Ocean – Traveling Love Bug

In a world full of hate, it is easy to find kindness.

July 16, 2016July 16, 2016TravelingLoveBug

You hear it all the time, and I definitely wont be the first or last person to bring up what a sad time in history it is. With all of the darkness in the world, especially now, it’s hard to think love and kindness can be found in someone you do not know. A stranger, to be exact. We are all guilty of judging others. I unfortunately know I am, especially while traveling. It’s like you’re always second guessing yourself: Should I talk to that person? Will they like me? Are they nice? Will I be safe? Can they speak English? Can I say that one phrase I’ve been practicing well enough? Are they going to think I am a dumb American? These thoughts are normal, and a huge part of exploring abroad because traveling makes you vulnerable, and that is the beauty of it.

Traveling also causes you to get lost… a lot…which I highly recommend. Get lost willingly and purposely, get so crazy lost, you have no choice but to ask a local, and THEN find your way!! AND while you’re finding your way, you’ll find yourself, which ends up being the absolute best part.

Sean and I have been awe struck at how many times complete strangers have shown kindness to us while traveling abroad. Whether we asked, or not.

During our first extended travel trekking through Europe, we found kindness in Paris, and then it happened again and again and again.

Boating Day at Peanut Island, WPB, FL

June 22, 2014July 27, 2014TravelingLoveBug

Summer is my absolute favorite season in Florida. You may ask, isn’t it summer year round in Florida? Well, my answer for those curious love bugs out there is sorta. For Northerners it is; however, for the rest of us Floridians we know the real best time to be in Florida is October-March. So you may now be thinking, well wait a second here–you said your favorite season is summer? Yes, it still is, and I will explain why. Summer in Florida is like living out a perfect beach day for 3 months in a row year over year. The water is crystal clear because the sky is the bluest, and the sun is the highest. Our pools and beach water are the warmest they ever will be (due to the extreme heat, and lack of pool heaters obviously–who needs them in Florida?), and the roads are clear of snow birds! Another great perk of the summer time down South is the lack of restaurant waits on Friday and Saturday nights! Being a frequent restauranteur, I truly enjoy this one. Of course, please take no offense to you snowbirds out there, I too LOVE being in Florida from October-March because it is our best weather and sunsets. I joyfully welcome your touristy dollars to continue enriching our Floridian economy…just stop going 35 in a 45. Thank you. I spent last weekend in my hometown of West Palm Beach visiting my amazing father for Father’s Day. We had a great day boating to Peanut Island and hanging out by our pool. I am truly blessed to have such a great, hardworking role-model in my life. I have never met anyone who works harder than him. He loves us so much and lives to provide a fabulous life for his family. For those of you who know me personally, you know I am a huge daddy’s girl. My dad is one of my best friends, my biggest fan, and gives me the truest advice known to man. He also has an impeccable sense of charcter, and can sniff the sketchy ones out right away. I still have a lot of learning to do from this man, but if I turn out anything like him, I am guaranteed a life of happiness and success. I also acquired my love of photography and traveling from him. We have big dreams, and we go after them each and every time.

Amazing view pulling into GORGEOUS Peanut Island. #GoPro

What kind of Father's Day tribute would this be without an AWESOME throwback to circa 1990. — What kind of Father’s Day tribute would this be without an AWESOME throwback to circa 1990?

Living in a Summer Wonderland: Picnic Island, South West Florida!

June 11, 2014June 12, 2014TravelingLoveBug

Picnic Island is a gorgeous little place only accessible by boat just before the Sanibel Island bridge. I spent the day there with co-workers and enjoyed every second of it. One of the many wonderful things about living in Florida, is having the flexibility to enjoy fresh ocean air, sand between your toes, and warm ocean waters whenever you want! Life gets so busy and stressful these days! It is so important to take a step back and breath in all that life has to offer. Whether it is taking the time to be a tourist in your own town or visiting your favorite lunch spot over and over again, we have to strive to make the most out of this beautiful life we have been so graciously given. If we don’t, what is the point of living at all? Live it big, live it full, live it with people you truly love.

During season, Picnic Island is swarmed with tourists and locals alike looking for that middle of the ocean, islandy feel. You are not only guaranteed a fantastic picnic with great views, but you are right smack dab in the middle of a 3 in 1 ecosystem. Like I have stated so many times before, SWFL is an incredibly interesting place. We have beautiful sugar sand beaches, and not to far from that we have panthers, deer, bob cats, and black bears patrolling our forest like marsh! Within the 3 in 1 ecosystem, you have access to great views of the water and sandbar, mangroves and swampland, and trees you thought only existed up North. Enjoy our beautiful day venture through this fabulous island! Read more →

The beauty that is West Palm Beach, Fl & the Amazing Mother who lives there!

May 11, 2014May 11, 2014TravelingLoveBug

Hi Love Bugs,

I AM HOME. I AM HOME. I AM HOME. I love being home, and HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all of the amazing moms out there! I was born and raised in West Palm Beach, and it is truly one of the BEST places in Florida. The weather is sunny and warm, it is on the East Coast so you have beautiful blue waters, there is a ton going on, and it is close to Miami if you are craving that true metro feel. There is so much to do here–from beach life to shopping to night life, you can constantly stay busy. There is also a big boating community down here as well, and no surprise, I grew up on a boat. In fact, my first word was “pescado” (fish) in Spanish but I probably said it more like “pe-cao.” I have a deep passion for the ocean as if you didn’t know from this blog. The East Coast of Florida is known for its beautiful sunrises. I woke up early this morning to catch some photos on my GoPro, and boy was it a treasure. We found a gorgeous bluish purple jellyfish (yes, we have jellyfish here) and a capsized boat. I feel sorry for the owner. Genuine rookie mistake. The East Coast of Florida is also known for their huge Cuban community, and being from a big Cuban family, we had to stop at the Cuban bakery and pick up fresh Cuban bread, croquetas and pastelitos. DELICIOUS! I can’t find good Cuban food anywhere in Fort Myers! PS. Happy Mothers Day to all the wonderful mothers out there. I know I treasure and love the heck out of mine. Also, check out the flowers from my parent’s garden! The purple orchids were taken from my grandpa’s garden, but nonetheless, we were able to make a wonderful floral arrangement. Northing like home grown flowers! They are so beautiful.

DCIM100GOPRO — Hands down one of the most beautiful jellyfish I have seen in Florida in a long while! #GoPro

Fiji Day 1: BULA! We have made it to paradise!

April 16, 2014TravelingLoveBug

Hi Love Bugs,

I am watching the sunrise over the water as I type this. Our trip to SavuSavu, Fiji was quite the adventure. Our initial flight leaving Sydney was delayed 2 hours leaving us praying we wouldn’t miss our connection in Nadi. Fijians are so unbelievably nice and helpful. If it weren’t for the gracious staff at the Nadi airport, we would have missed the last flight. They held the plane for us and a family of 3 for 45 minutes! Can you believe that? That would never happen in the US. After we got to Nadi, we figured out exactly WHY they waited….it is quite funny because we made up nearly half the plane (Scroll down to see pictures). The flight from Nadi to SavuSavu was absolutely beautiful–the mountains, the reefs, the vibrant colors of the ocean. It was picturesque to say the least. Once we arrived to Namale, we truly found our hidden paradise. The resort is amazing, and the people are even more wonderful. We settled into our “burre,” tried Kava, and had a delicious dinner! This place is truly great.

Some pictures of our flight into SavuSavu (the reefs from above were just unbelievably gorgeous):

Australia Day 1: We made it!!!

April 6, 2014April 6, 2014TravelingLoveBug

Hi Love Bugs,

What a whirlwind the last 35 hours has been. I am happy to announce that I am safely back on land, but I must admit the 16 hour flight from Dallas to Brisbane was no where near as horrible as I thought it would be. International economy beats the crap out of US economy. While on the flight, I watched a bunch of premiere movies: The Book Thief, Twelve Years a Slave, and Delivery Man. I was impressed that the airline was able to broadcast such new movies. The food however, was subpar at best–needless to say, I starved. After exiting the terminal, I was so excited to get to Cairns, and let me tell you, this quaint little beach town does not disappoint! Here are some pictures of our day:

You must try the Bundaberg Ginger Beer while in Australia. Seriously heaven in your mouth!! As a forewarning, you must like ginger….a lot.

Our balcony view from the beautiful Hilton Cairns Hotel.