PeregrinationNation is the travel writing and photography website of
Karen Hansen and William Gurstelle.
We work closely with several world-class clients: Men's Journal magazine and website, the St. Paul Pioneer Press, and the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Other clients include Viking Magazine, Cruise Travel Magazine, and Make Magazine.
Home base is Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA.
"Recently, Bill and Karen were traveling through Michigan. As they were approaching Ypsilanti, they found they disagreed about the pronunciation of the town's name. The conversation continued until they stopped for lunch.
As they stood at the counter, Karen asked the employee. "Before we order, could you please settle an argument for us? Would you please pronounce where we are... very slowly?
The girl leaned over the counter and said, Burrrrrr, gerrrrrr, Kiiiing."
Nobody understands travel and life abroad like Karen Hansen, who worked in France and Germany when she was 18. She travels with an open mind and inquisitive eye. Karen is fluent in German, and has passable command of Norwegian and French.
She's known for being a good sport, and retains her composure and sense of humor no matter what the situation.
Karen is a professional clarinetist whose regular gigs include Dolce Wind Quintet and the Bloomington and Rochester symphony orchestras in Minnesota. Karen also teaches clarinet and saxophone. And, she knows a lot about the world's musical traditions. You can catch her lectures about music on some of the world's best cruise ships.
In addition to joint travel articles with Bill, her writing and photography have been published in several magazines, including Viking (Sons of Norway) MAKE, CRAFT, Northern Gardener, and Perspectives (U of M Law School).
Bill Gurstelle spends a lot of time traveling and a lot more time writing about it. In the last few years, he's visited and written about every continent, except Antarctica (but he did get as close as Cape Horn). His favorite destinations include Australia, Turkey, Germany, and (believe it or not!) Las Vegas.
He's never had a bad trip, is always polite to customs and immigration agents, doesn't mind if it rains, and often provides unsolicited advice, which can actually be pretty good.
When not traveling the world, he writes about science and technology, and his work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Popular Mechanics, Wired, the Atlantic, Popular Science, and Maxim. He has published nine books, some of which are best sellers. Like Karen, he speaks to paying audiences (see gurstelle.com) and lectures and is an enrichment speaker on top-end cruise ships.