“Go see the world.”

With those four fateful words, my world would never be the same.

It was December 2010. I had come home from grad school to see my parents and sister for Christmas break, and I was preparing for a two week trip to Peru. My parents had traveled to South America on their honeymoon in the 1970’s and they wanted to share photos of their time at Macchu Picchu. As we browsed the photos of my mother (who was far skinnier) and my father (who had a much thicker head of hair), my mother pulled me aside and said to me, “Go see the world. There may come a time in your life when you can’t travel and you’ll wish you could.”

Mama and Papa in Macchu Picchu on their honeymoon in the 1970’s

Ordinarily this would sound like any other parent giving sagely advice to their child, but there are two things which make my mother different:

• My Mother is a Travel Agent.
• My Mother is disabled.

Let that sink in for a moment.

She helps people see the world for a living and cannot participate in any of the trips she organizes or designs for her clients. I, on the other hand, was blessed with an abundance of free time as a grad student and more importantly, the use of my legs. And with that I set off for two weeks in South America. Seeing llamas. Eating the best ceviche I’ve ever had. Drinking too many pisco sours, because, of course, that’s what you do when you’re in business school.

And that is what led to this blog. Since that fateful night, I have traveled to 18 countries and over 100 different cities.

Me at the Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey
October, 2011

The Floating Villages of Cambodia
November, 2011

I work as a consultant which means that when I’m not at home, I’m up in the air or in another city. The main benefit of working as a consultant is that you get to the chance to see the world and you need only set your destination to do so.

With each trip, I aim to learn as much of the local language and customs as possible. I’m going to haggle and buy, sleep and eat, drink and photograph, and share what I learn about the world. That’s what my mother would do, if she were physically able. And every once in a while, I’ll share her amusing and occasionally inappropriate responses and comments with all of you.

I welcome any comments, questions, or suggestions of places to go. Especially ones that my mother would not approve of.

Cheers.

-Aaron