Who she is: An acclaimed teacher and coach, Lisa Alpine leads workshops on travel writing and dance as a healing art form. She is the author of “Exotic Life: Laughing Rivers, Dancing Drums and Tangled Hearts.”

What she does: Lisa also co-wrote the “Self-Publishing Boot Camp Workbook” and workshop series by Good to Go Media, founded Dancing Words Press, and is the Global Getaways columnist for Examiner.com.

Why she does it: “From wanting to push my boyfriend out of a plane over the Andes in Colombia, to finding a giant dildo in a toilet tank that followed her friends through Mexico, to dancing wearing only a diamond necklace, my collection of 19 too-true stories will hopefully inspire you to follow the call of a wild life and leave home with your doors unlocked,” she says. Don’t miss it.

By Hope Katz Gibbs

Lisa Alpine is in the midst of visiting 112 countries, and has hitched rides solo in canoes through tributaries of the Amazon. As a veteran traveler, she knows that while fun and adventure are her goals — staying safe as a woman traveling alone is mission critical.

Here are five of her favorite ways to stay safe so she can have the adventures that make life worth living.

1. Before you go, learn a few basic words in the native language. This will endear you to the locals. Even if your communications are garbled and childlike, it can help you work your way out of a jam.

2. Hire a local guide who isn’t just a tourist hound, but someone who can show you the insider places and whom people know and respect.

3. Scan your passport, as well as airline tickets, traveler’s checks, and other essential documents, and email them to yourself along with bank account and credit card account numbers. Also, include international 800# contact information for all of the above and the local embassy contacts.

4. Don’t pull out large wads of cash when shopping or paying for hotels or meals. And don’t reveal where your valuables are stashed on your body. Calculate what you will need for spending that day and have only that amount readily accessible.

5. Be respectful. When you are, you will most definitely get respect from the locals. Simply follow their cultural mores, and learn the appropriate cultural behavior for females in the regions where you are traveling. When appropriate, be sure to cover your arms and hair. Don’t look men directly in the eyes. Speak in a soft voice. Use the local greeting ritual. And observe the women around you. They will teach you what not to do.

For more information about Lisa, visit her website: www.lisaalpine.com.