About Me

My grandmother was a transportation-a-phobe. She never got on a plane, train or boat and road trips more than a few days were out of the question. Consequently, my mother never left the Midwest growing up. She vowed when she had a child of her own she would take him or her around the world. Thus, the Backpacktress was born.

At age ten, I watched millions of wildebeest migrate across the Serengeti from a hot air balloon, danced with Masai tribesmen and played with South African children in a Black Township. No matter where we were, my parents made sure to take me far away from tourist destinations so I could see how the locals were living. In China, we visited with farmers in their dirt shacks. In Peru, we toured the house of a family with dozens of guinea pigs running freely through their living quarters.

Last year, I spent three months blogging my way from Indonesia to Thailand. I was a fly on the wall everywhere from Buddhist monasteries in the jungles of Bali to crime-ridden alleys in Bangkok. 

I continue my search for vibrant places off the beaten path with intermittent periods of respite in the great city I'm proud to call home: New Orleans, Louisiana. The sounds, smells and sights of my journey are captured here. 

I hope you'll come with me and that a long the way I'll be able to shed some light on places you otherwise might not have known that much about.

Safe travels,

Backpacktress