The journey begins!

Nellie about to embark

One hundred and twenty-five years ago this Friday – Nov. 14, 1889 – Nellie Bly began her journey to beat the around-the-world record of 80 days, set by Jules Verne’s fictional character Phileas Fogg. Today’s date, Nov. 12, is important because Bly only received permission from her editors to set sail on the Augusta Victoria 48 hours before departure. That meant obtaining, in less than two days, a dress that would “stand constant wear for three months,” as she put it; a lighter dress “in the land where I would find summer;” a handbag that would hold all of her baggage; 200 pounds in English gold and bank notes; and a passport.  To compound the intense pressure, Cosmopolitan magazine was sponsoring its own reporter to beat both Bly and Fogg, who would travel the same day in the opposite direction. Nellie, in short, would be traveling at breakneck speed and without a moment to lose. It was an incredibly ambitious and dangerous undertaking, and I want to chronicle as much of it as I can. Please visit my blog for ongoing updates on Nellie’s journey. One hundred and twenty-five years ago today she is shopping frantically; Friday she sets sail for Southampton, England.