I was born and raised in Cleveland, Ohio – the butthole of the world according to our Mayor, Frank Jackson (Hey, thanks, Frank!). I’ve always felt like there isn’t sh!t to do here. Growing up, I was obsessed with different cultures and religions. I remember going through an Egypt phase and checking out every book in the library! I knew I had to travel so I decided to go to school for International Marketing and try to land a traveling job. During my first semester of college, I signed up for an International Study Tour in London and Ireland. It was a real sh!t show and I’ll post all about it soon. Anyways, it was all downhill from there.

Since then, I have totaled cars abroad, been banned from entire countries, lost all my money while travelling, been attacked and robbed on vacation, ended up in a sketchy government hospital in Türkiye, left my phone in a Taxi in Italy, Slept for a week straight in Jordan without seeing any sites, took a family trip to Paris during the Yellow Vest Protests… you get the point. Needless to say, I’ve seen some things. To make matters worse, I even had a couple of kids along the way. Just kidding – I love them, of course! But wow. Travelling with littles is….different. Whiny and needy little buggers, amirite? You might see them around the blog or my social media accounts on occasion.

After being in a relationship where my s/o did not want me to travel, I changed my major, sadly never getting my International Marketing degree. At one point, I was working full-time in Human Resources, which is strange for me because I’m extremely introverted and not even sure if I like people. We got a whopping 11 days of vacation a year. 11. F’ing. Days. Every passing day brought me closer to quitting my job. The thought I would have to work a 9-5 until retirement age… I couldn’t breathe. I was determined to get enough cojones to one day put my foot down and learn how to live with less and focus on what’s important in life: family and experiences. Even if those experiences fall under Murphy’s Law. Good news: I finally left the corporate life behind in October of 2022!!

And then there’s the plot twist! On a random trip to Havana, Cuba – between sweating my face off and trying to remember enough high school Spanish to not die – I met the love of my life: a charming Cuban tour guide with a killer smile and the patience of a saint (seriously, he puts up with ME). One mojito turned into two, then into a full-blown long-distance relationship, and now… drumroll… we’re currently going through the K-1 visa process so he can move to the U.S. and marry me! That’s right: from salsa dancing under the stars to submitting stacks of paperwork that would make a lawyer cry. If this process doesn’t test your love, nothing will. We’re basically bonding over immigration documents and FaceTime lag, which is either super romantic or a new form of torture – TBD.

Sometimes I travel with my kids. Sometimes I travel alone or with friends. Soon I will get to travel with my husband. The introvert in me prefers solo travel, and there’s nothing wrong with that. It does not make me a bad mother or wife. You’re likely to see me out and about, lost, napping, enjoying an occasional cigarette, or even a bit liquored up. What you will not see, however, is me in a flirty flowing dress, snapping sunset pics at Heaven’s Gate in Bali, or any number of the typical poses at the typical places around the world (which, by the way, is f’ing ROUND).

This blog is intended to educate and enlighten (readers and myself) through entertaining experiences – hopefully inspiring more people around the world to get out and explore. It’ll be honest and unapologetic. Nothing glamorous to see here.

Grab a drink. Stick around. It’s about to get real.