building successful careers that paid the bills but brought no joy, I was consumed with a spiritual emptiness that made me question the purpose of life. I felt like the proverbial donut – solid on the outside but empty on the inside. Walking away from corporate life, I strapped on a backpack and traveled around the world solo for six months. At the time, I had no idea what to do with the rest of my life; I only knew that I was driven to travel and write. I started my blog so that friends and family could follow me around the world but before long, hundreds of people were reading it. By the time I returned to the States, I was hooked not only on travel but also on blogging, and the rest is history. These days, my donut hole is stuffed with delicious jelly filling, but I keep the name Hole In The Donut as a reminder to never again sell my soul.

Andy’s Note:  AMEN to that.  Life is TOO short not to travel more and to live more.  That’s exactly why we started our travel lifestyle series.

Taking the words from your website… could you tell us about a travel experience that:

- delighted the senses

I had seen glaciers before. In Canada’s Jasper National Park, I boarded a bus that drove onto the ice and walked on the glacier inside a small roped-off area – a hundred people at time slipping and sliding into each other in the freezing cold. But I had never experienced anything like New Zealand’s Franz Josef Glacier. Rather than joining an organized tour, I walked to the end of a path leading to an observation point, clambered through a rope fence, and scrambled down a precipitous drop-off to the boulder-strewn river bed. Seeing no hint of a trail, I picked my way through the torturous, slate gray landscape. Within minutes, the fence was out of sight and I was in a wilderness, with only the sound of rushing water to accompany me. Around a bend I discovered the source of the sound – twin waterfalls spewed torrents of water into pools at my feet. Every few steps revealed another exquisite scene. Against a backdrop of black basalt cliffs, lime green moss grew on red algae-stained rocks and still pools of meltwater reflected mountains and glacier. An hour later I balanced on stepping stones to cross a large stream and wriggled through a final barrier of giant boulders; suddenly I was face-to-face with the foot of glacier, a yawning ice cave from which a raging river spewed. I sat silent, awed by this giant snowball that glittered dazzling white and translucent turquoise, until late afternoon fog forced me to retrace my steps before the river valley disappeared.

Andy’s Note:  I have to say I’m impartial and prefer Fox Village to Frans Josef.  But either way, folk really do need to go and visit New Zealand.

- opens the heart

The knock came gently to my door at 5:30 AM. “Hello, miss, you up?” I couldn’t help but laugh – and be glad I was already awake. Otherwise, I never would have heard this gentlest of knocks. My guide also laughed when I told him he was not a good alarm clock. “It is a Bali thing. It would be impolite to knock loudly and wake someone up, even when this is what you want. So we come with a gentle tap, tap, tap, instead. Balinese are always very polite.”

I was up at this ungodly hour to photograph the sunrise at Pura Ulun Danau Bratan Hindu Temple. Transfixed by the golden light illuminating lush grounds and dozens of ancient stupas, I stopped to shoot photo after photo – but my guide hurried me along. At a sheltered marina, dozens of colorful Balinese boats were tied up. A lone man guided his canoe silently through the reeds and lithely stepped out onto the shore. Holding a long bamboo pole high over his head, he crouched tiger-like and stalked the shoreline. With lightning speed, he forcefully struck the water with his pole, then reached down and plucked several stunned fish from the lake.

I would have lingered, but again my guide insisted we move on. When we rounded a final corner, I finally understood. It was not the grounds, traditional boats, or even the fisherman he wanted me to see. Another minute and I would have missed the breathtaking sight of Pura Ulun Danau Bratan Temple, surrounded by swirling pre-dawn mists, reflected perfectly in the glazed surface of Lake Bratan. Reverently, I watched as a liquid sun rose above encircling mountains, burned off the mist, and revealed Pura Ulun in all its magnificence.

- nourishes the intellect

For me, travel involves more than viewing picture-perfect scenery. I try to learn about the culture of the places I visit and meet local residents, therefore nourishment for my intellect is an inextricable part of every trip. In Tanzania, I lived with the Maasai and learned about their traditions and medicine. In Sydney, Australia, I spent a day discovering Aboriginal art. Just two weeks ago, when visiting Phiiippe Park in Safety Harbor, Florida, I learned that Odet Philipppe, for whom the park is named, is credited with introducing citrus to Florida.

What is one items you’re dying to get off your bucket list?

If I must pick just one thing that I must see before I kick the bucket, it would have to be the Northern Lights. But there are so many other places I want to go, which leads me to your last questions about any upcoming travel plans. I hope to head out for another bout of long-term travel after the first of the year, but I have not yet decided where to go. One option is to start in Spain, proceed through France, Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Macedonia, Albania, Greece, Turkey, Jordan, Israel, and then backtrack to India, Nepal, Bhutan, China, Malaysia, Myanmar, and Laos. My other option is to see the places in the U.S and Canada. that are still on my wish list: Rhode island, Nova Scotia, western Pennsylvania and New York, North and South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Vancouver, Victoria, and back down the west coast into Utah, Nevada, and Colorado. Ahh – so many places, so little time. But is’s a good kid of problem to have, don’t you agree?

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Yes, Barbara, I do agree indeed. You are SO the travel more lifestyle it’s not funny. May you continue to inspire. For those of you who want to know more, check out Barbara’s website, Hole in the Donut.

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