50 Countries at Last!

50 at Last!

Current travel map - 2017

As I sit here writing this it still seems a bit surreal. I am composing this post at my house outside of Pittsburgh, PA in the United States. This setting makes the reality of my accomplishment seem even more of a fantasy.

First Day of School

Let me take you back to my fourth grade self at Rostraver Elementary in the spring of '98. I was pretty oblivious to the workings of the world at that age. To me other countries existed in story books and movies but were not self functioning parts of the world. At the age of 8 I was just beginning to even realize what my own country consisted of. 

However, that year of my life two major events happened.

End of the world swing in Ecuador

First, I was lucky enough to have a wonderful teacher named Mrs. Shavel for class in fourth grade. As our teacher she decided to implement lessons that were not mandatory. 

Our curriculum included a story about a young girl dying with a cancer she had developed from atomic rays as a result of the bomb droppings in Japan. 

Angkor Watt in Cambodia

Instead of just teaching us that reading lesson, she had decided to create a list of fun activities. These ranged from learning some written Japanese, creating mini kimonos, and throwing peanuts.

          

 The excitement and learning from these lessons made me become slightly obsessed with learning about the world. How could other places be so different? If this was just one country what could other countries offer? I had to find out.

  

Volcanic Tunnels in the Galapagos

Mrs. Shavel had many more amazing lessons that year and even included a cultural day where we brought in ethnic foods. She fostered a love for the world in me and the thirst to learn more about it. 

At one point in the year I remember her asking us what we wanted to accomplish in our lives. What did I want to accomplish? Right then and there I decided I needed to see the world. I did not just want to see a part of it, but as much of it as possible. 

Trying my hand at dog sledding- Lap

 

My goal would be to visit 50 countries by the time I was 30 years old!!!

Second, my family decided to take a trip to Disney World to see my sister perform in a parade. This was the same year that Animal Kingdom was just beginning to open. 

Hang En Cave, Vietnam

For anyone that has visited this magical land you know that part of animal kingdom is covered in Southeast Asian decor and is littered with Buddhist prayer flags waving in the breeze. 

 

I was completely mesmerized and captivated by this part of the park and began to ask my parents questions. 

Canyoning in DaLat, Vietnam

My dad, being a walking geography and history book, was able to tell me all about it. At this point I knew not only did I need to travel but I had to make it to certain places and learn about the "culture" my dad had explained. I wanted to not only learn as much as my dad did (which I still think is impossible) but also experience it first hand.

CIRT in Rome, Italy

Flash forward twelve years to the year 2010 at Penn State University sitting in my dorm room. I received an email asking if I wanted a $10,000 grant to travel and study. Clicking the box I moved it to the trash with the other junk mail you get on a daily basis.  
Wait, what?! 

Chitlang, Nepal

Sitting there I thought for a second and was reminded of my dream to travel the world as a young girl. 

Quilatoa, Ecuador

I was 20 and had made it to four countries on family trips. Obviously while growing up I did not have the chance to go off and travel but now as a young adult I could start making plans to see the world if I wanted to. 

I had to actually take the initiative and this could be it.

Paris with my sister Emily

After going into my trash mail and recovering the email I was surprised to see this was not a scam. It was a real opportunity the college was offering Education majors to study in two other countries. Nervously I attended the first meeting to get more information and shortly after I began to draft my application to be selected for the program. 

I was chosen to receive the scholarship along with seven others to study in England and Sweden under the Consortium for Intercultural Reflective Teaching aka CIRT.  

CIRT meets for the first time in England

This experience alone changed my life in another way I could never imagine. With the help of new friends and our professor Jamie Meyers my outlook on the world would be forever changed and my desire for travel deepened.

 

That year abroad brought many firsts for me. 

I learned along with friends how to navigate foreign train stations successfully and unsuccessfully. We learned to book budget flights and miss flights. We dealt with sharing 12 person dorm rooms in hostels and that not all hostels equal sleeping in a room!

*Kaila and I discovered our hostel in Florence was actually a permanent tent!

 

I gained the confidence to backpack alone through Switzerland and had my first experience spontaneously making friends and jumping on a train to somewhere unplanned.

PSU CIRT graduation with Kaila & Elesa

 

Looking back now Europe was child's play. Shortly after graduation I watched my older sister get married while standing by her side. I was hired as a Kindergarten teacher and began my career. As happy as I was I knew something was missing again. I needed to see more and learn more about the world and wanted to be able to incorporate it in my teaching as CIRT had taught me. 

 

Nepal - Post Graduate Travel

Dancing at rural Nepalese wedding!

A rural classroom I taught and painted in!

   

The following summer of 2013 I took off to Nepal where I taught in the mountains with a lovely family. Here my eyes were opened to the world beyond First World prospering countries. 

Summit of Kalapattar near Everest Base Camp - 18,514'

 The sights, sounds, and smells intrigued me more than anywhere else. This was the world I was looking for. The one that I had seen in movies, learned in 4th grade, and saw replicated in a fancy way in Disney. 


However, this time it was real. The people and their lives touched me and I climbed to new heights and new desires once more!

Angkor Watt in Cambodia

So I continued to travel. Each summer I have taken off to new countries and found myself solo backpacking to wherever the days took me. 

The summer of 2014 I found myself in the midst of Thailand military coup, full moon parties, and white sand beaches. I explored Cambodian temples and gawked at the giant trees that grew over top of the temples for hundreds of years. 

West Ho Chi Minh trail in Vietnam

I spontaneously purchased a motorbike from a stranger and drove for a month up the West and East Ho Chi Minh trails. We broke down, knocked on random huts, and asked for beds some nights. We towed each other using vines and burned our legs on exhausts.

In 2015 I went to South America starting the summer off with my mom. Together we saw the desserts of Chile, the salt flats of Bolivia, and the mountains of Peru. 


We barely made it across borders and struggled at high altitude. 

Piranha fishing in the Amazon

There we parted ways and I continued solo through the rest of Peru. Flew to the Galapagos in Ecuador where I dove with hammerheads, swam with seals, and watched giant tortoises mate.

I went into the Amazon and kissed Piranhas and fed our Cayman named Crocopile. Finally that summer I found my dancing feet and settled in Cali, Colombia doing the salsa for weeks!

Eating grasshoppers in China

Then this past summer of 2016 I circumnavigated the world in a plane. Starting once again with my mom we went to China to eat grasshoppers, climb the Great Wall, and pray in the Potala Palace in Tibet. We flew over the top of the world aka Mount Everest. We then went back to my family in Nepal so I could share the special experience with my mom.


Once we said our goodbyes I made my way to Africa where I experienced a whirlwind of a journey. Camping my way through Africa I experienced having lost luggage for the first week and depending on total strangers or essentials.

Hiking to see gorillas in Uganda

Uganda and Rwanda brought me face to face with Mountain Gorillas. Tanzania have me a first glimpse of a leopard and taught me that you always need a sleeping pad. Nairobi gave me wet giraffe kisses.

I pushed limits whitewater rafting class 5 rapids on the Zambezi, jumping off ledges into canyons, sitting on the edge of Victoria Falls, and petting lions. I found myself daydreaming about my current and past adventures and Africa brought some 11-13 hour drive days.

Whitewater Rafting down the Zambezi

In Botswana I learned to pole canoes in what seemed like the last frontier. We tracked animals, got dirty, rained on, burnt, dehydrated, and totally stocked full to our brim eating giraffe, warthog, wildebeest and more.

 
Finally, I finished the summer crossing the border from Botswana to South Africa. As I approach the desk I broke into tears. I had done it.

I had reached 50 countries. 

Petting a Lion in Zimbabwe

Some of these were on family trips, some through college, some on my own, and even some completely by accident. But here I was in South Africa at a small border crossing hitting that 50th country. I exited the office and tears poured down my face as I realized my accomplishment. Silently I thanked my family, Mrs. Shavel, Jamie Meyers and the CIRT program, and all of those friends I met along the way. All of those people had helped me develop a love for the world and gave me the confidence to travel! 

             

So after 50 countries this is what I have learned:

Old road at the crossroads of Argentina, Chile, & Bolivia

I learned to take off by myself with only my backpack. 

I learned to communicate even if that meant not being able to use words.

 

I learned how to make new friends and stick with those people but also move one when the time came. 

Old Volcano Lake - Quilatoa, Ecuador

 

I learned to take in every moment around me and appreciate the natural and cultural beauty around me. 

  

I learned that I could have an even deeper bond with my mom as we adventured through experiences I never expected to have with her.

Salt Flats

I learned that people can be very caring, nice, rude, cruel, and extreme. 

More importantly I learned that none of these traits came from a specific area, but those people could be found in every culture.

I learned to dance to every beat of every drum even if it was in my own head.

Dancing in the New Year- El Alto, Bolivia

I learned that each culture has its own unique and beautiful qualities and they should be treated respectfully. 

I learned that I am a strong independent woman. 

  

I learned to succeed and accept success.

Broken bike again in West Ho Chi Minh trail

I also learned how to fail. And in those failures I learned to give up at times so that I could start fresh with a new outlook.

  

I learned to be selfish and learned to be more selfless.

Making food in the Amazon

 I learned to sit still and to move forward.  

I learned to love. 

I learned that each section of the world is totally different yet exactly the same as home. 

I learned to realize how lucky I am to have a First World life and to take advantage of my privileges to gain knowledge. 

Canyon in Galapagos

 I learned to swim. No really, I can barely swim so this is a real thing.

Grand Mosque- Abu Dhabi,UAE

 I learned to not judge a book by the cover. 

To except everyone for who they are. 

To look past stereotypes.

To appreciate the beauty in the different clothing traditions in cultures.

Dressing my nephew in clothes from around the world!

Then I learned how to share that knowledge and teach my students and family about the world around them. 

I also learned how to inspire friends, family, and children to follow their dream!

 

Finally, I learned that no matter how much you travel, how much you see, how much you learn, how much you open your heart, how much you give, and how much you take from the world you will never see it all! 

Laguna Colorada- Uyuni, Bolivia

So I will continue to encourage myself and encourage you to dream, live, and inspire!

*Stay tuned over the coming weeks as I countdown the top 50 moments of my travel!