Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award

Have you ever made a friend on Instagram and connected with them immediately, even though you’ve never met them?

You creep on their pics, fall in love with their style, and you’re pretty sure you’d be clinking glasses with them at happy hour if they didn’t live 8 hours away from you. We all have that insta bestie, right?

That’s how I feel about mah girl, Paloma of Anxious Traveler. I totally dig her spirit and she knows how to tell a goody story. I admire her so much. Last week, she nominated me for the Sisterhood of the World Bloggers Award! This Award is a fun way to get to know other bloggers in a fun, email chain sorta way.

She asked me a few questions about my travel life and I took the opportunity to ramble on and on about myself. Below my responses, I nominated a few ladies and listed my own 10 questions I want to ask.

1. Where is your favorite place to travel to?

Vegas. So weird, but I love it there. It’s the one place everyone is just happy. No judgement and everyone is there for the same thing. But if we’re talking exotic travel, I would say Croatia. I didn’t know what to expect when traveling there, but it is such an underrated location. The city streets are impeccable and everything is so clean! The Plitvice Lakes, an UNESCO site, are lush and tropical yet not overwhelming. And the party scene… good lord. But traveling from Zadar to Split revealed a different scene, one that matches the Eastern European vibe that you would imagine. It was such an adventure and I can’t wait to take Kevin there one day.

2. What is your favorite travel snack?

Responsible Sebrin says, “A banana.” There’s potassium (which is perfect to cure Charlie Horse legs on long flights) and has a bit of sugar to pep you up. Plus, it keeps you full. But since when am I ever responsible? Irresponsible Sebrin says, “Nutella.” They have those pretzel dipper snacks or you can dip all kinds of fruit in it. And Nutella is sold just about everywhere. If you sugar crash, you can sleep on the plane!

3. Describe your perfect travel buddy.

The perfect travel buddy is fluid and anticipates your mood (yes, I expect them to be mind readers). They’re basically down for it all. Wanna stay in a hostel? Sure, we’ll make friends! Want to relax in a hotel? Totes, I need to be pampered. Want to explore? I actually have a list of all the best sites! Shots? Hell ya! Nap? Your buddy is already sleeping. The best travel buddy is also prepared for the worst, but doesn’t let the stress get them down. If your laptop is stolen, they know what to do to make it work and they laugh it off to keep the mood going. I’ve met a couple of people that are great travel buddies and I want to learn to be this exact person for my husband during our honeymoon around the world.

4. Window or aisle?

Window, window, window!

5. Are you a sit back, and relax type of traveler, or are you constantly doing things while you travel?

I’m a self-hating relaxer. I tend to overestimate my energy levels and I never learn my lesson. Before I travel, I make so many plans and try to bop from city to city in as little as 48 hours. I make itineraries, schedule tours and have must-see lists. By the time I get there though, I want to relax. All I want to do is lay in bed, hang by the beach or sit in a cafe. But of course, I can’t back out on all of the tours I’ve paid for, so I begrudgingly go from place to place and am exhausted. By the end of the trip, I wish that I had just accepted my relaxed nature and not run around town. Side note: I recently found out that my wacked-out hormones have contributed to my daily exhaustion (and here I thought I was just lazy all the time!). I’ve been taking supplements and eating a fairly healthy diet to help create balance in my body. I’m hoping I can do all of these events I planned without burning out when we go on our honeymoon next week.

6. What is an average day like when you aren’t traveling?

Since planning the wedding and saving for our RTW honeymoon, life has been a little bit different than my normal routine a couple years ago. Back in the day, I was working a 9-5 for an academic publishing company and I hated it. To make some quick cash, I picked up a job as waitress at a high-end restaurant in Beverly Hills. Also, hated it. I’ve always wanted to write so I thought I would work a couple of random jobs to make as much money as possible. As a budding freelance writer (and lazy bones), my day would usually start around 9. I would wake up, go over emails and cuddle with my kitties. I was an Editor for a start-up diet company and I would go into the office twice a week. I would either go there or work from home and put in about 6-8 hours. I also became a demo girl for a raw, chocolate company called Addictive Wellness. One of the best and most random jobs I’ve ever had. When I wasn’t writing, I would go to several health food stores and demo. Somewhere in there, I would throw in a trip to the gym. I would fix up a Paleo dinner for Kevin and I where we would then binge watch anything and everything on Netflix. To save for our wedding, outings with friends became a little less frequent. But a glass of wine and a massage from the hubs made up for it many times.

7. How many countries have you been to?

15 ½ countries (½ being Puerto Rico), 16 if you want to count a very lonnnng layover in Iceland. So… I’m countin’ it. Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Italy, France, England, Netherlands, Croatia, Spain, Mexico, Honduras, Belize, Canada, US, Australia, Puerto Rico… Iceland.

8. You have an unlimited travel budget for 24 hours, what do you do?

I’ve asked myself this question so many times and it always changes depending on where I’m at in my life. Right now, Kevin and I are on a bit of a James Bond fix. If I had an unlimited budget, I would take all of my friends on a private jet to Monaco and make it rain, Casino Royale style. Crazy suite with endless champagne, gamble in the high roller room and whoop it up at the Grand Prix. If you were to ask me this question again, after our honeymoon, I’d probably fly to the Maldives for a lil’ romance.

9. What is your favorite mode of transportation? (plane, boat, train, tuk tuk…)

Plane, all the way. Trains can be glamorous, but the minute you enter an airport, you just feel good. You’re either just starting an adventure, seeing loved ones after an adventure, or picking up a friend. Nothing bad comes of airports (except the damn security lines). I’ve been on a couple of bad flights, but the anticipation of the trip always supersedes the annoying guy next to you or that 5 year old kicking your seat.

10. Describe a person you met while traveling that you’ll never forget.

This is a tie between two of my best friends and recent bridesmaids, Clare and Alyshia. When I studied abroad in Sweden, I was sooo homesick. No lie, I racked up a $1,000 phone bill because I needed to talk to my mom, LIKE NOW. My first week there, I met Alyshia on a bus as we traveled to some new student orientation or something. Alyshia was from Canada, so our North American home helped start the conversation. I commented on her Crocs, which I secretly thought were awful. She sized me up as a loud American. But despite these obvious differences, we continued to hang out. I met Clare the same week before going out to a pub crawl for international students. Clare was from Australia and we hit it off immediately. Both of these girls made me feel like I was home, even though we came from places so far away from each other. We were like the 3 musketeers and were inseparable the whole year. We traveled together, we partied together, we basically had the time of our lives. Our final trip together was in Croatia and I bawled when I said goodbye to them. They both had changed my life and changed me into such a strong and confident person. Since Alyshia was considerably closer in distance, I was able to see her twice before they both eventually came to my wedding last week and were my bridesmaids. I am so grateful and happy for their friendship and love them with all of my heart.

Alright ladies. I now nominate…

Francesca from The Blonde Beyond

Jessica of Beck What the Heck

The ladies from Local Love 805

Jenna of Blonde Well Traveled

Tammy from Travel With Lamb

Anna from The Balloon Diary

Ada from Everlasting Voyage

Here are my questions for you:

1. Where is your favorite place to travel to?
2. What are your travel must-haves? Is there anything you can’t leave home without?
3. How many continents and countries have you visited?
4. Who did you meet in your travels that changed your life?
5. What’s your number one tip for traveling? (hostels, travel hacking, packing guide, etc.)
6. What is your dream, bucket list adventure? What makes it so wild/exciting?
7. Tell me about your greatest travel adventure. Was it scary? Spontaneous? What made it an adventure you will never forget?
8. What travel books or movies have inspired you?
9. Do you prefer to travel solo or with someone else?
10.  Where are you planning to go next?