03/07/2024
Thursday March 7, 2024
10:04 pm EST
8:34 am Indian time
Traveling to 20+ countries has taught me so much about myself.
Connection, adventurous spirit, new daily experiences, going with the flow, describing what I do, who I am, what I love…
I'm fortunate to have an amazing travel companion, my husband Jason.
I discovered Jason is similar in many ways to my paternal grandfather, Neil Dilley who worked as a chemical engineer at Kodak for 40 years.
I grew up seeing slides of my grandparents trips all around the world. They started traveling when my grandmother was in her 50s. I think he was nine years older.
I went to my first foreign land, Jamaica at age 4 and still remember wondering why my ackee fruit (egg tasting) sandwich was so salty. I had just played in the ocean.
We did a lot of car and plane rides visiting my dad's parents who moved from Rochester NY to Albuquerque, New Mexico when I was in preschool. My Mom's dad lived in Texas the whole time.
Then I went to Quebec in 8th grade and Indonesia with my grandmother I called Tutu right after high school.
Fast forward to when I was 30 and Jason and I were on our honeymoon in Italy. Our engagement and wedding timing was inspired by neighbors going to Italy at that time with 10 family members.
We saw their tour itinerary and before I knew it Jason was planning our own stops in different cities going south instead of north through the Almfie Coast; Rome, Napes, Serento, Pompeii, Island Of Capri, Pisa, Florentine and back to Rome.
With the exception of a couple travel website Jason designed for tours in the mountains of Copper Canyon Mexico and then Baja California, Sea Of Cortez marine life research boat, Jason planned the bulk of our trips. Both Mexico were awe inspiring meeting locals in the mountains and by the sea.
And we did go to a couple group trips in Puerto Rico with our local friends the week we moved into our townhouse snowy January 2006 and the beginning of COVID 2020 to St Thomas and St John.
We've dobe a lot of Couch Surfing and later AirBNB over the years, while bringing the world to our two bedroom townhouse, hosting over 100 guests between 2006-2020.
2017 was epic travel with five countries in five weeks; visiting our adopted family in Kolkata India that we're visiting a 4th time this week. Then Thailand, Cambia, Tawaiin and more family and friends in Massawa, Ina Kyoto and Tokyo Japan in February-March 2018.
Later in October-December 2018 I was the lingest away from my husband for five weeks teaching leadership in China.
He joined me after I finished my life changing adventure at SIAS University facilitating WORLD ACADEMY FOR THE FUTURE OF WOMEN (This same group is doing a talk at the United Nations on March 10th while we're still in India.)
The Jason and I met in Beijing, saw the Olympic cityy, the Great Wall Of China and flew again to see the Terracotta Warriors.
I think I'll travel as long as I can with this amazing life, travel partner.
I love experiencing different cultures, people food, sights, smells, hearing foreign languages, smiling, laughing at universal connections.
Here's to my trips to: (Jamaica), (Canada), (Indonesia), (Italy), (Puerto Rico), (Ireland, Wales, England), (Spain, France, Portugal) (Mexico) (Mexico) (India, Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates), (India, Thailand, Cambodia, Taiwan, Japan), (China), (India, Greece), (St. John), (India) 20+
I feel I'm missing a couple countries!
When I get the chance to leave my home town, region or even country to meet people who live differently than me I feel so blessed!
In my life partner script a couple years before meeting Jason on April 1, 2004 I wrote “ #35 He travels with me to distant lands or afternoon excursions with such contagious delight.”
Where's your next adventure?
