I've traveled a lot of places...I've met a lot of people...and somehow my heart is not satisfied yet. When I was 16 I traveled to El Salvador. I was surrounded by the beautiful language of Spanish and it was there that my passion began. The following year I went to Guatemala, still not knowing Spanish, but with determination to get more experience outside the walls of this country. Three months after returning to Guatemala, I boarded a plane all by myself and went down to Argentina for a total of 91 days. It was one of the most amazing experiences of my life...y ahora, hablo castellano :P Also while in Argentina I traveled over to Uruguay where I discovered the small town of Colonia. It is filled with people who carry Yerba Mate around like we do starbucks. I met a friend there who to this day is someone I still keep in touch with, Jonathan. Just 3 months after returning from Argentina, I took off again to Guatemala to see the friends I had made and practice speaking my new found love, often called Spanish. I went for 3 weeks this time and being all alone with a family who only spoke English, well...I learned a lot :) I fell in love with Guatemala, the music, the food, and the beautiful culture...it is a place I hope to return to soon. Six months after returning from Guatemala, I bought another ticket and headed down to Argentina again, this time taking my best friend, Sheena. I took her in hopes of having a great adventure with my best friend and also in hopes of her learning Spanish as well. We stayed with another one of my best friends, Ezequiel, and we had one of the best adventures of our life. Sheena went to the same boarding school I had gone to the previous year and me, I stayed with Ezequiel and his family most of the time. My Spanish was getting really good and Sheena was learning a lot. We eventually left in August, 2 months and 12 days after arriving, with heaving hearts at the thought of leaving the wonderful country of Argentina behind. Six months later I began to get restless and felt the urge to travel again. I talked to my boyfriend and told him I wanted to go to Mexico and experience his culture (he is from Durango, Mexico) first hand. He sent me with his aunt and uncle and they were kind enough to take me in over Spring break. I traveled through Narayit, Jalisco, and finally arrived in Durango where I discovered the small little town Sergio had grown up in. I was fortunate enough to be there during "Semana Santa" and I did nothing but soak the real culture of Mexico and taste all the real flavors of their food. I love the Mexican culture and I hope that one day Sergio and I will be able to go and live there, at least for a short while. That summer I didn't make any big trips but I did travel to Puerto Rico with my sister and two friends. It was so much fun, I had never taken a vacation just to take a vacation before...I had always gone with a purpose...to go to school, to build a church...but this time it was purely for relaxation and fun. I feel like I didn't have enough time there and I hope to return again one day so I can better explore the island. The same day I returned from Puerto Rico, I boarded another plane and went off to Miami, Florida with my boyfriend and friends. I am not too fond of traveling in the US, but if there is one place to visit...it's Miami. The culture is rich and flows thickly into the streets....The air is dense with the aromas of Latin food, melodies of cumbia and bachata float out from houses and apartments, and you can find Colombians on one corner and Cubans on the next. There are people selling coconuts and pineapples on the sidewalks and everyone speaks to you in Spanish as if it were the official language. I have never fell so in love with any place in the United States as I did with Miami. If it weren't for the crazy hurricanes they have there, I'd probably want to permanently move there someday. After  that summer I didn't have much opportunity to travel because my job and school became very overwhelming and they didn't leave me with much time to take a break for traveling. However...it wasn't long before I started skeeming and planning my next big trip...I was going to France. I applied with a company to become a Nanny in France with the hopes of going to Europe and learning French. My plan worked out and in June 2009 I got on a plane and headed over to Europe...my first time in that part of the world. I first landed in Amsterdam, Netherlands where I bought a train ticket and ventured out into the city of Amsterdam with the intention of proving that I had done more than just touch down in the airport. I discovered things I had never known about Amsterdam, good and bad, and actually really enjoyed my time there. However, my time was cut short due to having to catch my next plane into France...and so I headed back to the airport. June 19th, 2009 I finally touched down in France. I spent the whole summer with the Dubouchet family and watched their three children, Antoine, Clement, and Juliette. We traveled all over France and about three weeks into my trip we traveled to Spain. We stayed in Cadaques, Spain for a week and I enjoyed every minute of it...being able to speak fluently in a language I knew. (French was still very hard for me at this time) Staying with the family was a great learning experience....not only did I learn French, but I also learned a lot about children and how to best speak with them and react to their actions. I fell in love with the family and I knew that I'd be back. I left to go home August 30th, touching down in the Netherlands again on my way home. After returning home, my life got crazy once again...22 credits in school, 30 hours a week at my job...and trying to get in shape for my job (I had gotten out of shape in France..you know, all that cheese :P). I had no time to even think about traveling and with the cost of school I didn't think I'd be able to travel. However, my heart wouldn't let me pass by an opportunity to fulfill it's desires...and so once again, I boarded a plane this last July. I went to the Netherlands, changed planes, flew into France and I stayed there from July until August. It was a shorter trip this time, but it had to be because of the children and their school and because of me and my schooling. I learned so much French the second time around and I feel very confident with speaking it now. Comme ca, si vous avez besoin de pratiquer votre francais...bah...je suis la! <3 It was a miracle for me to get to go to France again, and I feel very blessed for having received the opportunity to go. It gave me the chance to know and understand the culture and appreciate it even more. I have been home from France now for a little over a month and I am already anxious for my next adventure. I wish I could say when it will be, but unfortunately I don't know. However, I am currently studying Italian and I have already inquired about being a nanny in Italy this summer. It is up to God what will happen with me and what will become of my passion for traveling, learning, and languages. I am ready for whatever comes my way...because that is the way of a life as a traveler.