My name is Gale Straub and I’m 28 years old currently on a long term road trip through North America with my boyfriend Jon. We’re in Portsmouth, NH, but I’m not sure where I’ll be tomorrow – though it will definitely be somewhere in New England. Growing up living in New Hampshire, I didn’t have the luxury to travel far distances. My first plane ride was at age 12 to visit relatives in New Orleans, LA for Mardi Gras, where I brought a little plastic camera and snapped photos of the French inspired architecture. The possibility to feel a world away while still in my own country left a lasting impact, and the experience left me inspired by the potential of travel. I took a long term road trip across the Western United States when I was 16 with an adult cousin, my twin sister, and my cousin’s young daughter. It lasted just a month but it was life changing to go from the subtle beauty of New England to the in-your-face beauty of the West. After that experience, I always wanted to go on another one.
Read MoreMADAGASCAR BY JEFF MCALLISTER
As part of our Frequent Flyer series, we post follow up stories from previously spotlighted travelers. Jeff is one of those rare and interesting people who is able to seamlessly balance being both creative and scientific. He has spent several years traveling the world (from Peru to Bangladesh), and is passionate about photojournalism as well as education. In his previous feature, he shared some of his experiences teaching abroad in Kenya and Thailand, while speaking to his love for taking portraits of the people he meets during his trips. Now he's back to speak to some of his recent experiences traveling throughout Madagascar and the importance of connecting with a country’s people to better experience its culture.
When we last spoke I was literally in the air, midway between Vancouver and Peru, where I was headed to shoot portraits as the recipient of Passion Passport’s fourth The Bucket List Initiative grant.
Read MoreEXPLORING AYITI WITH SIMON RUSSELL
As part of our Frequent Flyer series, we post follow up stories from previously spotlighted travelers. Simon is a professional photographer that has traveled extensively; visiting intriguing locations like Morocco, Ireland, Borneo, and New Zealand to name a few. In his previous feature, he shared his experiences traveling throughout Ireland, documenting its beautiful landscapes and long-standing traditions. Now he's back to shed light on the beauty that exists within Haiti and what he thinks other visitors can do to contribute to the country's economic redevelopment.
Haiti had been on my radar for several years. One of my friends is the founder of Cine Institute, located in Jacmel, and had been visiting the country for about 25 years. It was through his documentaries that I was first exposed to Haitian culture.
Read MoreTEACHING IN THAILAND BY MEG ROGERS
Hi! I’m Megan, a 27-year-old writer and photographer currently living in Bangkok, Thailand and teaching kindergarten at a trilingual school. I love traveling for the quirks and surprises that come with immersing yourself in a culture that is different from your own. Also, this world is pretty dang beautiful. My first true travel experience abroad was moving to Breda, The Netherlands. I went to university there for a year and saw a lot of Europe. It’s no surprise that wandering Europe really stirred that wanderlust in me. When I chose Southeast Asia as my next destination, I knew I needed some sort of income to be able to support myself, and teaching is a popular choice here. I love kids, and as difficult as it was to jump right into having my own class of 20+ three/four year olds, it’s been wonderful.
Read MoreBACKPACKING AFRICA BY JON COLLINS
My name is Jon Collins and I am a keen explorer originating from a small town on the north coast of New South Wales, Australia. After studying in Sydney I have converted very much into an urbanite, working as a sustainability consultant in the city and adventuring into nature as much as possible in my free time. After growing up in a small town, I had a need to understand what existed in different corners of the planet. I spent my time trawling through National Geographic magazines and looking over an atlas, trying to understand how life could differ so greatly across oceans, on top of mountains, deep in jungles and on sweeping desert sands. My inspiration to travel is to understand the similarities and differences of human life across geographical scale; absorbing as much information about humankind whether it is race, religion, culture or cuisine. At the end of the day, we are all human, and the beauty of travel is those small moments when you are able to see a glimpse into someone else’s world which you once thought was so different, but see just how similar it is to your own.
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