Author: Taylor

Tips for First Time Au Pairs

Hello and welcome to my blog! I am assuming you are reading this because you are thinking about the idea of being an Au Pair or are already in the process of finding your Au Pair job. Whichever it is, I hope this blog post helps you with adjusting to this new and exciting journey! This post is specifically about the process of finding an Au Pair job and some things to consider about your search. I will be writing another post about the job itself later, so keep an eye out for that as well.

I will first start by talking about my experience so that you know my advice is valid 😉 I have Au Paired on two separate occasions, but with the same family, in Italy. italy2015-478Each time I stayed with them I stayed for 3 months. My first stay was in the winter and my second stay was in the summer. I had a wonderful experience and I believe that anyone who loves children and is looking for a way to travel and work at the same time should try it. The reason I am writing this post is because I wish i had done a little more research on what it meant to be an Au Pair before I actually decided to do it. I think blogs are the best way to decide whether this job is for you because you can read a first hand experience from someone who has done it before. So, here are a few tips for the process of becoming an Au Pair.

  1. Know what you want! I went into my Au Pair experience blindly because I didn’t really know what I wanted or what I was doing. I didn’t have any boundaries for myself and I was willing to go anywhere with any family because I was just so excited to start my journey. While I believe it is important to be flexible, I also believe you should have some kind of idea on what you want. Some things to think about are the area you want to be in, how long you want to be gone, how many children and what ages you are comfortable looking after, how many hours you want to work, if you require your own bedroom and bathroom, and what type of family you want to work with (active, easy-going, travelers, busy). Not only are these all very important in finding the perfect job for you, but it will also help you narrow down your search.
  2. Know what you are getting in to. Many young people think that Au Pairing is the perfect way to live abroad for free and party all the time. While I agree it is a very fun experience, it is also important to remember that this is your job! It is not appropriate to go wild and come home completely wasted every night. Of course during your free time you should be free to do what you want. Go out and have fun. Just remember you are coming home to a family with young children. Be respectful to the people who are providing you with this amazing experience. They are sacrificing a lot (their money and their privacy) to welcome you in to their home. Treat this time like any normal job and you are more likely to have a better experience and relationship with the family. I also would like to make you aware that this job is not always easy. When you travel to a different country there are many cultural differences that are hard to adjust to. Children can also be very hard to handle at times. They are not always sweet and funny. Once you actually live with children you will see their evil side as well 😉 Despite the hard times, you will experience plenty of amazing times to make up for them.
  3. Don’t make a commitment to one family right away. I made the error in only talking to a few families before I committed to one family. I loved the family I ended up with, but I just wish that I would have given myself more options so I could have known what else was out there. Talk to as many families as you can! Make sure your profile is very detailed and you have some pictures to show off your personality. This will attract families and you will get more applications. Don’t rely on only they people that apply for you. Apply for some families yourself. If they say no then its not a a big. At least you gave it a try. Talking to as many families as you can will help give you a feel of what you want and what you don’t want in a family. Some families pay more than others, some families will require more work than others, and some families just simply seem more fun than others. Give yourself many options to choose from.
  4. Ask a lot of questions. When you are messaging back and forth with the families, don’t forget to ask them questions. This helps you get to know who exactly you are talking to and what to expect from them. Here are some examples: What would an average work day for me look like? Am I required to do any work other than taking care of the children? What language do you prefer me speaking when I am around the family? What would my hours and pay be? Will I have my own private bedroom and bathroom? How many days a week do I have off? What do you expect from me (babysitter or English language teacher)? How long do you expect me to be your Au Pair? There are many more questions you can ask. Once you figure out what you want you will have more of an idea of what you want to ask your families. Don’t be afraid to ask some questions that may seem a little more selfish. You can ask them about what there is to do on your free time and if you get vacation time. Although you may not want to start out with those questions because you don’t want them getting the wrong idea about your intentions there.
  5. Narrow down your options and do some interviews. Cut down your options to about 2 or 3 families that you really like. You should Skype with each of these families so you can see them face to face and get to know their personality a little better. I would suggest Skyping each family a couple times before you choose which one you like the best. Also, make sure you meet each member of the family through Skype so you can get to know who you are potentially going to be living with. Once you make your decision then you can politely let the other families know that while you appreciate their consideration, you have chosen to go with a different family.
  6. Choose a family and stay in contact with them until your arrival date. You have your family! Now comes the exciting part. Talk with your family about when you are going to arrive. Depending on where you are coming from, where you are going, and how long you are staying, you may need a visa. I didn’t need one because as an American I can stay in the European Union for 90 days without a visa. Use your family as a resource and they may be able to help you with some documents if you do need a visa. Make sure you stay in contact every once in a while up until you arrive so that everything is comfortable once you do get there.

So there you have it! Hopefully you are now ready to begin your process as an Au Pair. I hope this information wasn’t too overwhelming and on the other hand I hope it wasn’t too much of what you already read before. Comment and let me know if this was helpful for you and/or if you have any other questions about being an Au Pair. Also, like I said before make sure you keep checking back on other blog posts about my experience as an Au Pair! (:

 

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Sunday Funday on the Ligurian Coast

I have decided to treat this blog as a public journal during these next three months because I figured that is the best way to share all of my adventures with family and friends. I can post pictures or post updates on my Facebook, but that doesn’t really allow me to get into detail. This is the best way to update my friends and family all at once with the ability to elaborate on my daily journeys. I am also hoping that strangers will see this blog and be inspired and learn what it is like to “live like an Italian”.  So I hope you enjoy and become inspired!

As most of you know, I am living in Genoa, Italy as an Au Pair. I had the same experience with the same family last year for three months, but this time I am here during the summer months (which I am very excited about!). I have been here about five whole days now and I have really enjoyed my time here so far. The first few days were spent just hanging out with the family and playing with Gabriele (the 7 year old boy I am nannying). He is busy with so many activities so the days consisted of going around and watching his water polo and soccer games. Those will all soon come to an end though, along with school, and then he will be free for the summer. That means I will probably be spending a lot more time with him at the beach (which I am totally OK with). The family pays to go to a private beach every summer and I get to take Gabri there on days that aren’t busy and when the weather is good. We went to the beach on Friday and it was very nice. The beaches in Italy are completely different than in California. 13383911_1383556628324871_1498719987_oHere they have private (you have to pay to get in) and public beaches. At the private beaches you are paying for a small storage area along with all the amenities at the beach (pool, chairs with umbrellas, showers). I really enjoyed going to the private beach because you can spend a whole day there and not get bored. The only downside to the beaches in Italy is that they are rocky and hurt your feet to walk on. I guess the positive side to the rocky beaches, however, is that sand doesn’t get everywhere because there isn’t any, and the water is so clear and beautiful.

Sunday was the first day I spent away from the family. For the first time since I have been here, the weather was beautiful. The sun was shining and the sky was clear and blue. I went on a bike ride with some friends (old and new). We took a train from Genoa to a nearby town called Arenzano and from there we rented bikes and rode along the sea to another town called Varazze. Once we got to Varazze we ate lunch at a small restaurant and also got some gelato ( I have been waiting sooo long to come back to Italy and eat gelato).13405238_1383556451658222_571319271_o I got basilico e limone (basil and lemon) and fragola (strawberry). I know the combination may seem kind of strange, but it is so yummy! On the ride back we made a stop and spent some time in the sun on a beach. I so desperately wish I brought my bathing suit with me because the water was crystal clear and enticing me to come in. I couldn’t stay away from the water, so I decided to just put my feet in and got the bottom of my jeans wet. It was worth it because the water was so refreshing after a long bike ride.

After I arrived by train back in Genoa, I met with another friend. We went to a food truck festival and met up with two other people (both from Greece, but are in Italy for work). There were many food trucks with a large variety of food that came from different regions of Italy. I got fried food which consisted of fried mozzarella, fried zucchini flowers, fried squid, and fried stuffed olives (my favorite). We spent a lot of time socializing and then made our way to the city center for gelato (can you tell that I love gelato??) in piazza delle erbe. I forget the name of the ice cream place, but I do know that it was so good and I will definitely be going back.

This day just reminded me of how blessed I am to be here. There is nothing better than being in a beautiful place while socializing with like minded people. I am so thankful for the people that I have met here in Italy and I am thankful that I get the opportunity to live here this summer. It truly is a beautiful country and I am so excited for the many more adventures to come during these next few months.

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Why I want to stop traveling, but won’t

Traveling is something many people dream of, but not all get the chance to pursue. Fortunately, I have been blessed with getting the opportunity to travel to many places. I always think going somewhere new will help cure my travel bug, but in reality it makes me want to explore the world even more. Pursuing a life of travel, however, is not always always an easy decision to make. I am not talking about the kind of travel where you go on vacation for a week or two and then go back home. I am talking about the kind of travel where you are gone for months at a time. This could mean studying abroad, teaching English in a foreign country, or backpacking. Many people think that if they got the opportunity to travel for extended periods of time then they would take it, but there are actually many difficulties that come along with wanting to pursue a life of traveling. Here are a few that I have encountered:

  1. Leaving behind family and friends– This is one of the hardest things to deal with when it comes to traveling. Deciding to leave your home for a long period of time means that you have to deal with the reality that life will continue when you are gone. There will be major events that you will not be able to be apart of, and you won’t be able to spend some holidays with your family. One of my biggest fears is that someone in my family, or one of my pets, will pass away and I wouldn’t have been able to spend the last moments of their life with them. I know that sounds kind of extreme, but you really never know what can happen. I am so thankful for technology because even though I can be thousands of miles away from the people I love the most, I am still able to talk to them as if they are right in front of me.
  2. Watching your peers settle down– There are so many people that I grew up with or went to high school with that are having babies or getting married/engaged. My 15 year old self would have thought that by now at my age I would have been settled in a career and hopefully in a long term relationship. I mentioned in a previous blog post that this idea seems crazy to me now and I am happy with the way things have turned out. However, I can’t help but compare myself to the people around me. My best friend is married with a kid and another one on the way. Even my little brother is on his way to a great career.  I definitely want that in my life and seeing them have it makes me want it now. When you are passionate about traveling it kind of postpones all those things. It is hard to travel long term when you have a family or a career. I just have to keep reminding myself that this is the time to pursue my passion. It may be too late if I wait and I don’t want to regret not doing what really makes me happy. Its not like I am choosing the wrong path, I am just choosing the path that will make me the happiest. I believe that is what everyone should do with their life.
  3. Being an introvert– Traveling solo can cause an introvert a lot of anxiety because they don’t have anyone to be their crutch. As an introvert I get very nervous when I have to do something on my own. I have always dreaded making phone calls or interacting with strangers and have always relied on the person with me to do all the talking. Whenever I make travel plans I usually ask around to see who can join me, but you can’t always expect your friends to drop what they are doing so they can tag along with you. Like I mentioned in the previous point, they have their own life goals they are pursuing. When you travel by yourself you don’t have someone to do all the hard work for you, so you have to learn to step away from those introvert habits in order to truly experience the joys of traveling.

There are many more difficulties that come along with traveling, but these three seem to be the most difficult for me. Sometimes these difficulties make me want to stop traveling. I feel like I want to retreat back to my introvert bubble where my family and friends are and settle down. I just need to remind myself that this is what I am passionate about and obstacles shouldn’t stop me from doing what I love. Instead, I need to choose to face them and learn from them. Traveling has taught me many things like learning to cherish the time I have with my loved ones when I am home. Even though they may drive me crazy sometimes, they usually tend to be the biggest part that I am missing when I am gone. I have also learned that success isn’t dependent on what everyone else is doing. As long as you are happy and pursuing/accomplishing your goals then that should be considered a success. Finally, traveling has taught me to step out of my comfort zone. I have learned that I can’t always rely on people to do what is hard for me. Whenever I step out and challenge myself with something I never thought I would do I am filled with a sense of pride and accomplishment. There will always be obstacles that we come across while traveling, but facing those obstacles rather than avoiding them is what truly makes us wiser and happier.

 

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Top 9 Travel Moments

I have encountered so many amazing experiences during my travels. Traveling has left me with an open mind and so much joy. I am so thankful for having the opportunity to travel all over the world  and I am so excited to share some of my favorite moments with you. Of course I have many more memorable experiences, but these 9 are at the top of my list.

  1. Tubing in Kauai- kauai tubingThere is an old sugar plantation in Kauai that has canals where you can tube down. It is slow moving, and the water is freezing, but it was still a great experience. The canals wind through beautiful scenery and through several tunnels that are lit by a headlamp you wear. In one of the tunnels we turned our headlamps off. It was so dark I couldn’t even see my hand in front of me. As a person who is afraid of confined spaces and the dark this was a little terrifying, but I live for the adrenaline rush so I would probably do it again.
  2. Zip-lining in Alaska- My first experience zipalaska zipline-lining was in an Alaskan rain forest in Juneau. This course was high up in the trees where we had to be strapped in the whole time. I am terrified of heights so I was a little hesitant to go first, but now zip-lining is one of my favorite things to do. If you can get past the high speed while wind is blowing in your face, it is a great way to peacefully enjoy the nature around you.
  3. Power snorkeling in Turks and Caicos- DCIM100GOPROThis is probably my favorite adventure moment. Power snorkeling is perfect for the lazy person. It is a great way to see the beautiful world under the sea without having to do any work. You just hold on to this machine with a motor and it zooms you around while you get to watch the sea life. Turks and Caicos is a great place to snorkel. There are lots of beautiful reefs full of sea life as well as an 800 foot drop off! That was a little scary. I love the ocean, but I don’t love it so much when I can’t see what is below my feet.
  4. Riding a funicular to the top of a mountain in Switzerland- Italy2015 730As I think back to this moment, I still cannot get over how amazing this view was. It was my first time taking a funicular and it was so much fun being able to watch below as we rode up the steep incline on the side of the mountain. Once we got to the top we climbed to the roof of a church and from there my breath was taken away. We had a 360 degree view of mountains and lakes. I felt like I could sit there forever while taking in the peacefulness and quietness I felt there.
  5. Swimming through crystal clear waters in Greece- mykonosGreece is just as beautiful as the pictures in travel magazines make it out to be. The white buildings contrasted against the soft sand makes everything look so fresh and simple. We had a beach day in Mykonos and it is one of my favorite beaches I have been to. The water was just so beautiful. I had never been in water so clear where I can see the bottom. Even when we swam far out where the boats were anchored we could see the bottom. The water was also very warm. Just beware of all the topless women and men in speedos. As an American I am still not used to that sight.
  6. Flying to Europe alone- This may seem like a weird and unexciting 032 (4)moment, but for me it was the moment where I gained my independence as a traveler. I was leaving to study abroad in Italy for a month and this was the first time I had ever traveled without my parents. I almost wanted to back out of the trip, but when it was over I felt accomplished and left with a sense of pride. This trip pushed me out of my comfort zone. It forced me to fend for myself and meet/live with people I had never met before.
  7. Watching the Euro Cup on a big screen in a piazza in Italy– 111This is the moment where I truly felt like a local in Italy. It was my first weekend during my month of studying abroad, and the Euro Cup finals were going on. The final game was Spain against Italy, so of course we had to go watch it. All the locals would gather in the bars and piazzas throughout Italy to watch the game on a big screen. We went to a grassy area by the river to watch. The energy was great and I felt like I belonged there. Unfortunately, Italy lost, but it is still one of my favorite experiences to this day.
  8. Scuba diving in Bermuda- I have always been obsessed with the 134ocean. I just think the fact that there is a whole other world down there is amazing. If I could be any animal it would for sure be something that lives in the ocean. Scuba diving gave me the ability to see what it would feel like to live under water. It was my first time scuba diving, so I was panicking a little bit in the beginning.  It is a strange thing to be under water for so long and not have to come up for air. After a while, however, I started to get the hang of it and felt like I could be under there forever.
  9. Wandering through the Italian Riviera– Italy2015 592This isn’t one specific moment, but more of a collection of moments over a period of 3 months. I felt like I had to include it because those 3 months were one of the best times in my life. I was living as an Au Pair in Genoa, so during my free time I would travel up and down the coast. There are so many beautiful sea side cities that I had never heard of before I went to Genoa. It was such a great time discovering the unique charm and beauty of each of these cities. Transportation in Italy is great. I used the bus and train as a way to travel and one of my favorite things to do was to watch out the window of the train while riding along the coast.
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California Roadtrip

I have lived in California my entire life, but it wasn’t until after I started traveling that I really started to appreciate where I live. When I am home I dream about getting away. I dream about cliff diving in the Mediterranean Sea, snorkeling in the warm Caribbean waters, or looking out the window of a train while passing through the beautiful Tuscan countryside.  Every time I get away, however, I find myself missing home. I miss standing on a sunny beach while looking at the snow capped mountains. I miss the wide variety of diverse foods in southern California. But mostly I just miss the comforts of being home and spending time with friends and family. For me it seems as if there is no happy medium. I am either bored of being in the place I have lived for 23 years, or I am away and missing and longing for the place I have known my whole life.

My most recent trip to Italy was the longest I had been away from home (3 months). That trip made me really start to love California again. When people would find out where I was from they always wanted to hear more. California was a dream to many of the people I met while abroad. I started to see California through their eyes and began to realize that it truly is a special place. As my time in Italy was coming to an end, I knew I was going to have to stay home and work for a while so I can save up to travel again. I told myself that during my time back home I wanted to be a tourist in my own home. I wanted to see California with a different perspective. To be honest, I have been home for 9 months and haven’t really done much to achieve this goal. BUT I did take a week long road trip with some friends through California and I feel like that was enough to satisfy my goal.

I have been wanting to drive up the California coast for a while now. I go to northern California all the time because I have family up there. But every time we go we take the fastest route which is straight through the middle of California where there is nothing but farm land. A group of 4 of us decided to take the long way to San Fransisco and drive up the Pacific Coast Highway. We spread our trip out over five days and made 2 overnight stops and several other quick stops along the way. This was our basic itinerary:

Day 1: LA to San Louis Obispo- We made a few different stops along the way while spending the majority of our time in Santa Barbara. Here we walked along the pier (and you can drive on it to!), had lunch, walked along State St. (tons of shopping), and had some amazing ice cream from McConnell’s. I loved walking down Santa Barbara’s streets lined with palm trees. I wish we had more than just a few hours there. Next we headed off to San Louis Obispo and took a quick drive through Solvang and Pismo Beach. I wanted to stop in Solvang but it took so long just to drive down the street. It was filled with tourists and I was not ready to face any kind of crowd after a long day of driving. We decided to stop at the pier in Pismo Beach to watch the sunset. I love Pismo. I have so many memories from when I would camp there as a child. We ended our day in San Louis Obispo and stayed the night in a place we rented on AirBnB. It was my first experience using AirBnb and it was worth it. The hosts are always so nice and accommodating and we had the privacy we wouldn’t normally get in a hotel.

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Day 2: San Louis Obispo to Monterey- This day was filled with lots and lots of driving, but it was a very beautiful and scenic drive. We first made a stop in Morro Bay. I really wanted to stop in this cute seaside town because it was where my great grandma lived and I have so many great memories there. I hadn’t been there in years, so it was worth the stop for me. We kept driving along the coast and made a stop along the way in San Simeon to see the elephant seals. These things are massive! And loud! But I loved them. I think they are my new favorite animal. They are just ugly and fat, but in a cute way. Oh I almost forgot, before we saw the elephant seals we saw zebras along the other side of the road! We saw all kinds of wildlife on this trip. Back on the road and we are headed to Big Sur. This is a long windy road where you get no cell phone service and gas prices are ridiculously expensive. But the view is perfection. The road winds along the cliff side overlooking the ocean. We were so lucky to have beautiful sunny weather on this trip. We made a couple of stops at the scenic spots like McWay Falls and the Bixby Bridge. We ended our day by watching the sunset in Carmel and staying overnight in Monterey.

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Day 3: Monterey to San Fransisco- We pretty much spent a lot of our day wandering around Monterey. We walked down Cannery Row, went to Lover’s Point, and just spent some time enjoying the beautiful sunny weather. Monterey is a very beautiful and laid back place. I love any city that rests along the water because they just seem so peaceful to me. We then took off and began our long drive to San Fransisco. DO NOT attempt to drive through this city during rush our. I don’t know what we were thinking, but obviously we weren’t thinking about traffic (even though we should be used to this because we are from LA). Being stuck at a stop light and not being able to get through an intersection for 15 minutes was not ideal after a long day of driving. Despite the road rage, driving through the city at night was beautiful. I don’t know what it is, but I just love big cities. We ended our night with a quick dinner at a pub and got a much needed rest at our hotel.

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Day 4: San Fransisco- Our goal of the trip was to be in San Fransisco for New Years Eve. We didn’t really know what we were going to do there, but we knew we would figure it out as the day went on. During the day we just toured around the city. We went to the Giant’s baseball stadium, fisherman’s wharf, and saw Lombard Street (the crooked street). After this we were exhausted and went back to our hotel room to take a nap. I think it had just been a very long week. We rang in the new year on a rooftop in the city while watching the fireworks launching from the embarcadero. It was a great way to begin the new year with some great friends.

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Day 5: GOING HOME! After a long week filled with driving I was so excited to get home and lay down in my own bed. The drive home was rough. We were all exhausted and had a good 7 hours to get home, but we made it.

During this trip I fell in love with California all over again. It really is the best place to live or vacation because you get a little bit of everything. From nature to big cities, from snowy mountains to sunny beaches. California is a dream and I will never forget to think back to where I came from and be grateful.

 

 

 

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Genoa: Italy’s Hidden Gem

Leaning towers, colosseums, and grand canals. This is typically what someone thinks about when dreaming about traveling to Italy. I traveled to Italy on two separate occasions before I ever really heard about Genoa. When I got the opportunity to live there for three months I didn’t quite know what to expect, but I was excited to see a new city in Italy.

Genoa reminds me of myself and my own personality. It took some time to warm up to, but once I got to know the city better I fell in love. The city is quiet and filled with more locals than tourists, so it has a much different feel to it than bigger cities such as Rome, Florence, and Venice. When I first got Genoa I heard a lot of negative things about it from several Italians. This left a negative impression in my mind and I thought there wouldn’t be much to do and I would get bored, but I was definitely wrong about that. It seemed like every day up until my last day I was finding a new and interesting place in the city. Vicoli, Boccadasse, and Passeggiata di Nervi were a few of my favorite spots to venture off to.

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Walking through vicoli brings me back to what I envisioned Italy to be before I actually traveled there. It is an area of narrow passages and high buildings. There is laundry hanging from lines outside the windows. Plants are placed along the window sills, and there are small markets filled with fruits and veggies along the way. It is a great way to escape the busy and noisy parts of the city center. If you are interested in night life there are many bars and clubs throughout Vicoli and it is a very popular area for young people to hang out at during the night.

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Bocaadasse was a place I visited very often. I love the water so this was a great place for me to relax and enjoy gelato (this is also where my favorite ice cream place was located). I was living in Genoa from the end of January until the end of April, so the weather wasn’t the greatest. There was a lot of rain, a lot of wind, and a lot of cold. So when the sun came out I took advantage of it by going to Boccadasse, eating some gelato, and taking a nap on the “beach” (the beaches in Italy are much different than the ones I am used to in southern California).

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The Passeggiata di Nervi is a beautiful pathway along the sea. It is a great spot to stroll down in the morning or during sunset. There are also several different restaurants along the way where you can enjoy lunch or dinner with a great view. It is definitely worth it to take some time out of your day to walk along this beautiful pathway.

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Just like other big Italian cities, Genoa is filled with history. Unfortunately, I did not take the time to learn it. Whoops! But I did enjoy looking at the old churches and buildings throughout the city. I am the type of person that is more interested in culture than history anyways, so I met a lot of people and I learned to live like an Italian. I went to so many dinners in people’s homes and the food was phenomenal. I can’t eat Italian food in America anymore because nothing compares to the authentic food I had in Italy. If you ever go to Genoa you have to try focaccia and pesto with pasta. These two foods are specialties in this city and it will not be the same when you try it in any city other than Genoa.

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My favorite part about Genoa is its location. It is tucked away between the sea and hills giving you beautiful views from the high points in the city. Fortunately, the apartment I was living in was at the top of the hill so I got to see a beautiful sunset resting over the ocean every night. Genoa has many different train stations making it so easy to travel to other cities. I got to travel up and down the coast of the Italian Riviera and even made it to France on a one day trip (however, I suggest at least taking a weekend trip because that was the most exhausted I have ever been!). My time in Genoa started off slow, but thinking back to it I wish I could have stayed longer. The people were so kind, the views were amazing, and the food was SOOO delicious. Genoa, you stole my heart.

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So when you are planning your big trip to Italy, don’t let Genoa slip from your thoughts. It may not stand out to you compared to the other major cities of Italy, but it will be worth your time.

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How Traveling Has Changed My Life

Since I was a child I always had a plan for my life. There was a specific timeline that I set up for myself and needed to follow. I would go to college to be a veterinarian straight after high school. During college I would meet my future husband. We would get married after graduation and have children right away. I wanted to be a young mom and already be settled in my career before I was 25. Well flash forward some years and I am already 23, single, and have no career settled whatsoever (and my previous plan just sounds so silly to me now). So what happened?! Did my life fall apart? Am I miserable because nothing went as planned? No, actually it is quite the opposite. My priorities in life have changed and I am happiest I have ever been. Maybe it is just a matter of growing up and becoming aware of the realities of life, but I would also like to think that traveling is what helped me change my mindset.

The first time I ever stepped foot outside North America was on a family vacation when I was 16. We were going on a Mediterranean cruise and the ship was leaving out of Barcelona. I still remember the moments after I stepped out of the airport and stepped in to Spain. I was in awe because EVERYTHING was sooo different. The buildings were old, the cars were small and there were so many motor scooters, and every word I saw was in a language foreign to me. I was just trying to adjust to the fact that I was in a different part of the world. Life didn’t just exist in Los Angeles, California. I was amazed. Obviously I knew life existed outside my city, but I never thought I would be able to experience this different way of life. It was just a far fetched dream that I never thought would be a reality. I am thankful for this experience because it is what lead me to get bit by the travel bug. It sparked my passion for traveling and is what inspired me to pursue this dream of seeing the world and living abroad (which is what I have done twice now).

Throughout the trip we visited 5 different countries. I saw 5 unique cultures and different ways of life. What truly amazed me was the fact that we all live on this planet together, yet each culture has a different way of doing life. And the beauty of those differences is that no culture is right or wrong in what they do. They are just simply different. After my first European experience I knew my life was going to change. I knew what my priorities needed to be. I didn’t want to be stuck in the same place forever. The world is here for us to explore. It is here to help us open our mind and be tolerant of one another. Before I started traveling I never really thought too much about how other people lived. I just believed that my way of living was the normal way. Traveling proved me wrong, and I am glad it did. I believe traveling is so important for everyone to experience at least once in their life. You don’t have to go across the world to travel. Just go somewhere beyond the borders of your own home. You can even be a tourist in your own city so you can see it with a fresh perspective. The world is not a scary place. We all need traveling to help us realize that the world is beautiful, people are beautiful, and life is beautiful.

I am starting this blog for a few purposes. One, is so I can easily share my travel experiences friends and family. I have always been better at thinking and writing than I am with verbally expressing myself. So I figured I can express myself better through a blog than having to tell so many different people what I am feeling. Another reason is that I hope to inspire people to get out there and see the world. Hopefully I can inspire someone on where to go or just give them a few tips when they go somewhere I have already been. Third, this blog is a great way to get me out of my comfort zone. For those of you who know me, you know that I am a very reserved person and always have been. It takes me a while to warm up to people. I feel very vulnerable sharing all my thoughts for the world to see, but maybe this can help me open up to people a little easier. Anyways, so now you know what this blog is all about. Sorry for the long post, but I hope to take you along with me through all my future travels.

 

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Taylor4 Comments