UPCOMING TRIPS
Valencia, August 2025
Japan, Sept./Oct. 2025
Slovenia (work), January 2026
Slovenia (work), March 2026
Singapore, March & April 2026
Australia, March/April 2026
Slovenia (work), July 2026
Traveler Poetry by Marisa Emery
The two sides to traveling
Some might say I’m extreme, that I polarize, that I live an unconventional, untraditional life. But even as a child, I could never imagine living an ordinary life. I wanted to see the world, to learn things beyond what school taught, and, most of all, to live each day as if it were my last.
But this kind of life comes with a cost. It demands resilience, brings risks, and sometimes, heartbreak.
At 15, I was diagnosed with a severe heart condition while studying in Canada - far from my family. Still, I chose to stay. I was in the Dominican Republic when my friend’s boyfriend was murdered in her home. Had I arrived just 30 minutes earlier as planned, who knows what might have happened? I was robbed in Brazil and New York. I got stranded in New York when a volcanic eruption in Iceland halted all flights - only for it to happen again in Bali years later.
I crashed a motorcycle in the Swiss Alps. I was trapped inside a fitting room when one of New Zealand’s deadliest earthquakes struck. I had to flee my apartment in Brisbane in the middle of the night, barefoot in my pajamas, because the building caught fire. In Cairns, I sat in a hostel with barricaded windows as Cyclone Larry tore through the town - only to realize, when the chaos briefly stopped, that I was in the eye of the storm. I wandered through the empty streets of Cancún, unaware that a hurricane was closing in. I ended up in hospitals in New York, Hawaii, and New Zealand.
A bull elephant charged at me in South Africa because our idiot guide had provoked him - luckily, we got away just in time. An American Airlines flight attendant gave me oxygen on my flight home because I couldn’t breathe. I crashed my quad bike in the dunes of the Moroccan desert. I accidentally ran over a highly venomous brown snake while cycling - for a moment, I wasn’t sure if it had bitten me. My car broke down in the middle of the Daintree Rainforest - right next to a river full of crocodiles.
But for every one of these challenges, there are countless positive, unforgettable moments. Looking back, it’s not the fear or danger that stays with me - it’s the lessons learned, the strength gained, and the resilience built. Each experience shaped me, pushing me beyond my limits and teaching me to trust myself. Today, I stand as someone who knows who they are, and who isn’t afraid to chase what truly matters in life.
A love letter to the World
Dear world,
I’ve traveled 571’017 miles all around you, been to 6 of your 7 continents, I’ve seen your most beautiful and your darkest places. I’ve watched your people on their happiest days and I’ve seen them suffer on their worst. Wild animals in their amazing natural habitats in Africa and crammed into cages on Asian street markets. I’ve seen your kids wear Gucci and eat caviar and I’ve seen them share a little chocolate with their friends in a township. I’ve spent X-MAS with great big, loving families with tons of presents under the Christmas tree and with orphans and homeless people on the street, watching pedestrians walk by as if they don’t even exist. I’ve experienced the joy of your children being born and the happy faces of their parents and I’ve seen spouses being killed and the devastation that its left behind. I’ve visited the most stunning natural wonders and I’ve lived through your worst natural disasters. I’ve met the richest of the rich and the poorest of the poor. I’ve slept in villas with infinity pools and I’ve stayed in huts without flooring or electricity. I’ve eaten the most delicious delicacies you have to offer and been hospitalized after eating rotten food. I’ve seen your people lie and be deceitful and I’ve seen them compassionate and honest. I’ve been to places that I loved with all my heart and to places that I absolutely detest and will never ever return to. I’ve shed tears with strangers, both from laughing and out of sadness. I have been welcomed with the utmost kindness and respect and experienced the rudest and strangest behaviour. I have been gifted wonderful things and I have been mugged at machete-point. I've been amazed by wonderful things I’ve experienced and traumatized by the horrific things I’ve had to witness. But none of this made me love you and your people any less, made me wanna travel and explore you any less, nor has it made me wanna resign and mourn the past. Without you I wouldn’t be who I am today: strong, kind, determined, empathetic, fearless, and a fighter. I love you beautiful world ❤️🌎
Traveling is not just a passion it's in my DNA: I have been to a 550 cities in 72 countries, traveled 571,017 miles and seen 40% of the world...This is a motivation for me to keep on going until I've seen most of the world!