Even here, in the U.S., I walk my daughter's dog and I look for interesting people sitting at a picnic table and I walk over with my white hair and I ask, "Would you mind if I sat and rested here for a minute?" Nobody would refuse that.

Risk-taking, trust, and serendipity are key ingredients of joy. Without risk, nothing new ever happens. Without trust, fear creeps in. Without serendipity, there are no surprises.

I don't want to be responsible anymore. I don't want to have plans. I just want to float through the world.

Take what happened to me in Bali. I planned on going to Ubud, then met a man on an airplane who told me it was too touristy. He gave me an address on the other side of the island, which turned out to be a palace where I lived for four years.

Even here, in the U.S., I walk my daughter's dog and I look for interesting people sitting at a picnic table and I walk over with my white hair and I ask, "Would you mind if I sat and rested here for a minute?" Nobody would refuse that.

There are times when the state department says not to travel to a place, but I'll look it up and find out for myself. For years, even Bali was off the list because they had been bombed. I totally ignored that.

If you don't talk to strangers, your life is so limited. If you're careful about what you eat, you'll never try anything adventurous.