An Introduction

Fiji July 2001

I grew up in an ordinary house in an ordinary suburb in Northern California.  I went to school, took dance classes and played with my friends.  Then one summer my parents took me to Fiji.  While we did stay in a few resorts, we spent a lot of time living with my mom's friend in typical Fijian town.  What stands out to me the most from that trip were the every day, seemingly ordinary things.  

Going to the grocery store to buy Milo chocolate drink powder.  

Eating endless scones and roti from the street vendors we frequently passed.  

Meeting other travelers and teaching a group of Australian teenagers about Halloween.  

I came home with expanded horizons and a deep desire to explore the weird and wonderful world we all call home.  

Paris August 2008

In 2008 at the age of 16 I had an opportunity to travel abroad again.  My high school best friend's family took me to Germany and France for three weeks the summer before my junior year.  While there were definitely highlights to the trip,  I was struggling with undiagnosed health problems which helped to explain the struggles I encountered during that period in my life.
The next few years were focused on getting healthy and surviving school, however dreams of international travel never left my mind.  Since I was unable to travel, I started to writing to a few penpals in other countries to continue to explore different cultures.  Today I am still in touch with many of my penpals and they have become some of my closest friends and biggest supporters.
For the past few years I have been working towards taking an extended international trip.  When the opportunity presented itself to take a semester off of school to travel to Europe to meet one of my dearest penpals I couldn't turn it down.
While this trip will no doubt test my strength and health I am eager to explore this next journey in my life.  The world is too exquisite and heart-breaking to stay in my one little corner forever.

"I am not the same having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world"

-Mary Anne Radmacher