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Traveling to Carve Out Your Identity

During college, I was awakened to the life-changing benefits of travel. It started with a trip to Italy, the summer before my freshman year. And then you couldn’t stop me. It seemed I was always finding a way to convince my parents that my next trip was vital. Travel had become central to my life. But it wasn’t until after college, when I had an encounter with an old friend, that I could really pinpoint why it was so important to me. I remember, my Mom was having a party, and I was sitting around with a group of dear, old friends. I had been on a trip earlier that year. And I was telling them all about it. At…

Have you traveled to your Homeland?

I know many people who wonder about their origins. And on their bucket list is a trip to the birthplace of their grandparents or great grandparents. But what for, exactly?…

Never Forget Your Roots

I™m kind of a mutt when it comes to my genealogy. My mom is a blonde-haired, green-eyed babe whose parents are of Northern European descent. Past that, I don™t know many specifics about her side. But my dad is half Lebanese and half Sicilian. And it is my dad™s side of the family who are particularly prideful about our origins. My grandfather would often say, œNever forget your roots. He, himself, was born in Deerfield, Michigan. But his parents were from the northern hills of Lebanon. And he wanted to make sure none of us forgot that. And although I grew up in Los Angeles, far from the Middle East, I don™t speak Arabic and I don™t have many close…

Positively Positive, Joseph Campbell and Travel

Yesterday, the blog, Positively Positive posted this quote by Joseph Campbell to their Facebook page. I love the quote because it is freeing and rings so true. Immediately after reading Mr. Campbell’s words, I thought about how to apply this to my everyday life – my work life and my romantic life. And then it hit me. This is a perfect piece of advice for traveling. I’ll just change the words around a little:…

Are You Due for a Vacation?

It is known that Americans get less vacation time than citizens of other countries. For example, in Europe, on average, they get 30 days of paid vacation per year. Can you imagine? And the majority of Americans don™t even take their full two weeks. Is it that some of us fear our bosses won™t value us if we do? Is it a lack of savings? Or maybe we are concerned that if we get away and like it, we might not want to come back. Whatever the reason, sometimes we just need an extra nudge to push us out of our daily routines and realize it is time to put fun first. So here is a checklist to see if…

The Michelada, A Mexican Mixed Drink

Earlier this year I took a trip to Tulum, Mexico. It is a beautiful sandy escape perfect for lounging on the beach with drink in hand, until well bronzed and ready for a siesta. On the first day of my trip, I found myself appropriately standing barefoot in the sand and belly up to a bar contemplating my drink order. It didn’t take more than a moment to come to my conclusion. Una Michelada, por favor…