The streets of colonial Mexico pulse with color and life. Before traveling, I glimpsed this pocket of culture and history only through small photographs of sun-drenched cobblestone streets making an appearance in my school text-books. And on a good year, my family visited a museum and I peered at the traditional clothes and colors in …
Over the past few months, I’ve talked a lot about relaxation—how it’s one of those pieces of life at which I have not excelled in the past. I spend far too much time on the computer even though I had a palapa full of hammocks just 100 feet from my doorstep for months. But in …
Alone is a beautiful thing; it’s when I process my thoughts, absorb new travel experiences, find unexpected friendships, and detox from being “on” with other people. Lonely is not so beautiful a thing, though if I’m honest, the lonely, soul-searching lessons I learned over the past four and a half years were as instructive as any. …
Mexico surprised me with the hospitality and friends I found when I landed there with the intention of living in Mexico and traveling there for at least six months, maybe more. I flew into Puerto Vallarta, sure that I would visit with friends who were living near there for a month, and then move onto …
Dear Young Dreamer, The end of the school year is here and freedom whispers on the air. Your attention wanders in these final days of lectures, homework, and classroom chatter. Trust me—I understand why. Although the world thrust my “adult status” upon me many years ago, I remember the keen yearning of adolescence. A yearning …
When living in a small town in Mexico, I met a taco stand family who wowed me with their charm and wealth of information about their signature ingredient used at their taco stand: blue corn. I sat down at their street food stall a random gringa, and within days had become a indulged presence as …
Every so often, readers email me asking what compelled me to travel solo back in 2008. Then they wonder why I never stopped traveling. They ask: “Why were you willing to pack up your life and leave my friends and family behind?” Their curiosity leaps from the page. I hear the gentle upspeak at the end …
Over the years I have shared stories and snapshots of life on the road—glimpses into the beautiful people and places I have experienced. Sometimes, I shared the obstacles along the way, the harder and more personal moments of travel that were wholly rooted in who I am as a person rather than the stories of the …