http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog en forjoshbernstein@gmail.com Copyright 2013 2013-03-22T01:56:06+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:00:56:06Z I’ve been at sea for the past three weeks on an expedition I found both fascinating and inspiring. You can read details about it at http://www.bezosexpeditions.com/updates.html. It has been an honor and a privilege to participate in this endeavor. || (0) Comments 2013-03-22T00:56:06+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:14:52:50Z Currently at sea, finishing up 3-week expedition. Details to follow. || (0) Comments 2013-03-20T14:52:50+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:14:21:18Z NOTE: This talk has been rescheduled for Tuesday evening, June 18 at 8:15pm. The link below still works. For people who purchased tickets for the original February 10 date, your tickets will be honored on June 18th. See you there! __ I’ll be giving my annual talk at the 92nd Street Y in New York City on Tuesday, June 18, 2013 at 8:15pm. Hope you can attend! Tickets can be purchased using this link. || (0) Comments 2013-01-16T14:21:18+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:13:19:42Z I’m not the first to point out that the spam ‘bots of the web world have infiltrated this site over the past year. It’s been frustrating for me, too—every day, more and more irrelevant, inappropriate and sometimes offensive posts have been appearing on the Message Boards. After careful review and discussion with techies, we’ve decided to temporarily suspend the ability to become a member of the site. We’ve also frozen posts on the boards in an effort to get things under control. Over the next week, we’ll go through all the discussions and delete spam posts. My apologies is we accidentally delete a legitimate post or ban a valid member - we’re doing our best. In 2013, JoshBernstein.com will undergo a proper overhaul and upgrade - for now, though, we’re doing what we can to just stop the spam and make the current posts easy to read without distraction. Best, Josh || (0) Comments 2012-09-07T13:19:42+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:01:51:26Z The deepest point on the planet, called Challenger Deep, is located in the Mariana Trench, about 310 miles southwest of Guam. It is 36,070 feet (10,994m) deep and the bottom was first reached by Don Walsh and Jacques Piccard in the bathyscaphe Trieste on January 23, 1960. The story of their descent and the entire Project Nekton are both fascinating. But what’s perhaps even more fascinating (or puzzling) is that no one has returned to Challenger Deep since. For over 50 years, that record stood and, with the passing of Jacques Piccard in 2008, Captain Don Walsh is now the only man on the planet who can claim to have been there. Until perhaps this week. Things are now brewing in Guam. James Cameron (director of Titanic and Avatar) has recently announced the DeepSea Challenge, a venture backed by a number of organizations, including National Geographic and Rolex. Check out the official website- it’s pretty awesome. So is James Cameron. The man is a tireless and passionate explorer, having made over 76 deep-water submersible dives, including 33 to Titanic. For the past eight years, he has been working with his team of experts (including Captain Walsh) to build the DeepSea Challenger submersible. It looks like a huge green torpedo, vertically suspended in the water. The main website for the endeavor has tons of great content, including a remarkable letter from James Cameron to Captain Walsh after he completed an 8000m test dive. The team is now making its way to the Mariana Trench, and Captain Walsh is on board. Fingers crossed all goes well! || (4) Comments 2012-03-14T01:51:26+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:18:34:07Z Most New Yorkers are aware of the 92nd Street Y and how prestigious their educational programs are. Given this, I’m pleased (and proud) to share that I’ll be speaking at “The Y” on Sunday, November 20th, at 7:30pm. My talk is titled “Around the World in 50 Minutes” and will be a lecture / slideshow of my travels around the planet. Tickets can be purchased via this link. Hope to see you there! || (1) Comments 2011-11-11T18:34:07+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:18:30:54Z I’m excited to report that I’ll be delivering a keynote address to students at Niagara University in Lewiston, New York on November 8th. If you’re in the area (or on campus) I hope to see you there! || (2) Comments 2011-11-07T18:30:54+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:19:59:01Z As some of you know, I’ve always been protective of my private life, keeping personal matters out of interviews over the years. That said, I feel it’s important to share some news that, while extremely personal, is big enough that those of you who take the time to keep up with what I’m doing will appreciate hearing it from me. Obviously, my writing / blogging has been sporadic in recent months. This was intentional, as my energies and attention have been elsewhere for much of July, August and September. The reason? Well, in September, at what had to be one of the most magical and elegant weddings in recent history, I got married! I’ve decided (with my wife, of course) to keep the details of the wedding and the subsequent honeymoon private, but thought I’d share at least this one photo so you could appreciate the nature of the event and the absolutely picture-perfect quality of the ceremony itself. The wedding was in Jerusalem, Israel, a place that has always been very special to me and is now even more so. The guest list was relatively small and we intentionally avoided any media attention. The wedding itself was special beyond words. || (4) Comments 2011-09-26T19:59:01+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:19:17:07Z There’s so much more to this trip in Iceland than I can write about. Truthfully, it’s been hard to keep up, as this time of year it’s easy to be outside doing things until 1 or 2am each night. However, this evening’s experience was the perfect end to my 8-days here leading/guiding a trip for Delta Airlines. Thanks to someone who will not be named in print (but you know who you are), I was put in touch with Iceland’s First Lady Dorrit Moussaieff. She and I traded e-mails for a few weeks with the hope that I could make a special visit to Bessastaðir, the President’s residence, with my group. At the last minute, everything came together and this evening I had the distinct honor and privilege of meeting Iceland’s President, Olafur Ragnar Grimsson. I first heard President Grimsson speak at The Explorers Club’s Annual Dinner in March, 2005. However, that was to a group of 1000 people at the Waldorf=Astoria. Tonight, it was just me, my group of 18 clients, and the President himself (and his dog Samur). We had a fantastic time discussing our journey in Iceland, how amazing everything had been, and the special quality of the country. And, of course, we learned a lot about the challenges he faces as the country’s president given the economy and global market fluctuations. All in all, it was an amazing week and I think that I’ll have to return one day with a camera crew in tow so that I can properly document everything all over again. For now, though, I encourage you make the trip to Iceland! || (1) Comments 2011-06-26T19:17:07+00:00 http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/ http://www.joshbernstein.com/site.php?/blog/#When:18:51:56Z In my continuing quest to fully-explore Iceland and experience all it has to offer, I decided to go whitewater rafting down the Hvítá  (pronounced Kveetau) River. Hvítá means “white” in Iceland and for obvious reason — it can churn. But this trip, which I did with the people at Adventure.is, was pretty accessible. The trip began at the Drumbó River basecamp, where I was given a huge BBQ lunch and then the appropriate gear for rafting. Basically, I brought thermal fleece underwear and they provided the rest — waterproof Farmer John-style overalls, booties, helmet and paddle. I then boarded a bus with a large group of fellow participants to the put-in area on the Hvítá. Once there, we went through a basic introduction to whitewater rafting and paddling technique, followed by some in-water practicals. These lessons were about the same as others I’ve gotten in Colorado or Costa Rica: quick, efficient and fairly focused on giving clients the basic moves and commands. Once my boat was under some semblance of control, we took off downriver. The day was overcast with a slight drizzle, so not the best conditions for appreciating Iceland’s rugged beauty. But it was glorious nonetheless and we all had a fun, if not frozen, time. After 45 minutes of splashing down the rapids, everyone in my boat was pretty chilled. The water, after all, was glacial—the same 37 or so degrees that I was diving in a few days earlier, only this time, we weren’t wearing drysuits. Thankfully, the activity and adrenaline helped. Two-thirds of the way down the route, the guides steered us through a narrow canyon with 50 foot walls on either side and then into a small eddy where we could climb onto shore. For those intrepid enough to try, we could jump off the cliff and into the water at either of two heights: the lower 25-foot jump or the higher 50-foot jump. I opted for the higher jump. I mean, I’m here, right? Might as well get the most bang for my buck. The technique, we were told, was to jump straight out from the cliff and keep our arms down by our sides. Then, as we plunged into the water, kick and pull like mad until we broke free of the current and reached the boats on shore. Here you can see someone jumping, and in perfect form. Unfortunately, the person taking pictures missed my jump, but you get the idea. I have to say that the water wasn’t as cold as I’d expected. By the time I hit it, I had so much adrenaline coursing through my body that I was pretty oblivious to anything else. But I swam to shore, climbed up the bank, and jumped again just to make sure I really appreciated every moment of it. We then paddled downriver some more and returned to the buses and Drumbo Basecamp, where we could shower and put on dry clothes. Perhaps not the ideal activity for those who like to avoid getting wet or being cold, but I found it thrilling and heartily recommend it. I also recommend a nice dinner in Rekykjavik afterward. || (2) Comments 2011-06-25T18:51:56+00:00