0-About me-0

I love to travel… I love seeing historic sites and architecture, sharing a meal with new friends in a local café, learning different languages and appreciating new cultures. I'm learning that the small moments that happen on a sidewalk or in the metro are usually more memorable and meaningful than the thrill of seeing the big tourist destinations in the guide books.

My ideal vacation… Any place with warm weather, friends, water, good food and lots of time to relax and explore.

Where I've been… I've been to several states in the U.S., from Hawaii to New York to Florida, but I just made my first international trip a couple of months ago. My first adventure out of the U.S. was to Buenos Aires, Argentina to visit a friend I met during the Disney Channel Games. It was such a wonderful experience and the people couldn’t have been kinder. I was bitten by the travel bug, so I immediately booked a flight to Paris, France with my two best girlfriends to ring in 2009 and fell in love with that city! We barely slept for days, filling every moment with sightseeing and sidewalk cafes and dancing the night away with the local boys!

My next trip… I think my next destination might be Greece. I have wanted to go there since seeing "Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants" and can't wait to take in the royal blue water and whitewashed buildings with my own eyes!

The benefits of travel… Travel is one of the greatest learning experiences. You can read about a place, study maps and photographs of it, but there is nothing like physically experiencing it firsthand. I highly recommend getting out of your routine and comfort zone. You don't have to travel to other countries to see and learn. Most people don’t even venture down to their local museums or take a look at the architecture in the buildings of their own downtown area. Life is short and we're here to live it. Go out and interact with other people and get involved with life!

XChelsea