My story
I hate making decisions. From choosing where to go out to dinner or deciding on what to wear, I can never make up my mind. Yet, the easiest decision I ever made was to move to a country that I’d never been to before, that spoke I language that I did not speak, and where I knew absolutely no one. Sounds insane, right? Feel free to think I’m crazy, it’s fine. Most people did at the time. But when I got the opportunity to move to Madrid, Spain and teach English for a year, I jumped on the opportunity. I figured it didn’t hurt to try a new profession at the age of 23, and thought it would cure my immense desire to travel. Now, flash forward five years, and I’m still in living in Madrid, and still using most of my free time (and money) to travel to incredible places all over the world.
72h Travels was born when I realized that I’d gotten pretty good at seeing cities in just three days. My work schedule allowed for three day weekends my first two years here (yes, I know I’m super lucky and spoiled), and I took advantage of that time to experience the places I’d always dreamt about visiting. Thinking I was only going to live in Spain for one year, I went absolutely crazy and visited 16 new countries in nine months. The past few years I’ve slowed down a bit, but have had the chance to visit 29 countries in total (still deciding where to go for number 30, so please comment where you think I should go!) and 120 cities.
After getting tons of messages from family and friends asking for European travel advice, I figured I should put all the information in one place: hence 72h Travels. If you’re traveling to a city for just three days, this is your blog! Even if you don’t have the ability to travel Europe in just 72 hours, my hope is that you can use my ideas as a starting point, or you can even combine itineraries of a few cities to make up a longer trip. I hope that you find my itineraries and stories useful as you plan your own 72h travels!
I hate making decisions. From choosing where to go out to dinner or deciding on what to wear, I can never make up my mind. Yet, the easiest decision I ever made was to move to a country that I’d never been to before, that spoke I language that I did not speak, and where I knew absolutely no one. Sounds insane, right? Feel free to think I’m crazy, it’s fine. Most people did at the time. But when I got the opportunity to move to Madrid, Spain and teach English for a year, I jumped on the opportunity. I figured it didn’t hurt to try a new profession at the age of 23, and thought it would cure my immense desire to travel. Now, flash forward three years, and I’m still in living in Madrid, and still using most of my free time (and money) to travel to incredible places all over the world.
72h Travels was born when I realized that I’d gotten pretty good at seeing cities in just three days. My work schedule allowed for three day weekends my first two years here (yes, I know I’m super lucky and spoiled), and I took advantage of that time to experience the places I’d always dreamt about visiting. Thinking I was only going to live in Spain for one year, I went absolutely crazy and visited 16 new countries in nine months. The past two years I’ve slowed down a bit, but have had the chance to visit 29 countries in total (still deciding where to go for number 30, so please comment where you think I should go!) and 120 cities.
After getting tons of messages from family and friends asking for European travel advice, I figured I should put all the information in one place: hence 72h Travels. If you’re traveling to a city for just three days, this is your blog! Even if you don’t have the ability to travel Europe in just 72 hours, my hope is that you can use my ideas as a starting point, or you can even combine itineraries of a few cities to make up a longer trip. I hope that you find my itineraries and stories useful as you plan your own 72h travels!
Fun facts about me!
Now you know that I tend to make some crazy, life-changing decisions and decided to start a blog (maybe this is one of those crazy decisions), but here are some other random facts about me so you can get to know me better:
- I love miniature schnauzers. There was always a schnauzer in my house growing up, and I hope that one day I can have one of my own.
- I became a certified SCUBA diver at the age of 12.
- I collect magnets from each new country I visit. I started getting them in each city, but the collection was growing too fast.
- I run a different half marathon every year. I’d say I like running half marathons, but I’m not sure I really do…but getting to run in different cities, and the feeling of accomplishment after the race is such a great feeling. So far I’ve run in Edinburgh, Madrid, and Berlin.
- Scandinavia is my favorite place to travel to (Norway in particular!). I annoy my friends tremendously by always talking about how amazing and beautiful Norway is (You should really go. It’s INCREDIBLE. You’ll love it).
- I’m not a picky eater at all, and am always willing to try something new.
- I still think there’s a chance I can become an Olympian. Right now I’m banking on curling or archery working out (I have absolutely no training in either curling or archery).
- Even though I live in a big city, I love nature and hiking. In Spain, I like to hike in La Pedriza, but my favorite hike of all was hiking to Trolltunga in Norway.
- I’m originally from Annapolis, Maryland. Yes, I do love Old Bay and crabs.
- I got my Bachelors degree in Communications with minors in Journalism and History from Wake Forest University (Go Deacs!) and my Masters degree in Teaching from the Universidad de Alcalá.