On this episode I am joined by Alexandra Saper. Alexandra gave up a law career to travel the world, and to write about her experiences.
More information about Alexandra from her website: (thewayfaress.com)
"In short, I'm a Bali-based, former DC lawyer whose soul is set on fire by adventure, culture, and displays of beauty and creativity across the globe. My goal with this blog is to spotlight each of these things, celebrating little things in a big world.
But my story is a bit longer than that. . . .
When I was 15, I spent a summer studying French, fashion, and global issues at La Sorbonne in Paris, which was probably the official spark of my fiery wanderlust. So while many people go to Paris to find romance, my time in Paris made me fall in love something quite different: immersing myself in foreign cultures, getting to know the locals and the language, tasting all the foods I could get my hands on, and experiencing normal life outside the U.S.
Over the next ten years, I hungered for adventure, finding ways to travel, volunteer, and study overseas while my parents held their breath from Arizona. At 18 I spent a month volunteering at an orphanage in Haiti; at 19 I spent three and a half months on a solo backpacking trip around East Africa; and at 24 I embarked on a three month around-the-globe trip after graduating law school. I’ve traveled all around the world, to well over 30 countries, and have a bucket list a mile long. My guess is you do, too.
As the daughter of an artist, I am also a creative at heart, so I’ve tried to find ways to incorporate creativity into my travels. Whether that is through photography, fashion, home décor, cooking, or some other outlet, my style is always eclectic and always globally inspired. I’ll often bring home textiles and beads that I can make into clothing or jewelry, hunt for cultural objets d’art that can carry stories of different worlds into my home, and take about a zillion photos along the way. One of my favorite projects was working with women in Thailand to develop a line of silk clutch purses and support their efforts to combat the Thai sex trade.
I’ve always had so many different interests in life, but one thread exists through it all: I want to be known and I want to know the world around me. I want to be real and honest and I want to take the tougher messier road that leads to deeper connections. The Wayfaress captures all that I love from a real, raw, and global perspective – the travel, the photography, the story-telling, the relationships, the food – and all the good, bad, and humorous along the way."