About

  ABOUT

I love to journey. For me, it’s not enough just to “travel”. I want to build life experiences that enhance, engage, enrich and even sometimes enrage. A good journey does that, in both physical and imaginary worlds. Sometimes you find things on a journey. Sometimes you lose them. Sure, I’ve traveled a lot. I learned to ride a bicycle in Amsterdam, scuba dive in Boracay and surf in Santa Cruz. I’ve cuddled pandas in Western China and floated through Borneo’s orangutan country on a “just made” handmade raft. I’ve lived in Paris and Manhattan and Shanghai, learning their languages and losing myself in their streets.

But when I am on a journey, I see the world with fresher eyes~ as one big delicious wide open Saturday full of possibilities. How to spend this time? What might I learn? Who might I meet? Where might it lead? Life will be richer when I rest my head on a pillow and close my eyes tonight.

Friends have been after me for years to share my journeys. I have a knack for finding the authentic places to eat, stay and play. The goal is to become part of the place, even if only for a weekend. I usually include our kids, but I am not into the usual kid trips. I seek experiences that are equally engaging for us all. Our kids love to be with us when we’re open and excited and learning and sometimes struggling to find our way alongside them.

I imagine my sons when they’re older, smiling and saying: “Remember that look Mom used to get when we hit the road?” These moments are the best~ breaking from roles, routines and assumptions about how things ought to be, launched out into the world, together.

So, here it is: a collection of very personal journeys with place guides and reviews. Because good journeys always include friends (life-long or brand new), I’ve asked some friends of Map and Muse to join me. We’re only going to share the really good stuff – the not to miss places. And sometimes, we’ll just tell you about cool people that we meet along the way. Or fashion, art, architecture or live music. Or maybe we’ll just float a daydream. Who knows?

xx