Cyprus-based author shares decades of travel in One Suitcase, 1000 Stories
Swiss-born author Elisabeth Villiger Toufexis draws on journeys to more than 100 countries in her new book.
Nicosia, Cyprus. Swiss-born author Elisabeth Villiger Toufexis, who has lived in Cyprus for more than four decades, has published One Suitcase, 1000 Stories, drawing on lessons, encounters and adventures from travels to more than 100 countries.
From memories to a book
Villiger Toufexis said friends and family had encouraged her for years to write about her experiences, though she had always regarded it as something she would do “one day”.
As the years passed, she realised she had accumulated thousands of stories and lessons from around the world.
“I didn’t want those memories to remain only in my head,” she said. “This felt like the right time to share them and hopefully inspire others to say yes to adventure and to life itself.”
Early journeys
Her interest in travel began at the age of 16, when she took her first flight with her aunt.
“It opened a door to a much bigger world and ignited my curiosity,” she said. “At the time, I never imagined those journeys would become a book. I was simply living my adventures one day at a time. Looking back now, I realise I was unknowingly collecting chapters.”
Career as a tour guide
At 19, Villiger Toufexis sought work as a tour guide but was below the minimum age required by Swiss tour companies. She placed a two-line advertisement in a Swiss women’s magazine and received one response, from the owner of a travel agency in Rhodes.
She travelled to the Greek island after a single telephone conversation with the agency owner.
“I had one phone call with the owner of the agency and travelled there without really knowing what I was getting myself into,” she said.
She said the decision changed the course of her life, leading to decades of travel and the experiences that inspired her book.
Lessons from travel
Villiger Toufexis said the most important lessons from her travels concerned people rather than geography.
“Travel has taught me humility,” she said. “The more of the world I saw, the more I realised how small a role I play in it.”
Having met people from many cultures, she said people are more similar than dissimilar.
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