You know the feeling. Your muscle tense, heart-rate quickens, and you’re fueled with an intense feeling of overwhelming joy. That feeling of excitement, of knowing that the path you’re about to embark on is exactly what you’re “supposed” to be doing. I don’t really believe in a cosmic force (or any intervening force for that matter). But I do believe our subconscious reveals what we truly want, and guides little decisions that ultimately shape our lives: some people are just better at listening than others. I get that way about travel. And no, not just because it’s “fun.” But because the process of uprooting and integrating myself into a complete unknown is the ultimate thrill. Every time I leave, I learn. And I’ve become addicted to the lessons I’ve learned on the road. I truly believe I’ve learned more about the world and myself in the past few years than I ever did in the 22 years prior, college included. As I travel, the world becomes smaller, those strange foreign lands aren’t so foreign anymore; people of Tanzania aren’t really all that different from Peruvians, or even, Americans.  I am constantly touched by the giving nature of so many, particularly those who have little to give, and I’m compelled to find away to pay back this world that has taught, and given me so much. Travel fills me with an all-encompassing joy that little else can rival.  Continue reading →