Cathy Law is no accidental tourist. A teacher at both New Paltz High School and SUNY New Paltz, she has been a purposeful traveler since her early teens, when a monthlong family trip to Hong Kong and Japan stirred her imagination and set her on a lifelong path around the world. In the past 38 years, she has visited 53 different countries. A lone traveler since she was 17 years old, Law has presented lectures and shared her travel tales and photos for many years, and now she’ll mount a monthlong exhibit in the Van Buren Art Gallery in New Paltz guaranteed to have you renewing your passport and packing your bags.
The exhibit will open with a reception this Saturday, November 7 at 2 p.m. with photos of her most recent trip to China. Law spent last summer journeying through the wilds of southern China, studying with a master of Tai Chi and photographing the stunning scenery of the Yellow Mountains. The UNESCO World Heritage site is a preserve of towering pink granite cliffs “with walking trails in between, and misty clouds and ragged pines defying gravity against the cliffs.” It’s the stuff of ancient Chinese paintings come to life for anyone daring enough to seek it out. Law will present a talk and photo show on “Wild China” at 3 and 5:30 p.m., and delectable Asian appetizers will be served throughout the afternoon.
On Saturday, November 14 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., Law will focus on “Mysterious Places, Spiritual Places” with views of the sublime beauty of the untainted wilderness in the tropical Amazon rainforests, the New Zealand outback, West African deserts and Nepalese mountains. She explains that if a culture is spiritually bound and strongly connected to its religious customs, the people are not swayed by material things to which they might be exposed by Western travelers; rather, mutual respect and acknowledgment of familial strength are the basis for their value system.
“Hidden Villages and Vanishing Cultures” will be the lecture topic on Saturday, November 21 at 7 p.m. Visit the Long Neck tribe of Burma, Balinese Hindu festivals, the Dogon tribe of Mali and much more.
Law says, “I do not have a facility for language, but I will learn a good 30 words to get by: the essentials. Then I rely on the extraordinary power of body language!” What she has found over decades of traveling alone, using local transport – she even toured on a bike for a half-year – is that “you find yourself in areas off the beaten path, and you find people who are willing to interact with you. And you learn how incredibly friendly most people are in other cultures – so giving, they look at you with a broad smile, and within two days you’re invited to go to a wedding!”
Develop your street smarts with “Budget Travel for Dummies” on Saturday, November 28 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., when Law dishes out tips for traveling internationally without spending your last dime. Her experience has taught her to “spend less, assimilate more.” In fact, she says that the less money you spend, the more integrated you become, simply because you go for the connection with people.
She enjoys being surprised, doesn’t plan ahead, but consults with other travelers and locals to find aesthetically pleasing and dynamic places. “I never know where I’ll stay; I depend on synchronicity to find what is compelling!” She’ll share packing advice, how to stay healthy on the road and how to bargain with ease without offending. Digital photography tips will be featured in this lecture.
Law has visited Kenya, Borneo, Senegal, Costa Rica, Peru, Cuba, North Vietnam, Thailand…the list is an exotic one. “Taking risks and spending all that time alone has taught me some very precious life lessons,” she says. “You learn how to become your own best friend. Your confidence and self-assurance are enhanced as you learn to travel inwards as well. In many ways, that has been the most important journey of all!” “China Rocks!” – Law’s “Opus 53” – will be exhibited throughout the month of November in the Van Buren Art Gallery at 215 Main Street in New Paltz. Her lectures are free and open to one and all, and blank cards of her photos will be offered for sale. For more information call the Gallery at (845) 256-8558.