Find Your "Why"

There are a million reasons to travel. To find adventure, take a break from reality, escape your troubles, see new places, try new things, challenge yourself and so, so, so many more. That reason, that incentive to travel is your "why." And I think it's really important that as you embark in your travel journey to find your why.

For me, my "why" is to fulfill my soul. I know that sounds incredibly cheesy. I was debating deleting it and trying to rephrase it, but I'm going with it! It sounds weird, but it's true. I grew up traveling around the world with my family. We lived in Holland for the first 6 years of my life and we were constantly on the move. I loved every second of it! Once we moved back to the states, we continued to travel, though mostly within the U.S. Even as a kid, I would count down to our next family trip. The excitement of a new place, the unknown, the adventure! I couldn't get enough. I honestly think I am happiest when I'm wondering around a new (especially foreign!) city. Unfortunately, my Dad had a nasty ski accident when I was 10, and my family was unable to travel for the next 10 years. I didn't even think about trying to study abroad in college. There was simply no money. All of that lack of travel really built up and now that I'm older, all I want to do is travel! My soul is happiest and most fulfilled when I am on a new adventure. Fortunately, my husband is on board and with any luck, we will have many years of travel ahead of us.

Speaking of my husband, his "why" is different than mine. While he definitely enjoys far away travels, his main drive is to get a break from daily life. For me, it's almost like my everyday life is just counting down to my next trip. I truly live when I travel. For those of you who aren't born with that innate wanderlust, don't worry! Your "why" is just as important as mine or anyone else's. I believe with every fiber of my being that there is always something to be learned or gained by travel - no matter how near or far you go. Traveling opens your mind, challenges your routine and expands your horizons. You may not even know what your "why" is! And that's ok. Sometimes it takes traveling to learn more about yourself, and that is the beauty of travel.

City Highlights - Rome

Continuing on in my city highlights series, today, I'm going to talk about my favorite places in Rome! Rome was my last stop on my solo backpacking adventure through Italy, and boy, was it fun!

The Spanish Steps

This may not seem like the biggest and fanciest attraction, but it was probably my favorite place! I found myself returning time and time again to rest, people watch and enjoy the sunset. I would post up along the steps (along the side, out of the way) and read my book at the end of each day. It was so fun to just be a part of the hustle and bustle of the city and unwind after a long day of exploring.

Enjoy this sub-par selfie in front of the Spanish Steps

The Coliseum

The Coliseum is obviously a must see! I highly recommend taking the time to go inside and not just settle for looking at the outside. The history is amazing, and I really enjoyed it! It is, of course, packed with tourists, so I recommend you go early and beat the rush!

Also, pro tip - your ticket for the coliseum will also get you into the Roman Forum right next door! Don't buy the additional ticket without asking if your coliseum ticket is still good! This may change year - to year, but it worked for me!

The Trevi Fountain

Anyone who has seen the Lizzie McGuire movie knows you HAVE to visit the Trevi fountain! Unfortunately for me, the Trevi fountain was hardcore under construction while I was there. Womp womp. It was a bit underwhelming, but I can still say I've been there!

The Villa Borghese

Finally, I highly recommend checking out the Roman gardens, the Villa Borghese! It was a very relaxing way to get away from the crowds and just enjoy myself. I spent the day walking around, exploring and enjoying the locals.

I found this mini Globe Theater for local theater productions! How cool!

These guys were amazing! It was a crew of guys rollerblading doing all kinds of fun stunts

Oh and did I mention the views?!?! 

Rome is an amazingly beautiful city with so much to see! These are just a few highlights from my time there. If you want help planning your Roman adventure, visit MilesIntoMemoriesTravel.com!

Why I Travel

People travel for all kinds of reasons - personal discovery, a change of pace and so many others. For me, it's always been about seeing new places, challenging myself and learning about far-off cultures. I've been lucky enough to get to travel quite a bit in recent years - to over 20 countries in fact - but it seems like that urge to travel is never fully satisfied! I'm always planning my next trip, regardless of how recently I've traveled. Luckily, I get to venture abroad fairly often for work! I own a travel company (MilesIntoMemoriesTravel.com), and so I often get to help others realize their dreams as well! Anyway, here are my top 3 reasons that I travel:

I Travel for Adventure

Somewhere in my soul is a need to see new places and try new things. I want to go everywhere and try (just about) everything! So far, I've gone bungee jumping in South Africa, swimming with elephants in Thailand and hiking up a mountain in New Mexico. Going out and trying something new is very fulfilling for me, and I find I am at my happiest while on an adventure.

Getting ready for my bungee jump off Bloukran's Bridge in South Africa

I Travel For Personal Growth

When I travel, and particularly when I travel solo, I've found that I come back with a different, more open perspective on the world. I learn things about myself that I don't think I ever would have discovered while at home in my safe zone. I'm so much more capable than I ever realized - I even backpacked by myself for 10 days through Italy, a few years back. I researched the trip, booked everything and navigated my way through foreign cities in a country where I don't speak the language  - and what's more? I had a blast! I was independent, brave and above all, capable! That was incredibly empowering and an experience I'll never forget.

On my solo trip through Italy

I Travel to Learn About the World In Person

I love to learn, but I find that the lessons stick far better when I experience them first-hand. Reading about the history and architecture of say, Barcelona for example, will never do the beautiful work of Gaudi justice. Gaudi was an incredible artist and his work is truly inspiring. I had seen photos of Park Guell and some truly amazing paintings, but it completely dulled when compared to the real thing. Some things you just have to experience.

Me hanging out at sunset in Park Guell in Barcelona

The long and the short of it is traveling is amazing and life-changing. I encourage you to travel as often as possible.  Just get out and go!

Adventure Down the Ohio River

There's something to be said for domestic trips with your loved ones. My husband and I recently took a trip to a small Ohio town right on the Ohio River, and we had a blast! In general, we love spending time outdoors so of course we had to try our hand at kayaking. There was a small rental shop and we jumped at the opportunity to get in the water.

We pushed off around 10:30am and made our way down the river. We continued at a nice leisurely pace, making sure to take the time to fully admire the scenery. It was gorgeous, and we had a blast just hanging out together!

Don't worry - we made sure to put on plenty of sunscreen! Our wedding is in a week, and we did NOT want to look like lobsters!

After our kayak adventure, we decided to take a walk along the river trail. It was awesome! There were all kinds of bikers and moms with babies along the trail as well. It was so nice to get away from the stress of wedding planning and just hang out with my best friend. We got a little bit of exercise and plenty of sunshine and were feeling great.

In addition to our time on the river, we had a blast walking around the town, trying out local restaurants and exploring. It was a ton of fun, and who knows!? Maybe we'll end up 

buying ourselves some kayaks! We had so much fun and I can see us having a blast using them in the future.

If you want some help planning an adventure, I'd love to help! MilesIntoMemoriesTravel.com

A Beautiful View 4/22

Today we started out with a training session for the kids. I left a little early to handle something at the hotel.  We then decided to go to Aldi (who knew Germany would have the same grocery store as NC!) and  hunt for some regular water that wasnt fizzy! We managed to find some and picked up some food for lunches. I got some salami, bread and strawberries and a few fun authentic German snacks.
My favorite part of the day was by far going to see the Blankenburg Castle! It was so incredibly beautiful! Rolling hills, little towns and a train. We even explored a cute nearby town before heading back to the training grounds.

For dinner our German friends took us to this awesome spot right by the river! It was really hard to find the road and some of the driving tactics were scary! We got there fine and I had the best pork of my life! It was called something-steak but was pork with seasoned garlic butter and fries on the side.  So delicious! I even had apple streudel for dessert! Yum!
Next we went to a local bar and I had my first authentic German beer.
I'm super tired and my Bluetooth key board is on the fritz so sorry for the short post! I'll post pictures when I can.

Malena