A Little About Me

I developed my interest in other cultures while studying in Beijing less than a decade after China opened its doors to the western world. Having never been outside the U.S., I was thrown into the fire of culture shock. It was challenging but rewarding and the experience sparked a passion that hasn’t dimmed.
Like thousands of others, when I graduated college, I set off backpacking through Europe, during which all sorts of shenanigans ensued. I also spent summers during graduate school traveling: coordinating a study abroad program in London, Paris and Geneva, followed by a fellowship in Stockholm, Sweden. I seized every travel opportunity that crossed my path. This has not changed.
I’m fortunate to have found a way to combine my love of writing and photography with my passion for travel. My work has been published in a variety of magazines, newspapers and online publications. These include Sunset, Global Traveler, Robb Report, Elite Traveler, National Geographic Traveler, USA Today’s 10best, Dallas Morning News, Boston Herald, Toronto Star, Globe & Mail, and others. (See published work)
I believe if we all traveled, the world would be vey different than it is today. In the words of Mark Twain, “Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” This is likely more true now than when Twain said it over a hundred years ago.
Let’s hit the road and change the world.
Most-frequent sidekicks: Adventuring, gluten-free tween daughter; bright-white Nikon V2 (lovingly referred to as Liberace), an iPhone 7 and a MacBook Pro.
Most-inspiring travels: Khao Lak, Thailand after the 2004 tsunami; Ubud, Bali during Nyepi
What you shouldn’t miss: The Pageant of the Masters, Laguna Beach