Finding Inspiration!

I'm sorry my fellow travel friends! It's been A WHILE since I've been around. I've been spending more time in California and since I've been here longer than expected, I haven't had much inspiration for travel and hit a snag.

----- For now, you can follow me on Instagram: loveatraveler for my favorite travel shots AND while I'm not traveling, you can follow me on my personal account: reeeeeeeems for inspiration on food and things to do in California! -----

What's going on in my life at the moment?

Weellllllllllll....I'm looking for a job. My original plan had me teaching English in either South America or Asia, but sometimes plans change! ;) All I'll say is so far I am happy and I think I have just met my travel match/partner.

He is a traveler and has been to places that I haven't been that we'll just have to go to AGAIN! Don't want to jump the gun yet and get to excited but that is the main reason why I'm still here.

Don't you worry though! I am still my happy travel lover self and I see plenty of destinations in my future!

Next Destination?

Not sure yet BUT I turn 30 in February 2015 and it has been my dream to go all over Africa at or before I turn the wonderful young age of 30! So we'll see if that will happen! But I may forsee other travel adventures before then. Maybe Lebanon in the summer time, perhaps? I'll let you all in when plans are set. :)

Keep your travel dreams alive my travel buds!

The best thing I ever ate in....

Happy TGIFun Friday! All I can think about today is food so I thought I'd put together the best thing I ever ate on my travels list!
Argentina
   Carne Asada from a street parilla. The smell made me get off the bus while the bus driver was making his way back on the bus to get the show on the road. I begged for two more minutes and he just smiled! He knew. That's how good the smell was and how much I had to have it. 
  Of course I have to have my flan and te con leche. My weakness!
     Dulce de leche is another must in Argentina
    Mate. Mate. Mate. When someone offers you their mate, you better not say no!
   And you can't go to Argentina and not eat their steak.
Brazil
  Pumpkin Bean Soup. So hearty. Comforting. Simply amazing.
   Pirarucu a Baiana. Years later and I still remember its taste. I preferred and enjoyed the Northern Brazil cuisine. I felt I could really dig into the Brazilian culture. That I was really eating food made from someone's heart. And of course...
   Have açaí any way that you can.
Ecuador
   Camarones al ajillo. Yesss.
The Galápagos Islands
Jugo de tomate arbol. No picture sadly, but introduced to the tree tomato on the islands. Surprisingly sweet and quite enjoyable to drink.
     Very fond of the fresh albacore tuna steaks.
Chile
   Machas a la Parmesana
   Patagonian Lamb
   Harina Tostada (Toasted Corn) Gelato
Colombia
Not making a decision yet due to not enough exploration. Next time! :-)
Honduras
   I spent most of my time near the Caribbean so I really just appreciated the fresh seafood.
Panama
In Central America, I loved the seafood the most.


Costa Rica

  Shrimp and Fried Red Snapper.
   Agua de coco fresca
Curaçao
(Not pictured)A plate full of seafood. Fish. Shrimp. Scallop. Baby Octopus. Mussels. It went straight to my heart.

I discovered a fruit here that I never had before: Makapruim. They call it the "Spanish plum" but I think it's a mix between a grape and a mango! The outside skin is thin like a grape but the skin is that of a mango. The inside of the fruit is orange like a mango but with the texture of a grape. I enjoyed popping these into my mouth!
Mexico City
I need to dig a little deeper for my Mexico City pictures but pretty much everything I ate there was delicious. Mexican food hasn't tasted the same to me ever since.
Bolivia
   Fried fish and Ispi with purple potato and corn
   Sopa de mani. Really, all the food was wonderful and homey in Bolivia. Al paca was another treat.
Peru
Everything. Seriously one of the best cuisines in the world. Yes, I said it! Here's just a few dishes to drool over.
   Lomo Saltado
   Meat and potato on a stick. My choice was llama. Served with salsa.
   Peruvian ceviche
Chicha Morada. I'm very fond of this drink and make it quite often now.
Egypt
Falafel. Fluffy and made to perfection.
Zalabiah
 
   Really just loved the street fruit and corn.
You can't go to Egypt and not partake in drinking mint tea.
Turkey
Need more time to explore. Of course the food is amazing there!
Guatemala
It's just as simple as pollo asado, tortillas y cebolla. Made with love.
Food is just better when it is made with the heart.
What's the best thing you ever ate in.....(answer below)!

Language & Travel

A few weeks ago, I was watching the show The Amazing Race on a calm Sunday evening. I used to watch this show all the time growing up but life and work got busy and I soon left it behind. Of course I've also been going on my own Amazing Races minus all the rush, no sleep,.....and the unlimited supply of money! :-)

A family of 5 on one motorcycle - Alexandria, Egypt

If you have never seen The Amazing Race or don't know what I'm writing about, it is basically a world race with teams of two who are competing to win prizes at the end of each competition. Along the way, it is also about travel and seeing countries you haven't been to. Although it is too rushed that they really don't see much. (I know a cameraman who works on the show and he told me everything that actually happens). Each week, a team is dropped from the race if they are the last to make it to the finish line. The team who makes it to the finish line first in the finale takes home the big prize of cash!

Samba Parade in the Sambadome - Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

But watching this episode opened my eyes and realized it didn't really make me happy. I was watching the episode where the teams were in Chile. I watched as they scrambled around and yelling things at the Chilean people in English to help them out so they could win their competitions. Rushing around and causing chaos in this beautiful country (and all the other countries they run through during each episode/season as well). 

But you are in a Spanish speaking country? A lot of the people on camera did not understand what the teams were telling them. And in my experience, when I was in Chile, I wasn't really understood so I used my Spanish there, not English. Actually in all Latin American countries, I put my English aside and only use my Spanish to get by. 

Locals hanging out and enjoying each others company in front of the fish market - Lima, Peru

It just made me realize how important it is to me to learn the language of the country I'm traveling to. Or at least learn the important words to get by and show appreciation for the country I'm visiting. I've seen people give up when communicating with a local and I've seen people not even try and it makes me sad. How can you travel when you don't even appreciate their language? How it ties to their culture, people, food, and lifestyle?

This beautiful cook asked me to sit in her kitchen and enjoy the meal she prepared for me - Cusco, Peru

As of now, I am in my advanced stages of Spanish. I took 2 years in high school and 2 years in college. And now I'm using the Spanish channels and radio stations so I don't forget! For years I wanted to learn Mandarin Chinese and now I am currently learning the language and feel like I'm picking it up pretty well! I understand some Arabic, and a little Portuguese, Korean, and Japanese. Even a few words in sign language. I've picked up some Italian words without having to use a translator!

I've mainly been to the Latin American countries and when I'm there, you will see and hear me use my Spanish. I never second guess what I'm going to do or say. I'm in their country, I will speak their language or try my hardest to. They deserve all the respect and I will not take advantage of that. Even in Egypt, I tried my best to understand Arabic. Especially because I wasn't in the tourist center and completely merged in with the locals. In my opinion, this has made all my travels amazing. By being one with the people and not just a tourist, visitor, or English teacher.

An Argentinean shared his Yerba mate with me - Mendoza, Argentina

I feel like I cannot understand the country itself if I do not understand the language and the meaning of their words, gestures, and customs. If I ever end up living and teaching English in Korea, China, or wherever I choose, I will completely dive into their lifestyle, culture, and language. Isn't this the whole meaning of travel? To understand someone else and find something new?

What languages do you know? What's your opinion on learning languages and traveling?

Photo of the Day - Brazil

In honor of trying to figure out where I'm going to live in early 2014, I thought I'd post a lovely picture of the crowded Copacabana Beach in Rio de Jainero, Brazil. Brazil is full of color, life, a melting pot of people, beautiful beaches, views, food, and many more! I am also excited to go back to Brazil for the World Cup! I'm not excited that my Brazilian visa expires in January. :-) Living here would be wonderful...but still keeping my options open!

Stay tuned as I post a picture from each country I'm considering moving to! Maybe this will help me make my decision? :)

Snail Mail Collective Update: September

So literally the day after I wrote my Snail Mail Collective post for my partner Jenna, my package arrived! Just wanted to share a picture of the wonderful goodies I received from her!

If you did not check out my previous post, here's my Snail Mail Collective post that I wrote two days ago for Jenna: http://loveatraveler.blogspot.com/2013/10/snail-mail-collective-september.html

She sent me yummy Chocolate Covered Dates, a cute Bee Notebook that her students use, two UAE magazines, and a cool Camel Postcard with a beautiful written note!

I love my beautiful package from Jenna! It made my day. :-) I can't wait to read the magazines! We thought our packages would take a longer time to get here than usual so I'm pretty happy with how fast we received our mail. (She told me about the post office process over there!) I feel lucky to have met her in this way and we plan on continuing to stay in touch! Once again, Jenna is a wonderful lady and I hope you guys check her out!

I'm on Facebook!

I finally made the plunge.....and got a Facebook page for Love A Traveler! I can like all of my favorite blogs now! :-)

Please like and share my Facebook page to:

~ Keep up to date in my postings!

~ Travel opinions

~ Social Networking

~ Friendships

~ When I'm traveling and can't fit in a blog post, I can update what I'm doing on there!

~ ETC!

It's still in the beginning stages but will be dolled up shortly! Click on either Facebook tab I've put on both sidebars or search for me at www.facebook.com/lovetraveler (while signed in)

Thank you so much for your support!

Love,

Reima

Love A Traveler

Postcrossing

I'm a huge fan of snail mail, making new friends, keeping in touch with old, and learning about different people and cultures in this world. Always have. Always will. I guess I'm one of those people who loves living with the past in mind! And I'm probably the only person who has yet to succumb to a smart phone!

I just love the idea of expressing ones thoughts and feelings through writing. To me, that's what makes things feel more special. I also love sending positive notes to others, whether I know them or not. Lately I have been looking for ways to connect to others whom I've never met before through my blogs (Love A Traveler and my food blog: Peace Love And Blueberries) while I'm still living here in the states. I'm currently figuring out my expat plans for the very near future - December/January. It's my way to do more good deeds and still feel connected with other travelers while I'm at my home base.

So when my new friend over at The Female Tramp: http://thefemaletramp.wordpress.com told me about this postcard idea, I had to take a look at it. 

http://www.postcrossing.com

This project is here to send surprise postcards to anyone in the world and to keep our world connection strong. It's also for those who really do enjoy sending letters and receiving real mail. Postcrossing is all about getting to know one another and spreading positive cheer throughout this world.

Why I also love this idea?

Because it's affordable and looks like so much fun! It doesn't cost a lot to send a postcard. I also believe my home isn't in one place. It's this whole world. I get to write a little about me and send inspiration and I will receive a postcard in return and learn about someone else, their lifestyle, and inspiration back as well. 

The cost of sending an international package: $19-50 and up! The cost of sending a postcard: under $2. 

How it works:

For every postcard you send, you receive one back.

Make a profile

Request an address

Mail the postcard

Receive a new postcard from someone else

Register* the postcard

And the cycle continues!      

*When you request an address to send a postcard, they show you the address with the persons profile and give you a code. You write that code on the postcard and mail it to the receiver. When they see the postcard in the mail, they register the # on the website. Once they register the # on the website, it puts you in the system to receive a postcard from someone else. To learn more, visit the website (above)!

This project gives you the opportunity to either send a postcard to a new person each time or the opportunity to do a direct swap** with someone you are interested in sending postcards back and forth or both. I like this chance of writing back and forth with the same person if you feel you both have things in common. But I also enjoy sending good vibes and inspiration to others without expecting anything in return. This suites me just fine. :-)

**Basically with postcrossing, you send a postcard to someone else in this world, they register your card, and someone else sends you a postcard, not the person who received yours, unless of course they do, I believe. I'm still figuring out this project since I am a newbie at this! With direct swap, you can choose to put yes or no down on your profile. This means if you are open to exchanging postcards back and forth with an individual on the site, you select yes. If not, it's just as fine. Either way, I'm open to both ideas.

I originally was going to post the link to my postcrossing page but I think I'd like to leave it to chance to see if anyone randomly gets my address. 

If you'd like to do a direct swap with me, comment below or email me! I'd love to direct swap, but you must be a member on the site and follow their rules before we proceed! It's more fun that way. :-)

As of today, I have 5 postcards in the works to send out!

Will you join Postcrossing?

Photo of the day - Argentina

Buenos Aires, Argentina. Ah the beautiful and seductive tango. Possibly my favorite dance to watch and attempt to learn. So passionate and full of fire. To fully get this experience, I highly recommend you head on over to Argentina, among the plenty other reasons why you should go there anyway! Watch the street performers. Go to a tango show. Take in the passion that the Argentineans had for their dance. 

My friend and I got a great deal in Buenos Aires for a night spent falling deeper and deeper in love with the dance. We learned the main steps of the tango, had an amazing Argentine dinner, and learned about the history of Tango in Spanish through the dancers themselves. 

Towards the end of the night, the professionals jumped off the stage and picked unsuspecting audience members a chance to put their newly learned steps to use and it was just wonderful to see. One of the dancers quickly got off the stage and asked for my hand and if I'd like to dance. Dancing the tango with a professional was on my bucket list but I never thought it would happen. A dream come true! He was so darn good looking too, another bonus! ;) We danced, which felt like awhile but more like a minute or 2. He kept whispering in my ear that I was so beautiful and of course I was melting! I'm a sucker for that sort of thing. :-) Felt pretty romantic even if it was just a fun little dance. What kind of girl doesn't like a little romance? It's just nice to hear these things once in awhile.

This is a must experience if you ever make it to Buenos Aires, Argentina.

What's an itinerary?

Here's how to travel to _________ for a week! Only have 3 weeks? Here's exactly where to go when you are here:_______!

This is what I'm seeing when I look online and I always stop to think....

What ever happened to discovery? Going to new places on your own without being told? Making your own on-the-go itinerary and being open-minded to change. What about just booking one night and then making your own decisions once you have in fact seen the city and see where you'd like to head to next?    

Sure myself, as well as others, post where I've/they've been and that's perfectly fine! That's the fun part of traveling. Showing your experiences and memories and bringing joy to others while showing this magnificent world that we live in. 

But there's a difference between writing about your exciting trip and telling someone where to go.  

Being excited about your adventure and writing about it is inspiring to others and hopefully makes someone consider going to that country/doing that adventure. 

But I do not want someone else planning my travels!

What about the amazing places you did not experience because you stuck to your set schedule of what you were doing? Or because you did what someone else did? Is that even considered your trip?

This is for all the travelers out there, including myself, who book their plane tickets and go where they want to go! Kudos to you all! There is so much out there to discover and it would be a shame to have any sort of regret coming back from a trip and realizing you missed out on something.

The number one trip I always have in mind was when I went to Bolivia. Before I went there, I had it in my thoughts to return back to Chile as well. I saw the Santiago area during a previous trip but wanted to head out to the northern region since I was close to the area by being in Bolivia.  But I did not want to set a schedule just in case something special that I didn't know about here in the states popped up in Bolivia.

The time came when I was looking to cross the Bolivian border by land into Chile. The weather was so bad that they closed the roads between Bolivia and Chile and I would not be able to make that trip. If I had planned around that, I would have missed out on a lot. So with no plans, I went straight to Peru! A beautiful country I plan on hopefully moving to towards the end of this year/beginning of the next! *Originally I was thinking Brazil---I'm still going back and forth!

If I had planned my whole trip, I would have not soaked in this incredible world wonder!

Machu Picchu, Peru

  If I had stuck to a planned schedule, I would not have had this spectacular view to see for myself. Not just this trip, but all my adventures, in general. There has been at least one thing I never planned on seeing but had learned about while in the country. 

I'm not a tour guide book reader but what I can assume is that I'm sure not everything is written in the guide books. There are some secret places that are yet to be discovered.

And travel is all about discovery!

So how do I travel?

With no plans of course! I book the plane tickets and just for the day of arrival, I book a hostel for one night. That allows me to figure out what I'm going to do next. Or if I need the day to relax (I have yet to use the first day of travel as a day to relax!). Usually I stay there or I move on to different areas, depending on what the area offers. My schedule is very flexible by doing this. Which I highly recommend because plans don't always stick and issues will sometimes arise. Always have to be prepared for anything! Safety and otherwise.

I do:

Research the country--customs, history, points of interest, safety, food, and ways of travel. That's extremely important to me. I like to be 'one' with the country and not an outsider. To experience it like the locals.

This allows me to be my open-minded and adventurous self. It's absolutely thrilling to travel this way, in my opinion. It's not a rushed schedule at all. It's a go at your own pace traveling style. If you need a day of rest. Take it! If you discovered a new area, book the bus ticket! 

You work so hard to make the money to be able to travel and enjoy yourself. Don't you want to make the best of it? 

As for the future, whether I'm single or not, I still see myself traveling this way. I'll settle in certain places longer than others more as I get older if (and hopefully) I move out of the US permanently as an expat. But it definitely won't stop me from seeing this whole world!

So with all this said, go with your heart and gut. Make and follow your own path, not others. It's your life journey. Make it the best you want it to be!

How do you travel?

Snail Mail Collective: August

A little late but worth the wait!

I joined the Snail Mail Collective last month and it has been great so far! My first partner was Bonnie Rose at A Compass Rose:  www.bonnieroseblog.co.uk

We are both hard workers and busy bees plus sometimes snail mail does move at a snail mail pace! We finally got our packages and our faith in the mail system has been restored!

3 beautiful pictures from Bath, England, a wonderfully written postcard, and a super cute UK Bear!

So what can I say that everyone doesn't know about the wonderful Bonnie Rose?

Bonnie is a wife, mother, blogger, and photographer. How she has time to do everything, I don't know, but she is definitely a superwoman! :-)

I had a great time getting to know her and love that we have some things in common and some things we could take from eachother.

Our similarities:

We love dark chocolate, enjoy reading books, loving outdoor adventures like hiking, love desserts that aren't too sweet, we don't like country music, similarities in how we travel, we enjoy food, and we BOTH BLOG! We also talked about our love of homemade scrubs. We exchanged our scrub recipes. Bonnie also gave me her pie crust recipe and I'm excited to try it out! 

What I'd like to learn from Bonnie?

To balance life better! I'm always on the go but need to learn how to slow down, focus on life, and focus on my blog. Bonnie is great at this! As I know everyone knows her. :-)

I had some questions for Bonnie and here are her answers:

When and How did you get into blogging? 

I started in 2005 to share photos of my son after he was born. I stumbled on a friends blog that had one post while waiting to give birth and thought...I want to do that.

What is the most daring thing you've done in all of your travels?

This was not my choice...but man it was thrilling and scary and emotional. I got my phone stolen in my home town of Napoli ( grew up there six years) and had to go to the police station. They brought me in a room with a door in between me and a suspect that I could see through and he was literally inches from my face, really amped up on adrenaline...Something out of a Guy Richie film. It was so freaky! Esp since I didn't know what I was going to be doing with the language barrier that when I was brought in. I was really freaked out. 

What's your favorite country you've been to?

So many...but Austria holds a lot of memories and I cannot wait to take my husband and boys there and eat germknodel again! 

What's the one place you are dying to go to?

That list is very long, but from a place I've never been, Iceland! 

Three places you would like to go to next? (One is Iceland!)

Austria, and then a trip that includes visiting all the places on one visit: Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark. 

Best travel advice you can give?

Stay away from tourists and touristy areas and travel like a local. 

Farthest you have been from home? 

I can't answer this as I don't have a home per se. But farthest I've been from my parents when I was still living with them was being in Australia for a summer while they lived in Arizona. 

Favorite part of going to the beach?

Hearing the waves and smelling the salt air.

Sea creature?

Mermaids Count?

Thoughts on Food?

I love food! Probably my favourites are from places I've traveled as they are tied into memories.  Like Germknodel. 

Comfort food?

Starch...since we try to stay away from it. So like potatoes and chips (French fries). I get my fill with sweet potato mash and sweet potato fries.

Favorite dessert? 

Germknodel. It's a traditional dessert to eat served at the mountain lodges where you go skiing in the alps during winter time. 

Favorite ice cream?

Gelato in Italy...any flavour! 

Candy?

Dark Chocolate!

Favorite book/s? 

I love Earnest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast followed by a Sun Also Rises. I also love Tolkien's LOTR and the Hobbit, The Chronicles of Narnia, and recently reading the Game of Thrones series. But I could equally read a travel book and be happy. 

What kind of music do you listen to?

Oh all kinds...really almost anything. Depends on my mood. Usually not country though. 

Favorite TV show?

I have quite a few. Some shows I currently love that are in their last season :( are: Burn Notice, Breaking Bad, and Dexter.

And lastly.....

5 items you can't live without!

My camera, may laptop, my glasses, coconut oil, and a good book! 

I had so much fun getting to know Bonnie and I'm so glad I got partnered with her. I hope we get to continue to keep in touch. Love you Bonnie! Check out her blog. She is amazing. :-)