Out and Abroad

Dear Guatemala: A Love Letter to the Country of Eternal Spring

June 12, 2019outandabroadLeave a comment

*Volcán San Pedro, San Pedro La Laguna, Guatemala*

Dear Guatemala,

Never have I ever enjoyed a trip more than I enjoyed the one I took to visit you. I cannot believe the amazing people, culture, activities, and nature that I experienced within your small, breathtaking land.

Your beautiful town of San Pedro La Laguna was the perfect home for two weeks. I was lucky enough to spend my time in a homestay with some of your amazing people, who taught me so much about the important things in life. It was obvious to me from the start that although your people might not have the luxuries that we have in life, they have the most important thing of all: smiles. Although I can’t blame them, it was nearly impossible for me to stop smiling the entire time I was there.

Your culture—the food, the crafts, and the traditions—blew me away and gave me a new appreciation for the lifestyle so different from my own. Fresh fruits everyday for breakfast, homemade tortillas, rambutan fruit, fresh fruit smoothies, empanadas, and entire fish were all foods that I hope to experience more in my life. The beautiful handmade crafts, paintings, clothing, and other goods were the perfect thing for me to bring back to my family and friends to give them a taste of the amazing culture.

Spending days in clinics in San Juan Moca, Chicacao, Santiago, Piquia, San Lucas, and San Pablo helped me progress toward becoming a healthcare provider in my future. I cannot thank these towns enough for their patience, their kindness, and their openness to allowing Americans provide them care.

Other than the two earthquakes that occurred while I was there, I was lucky enough to experience so many unique things while visiting your country. I went with the little sister in my homestay to swim in beautiful Lake Atitlán, which was so refreshing on the hot and sunny afternoon. Another amazing piece of culture that I experienced with my host family was making fresh tortillas from only water and corn. Taking a boat across the lake multiple times was an amazing way of transportation that allowed us to see more of the beautiful region around the lake. My favorite transportation on land was the tuk-tuk, which was super convenient when your skies drenched us in rain. I enjoyed taking a class with a talented local, who helped me create a beautiful tiny painting of San Pedro to take home—one of the best souvenirs I got. Spending a beautiful morning in a kayak on the lake was both relaxing, due to the serene surroundings, and eventful, due to the kayak filling and almost capsizing. Waking up at 3am to hike to the top of Indian Nose Mountain to view the beautiful sunrise was the perfect way to end our stay in San Pedro before taking off to Antigua for a few days. In Antigua, we were lucky enough to hike to the top of Volcán Pacaya and roast marshmallows on the hot lava rocks on top of the active volcano.

*Sunrise from top of Indian Nose Mountain, San Juan La Laguna, Guatemala*

Upon my return back home, I faced many family members and friends who were curious as to how my trip was. I couldn’t help myself from telling them that I can see myself moving to Guatemala at some point in my life. I told them all that Guatemala was the best trip I’ve been on because there is something different, so amazing, about immersing yourself in a culture the way I did in your beautiful country.

Many thanks to your welcoming people, your beautiful culture, your amazing landscapes. I cannot express enough gratitude to you for allowing me to have the experiences that I had in your beautiful country.

I hope to return soon, but until then, Te Amo.

Dear Puerto Rico: A Love Letter to La Isla Bonita

May 1, 2019outandabroadLeave a comment

Dear Puerto Rico,

For Mother’s Day 2017, I was lucky enough to provide my mom with a trip to visit you, a first for both of us. The trip was the week before I left for my freshman year of college, which was 6 hours away from my family, so Puerto Rico was the most perfect mother-daughter bonding vacation.

Since I booked the trip that May until we left in August, I spent all summer planning excursions and fun activities for us to do while there. Planning the days was easy in that I never ran out of things for us to do, but hard in that I had to fit an entire beautiful island into a short six days.

*La Mina Falls, El Yunque National Forest, Puerto Rico*

When we arrived, we explored Old San Juan and the National Fort, whose historical facts were a perfect, informative way to start this vacation. As we were walking around the Old Port, we purchased coconut water fresh from the coconut, a tasty refreshment on the beautiful, sunny day. A highlight was visiting and taking a tour of the Bacardi Rum distillery and land, along with drinking the famous tropical sunrise cocktail. I tried my first dish of paella that night, a dish that I am expecting to be eating a lot more. Our day tour of El Yunque National Forest was by far the most breathtaking experience I have ever had—between the plants, wildlife, and the waterfalls, which allowed me to check swim under a waterfall off of my bucket list. Luquilla Beach had beautiful clear blue water and was an amazing display of your local food and culture. Another insane bucket list experience was kayaking through a mangrove canal into bioluminescent bay, a once in a life time encounter with wildlife. We spent an entire morning at Mar Chiquita Cove, whose beach had sand that I had never seen before, followed by the Vega Baja Playa, which had amazing vendors near the beautiful beach. We were lucky enough to stumble upon Calle San Francisco, which was packed with shops and street performers; we even got to see a proposal! We were able to attend a Spanish mass at San Juan Bautista Cathedral, followed by snorkeling at Escabron Beach, which had amazing and colorful coral and fish. Because I am an adrenaline junkie, I forced my mom to go on a zip-lining, cave-rappeling, hiking experience at Campo Rico; the final zipline landed in a treetop mojito bar, where I had my first ever shot of moonshine.

It was obvious to us that Puerto Rico was an amazing, sort of secret treasure, and that we only scratched the surface, so we have all intentions to bring the rest of our family back to show them the amazing time we had.

Unfortunately, just 3 weeks after our perfect vacation to your beautiful, natural island, it was struck by Hurricane Maria. When I heard the news, I was devastated, completely shocked when I saw pictures of the places that I had visited not even a month before. My heart was with you then, it is with you now, and it will always be with you, and I hope when I return soon, your island will be thriving even more than before, because the people of Puerto Rico and the beautiful nature deserve the best. Puerto Rico, mi corazón está contigo.

Dear Ireland: A Love Letter to the Motherland

April 15, 2019June 12, 2019outandabroad1 Comment

Dear Ireland,

Half of me comes from you. Although I am only 50% Irish, I felt 100% Irish when I visited you, because I felt home. Growing up, I always heard stories about Ireland and my relatives were lucky enough to visit the ‘motherland’, but for most of my life, I could only dream of the beautiful green island covered in sheep.

The first time I ever left the country will always be memorable, as it is for everyone, but leaving it for you made it more special, more meaningful. Even though I was technically leaving home, in a way, I was also going home. Moving on from the fact that I’m Irish, which I don’t want this entire letter to be about, I can assure you that you are special without respect to my heritage.

After excitedly exiting the plane, the first stop we made was Trinity College in Dublin, where I was able to admire the amazingly historical Book of Kells. St. Patrick’s Cathedral, even with all of the high expectations in my head, did not disappoint me. We were lucky enough to spend an entire day on a farm and experience the cultural aspects that most people miss out on during ‘luxury’ vacations. At the farm, we made bread from scratch, played with lambs, learned traditional Irish dances and how to play Irish drums, rode around on a tractor, and milked a cow—all experiences that I will never be able to replicate. After leaving Dublin, we headed to Galway, where we walked around the beautiful streets and met many local Irish people, whose accents I adore. On the way to Kylemore Abbey, we stopped to admire a fairy tree, a tree garnished with cloth, which was said to grant health to sick family members. Kylemore Abbey, a beautiful old castle, made for amazing adventures around the gardens and castle property, including the Tea House and the Chapel. Ireland is the home to the famous Cannamarra Marble, which we were lucky enough to see in production. If you were to ask anyone what a must-see in Ireland is, odds are they would say the Cliffs of Moher, and now I see why, because they are the most picturesque place I have ever seen. Our trip to the Dingle Peninsula, once named National Geographic Most Beautiful Place on Earth, was obviously an amazing, underrated town in Ireland, boasting a beautiful coast with perfect blue waves. In Killarney, a carriage ride took us around the parks and beautiful old streets of the town, all while telling us amazing and shocking facts about the town, including that they don’t have mosquitos! Another Irish vacaction stop is the Blarney Castle, and more importantly, the Blarney Stone, a beautiful, complex castle whose grounds are amazing to explore.

Through many nights of walking around, we witnessed the thing that Irish people are most known for—pubs. I loved the pubs, drinks, people, and the famous song, No Nay Never, which I played on repeat on my way home.

Thank you, Ireland, for an amazing first trip out of the country, along with many other firsts—first time making bread, first time milking a cow, first time drinking famous European tea, first time receiving ‘the gift of the gab’, first time holding the People’s Choice Award, and first time falling in love with a country other than my own.

Until we meet again, thank you for an amazing experience and for providing the world with the amazing culture, food, traditions, and beauty that you have to offer.

Dear Italy: A Love Letter to the Boot

January 26, 2019January 26, 2019outandabroad1 Comment

Dear Italy,

Most people don’t know this, but you are better than pizza, pasta, and even gelato. Only the people who have visited you know your truth.

All of my friends with Italian ancestors fell in love with the Italy that they hear of, with the Italy that they taste in their nonna’s food. I have no Italian in me or in my family, but I fell in love with the Italy that I experienced first hand, in Italy. A country only has to be home to the people who are citizens there, but you are home to everyone who visits.

The first part of you that I saw was Sorrento, on your beautiful coastline. Then I took a ferry to the amazing island of Capri, where I tried my first, and definitely not last, gelato. I touched the Mediterranean Sea for the first time. The stops in Positano, Brayano, and Conca de Marini were short, but worth it. The amazing history and touching story behind Pompeii gave me a new outlook on your people for being so resilient. Napoli’s underground tour was amazing and unlike anything that I will probably ever experience. Then we visited your famous Colosseum, whose beauty could never be explained. The Pantheon was full of so many nice people, and talented street performers. Vatican City, the tiny country inside of you, with its Sistene Chapel, St. Peter’s Basilica, and St. Peter’s square, is unreal. When we were pulling up to the breathtaking Trevi Fountain, we could hear its thunderous water from a block away. Running up the Spanish Steps reminded me of a painting of the Steps that my mom bought when she was visiting you. The only part of your beautiful country that disappointed me was leaving.

Limoncello is something special that you have, although I did bring a lot back to America for everyone to try. Everyone deserves to experience at least a little bit of your beauty and amazingness.

Italy, I owe you a lot. I owe you my growing love for travelling. I owe you, and only you, irreplaceable memories with my best friend before she moved across the country from me. I owe you one of the best vacations I have ever been on, and I’ve been on a lot.

Thank you for gifting me a chance to experience your coast. I hope, and expect, to return to visit you again, but for now, Ciao Bella.

Grazie for your love, your everything, and my memories.