Travel is a longtime obsession. My first international trip was to the Bahamas when I was two! Believe it or not, I have vague memories of the aqua blue water, while sand, warm sun and bright colors of clothing and paint. I remember looking at fish through the bottom of a glass-bottom boat, and splashing in the hotel pool wearing my water wings.
First trip abroad..The Bahamas, 1972
My next big trip was as a teenager on year-long high school exchange to Japan my senior year. What a wonderful way to be introduced to another culture at a relatively young age. I became and remain a total believer in total immersion in every way you can manage it. I attended a public Japanese high school, and lived with several amazing families. I got a great headstart on the language that would become my college major, and insight into my own personality that believe would have taken many more years to gain (if ever). I have been back to Japan several times, and maintain close ties with my friends and pseudo-family there.
Most of may travel since has been in the Caribbean, Venezuela and Central America. I spent a couple of years back and forth to Venezuela, so I’ve seen most of its corners on my own. I traveled partly on the barter system then, trading translation services (even Spanish to Japanese once!) and English lessons for hotel nights and meals. It’s here that I became a certified diver, and developed a love for being beneath the sea rather than always on the surface. As with Japan, I have great friends and family there with whom I remain in close contact.
Working in the field of Mobile Marketing for a few years, along with self-imposed saving rules, has led me closer to taking off on another major journey. Working on a contract basis, there is no company to sever ties with, no leave of absence to arrange, and no boss to bow out on. Being out on the road for months at a time for work also helped teach me how few possessions you really need. Travelling light is the way to go on a trip and in life. I recently sold my apartment in New York, which I hadn’t been spending much time in anyway, so my situation is somewhat less complicated than many others wanting to make a trip like this. At 38 I am older than the average “backpacker,” but this doesn’t concern me a bit. In fact, I think the advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Deciding to travel with a partner rather than on my own was not difficult, but I did give it a lot of thought. Couples and groups seem less approachable, and in all of my solo travels, many of my favorite moments were with people who took me in because I was alone. I think it will take extra effort to reach out to people. That being said, it is wonderful to have someone there to share experiences with as they happen, and for a woman travelling alone, a companion does open up some opportunities less safe to undertake alone. Donny and I have been travelling together for work for several years, and we’ve done a few trial international trips to Venezuela, Aruba and Tahiti, so we’re feeling quite comfortable setting out on this journey together. On a side note, apparently Donny wrote in a a school essay when he was 9 that “travel the world” was what he wanted to do when he grew up, so there’s a destiny to be fulfilled for him as well.
