To read about an exciting summer in Taos, click here

Judith Fein’s  book Life is a Trip: The Transformative Magic of Travel

Who can ride a funeral boat in Mog Mog, alongside the deceased’s body, hang out in Mexican prison, apprentice with a shaman a la Don Juan, eat camel meat and leave for home from each adventure with a new life transforming experience?

Judith Fein in her new book Life is a Trip does just that and more. On the 14 exotic globetrotting adventures described in this book, Fein shows the reader how to use travel as a way to transform one’s life – how to be a traveler instead of a tourist.

In Life is a Trip Fein goes to Vietnam to get a massage, meets the High Priest of the ancient Israelite Samaritans on a holy mountain, visits a god in Guatemala, and has many more exciting and transformative adventures. She is definitely not your run-of-the-mill travel writer

This entertaining book will fascinate the seasoned, the novice and the armchair traveler.

About the Author

Judith Fein is an award-winning international travel journalist who lives to leave. She resided for more than ten years in Europe and North Africa and has a passion for adventures that are exotic, authentic, quirky, historic and immersed in local culture. She has written travel articles for more than 90 magazines, newspapers and internet sites.

Life is a Trip: The Transformative Magic of Travel
by Judith Fein

Paperback: 128 pages
Publisher: Spirituality & Health Books
ISBN-10: 0981870880
ISBN-13: 978-0981870885

Keith Bellows
Editor-in-chief
National Geographic Traveler

A book launch celebration for Life is a Trip will be on Thursday, August 19th, at 5 pm at Garcia Street Books in Santa Fe, New Mexico (376 Garcia Street; 505-986-9151)

A review of  Life is a Trip: The Transformative Magic of Travel by Judith Fein will appear in IFWTWA’s web magazine Global Writes soon.

July 22, 2010

Santa Fe Indian Market - World’s Largest – August 21-22

The Santa Fe Plaza plays host to the most prestigious Native American arts show in the world – the annual Santa Fe Indian Market – Aug. 21-22, 2010. The one-of-a-kind event provides a unique opportunity to buy directly from Native American artists from across the country.

“Santa Fe Indian Market gives New Mexicans and their visitors a genuine cultural experience,” said Michael Cerletti, Secretary of the New Mexico Tourism Department, “and is an integral part of life in the Land of Enchantment. I encourage everyone to experience its wonder and enjoy the beauty of the arts created by this state’s premier residents. The Southwestern Association for Indian Arts (SWAIA) is to be commended for its continued sponsorship.”

The Santa Fe Indian Market has long been the place where Native American art meets the world. Join thousands of collectors, artists, volunteers and visitors who return from across the United States and the world to join in the festivities that celebrate American Indian culture and artistry.

Nearly 1,200 artists will be presenting their newest and best work for sale and admiration. Experience the best of Native culture by seeing the clothing contest, tasting fry bread and other Native foods provided by our vendors, and visiting the youth participants throughout the Market.

The outdoor market provides a unique place to meet and buy directly from the nation’s top Native American artists, including youth, who represent nearly 100 tribes. Demonstrations by Native American groups and artists allow visitors a chance to learn more about different tribal and artistic traditions. A book booth sells educational and informative books with signings by Native authors, and American Indian food vendors offer delicious Native food choices for visitors.

Activities surrounding Santa Fe Indian Market August 13-23, 2010, include:

• August 13 (11:30 a.m.): SWAIA officially introduces the 2010 Santa Fe Indian Market Week with a Business Partner’s Reception and Press Preview, Collected Works Bookstore, 202 Galisteo Street.
• August 13 (6 p.m.): SWAIA and Apache Skateboards present “Indian Ink” – Artists in Black & White, Legends Santa Fe, 143 Lincoln Ave.
• August 14 (4 p.m.): SWAIA and Collected Works Bookstore present Joseph M. Marshall III, Collected Works Bookstore, 202 Galisteo Street
• August 15 (2-4 p.m.): SWAIA and Whitehawk Antique Shows present “Scarcity and Rarity,” Santa Fe Community Center, 201 W. Marcy Street
• August 16 (8:30-10:30 a.m.): Conversation on Contemporary Native American Art at the Georgia O’Keeffe Museum, 217 Johnson Street.
• August 16 ( 6:30 p.m.): Santa Fe Indian Market Classification X Award Winners Film Screening, Allan Houser Compound, 26 Haozous Road
• August 17 (8 a.m.): Breakfast with the Curators, Museum Hill Cafe
• August 17 (6 p.m.): A Special Evening with Award-Winning Author Sherman Alexie, The Lensic Performing Arts Center
• August 18 (2 p.m.): SWAIA and the Sundance Institute present “Bran Nue Dae,” a film by Rachel Perkins, The Lensic Performing Arts Center
• August 19-22 (TBA): SWAIA, NMAI and CCA present the 10th annual Native Cinema Showcase, Cathedral Park: Downtown Santa Fe
• August 19 (5:30 p.m.): SWAIA Artist Fellowship Winner’s Reception, Patina Gallery 131 W. Palace Ave.
• August 19 (6 p.m.): SWAIA and Collected Works Bookstore present N. Scott Momaday and Luci Tapahonso, Collected Works Bookstore: 202 Galisteo Street
• August 19 (6 p.m.): Native Music Rocks the Plaza, Santa Fe Plaza Bandstand
• August 20 (11:30 a.m.): Best of Show Luncheon and Preview, Santa Fe Community Center, 201 W. Marcy Street.
• August 20 (3 p.m.): State of Native Arts Symposium, Santa Fe Community Center, 201 W. Marcy Street.
• August 20-21 (TBA): Native Music Rocks Concert, Hilton Hotel, 100 Sandoval Street.
• August 21 (noon-1p.m.): Allan Houser and Pov’ika Awards Presentation, Santa Fe Plaza
• August 21 (1-4 p.m.): SWAIA and Apache Skateboards Present Skateploitation!, Cathedral Park
• August 21 (5 p.m.): 2010 SWAIA Indian Market Gala Dinner and Live Auction, La Fonda on the Plaza
• August 21-22 (7 a.m.-5 p.m. both days): Santa Fe Indian Market, Santa Fe Plaza.
• August 22 (9 a.m.-noon): Native American Clothing Contest, Santa Fe Plaza

SWAIA’s mission is to be an advocate for Native American arts and cultures (particularly those in the Southwest), and create economic and cultural opportunities for Native American artists by producing and promoting the Santa Fe Indian Market as the finest Indian art event in the world; cultivating excellence and innovation across traditional and non-traditional art forms; and developing programs and events that support, promote, and honor Native artists year-round.

For more information contact Southwestern Association for Indian Arts, Inc. (SWAIA)
PO Box 969, Santa Fe, NM 87504-0969
Phone: 505-983-5220 or Fax: 505-983-7647
For general information, info@swaia.org; for membership information, loff@swaia.org; for donor/gift information,loff@swaia.org; for questions about volunteering, volunteer@swaia.org; and for Artist Services, jtorresnez@swaia.org.

Visit www.swaia.org

Mike Stauffer, Communications Director

New Mexico Tourism Department, 505-827-7379, mike.stauffer@state.nm.us

Taos Summer Writers’ Conference

University of New Mexico   Albuquerque, NM 87131-0001    505-277-5572  (Phone)   505-277-2950 (Fax)  Sharon Oard Warner, Founding Director

For Immediate Release: Taos, New Mexico –

Best-selling novelist, Cristina García will deliver the keynote address at the 12th  Taos Summer Writer’s Conference on Sunday, July 11th at 8 p.m. at the Sagebrush Inn Conference Center, 1508 Paseo Del Pueblo Sur.

This exciting event is free and open to the public.

“García is the author of five novels: Dreaming in Cuban, The Agüero Sisters, Monkey Hunting, A Handbook to Luck, and the forthcoming The Lady Matador’s Hotel, which will be published in September 2010 by Scribner. García has edited two anthologies, Cubanísimo: The Vintage Book of Contemporary Cuban Literature and Bordering Fires: The Vintage Book of Contemporary Mexican and Chicano/a Literature. Two works for young readers, The Dog Who Loved the Moon, and I Wanna Be Your Shoebox were published in 2008. A collection of poetry, The Lesser Tragedy of Death, was recently published by Akashic Press. García’s work has been nominated for a National Book Award and translated into a dozen languages.  García is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Whiting Writers’ Award, a Hodder Fellowship at Princeton University, and an NEA grant, among others.   More info on the author can be found on her website:  http://www.cristinagarcianovelist.com

For more information about Taos Writers’ Conference: http://www.unm.edu/~taosconf/Workshops/Workshops.htm