Hola Family and Friends,

The day has finally come!! It is 12 am and in about 5 ½ hours I will be boarding a plane to Guatemala on a one way ticket with my two younger sisters, Kelli and Kailynn. I am not sure where the road will exactly lead us, but I do know that I could not be more excited and ready to go! It has been a long time coming, and it is just about time for me to get a little lost.

For the first weeks of our trip, all three of us will be venturing through the country with our backpacks in tow. After that, my youngest sister, Kailynn, and I will be heading down to Peru to work for a while until the wind blows us somewhere else or we get kicked out of the country. I guess whatever comes first.

It is a bit surreal to say the least and I can’t stop my mind from racing about the unknown. I am anxious, scared, excited, and most of all READY. Ready to explore; ready to learn; ready to discover; and ready to get on the plane FINALLY. 

I am sure this trip will be one that is filled with both exciting adventures (a.k.a- fending off some crazy mosquitos), as well as some personal discovery (a.k.a- learning how to keep track of important docs/ speaking Spanish…), but even with that being the case, these adventures are not what this blog is going to be about. I do not want to bore you with the typical “white girl” travel blog, but instead I want to introduce you to the people I meet along the way who inspire and bring a smile to your face.

Like any good book, TV show, or movie, the characters are what make the plot come alive; and I believe the same to be true with the people in our lives. People are the ones who challenge you, teach you, motivate you, and give you purpose. Without the people I meet, my story can only develop so much, and to be honest, it would be quite a dull read. So let the adventure begin and with my laptop in hand, I will try my best to keep you entertained with letters full of insight of the people around me and funny stories.

Inspired por you,

Kristen