What is traveling?

I don’t know when my fascination for traveling began. Actually, I do know. Back in 2007 I left home; my beautiful and spacious room, my queen size bed, the maid, the driver, my family, college, my job as a radio host and a couple of good friends. I left to a journey that was going to change my life forever. I was 22. Everything was too fast. Out of nowhere, I saw myself in Colombia for three weeks and then Quito for a two-year religious mission. Besides the fact that this service mission was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, it changed the direction of it. (You can learn more about it by clicking on the link above.)

It was then when I learned to love others; people that I didn’t know, but for some reason cared about. I think it was the first time that I was leaving home and living on my own and I LOVED IT! I know, you might think “you had a maid and a driver and now you have to do everything by yourself!” yes, I liked it. It helped me grow and mature.

But that’s not where my blog goes.

Back to traveling… What is traveling?

I did a quick search on Google and got: “take more than the allowed number of steps (typically two) while holding the ball without dribbling it.” BUT NO!!! that’s not what I want.

This is what I want: “make a journey, typically of some length or abroad.”

Since my trip to Quito, I have now been to Bogota, San Diego, MacAllen, Salt Lake City, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Dallas, Seattle, Chicago, Miami, Dominican Republic, Acapulco, and I want more. It’s so amazing to experience new cultures, new places, new food and new people. Learning the story behind old towns, people, museums, etc. fascinates me. Trying new things like “mangú”, “chilaquiles”, “pozole” and other dishes is more than exquisite, it’s an unforgettable experience.

This blog is to encourage myself and others to save a few pennies and get to know other places. Don’t care about the five-star hotel (yes they’re amazing), but go for the culture, interact with locals, talk to old people who know the story of the place you go, eat where the locals eat and overall try new things.

I’d like to interact with other travel lovers and bloggers and also those that would like to travel, but don’t know where to start. Let’s make this journey together!

Have you traveled? Tell me about it!