Who am I to travel the world and write about in hopes that strangers will enjoy it? I’m honestly not sure, but I suppose I can counter that with: well, who am I not to?

I’ve read a travel blog or two in my day and I always enjoy reading about the person behind the website. Knowing who is writing and why they are doing it helps me better understand them as a person, rather than a culmination of their blog and pretty pictures. It adds that warm-and-fuzzy human element to the experience. Since I enjoy reading about others, I suppose I’ll keep it fair and share a bit about myself as well.

my story began when…

I flew out of the womb and went gallivanting around in my diapers on a solo journey to find myself and I never looked back.

it really all started when…

After college, I ventured to Europe with a shockingly over packed backpack and my best friend by my side. At 23 years old, I explored places I had once only dreamed of seeing. The fancy calendar pictures I’d cut out and hung on my walls and the jaw-dropping desktop screen-savers I’d saved were suddenly tangible.

It was during this trip that I got bit by the infamous “travel bug” (kind of).

Sintra, Portugal

My Rome-ing gnome

career: take 1

As most vacations go, I returned home and, with the underlying intention of staying put, landed a career that fit snuggly under my psychology and criminal justice degree. As a Case Manager on the Jail Transition Services team, I learned an incredible amount about the field of work, but I also came face-to-face with the unfortunate state of America’s healthcare and incarceration systems.

By day, I was in an almost entirely windowless jail or assisting newly released inmates reintegrate into the community. By night, I was coaching Special Olympics track and field. On weekends, I was working in a bar and restaurant. Yes, I keep busy. I was also more fond of some jobs over others (hint: it was not the one in a medium-security cement enclosed building).

I am massively grateful for the opportunity to have worked in the criminal justice field and the experience gained is invaluable to me, yet it served as a gentle reminder that I wasn’t quite ready to settle down within the confines of a “steady” lifestyle. Instead, I felt compelled to see more of the world outside of the little corner I’d always known - I was eager to give the nomadic life a go.

an attempt at long-term travel

My natural response to the end of a budding career was to casually purchase a one-way ticket to Costa Rica and come home when the money ran out. That’s how that works, right? For two months leading up to my journey into the great unknown, I continued as a server and bartender to save up. Once in Costa Rica, I volunteered with special needs individuals, a population I am incredibly passionate about.

And that, my friends, is when I was truly bitten by the travel bug (and also by every mosquito and sandfly residing in Costa Rica).

From there, I made my way to Peru for a month, then skipped over to Iceland, then realized that I’m really bad at sitting still and ended up in Southeast Asia. There, I traveled extensively and even lived and worked for a bit, predominately in Indonesia.

Teaching in Depok, Indonesia

The cutest local I met in Peru

Kathmandu, Nepal

Volunteering at an animal shelter in Chiang Mai, Thailand

Career: Take 2

Fast forward a few years and many misadventures later, I was ready to have consistent access to hot water, a wardrobe expansion beyond my same six pit-stained shirts, and also be reunited with my ridiculously adorable cat, Luna. Upon settling back down in Seattle, I vigorously Googled “Seattle travel jobs” and the universe answered.

I landed my dream job as an Expedition Advisor at a small travel company specializing in remote destinations around the world (check us out out here!). Not only do I get to help others travel to the far reaches of the world, but I also have the opportunity to explore them as well. It truly is a win-win-win. My work has taken me to Svalbard in the High Arctic, the jungles of the Amazon Rainforest, and to the most remore region on Earth: Antarctica.

where to from here?

In addition to the far reaches of the world I visit for “work” (quotations because it still blows my mind I get to do this for a living), I have been keen to explore more of my own backyard. I’ve been enjoyed shorter, but equally meaningful, trips such as such camping and backpacking as I check off the National Parks, and exploring different cities on weekend getaways.