My Travel Experience

I have been very fortunate to have traveled around the east coast many of times. One of my favorite places to visit was Myrtle Beach because I loved the relaxed beach setting that it offered along with the slow paced lifestyle of the south. I also found these same characteristics while visiting Fort Myers, Florida. I have been there a few times and enjoyed being able to swim in the warm water of the Gulf of Mexico and wake up early to see the dolphins swimming just off the coast. Additionally, both of these places have allowed me to be adventurous and take part in fun water ports such as banana boating and jet skiing.

I have also been on a cruise to the western Caribbean which docked in Costa Maya, Mexico, Cozumel, Mexico, and Roatan, Honduras. In Costa Maya I was thrilled to be able to experience the culture and see the homes in which people live. We had to drive an hour through the rural, desert towns of  the city to arrive at our destination. It was during that drive that we saw several children who were seated at roadside stands trying to sell fruit to provide for their families. It was an eyeopening experience to see the amount of poverty that has affected the area. In Roatan, I also experienced a lot of poverty and run down towns. This stop was the most impactful day of all of my traveling because I interacted with so many of the local children. They all came from poverty stricken backgrounds, but were still so humble. One boy, who we met while zip lining, described to us that their school system runs differently than most counties. Children go to school opposite of the harvest season so that they can stay at home and work on their family farm's. Additionally, their school day starts a lot earlier than ours does, but ends by noon so that they can go to work. Here, I also saw many children selling items on the street. I experienced this first hand when one boy approached us at the resort with a basket full of cheese that he was trying to sell. While it is fun to partake in adventurous activities such as parasailing and snorkeling, it is a more impactful experience when you have the opportunity to emerge yourself in their culture and way of life.

While I have been so lucky to have visited many places so far, there are still so many places I want to go. My dream is to one day visit Fiji, Paris, and Australia. However, right now I am focusing on exploring the rest of the US and saving up enough money to hopefully backpack through Europe with my roommate after we graduate in a few years.