I was born with the travel bug, or maybe I caught it when my parents took me to the Dominican Republic for a month when I was 12. Regardless, of when or how, curiosity is what continues to drive my passion to explore. The idea of the unknown, a stone unturned, an unexplored destination. I've always been interested in seeing those less-visited places, and have never been a fan of the guided tour. After graduating from college, I took a student bus tour through Western Europe and then backpacked through Eastern Europe for an additional 3 months on the fringes of communist Europe. That experience was a true eye-opener and further fueled my desire to travel to more undiscovered destinations. From then on, I worked to travel, and at 25, I quit my job to explore the world for a year and a half with just my passport a backpack, and some traveler’s checks. Since then I have taken several extended trips to Mexico, Central and South America, Asia, Africa, Europe, Australasia, and the South Pacific.  I always have a trip in the works, planning travel is my happy place, and I am excited at the prospect of planning awe-inspiring trips for others as well.