I can still hear the sounds of the bar in Northern France where my family and I crammed in to watch Germany win the 1990 World Cup. I was barely in my teens and only vaguely recall the game, but I do remember the awe I felt at being in such an adult place filled with a language I couldn't understand.
I can still feel the wind coming across Lago Nordenskjold in Torres del Paine. We watched each gust push across the water kicking up mist and when it hit we could lean forward at 30 degrees and suspend in air.
I can still smell the fire-pits in the sand of Isla Tolinga. Paradise may well be sitting on a palm stump with your bare feet buried in the sand, sipping a cold Imperial, waiting for a meal of polla asada, arroz and platanos.
And I can still taste my first chicken foot scooped out of a Hot Pot in Chengdu. I chewed and chewed, but ultimately it was only the spicy coating of oil that allowed me to squeeze the rubbery morsel down my throat.
Traveling the world makes you a more complete person. Traveling makes you more tolerant, more open-minded.
Traveling is about more than the memories and pictures you bring home. It's about the people you meet and connect with. Once you've shared a beer with someone half-a-world away, it is hard to think of that place and people as foreign. Friendship is the ultimate humanizing element. In our ever-connected, globalized world, I think this is important.
And in this regard, I have been very lucky.
My parents instilled in me a curiosity and comfort with foreign places. My first cross-Atlantic flight was at the age of six. From as early as I can remember, I have felt at home in both Europe (by birth) and North America (by migration).
As an adult, I was lucky to find the perfect travel partner: my wife. Tara shares all my passion for travel, even if her expectations of hotel accommodations are slightly more elevated than mine. Without her drive, I would have far less pins in the map.
St. Augustine wrote, "The world is a book and those who do not travel read only one page." I am eager to keep turning pages and this site will document some of my favorites.
No pins yet, although I'm dying to go. Melbourne, Sydney, the Gold Coast and all of New Zealand... so much to explore.
Mount Kilimanjaro is right at the top of my bucket list. At 19,341 ft, it's almost 5,000 ft taller than the biggest peak I've summited.