Cortéz conquered the Aztec Empire, bringing Spanish influences to Mexico. Columbus embarked on a journey to discover the ‘New World,’ and inadvertently founded the first United States colony. Magellan discovered a water passage to connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans - named the Strait of Magellan - that served as the primary route for… [Read More]
A First Try at Paddle Boarding in North Carolina
I hadn’t even seen the water when I was convinced that I would fall, get soaked, and smell like Bogue Sound for the rest of the day. It was 8 a.m. and I was at Beaufort Paddle, a stand up paddle board and kayak rental company in the quiet but colorful small town of… [Read More]
5 Can’t Miss Adventures in the Dominican Republic
Buffets and banana boats. If asked to recall my first visit to the Dominican Republic, my answer is not flattering. I had traveled to the Dominican Republic last year expecting to discover the country and instead spent the next few days rotating on my beach towel like a rotisserie chicken. While staying at an… [Read More]
What It’s Like to Take a Helicopter Tour Above NYC
As the engine revs up, the only sound I hear are the murmuring of excited voices and air traffic control through my headset. The helicopter slowly lifts off the ground as the propellors pick up speed and flies us over the Hudson River and Manhattan. It’s an exhilarating moment-one you can’t help but… [Read More]
Trekking the Wicklow Mountains in Ireland
“You’re going to sit on me lap, are ya lass?” The Irish taxi driver asked as I stood by (what I considered) to be the passenger-side door. I smiled, nervously, and walked back around the cab, “Oh, uh, sorry.” Fiery-haired Declan was as kind as they come, he illuminated the taxi ride by showing off his… [Read More]
40 Days Spent in the Alaskan Wilderness
I spent 40 days in the Alaskan wilderness. It’s the sort of statement that makes people do a double take and then step back, give you a once over and ask “You DID!?” It’s hard to imagine that I once hiked through Denali National Park with a backpack the size of another person strapped to… [Read More]
What it’s Like Spending a Night in the Sahara Desert
The Sahara is like a dream; the warm sand slipping through my fingers, the gentle ripple of the sand dunes like slow moving red waves as the wind shapes and molds them; the low grunt of a camel languidly chewing in the distance and the slow rising golden sun illuminating the desert. Spending time… [Read More]
Surfing in New York City
The sunlight streaks the water and the taste of sea salt brushes across my lips as my body struggles to balance on the large, light blue surfboard below me. Out here on the ocean, this board has to become an extension of myself or I’ll look like a circus clown tumbling across the waves.
