Matt Long -- Landlopers

An experiential luxury traveler at heart, Matt Long shares his adventures with thousands of readers every day through his award winning site LandLopers.com. I’ve followed him on Twitter for a while now and love everything he shares and creates; where to go, what to see and how to experience it all—he’s nonstop with great advice. Based in Washington, DC, Matt has been to more than 95 countries and all 7 continents. He also hosts his new, weekly podcast Explore the World Travel Podcast. (I told you. He doesn’t stop!)

1.     What were you initially searching for in your travels? Have you found it?

I’ve always had a very strong compulsion to see the world, ever since I was a very young child. I don’t think I’m looking for anything in particular, rather it’s a need to satiate my inherent curiosity. 

2.     What has your journey taught you about yourself? What has it taught you about other people?

That it’s just that, a journey or evolution. Traveling to different spots around the world has taught me that the vast majority of people are basically good and that we all want the same things out of life. Whether you’re a tribesman in Tanzania or a stock broker in New York, everyone wants the best life they can live and for their loved ones to be safe and happy. Once we understand that, then the world starts to look a whole lot different. 

3.     What ideas about travel did you once have that have been proven wrong?

I don’t think I fully understood just how impactful the travel experience can be. Sure, it’s about seeing new things and visiting different spots, but it’s also an intensely personal experience. We always grow and improve as a result of the travel experience, whether it’s a very short trip or an epic journey. 

4.     What would you say to someone who says they’re content with staying where they are, or are even anxious about going somewhere new?

Travel is personal, there is no right or wrong. If someone is dead set against going anywhere, that’s up to them. I don’t want them to feel bad about their preferences. However, if someone is thinking about traveling but is hesitant or unsure, I would definitely encourage them to at least take the first step. Plan a long weekend somewhere and then see how they like it. We only learn by doing and we all have to start somewhere.

5.     What do you want the people who follow you to come away knowing? Feeling?

I started my site in large part to help inspire people; to help them get over their fears and inhibitions and do what makes them the happiest. If I can do that for just one person, then I would be very satisfied. 

6.     Where is your happy place, and why?

Ultimately it’s at home. While I love to travel, I equally love being at home with my partner and dogs. I call myself a traveling homebody and I need both in equal amounts.

For more from Matt, check out http://www.landlopers.com
Twitter: @landlopers
Instagram: @landlopers
iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/explore-the-world-travel-podcast/id1451978706
Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/6NJha0frJZNg0TXfObmFlB

Annette White -- Bucket List Journeys for All

Annette White is on a mission. Like many, her journey began with a realization: severe anxiety was limiting what she knew deep down should be a more fulfilling life. After 20 years of missed opportunities, she promised herself never to let fear make a decision for her, and to start living her bucket list. Now, she is an experience collector, blogger, author and restaurant owner living her personal bucket list. Her site, https://bucketlistjourney.net/ , is loaded with tips, lists, inspiration and some quirky travel fun to get you going. I recently enjoyed her post, How to Make a Travel Itinerary: Creating the Perfect One for Your Next Trip and think you will too.

1. What were you initially searching for in your travels? Have you found it?  

Not only did I want to see the world, but also wanted to expand the boundaries of my comfort zone—to become less fearful of living my dream of living my bucket list. This happens with every new experience I have, with every new city I step foot in and with every new person I meet along the way. I wouldn’t say that I am now completely fearless, though my comfort bubble has grown exponentially and I now know that I am a stronger woman than I ever thought. 

2.     What has your journey taught you about yourself? What has it taught you about other people?

The most important thing this journey has taught me about myself is that my passion is undoubtedly for having new experiences. I love trying anything for the first time! I have also learned  that inspiring others is almost more rewarding than completing a goal and that writing doesn’t have to be a God-given gift, but can be a learned talent.

I have learned about people that even with the many different cultures and traditions around the world, we are all similar in so many ways. We all want to be happy, nurture our families, fall in love and have a sense of security. All this makes it less intimidating to form a connection or just simply have a conversation.

3.     What ideas about travel did you once have that have been proven wrong?

There is a false perception that you need to be rich to travel, which simply is not true. I know dozens of travelers who live off of less than ten thousand dollars a year and travel every day of their lives. Being driven by their passion, they found unique ways to make it happen. They may use couch surfing sites for their lodging, earn extra money teaching English classes abroad, or survive off of economical street food for their meals. I am not saying that everyone has to be that extreme, it’s just an example of the lengths people will go to follow their dream. 

Of course travel will take some money and you may have to make some sacrifices (say good-bye to expensive frilly cocktails at trendy lounges), but it may not be as much as you think depending on where and when you go and the way you travel. A plane ticket can be bought strictly on rewards points and hotels can be secured cheaply with loyalty programs, plus every destination has free attractions to see. The trick is to use the savings techniques that professional travelers use and create a financial plan. 

4.     What would you say to someone who says they’re content with staying where they are, or are even anxious about going somewhere new?

The benefits of going somewhere new has the ability to push you to step outside your comfort zone and each time you try something for the first time you will grow—a little piece of the fear of the unknown is removed and replaced with a sense of empowerment. 

Also, don’t make the mistake of thinking it’s not worth even beginning any goal (no matter what it is!) if you are only able to make a small start. If your goal is completing a marathon, put on your running shoes and walk around the block. If it is learning how to speak Italian, memorize one word a day or even a week. Every accomplishment starts with one single step; it doesn’t matter how big or small, as long as you are making the effort to move forward. 

Creating these types of baby steps is especially helpful when you are trying to tackle a major trip. It is less daunting to focus on each small task, plus you will get a confidence boost with each little milestone reached, as you will realize that you are one step closer to your goal. When you are looking at the big picture in its entirety, it can seem overwhelming and intimidating, which can promote procrastination. Breaking it down into bite-sized pieces and concentrating on each one individually makes it seem more doable. 

5.     What do you want the people who follow you to come away knowing? Feeling?

It is not only important to me to live my very best life, but it’s also important to be able to share what I have learned so others can live theirs and tackle their bucket list—one checkmark at a time. I hope in some way they will be inspired to create their dream life, by picturing their ideal future and then taking the steps necessary to go out there and get it.

6.     Where is your happy place, and why?

I am happiest whenever I am having a new experience, so technically my happy place can be almost anywhere in the world. With that said, I find such a sense of peace being out amongst nature. So, if I had to pick a place it’d be on the tippy top of a mountain at sunset. 

For more from Annette, visit https://bucketlistjourney.net

Twitter: @bucketlistjrny

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BucketListJourney

Instagram: @bucketlistjourney

Keith and Tina Paul--Retire Early and Travel

Keith and Tina Paul saw a different life for themselves after retirement. They saw retirement differently too. And now, from their home in Cuenca, Ecuador, they run a fantastic blog (RetireEarlyandTravel) and business that provides tools to help people retire earlier, and use their time and money to travel. I love their perspective and commend them on the work they’re doing. To me, they are certainly Modern Explorers.

1.         What were you initially searching for in your travels?  Have you found it?

We were both born with wanderlust.  Our goal is to see as much of the world as possible, to explore as many cultures as possible and to meet interesting people from around the world.  We have been to some great places, experienced wonderful cultures and met some extraordinary people but we have a long journey ahead of us if we are to see the world.  We are probably one-sixth of the way there!

2.         What has your journey taught you about yourself?

Travel has taught us that we are much more capable of practicing patience.  When you travel a lot, you have to have patience. 

3.          What has it taught you about other people?

As we travel, we see that basically, people are the same no matter where they live, what language they speak or how they dress.  People around the world are good people. They love life, and they hold their families close to their heart.  We would also say that most people are curious.  Especially when you visit a faraway land.  People are always curious as to why you chose their country to visit.  Most of the people we have met traveling are proud of their country and want to be a good representation of its people. 

4.     What ideas about travel did you once have that have been proven wrong?

That travel was hard especially due to language barriers.  This is simply not true.  First, many more people than you think speak English, but for the times when there is no English, there is Google Translator.  The app works great.  When that is not available there is always miming and sign language, the universal language of all humans! 

5.     What would you say to someone who says they’re content with staying where they are or are even anxious about going somewhere new?

We have faced that with Keith’s mom.  She says why do you need to travel when there is the Travel Channel on TV?  We explain that seeing things for yourself is so different.  We love watching and reading about travel for inspiration, but that experience pales in comparison to being there yourself.  Different parts of the world have unique smells, and the air feels different.  These are things you can’t experience reading or watching TV.  Then there is also food.  Different states in the US use different seasonings relative to their location, and the same is true for countries.  As far as anxiety goes, until you do it once, the anxiety will be there.  Maybe start slow.  Travel to a city a few hours away and stay at a hotel, take in the sites and have a meal out.  The next time you can travel to a nearby state or province, and before you know it, you will be a world traveler. 

6.     What do you want the people who follow you to come away knowing? Feeling?

We want people to know that time is not infinite.  We left great careers early so that we could have more time to spend with the people who matter most to us and TO SEE THE WORLD!  We feel that things come and go in our life, but our memories last forever.  We collect memories, not things.  We want people to know it is not difficult to retire early.  It just takes some planning.  There is so much more to life than work.  We want to inspire others to travel and collect memories too!  Lastly, we know change is difficult but we want people to feel the courage and strength to try something new. 

7.     Where is your happy place, and why?  We have lots of happy places. Aside from being with our families, then we are probably happiest walking the streets of a new city or having a glass of wine in an unfamiliar place. 

Learn more from Keith and Tina at RetireEarlyandTravel.com. You can also follow them on Twitter and Facebook at @retireearlyandtravel

Tiffany Dowd -- The Art of Luxury Travel

While I am most at peace wondering through the woods, I do like a little luxury every now and then. Which is why I’m such a fan of Tiffany Dowd (aka “Luxe Tiffany”) and have enjoyed following her travels for years.

Tiffany is a global luxury hotel expert, Founder & President of Luxe Social Media, and a contributing luxury travel writer to various publications including The Telegraph, USA Today and US News & World Report.

She’s been named the top voice in luxury travel and was recently listed as one of the Top 25 Most Influential People in Luxury Digital to Follow. (And for good reason! Her posts will always inspire you to seek something new.)

She is frequently quoted as a luxury travel expert in Forbes, Luxury Daily and other recognized publications. And her company, Luxe Social Media advises global luxury travel brands on social media marketing and online strategy.

Now, she is also a participant in The Explorers’ Corner.

1. Starting big: You've created a vibrant online presence while traveling the world, no small feat! What drives you? 

I have been fortunate throughout my career to have had some incredible travel experiences. Travel inspires me to inspire others to travel. It is the best education anyone can have. It opens your eyes, transcends boundaries and brings our world together through a better understanding of cultures and people. 

2. You recently tweeted "Gratitude is the best Attitude." What was the first luxury destination or property you visited when you looked around and simply could not believe you were being paid to be there? 

As a former luxury hotel inspector, I have had the opportunity to see some amazing hotels and destinations. I can think back to being at the Wickaninnish Inn in Tofino, Canada, a beautiful Relais & Chateaux hotel set on Chesterman Beach watching the surfers and the waves crash, and having a moment of appreciation for such natural beauty in both the hotel and destination. It is in these moments that spurns my desire to inspire people to travel and have these experiences themselves. Luxury isn’t about gilded glamour. Luxury is about having an authentic experience with top service, beautiful accommodations and personalized moments. 

3. What is the most important action someone who is attempting to grow in the digital space can take?

Be authentic and don’t worry about what others will think. If you love something, share it. People want to follow those who share quality content, inspired and show a bit of personality. Be true to yourself. I have always followed this philosophy. I’m naturally a very positive person and want to be a glimmer of optimism and inspiration in someone’s day. 

4. How has the definition of "luxury travel" or "luxury hotel" changed from when you started to today? Where do you think it's heading? 

Luxury is no longer about just staying in a fancy hotel room with butler services. People want to feel good about traveling and have transformational experience – ones that will change them for the better when they return home. This can include local interaction or staying at hotel that adopts sustainable practices.

Tiffany’s Instagram

5: What is your proudest accomplishment in your professional life?

My proudest accomplishment has been creating Luxe Social Media. Back in 2009, I had an idea to promote luxury hotels globally through social media. At the time, I was one of the first people to create a business managing social media for luxury hotels. For the first time, small hotels could be on the same playing field marketing-wise as larger hotels with bigger budgets. I am grateful to this day to the luxury hotels who became my first clients almost 9.5 years ago at a time when not many people were doing social media. Today I continue to work with the world’s best hotels and resorts in the world on four continents. I also work with celebrities and high profile industry personalities. 

Bonus Question: Your Twitter profile ends with "animal rescuer." That's fantastic! Care to share a little about the animals? I am passionate about animal rescue. I want to encourage everyone to adopt and not shop. There are millions of wonderful animals waiting for good homes in animal shelters, and I am proud to be able to use my online voice to promote the welfare of animals. I do what I can when traveling to support local animal rescue organizations and encourage people to adopt animals. I also think it’s important to adopt senior animals. Six months ago, we adopted a 12 year old Maine Coon named Bell who was severely neglected before she was rescued. She’s one of many senior animals we’ve adopted. Today she lives in a loving home and is living her best life ever. #AdoptDontShop.

For more from Tiffany, find her at:

Website: Luxetiffany.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/luxetiffany/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LuxeTiffany

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/luxetiffany

Zach Brown -- Executive Director, Inian Islands Institute

*** Important Inspirational News! Zach and the Inian Islands Institute are teaming up with Alaskan author Kim Heacox (one of my favorite writers and people) to deliver an exclusive adult course into the heart of the Alaskan wilderness and into the science and solutions of climate change. CLICK HERE for details. I can’t overstate what a unique experience this will be. ***

Zach Brown grew up surrounded by the wilderness of Southeast Alaska.  With parents in the National Park Service, Zach had ample opportunity to explore the mountains and fjords of this region, experiences that gave him a lasting love of the natural world. 

His schooling took him from Alaska to Standford for his PhD, and onto the Arctic and Antarctic. Completing his studies in the spring of 2014, Zach set off on a 111-day/2,300-mile solo trek from Stanford to his home in Alaska, on foot and by kayak to raise money for his dream--a field school and non-profit organization based in the Alaskan wilderness. (Spoiler: he did it!) Now living in his hometown of Gustavus, he is working as executive director of the Inian Islands Institute, a non-profit organization dedicated to education, research, and environmental leadership in Southeast Alaska. 

Zach is one of the most driven people I've ever met, and I applaud him for his work in environmental education. 

1. Starting big: You've created one-of-a-kind institute in the Alaskan wilderness—no small feat! What drives you?  

During my graduate studies in the Arctic and Antarctic seas, I came face-to-face with the dramatic reality of climate change.  I also came face-to-face with a society almost wholly disconnected from the natural world.  I came to learn that these two realities were linked.

In a place like Inian Islands Institute, an incredibly remote, off-grid homestead on an island at the wildest edge of the continent, I believe people can connect deeply with the natural world – through adventure, science, and subsistence.  By exploring the wilds, observing them scientifically, and living off the land, we come to realize that we are intimately linked with the natural world.  Living locally reduces our carbon footprint, but more importantly, falling in love with the natural world inspires our young environmental leaders to fight for conservation and climate justice.  They say you only protect what you love, and you only love what you understand.  We seek to give students both knowledge of the natural world, and the passion to protect it.

2. Say that I'm interested in leaving my south Philly row home and moving to a remote homestead in Alaska, what are your three best pieces of advice? 

First, leave behind all your cotton clothing.  Hypothermia is a big concern up here – the laconic saying is “cotton kills.”  Oh, and get yourself a pair of Xtratuf boots, preferably the old Made in USA ones if you can find em.

Second, don’t be afraid to try new things, don’t be afraid to fail.  In the modern world, people work for money, then use money to buy all their services – food, water, electrical power, home building, and everything else.  Homesteading cuts out the middle man: you do those things yourself, rather than paying other people to do them.  This means you don’t need much money, but you also have a steep learning curve.  A homesteader friend of mine says “when we pay people to fix it for us, we pay to be dumber.”  Why not learn to do those things ourselves?  Another friend calls supermarkets “amnesia factories.”  Why not learn to grow our own food, reclaiming those skills and memories?  But you’ll never figure those things out without some failure.

Third, have fun.  Life is too short to spend all our time sitting at desks and cursing the traffic.  I believe there’s a better way out there.  And you don’t have to move all the way to bush Alaska to find it.

3. What would you consider your biggest accomplishment? Biggest failure? From both experiences, what did you learn? 

Biggest accomplishment, hiking and kayaking 2,300 miles solo up the Pacific Northwest coast, from Stanford University, California to Inian Islands, Alaska, in 111 days.  From this, I learned that happiness is other people.

Biggest failure, letting my relationships with friends and family stagnate (and in some cases end) while I worked so hard and traveled the country to raise funds for Inian Islands Institute.  From this, I learned that familial support is just as important as financial support – I truly need both in my life.

4. What advice do you have for young people interested in environmental education? What common advice should they ignore? 

Fall in love with the world.  There’s so much beauty still here, but our senses have been numbed to it, and our spirits have been estranged from it.  Having profound experiences in the more-than-human world is incredibly curative for our bodies and our minds.  Most importantly, it fuels our environmental passions, to fight for what we love.

Those of us who grow up in families, communities, and cultures that care about the health of the planet’s living systems face deep, deep challenges that threaten to crush our spirits.  As we watch environmental tolls mount, it’s tempting to say that humans are a cancer on the world, and many people do.  That’s the advice I’d tell you to ignore. 

People are beautiful.  We have beautiful bodies, beautiful minds, beautiful creativity.  But we happen to live in a culture and a moment in history when our relationship with the natural world has been broken, and our system celebrates corporate profits over human and environmental well-being.  You caring students out there – you are not the enemy.  You are beautiful.  The enemy is a system that allows oil companies to reap billions of dollars in profit while they destroy our climate and sow confusion and denial over the issue, while disadvantaged communities live in poverty and face climate change impacts.  Fight against that system.  Do not berate yourself: believe in your own beauty, and that of the world.

5. What can you not travel without? 

The old green Kelty backpack I inherited from my mom.  Oh yeah, and earplugs. Gotta get good sleep wherever you end up!

LEARN MORE ABOUT ZACH AND THE INIAN ISLANDS INSTITUTE AT INIANISLANDSINSTITUTE.COM AND LIKE THEM ON FACEBOOK. 

Inian Islands Institute. Rather remote, wouldn't you say?

Alizé Carrère - National Geographic Explorer, Driven to Help Communities Adapt to Climate Change.

Alizé Carrère is a National Geographic Explorer researching and documenting climate change adaptation in practice. Raised in a treehouse in Ithaca, New York, her childhood primed her for a unique perspective on what it means to innovate and adapt in response to environmental change. She completed her a B.A. at McGill University in Environmental Sciences and International Development and an M.Sc. in Bioresource Engineering also at McGill. During this time, she lived in the Middle East working on water resource management and electronic waste between Israel and Palestine.

In 2012, Alizé received support from National Geographic to conduct research in Madagascar, where she spent several months uncovering an unlikely agricultural adaptation in response to severe deforestation. She continues to spearhead research on innovative adaptations to climate change, and is working with a film team on a web series that highlights the remarkable resilience of the human species. The first episode, documenting community adaptations to sea level rise in Bangladesh, won Best Short Film at the New York Wild Film Festival and the Norman Vaughan Indomitable Spirit Award at Telluride Mountainfilm Festival.

This fall, Alizé will be moving to Miami to pursue her PhD at University of Miami’s Abbess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy.

1. Starting big. What drives you? 

I’m driven by gaining perspective in life. I wrote something about this some time ago, and ended up using it on the homepage of my website. I find it exhilarating when I learn something new that broadens my horizons or stretches my mind in a way I didn’t think possible. That’s why I love to travel. The more data points you have in life, on different people, cultures, places or ideas, the harder it becomes to judge and shut out the world around you. It builds empathy and makes you challenge assumptions. It’s also a lot of fun.

I’m getting ready to pursue my PhD this fall because there’s something about being a student, or being in the pursuit of knowledge, that’s central to this idea. I think we should all spend more time in the position of the learner, not the learned. The desire for greater perspective, and subsequently sharing what I’ve seen or learned, is what drives me personally and professionally. Some of the people who have the greatest perspective on earth are astronauts. There’s extensive literature out there on the feeling they get when they look back at earth from space and see how fragile and alone we are. It’s called the overview effect. We can’t all go to space of course, but I’m interested in the ways in which we can access that feeling from here on earth. I don’t have the answer, but I suspect it involves a lot of what I’ve described above – travel, conversation, being willing to learn, connecting with others. I really believe the world would be much more empathetic and collaborative place.

2. What is the most incredible place you've visited? Why?

I get this question a lot, and the answer changes every time! I don’t think there’s one place alone that can take that title for me, because I find that much of what makes an incredible place is the mind set you’re in, the people you’re with, or what it represents for you at that particular moment in your life. But speaking strictly in terms of geography or landscape, two places come to mind. Internationally, South Georgia island. There was nothing like arriving along the shores of a remote island in Antarctic waters with hundreds of thousands of King penguins and Elephant seals and Fur seals to greet you (none of whom are afraid of you, I might add). Domestically, White Sands National Monument in New Mexico is still my absolute favorite. I camped there overnight during a lightning storm with a friend one summer, and it felt like we were sleeping on the surface of the moon. It was spectacular.

3. What would you consider your biggest accomplishment? Biggest failure? From both experiences, what did you learn? 

My biggest accomplishment would have to be the adaptation project I’ve been working on for the last 5 years of my life. I got interested in human adaptations to climate change about 6 years ago, and I started to collect stories of people around the world who were developing interesting solutions to live with it. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with those stories, but I found them deeply inspiring in the midst of all the environmental doom and gloom. I have since led several field expeditions to research those stories, and I’m turning the project into a digital series. I’m now looking at designing an accompanying educational curriculum so that it can be used as a tool in classrooms. I knew nothing about film, media, educational models or public speaking when I started, but I believed in the project so much that I pushed into all of those spaces with a great deal of curiosity and ambition. It’s taken a while to come together, and the process hasn’t been perfect of course, but I’m proud of what it’s become (and still becoming, it’s very much a work in progress). People often ask how I got into filmmaking, or media, or education, and they’re surprised when I say that I just jumped into it. 

“I think a lot of people are timid about starting something they don’t have experience or some kind of training in. I can tell you with certainty that I would not be where I am today if I had let those fears rule my decision making or creative processes.”

As far as failure goes, I’m not sure there’s much in my life I’d classify as an outright failure - that feels like a strong word. There have definitely been road bumps along the way, and I have arguably learned more from those situations than from my successes. When things go wrong it forces you to critically look at the situation and ask yourself, where did this derail? What could I have done differently? How could this be mitigated in the future? We don’t do that when things pan out well, and yet it’s a highly valuable exercise for personal or professional growth. It pushes you to be more self-aware.

4. What advice do you have for young people interested in your field? What common advice should they ignore? 

My strongest piece of advice to young people, in my field or not, is to build personal connections, to follow up and to follow through with others, and to pick up the phone and call someone instead of sending an email (or even better, make an in-person visit). These sound like basic reminders, but all three seem like increasingly uncommon practices in the digital age in which we live. So when you do actually do these things, you stand out from the masses. Some of the most valuable people in my life became mentors because I was pleasantly persistent about staying in touch, and I made an effort to build a personal relationship. Of course, there are also major benefits to the digital and hyper connected world we live in. You can reach out to virtually anyone on email or social media, because we’re all on those platforms now. Don’t be afraid to send a message to someone you don’t know if you want to collaborate, learn more, or ask for an informational interview. You’d be surprised at what kinds of responses you might get back. I make a point to respond to any direct message on my social media accounts from young people I don’t know, because I remember how excited I’d get when someone would write me back when I was starting out. We all know we’re on our phones and Twitters and Instagrams multiple times a day, so I think you’re just an asshole if you don’t. Take advantage of that new reality! You have nothing to lose.

5. What can you not travel without? 

Chapstick and noise canceling headphones. Airplanes are loud places these days.

Bonus Question: Lions or Elephants, and why? 

Elephants, all the way. I’ll never forget the first time I came in close contact with an elephant. I was at an elephant sanctuary in Jaipur, India and got to spend the entire day with a female elephant who was 12 months pregnant (only halfway through their gestation!). She was rescued from the circus after having been badly abused. She was blind in one eye. As I was walking up to her I felt an overwhelming nervousness – my palms got clammy, my heart started racing. But not because I was afraid! In that moment I felt like I was in the presence of a creature so wise and intelligent that I just felt like an incredibly inferior mammal. It was as if I was hoping for her acceptance or approval. God knows our species has done atrocious things to hers. It all sounds silly as I write it, but that’s the only way I can describe the feeling. When you look into an elephant’s eye you just know someone’s home, except that the occupant feels like a 105-year old shaman who understands the world and everyone’s place in it. I had never felt something that profound before, face-to-face with another animal.

Learn more about Alizé at AlizeCarrere.com and follow her adventures on Instagram at @alizecarrere.  

Kike Calvo - National Geographic Photographer, Journalist, Children's Book Author

Award-winning photographer, bilingual journalist and author, Kike Calvo has been published in dozens of international outlets. He is represented by National Geographic Creative. He also works as a National Geographic Photography Expert for National Geographic and Lindblad Expeditions, where I was first introduced to him. 

1. Starting big: You're involved in so many different ventures that require a ton of energy and focus. What drives you? 

Passion and love for what I do. One of my biggest gifts in life was my ability to find my love for the world and its diversity at a young age, after my fathers death at an early age. I soon transitioned from economics, my initial formal background, to document the world and all its unique stories, camera in hand. I soon understood that our presence on this earth is a gift, and should never be taken for granted. More recently, the birth of my daughter Pilar, now three. 

She has transformed myself as a human and as a professional. She inspired me  to start developing a bilingual children book series, Little Explorer, Big World, with the aim of empowering young girls to pursue their dreams. We have currently launched a GoFund me site (www.littleexplorerbigworld.com) for those willing to pre-order the first children book or support the cause. The idea is to print additional copies, so I can give away books on my travels around the world. Also, while I continue with my regular activities with National Geographic Expeditions and Lindblad Expeditions, and my work being represented by National Geographic Creative, I decided to follow a hunch. For years I had been documenting Colombia. A country quite complex to understand, but that has given me so much at different levels. Driven by my love for this country, I started Colombia Photo Expeditions (www.colombiaphotoexpeditions.com), specialized in developing logistics, workshops and photo tours for international travel companies and photographers, who are interested in operating in the country. Using the connections I developed over the years and a deep field knowledge,  we are already successfully helping key people in the industry in their pursues down there.

2. What would you consider your biggest accomplishment? Biggest failure? From both experiences, what did you learn?

My biggest accomplishment has always been able to Never Stop Dreaming. Believing that with hard work, education and time, I could become a professional photographer, conducting photo assignments from clients globally, complementing it with helping travelers experience their adventures, helping them become immersed with the local cultures and become a catalyzer in their photo activities, amateurs or professionals. Turning my biggest challenges such as a strong accent, a Spanish origin and a lack of local network into my biggest assets, being able to navigate between the US and Latin American cultures and markets at ease. 

The list of failures will probably take several of your mailings. So I would just say I have learned to truly care about people and their own "worlds", no matter their position in society. Believing that everyone is the same no matter their color, ethnicity and religion. And probably my biggest lesson from all the failures is that certain dreams take time and hard work to blossom. Falling and starting all over until they come true as many times as needed. Never loosing hope or the ability to dream. 

3. What advice do you have for young people interested in becoming a professional photographer? What common advice should they ignore? 

To get an education beyond photography. Understanding that accounting, business and all the other topics that people never talk about are as important as the artsy part of the equation.  That Inspiration and creativity are key, but hard work and the ability to pitch projects and make them happen from start to finish, are as valuable at the creative process itself.  Being able to look back, learn from old mistakes and constantly evolved, specially in a changing world and industry.

Looking back at my own career, the odds of becoming a professional photojournalist were slim. In the beginning, I never had real mentors, and I encountered never ending obstacles to move forward. Many suggested me to do something else or spoke about the impossibility of making it happen. It is not an easy lifestyle or career, but its probably one of the most fulfilling ones, allowing us to document the human kind and experiencing its many stories. My advise, is to listen to advise, but remember that in the end, someone needs to do the job. 

“I would encourage younger people to look at those whom they admire, and beyond their work, study how they implemented their lives and logistics. ”

4. What can you not travel without? (Besides camera and lens)

I always travel with a small notebook, and more recently I have started sketching. I keep a diary of all my adventures and lessons. Everyday at the end of the day while on location, I sit down in my room, and I sketch, take notes and use watercolors to create fun entries into my travel journal. My first logged expedition was a trip that I participated as a National Geographic Photo Expert on a Lindblad Expeditions departure to Costa Rica and Panama, but many other destinations have followed.

For more on Kike, visit KikeCalvo.com.

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Jill Cruse - VP of Guest Experience for Olivia Travel, OWN Ambassador

As VP of Guest Experience for Olivia Travel for 29 years, Jill Cruse has helped thousands of women become inspired by the world around them. She serves as an OWN Ambassador, promoting the Oprah network via social media and has appeared as a special guest on Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday. Jill is also an avid photographer (took home a first-place win in a national competition for InterContinental Hotels/National Geographic!).

I knew Jill for years through email and coordinated voyages for her groups. But I was so taken by her spirit and passion after meeting her in person that I had to reach out and invite her to the Explorers' Corner.

1. Starting big: You've traveled the world and have overseen guest experience for Olivia Travel for 29 years. That takes an incredible amount of energy and passion. What drives you? 

Gratitude! Every morning I say "Thank you" for getting to do something I love.  I am incredibly grateful for this work I get to do. I know that we change the world a little bit at a time when we do these trips. Whether it’s changing the life of our guest to have an experience they might not have had or to change the perception of our group with the staff and crew we work with, or with the people we meet in the countries we visit. The icing on the cake is that I get to travel the world. I take a lot of pride in serving our guests and making sure their experience and expectations are met.

2. What would you consider your biggest accomplishment? Biggest failure? From both experiences, what did you learn? 

Honestly, I never really have thought about this, and I struggled with an answer! My entire life I view as an accomplishment because I have lived it with passion. From that, my photography has become pretty good. I've won a few awards, and I've used my photos in our marketing materials and shared my photos on FB so that others who cannot travel can vicariously travel with me.  I can name drop and tell you I know Oprah, met with her 5 times and was on a Super Soul Sunday episode with her and don Miguel Ruiz, which was a great accomplishment and I hope inspired others. But really, I feel that anything that had to do with helping a young girl or even a guest feel better about who she is I think is a great accomplishment – Having been a camp counselor and camp director, coach and now my present job of VP-Guest Experience accomplishes this every day.  

“I don’t think we really have failures.  We make mistakes, or stay at a job (or in relationships) too long that do not make us happy. We lose people we love and get our hearts broken. We move to a new place, and have no friends or support system. We can find ourselves alone and afraid.  Did I do the right thing? But as I look back on my life, I am grateful for all of it, because it lead me to my passion and made me who I am today.  They were all learnings and completely meant to be. ”

One example was that I was fired once from a private school teaching job.  They wanted me to teach something that I was not trained to teach, and they basically gave me a babysitting job after school for K-12. I was fired, but I quickly learned to be grateful it happened as I decided I would never do a job that I didn’t enjoy or feel good about. I never really worried about failures as it does not define who I am. I moved to San Francisco and changed jobs for a relationship that ended two weeks after I made the move. I mean, c'mon!  Really? But had I not moved here, I would not have had the job I presently have. I'm completely grateful for that! If that's a failure, then bring them on!

3. What advice do you have for young people interested in the travel industry? What common career advice should they ignore? 

I didn’t start out thinking I would work for the travel industry and have this dream job for the last 29 years, so unfortunately, I can’t come from a place of “You should take this class, or work at this place”. I would say make sure your intentions are pure. Is it something that feeds your soul, makes you happy and serves others? Or is it just because you want to travel? I have seen some great Travel Agents who really serve their clients well, and get the perk of travel, and I have seen others in it just so they can get free travel. Be pure with your intentions.

“Dream big. Don’t worry about where the money will come from, how it will happen or when. Then WRITE IT DOWN. ”

My experience is a spiritual one, and I am presently writing a book about this journey. When I was 22, I wrote down in a journal that I wanted to travel the world, experience different cultures, do something to empower women and use my photography in my work. I had no idea what that would look like or how I would get there.  At the end I wrote “and how cool would it be to work for an all-women’s company like Olivia, which at the time was an Women’s Record Company (Independent label) and later became a travel company. This is where I presently workt. At the time I was a camp counselor and was about to start teaching High School Physical Education and coaching. So I am not even doing what I went to school for – most people I know are not. I truly believe I set that intention in motion when I wrote it down, with the Universe or God, whatever you believe, on that day. From there I lived my life doing my best at whatever I was doing, and moving on when it was not feeding my soul.

In short, my advice is to think about what in life you really want.  Dream big. Don’t worry about where the money will come from, how it will happen or when. Then WRITE IT DOWN. Your job is then to do whatever you are presently doing with love and passion, work hard at it, do your best, pursue what makes you happy and when it doesn’t, make an exit plan. Don’t settle, whether it's work or a relationship.  Good things always happen and work out when we take big risks.  That is, giving up something that may feel secure (home, job, health insurance, financial reasons). Go for what will make you happy and nurture your spirit. Figure out what you have to do for the money part, even if it's just scraping by and taking a part time minimum wage job. I quit a good paying, Community Services Supervisor recreation job at the age of 31. I liked it, but I could not see myself being there forever. I was no longer passionate about it. I looked at the parts I liked about it, like the creative side of making flyers, and decided to pursue computer graphic design. I took out all of my 401K to go back to school to learn computer graphics, and had enough to live on for 6 months.  It may not have been the smartest thing to do, but I loved this new chapter in my life and the possibilities. This risk lead me to a freelance graphic design job at the company I now work for. Having the right last name to be a Cruise Director actually worked out. The point is, all my experiences and the risks I took lead me here. That's another story and chapter in my book!  Trust that the money will come, but we have to sometimes make those sacrifices and just trust it will all work out in the end.  Because this I know for sure.  It always does.

4. Kodak Scenario: you're given the last roll of Kodachrome and can go anywhere to use it. Where do you go and what do you shoot? 

Great Question! I love nature photography, and I have two dreams, so I'll take 1/2 a roll in each place :-). I've been to Antarctica 4 times, but never made it to South Georgia. So my dream is to make it to South Georgia and photograph the King Penguins and Tonga and swim with and photograph the Humpback whales.   

5. What can you not travel without? 

Besides my camera, good coffee!

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