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1. This photo was taken at a local
Chinese-Malay café in Penang, Malaysia.
2. A candid photo of my family admiring
the ruins of Uxmal in Mexico.
3. I am teaching a class of primary school
students the ABCs at a local school in
Uttaradit Province, Thailand. This province
in northern Thailand is seldom visited by
tourists, so many of the children have
never even seen a foreigner before. The
school’s goal is to get kids excited about
learning English, and the opportunities
that come with knowing the language, by
exposing them to English speakers.
4. My sister sits admiring Kek Lok Si
temple. The Buddhist temple is located
on Penang island and is an important
pilgrimage site for Buddhists from
Singapore, Hong Kong, and other
southeast Asian countries.
5. Some locals preform a traditional
Mexican dance on the cobblestone
streets of historic Merida, Yucatan. The
city is the Yucatan’s cultural capital.
6. Horseback riding for the first time in my
life, in Arizona.
7. Vendors sell street food by the side of
the road in Chinatown.
well educated global citizens, and as a family,
that we value, love, and protect each other.
Personally for myself, I want to figure out what
my passions are and learn how to support
myself in an unconventional way in the future.
As global citizens, it is important that we
are not quick to judge or be afraid of places,
people, or cultures that we are unfamiliar with.
WHY DID WE DECIDE TO TRAVEL?
I could easily say that much of my life, and
the lives of my parents, have been spent
moving from place to place - just in a different
way then we are currently doing now. My
dad moved throughout his childhood and
adulthood, subsequently developing what
some travellers like to call “restless feet” or the
inability to stay in one place for an extended
period of time. My mom immigrated from
Russia to the USA in the 90s.
My baby years were spent in the back of a
semi-truck as my parents worked brutal 12
hour shifts driving loads across the U.S. After
that, we moved to a new place every year or
two, as a result of my dad’s job. Along the
way, my three sisters were born. We continued
moving until 2009, when we settled in
Colorado, the longest time I have ever stayed
in one place.
While living in Colorado, we took vacations
over summer breaks, but never ventured
outside of the U.S. until 2015, when we
backpacked for a month in Japan. Japan was
a country that we had always dreamed of
exploring, and it was the country that proved
to be the catalyst for this entire world travel
adventure. In one short month, we met
amazing people, stayed with incredible host
families, ate delicious food, and learnt about
Japanese culture first-hand.
When the tires of our Boeing 747 flight back
home screeched to a stop on the tarmac of the
airport runway, something was different. It was
nice to be in a familiar place again, but we felt
Issue 4, 2016 | The Travellist
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