My name is Anne.  I guess you could call me the adventurer.

With very first impressions, it may not seem so obvious though: I appear to be a short, relatively normal 19 year old American girl.  Born and raised in New England but supplanted to the South for college at The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

But upon closer inspection, one might notice some little details they hadn’t before: the fading henna on my feet, or the multicultural bracelets adorning my wrists, or my out-of-place Moroccan genie pants, or the weathered teal backpack covered in scribbled memories and full of Arabic and Spanish books.

Because the truth is, I’ve got a passion for adventure.  My life is consumed by my drive to search for that next exciting experience and story, or learn from a different culture and language, or to discover new places and people.  I’ve been bit by the travel bug and I know that I will be happily infected for the rest of my life.

That travel bug hit me during my first out-of-country trip over two years ago right after I turned 17, when I traveled to Spain.  It had been a school exchange program organized through my high school, but two weeks was all it took.  Two weeks full of fiestas, tapas, Spanish boys, beautiful landscapes, and beaches, and I was hooked.  The thrill and the excitement of the unknown and being surrounded by a different culture and language left me wanting more.  Those 14 days ignited the spark of adventure that had been lying dormant inside of me.

And now there’s no stopping me.  If I’m not traveling or on some wild adventure, wherever it may be, I’m planning for the next one in my free time.  I will not be satisfied with living a conventional life, and I am prepared to do whatever it takes to follow this wild dream of mine to explore the world and travel all over it.

After the Spain trip, I found countless ways to satisfy my wanderlust and adventurous spirit within the US throughout the year, ranging from Florida to Chicago to Pennsylvania, and to mountains and cities within my own two regions, New England and the Southeast.  The most epic domestic trip to date being a crazy cross-country Spring Break road trip with three amazing friends.

However, my greatest adventure to date was, without a doubt, my summer in Morocco.  I lived in this North African country for almost 3 months, where I took intensive Arabic classes and had the most amazing summer of my life.  I took my first completely solo trip during this time, when I traveled across the South of the country and learned a lot, most importantly that I’m pretty good at being a solo female traveler.  Stay tuned for more more Morocco posts, as over half of my adventure stories have not been published yet!      

As for now, I am beginning my sophomore year at The University of Alabama.  I am majoring in International Studies, and I study Arabic and Spanish as well.  My interests in the world of academics mimics that of real life – I love learning foreign languages and studying other cultures.  My time in Tuscaloosa is consumed by my studies, football games, friends, parties, and of course, always planning for my next adventure.

And most importantly, besides traveling, one can always find me sitting with my laptop writing a new blog post or just reading through my favorite travel blogs to satisfy my wanderlust.

This blog will document all my adventures and travels from here on out, leading up to when I really take off and begin my explorations in the world.  I write about my own tales of adventure but I also write to hopefully inspire others to travel too! Most especially to show other students and solo travelers how they can do what I do.

Follow me on my adventures! I have a feeling my stories have only just begun – my forever restless heart will make sure of that.