I’ve spent the last few months buried in trip planning—overwater bungalows in the Maldives, jungle adventures in Costa Rica, shopping excursions through India’s vibrant markets. It’s the kind of work that doesn’t feel like work.
But I realized recently that some of you might be wondering: how did I end up here? What leads someone to spend their days researching silk scarf workshops in Lyon and calligraphy classes in Kyoto?
The answer involves a U.S. Congressman, a business delegation to Cuba, and a 12-year-old girl eating dinner with 30 French-Armenian cousins. Let me explain.
THE UNEXPECTED PATH FROM PUBLIC AFFAIRS TO TRAVEL PLANNING
In another life, I worked for a U.S. Congressman. I know—not exactly the typical travel advisor origin story. But I loved everything about international affairs, especially when I got to plan business delegations to Cuba. Picture this: organizing lunches with global news desk reporters, coordinating visits to a high school music conservatory, and watching people experience a place they’d only read about. That mix of logistics, marketing, and genuine human connection? It lit something up in me. Fifteen years later, here I am—doing essentially the same thing, just with different clients and even more unique destinations.
WHY I TRAVEL THE WAY I DO
My perfect holiday? It’s never just one thing. I need beach time and city energy, countryside views and cultural moments all woven together. That balance is exactly why I fell head over heels for Puglia—trulli houses in the morning, Adriatic beaches in the afternoon, and long dinners in ancient town squares at night.
Maybe it goes back to when I was 12 and my family flew from California to spend the holidays with my French-Armenian relatives in Vienne. Long afternoon lunches in my aunt’s kitchen, four-hour Christmas dinners, helping at the family marche stand, then singing with 30 cousins late into the night. That trip taught me something: the magic isn’t in checking boxes. It’s in those unexpected moments when you’re fully present in a place, experiencing it from every angle.
WHAT I’M WORKING ON NOW
Right now, I’m deep in planning mode for upcoming fall and festive trips, and 2026 is already filling up. I’m searching for those experiences you might not have thought about—like hand-painting silk scarves in Lyon or discovering calligraphy workshops in Kyoto. Anything is possible.
If you’ve been saving travel inspiration posts or keeping those “someday” destinations in the back of your mind, now’s the perfect time to start turning them into reality.
What’s that one trip you keep thinking about but haven’t planned yet?
Let’s talk about it—I’d love to help you close those browser tabs and start packing.
