1 – About me and this blog
About Me
Hi everyone…welcome to my blog! You have likely gathered by now that my name is Stacey and I’m 30 years old…very astute of you. I am also a computer programmer, novice runner, confirmed book-nerd and travel junkie. I’ve lived a lot of places in my 30 years, but consider myself a midwestern girl at heart who currently hails from Madison, Wisconsin. So…what are you doing here…reading a website devoted exclusively to me and my whereabouts? An excellent question…
A couple of years ago I attended a wedding in Brazil and had such a great time that I became really interested in South America as a travel destination. For one, it’s rock-bottom cheap and secondly, the people I met in Brazil were so amazingly happy and friendly I wanted to find out if this was true throughout the rest of the continent. To make a long story short…I hatched a plan to do some extended travel through SA…mostly to work on my terrible Spanish but also to just do some traveling and hanging out. In the midst of all of this, I thought it might be fun to toss in a US/Canada road trip with the express purpose of visiting all of the people I know across the continent who I don’t always have enough time to visit. So here we are…this blog is devoted to my trip (popularly known as the Extravaganza) over the next 9 months. Be sure to check out my Itinerary and FAQ for answers to your most pressing questions as well as the Trip Info section for those considering similar trips. The Maps section shows my current location so you can keep track of me as I move along through the itinerary.
Since this section is all about me, here are a few more (mildly) interesting things you should know about me:
- I love lists. There is no better way to organize one’s thoughts than with a nice, organized, ordinal list.
- I have an almost pathological devotion to the 80s sitcom The Golden Girls.
- My most useless talent is the ability to hear most any pop song from the last 20 years or so and give you the year it was released. I have yet to find a practical application for this skill so if anyone has any ideas, please let me know.
- In seven years, I attended five different elementary schools in four different states.
- On my first overseas trip, I spent a week traveling around Ireland with an undiagnosed kidney infection and upon return to London for my flight home, promptly lost my passport. I cannot recommend this.
About the Blog
Anyone who has ever done any traveling knows that upon return people invariably ask “How was your trip?”. Usually they’re asking to be polite but they don’t really want to hear the nitty-gritty details of what you did for 5 days in Paris or 10 days in Timbuktu. Hitting the high points plus an assessment of your general attitude towards the trip usually suffice. I get it…hearing every detail about something you didn’t participate in and have no frame of reference for is colossally boring…which is too bad because I’m sure you did a lot of cool stuff on your trip.
So, this blog is my best attempt at avoiding the above scenario. For the next 9 months I’ll be off on a grand adventure though the Western Hemisphere which I’m hoping to chronicle here…for you…my faithful readers. I’m not going to lie to you guys…this may not go well. Historically I’ve not been especially grand at keeping diaries and the like so there is a very real probability that I may have bitten off more than I can chew. We’ll see…I am making no promises on frequency or content. One thing I do know is that I’ll be more likely to keep up with it if I know people are reading so send me an e-mail, type comments and for those privy to my cell phone number…call me (well, until October 15, that is). Love the blog? Hate it? Think my writing is so annoying you hope I contract malaria so it will end? Want to nominate me for a “Best of the Web” award? Let’s hear it folks….
Also be sure to check out the links to my favorite travel blogs on the right-hand side of the page. In particular, I’m deeply indebted to Christine at “The Didgeridoo Diaries (formerly “The Squat Pot Diaries”)” for her great ideas and brilliant HTML skills. Considering my HTML talents stand at a virtual zero…I’ll be nicking a lot of her formatting code. Secondly, make sure to check out “Conor’s Mildly Thrilling Tales (formerly “How Conor is Spending All His Money”). This guy is a great and entertaining writer and to be perfectly honest, I have a fairly significant cyber-crush on him. After finishing his round-the -world trip, he went back to Nepal to start an orphanage for trafficked kids. I heart guys who love kids.
Stacey
July 7th, 2007 at 9:44 am
I have just started exploring your blog. I love it and look forward to taking your trip via cyberspace.
July 11th, 2007 at 1:59 pm
Thanks for including my (pictureless) blog among your faves. I’m honored. I love the fact that your favorite blogs include those of people who are not your age and who, instead of traveling solo, are travelling as couples or with kids. (I also love Conor’s blog; sorry about Liz. All you young things who were crushed out now need to put that somewhere else, cuz Liz GOT HIM. Your taste in blogs and the fact that you are crazy about Golden Girls says a lot about you, and all of it (in my opinion) great! I love your attitude, your approach to being 30 (I won’t tell you what I did to celebrate my 30th or my 60th, but both were pretty wild), and your nerve. You GO! Great idea. There is never a better time than this moment to have an adventure. I’m psyched and ready to be clicking in daily to read about the next surprise, seen through your eyes.
July 12th, 2007 at 11:55 am
Hey Kendall-
Thanks for the note! I love reading blogs and, as you mentioned, really enjoy when “non-traditional” travelers are off having great adventures. Now, about this Liz…do you think I could take her? I can be pretty scrappy when I want to be! 🙂 -Stacey
July 12th, 2007 at 8:18 pm
Stacey
Just got back from Ohio and got a chance to glance at your site. Looking forward to what you have to share. Stay safe.
July 17th, 2007 at 4:11 pm
Stacey! This is great! I was reading some of your entries and comments to Elaine. We are so excited for you, and have kept us very entertained here at the CASA office. 🙂 Good luck and have fun! I wish I was going to the Galapagos Islands!!!!
July 22nd, 2007 at 5:49 pm
Hey there Stacey! Finally got a chance to catch up and read your blog – you are TOO hilarious!!! I can’t wait to see you when you come to DC!!! Travel safely!
September 8th, 2007 at 9:55 pm
hello i keep on messing up on the comments thing is this really working i’m gona click enter.
September 8th, 2007 at 10:02 pm
Halle-lu-yah It worked, anyway, I just now read this part of my lovely cousin Stacy’s blog. It is confirmed, she is a nerd. But i think that’s what makes me love her so much. Also the fact that I’ve seen the good ,the bad, and the evil Stacy all on a cours of 10 days. It was a very fun and eventful trip. It was certainly unforgetable. Pardon my grammer and spelling errors .I think I do enough correcting at school and to be positively truthful I’m just too lazy to fix them. Love ya Stac. Good luck with the cold you contracted from the migits. I know this sounds mean but it serves you right for callin us migits when we had to endure the sight of a ziploc bag full of stomach contents. All in the best of humor.
Over and Out,
Toe-ri-re
March 7th, 2008 at 11:42 pm
Hello Stacy!
I ‘ve been reading your blogs since you started your trip in South America. I really enjoy reading about your travels. I haven’t been on your blog in months; but when I have time I come back and see what you have been up to. I have you bookmark! I also love to travel and haven’t really had the chance to take a long trip. I might just (will do it ) in a couple of years. Maybe for my 45 th birthday. (2011) You got me going! Thank you!!!!!!!:-)
As an ex-veteran (Navy) I traveled alot; but nowhere near South America. Just like you I love to travel and so fascinated w/ Brazil and South America. Because of your blogs, I’m more intent on visiting South America.
As a student in elementary back in the 70’s, I watched educational films about South America. I was so intrigue about Brazil; that it had always been stuck on my mind.
Back in 2004 my dream came true! I visited some friends in Brazil. (former roommates from Brazil). I spent 10 days in Brazil. I visite my friends in Sao Paulo, Curtiba, Campinas, Sao Sebastian de Grama and Rio de Janerio. I fell in love w/ Brazil. I’m planning on visiting again in fall of 2008. I’m also planning to retire there in 15-20 yrs from now. God Willing!
Have fun and stay safe. I will catch up on your travels this weekend.
Tchau! Martin
April 3rd, 2008 at 3:25 pm
Hey Stacey!
Mike Schultz here from way back in the early days during your West Coast swing. I would ask how you have been but Cousin Sheila was nice enough to send me a link to your blog so now I know!
What an incredible adventure!!! Or I guess I should say extravaganza! Not many people have the chance (or take the opportunity) to go on a trip of a lifetime. I am so happy for you and I hope it was everything you wanted it to be…and more!
You’re quite the “photog” also….The photo of Garganta from the Brazilian side is awesome!!! I think my favorites are the ones taken in the mountains and forests of Chile. I guess that’s why I live in Oregon….
Anyway I just wanted to say hi and thank you for sharing your experience.
Have to run now…Little League practice…. fourteen 7&8 year old boys can cause some serious damage if left unattended!
All the best,
Mike
PS. Don’t worry…if you ever come back, we have sworn off ever making Mojito’s again
November 2nd, 2010 at 9:07 am
Hi! My name´s Claudia, its a pleaasure.Im from Iguazu Falls and i love your post.Now i´m working on a magazine about Iguazu Falls, and we write for turist from Brasil, Argentina, U.S.A, and Uruguay. And we would like to post your opinion of travelers on iguazu falls for inspir for other tourist to visit this wonderfull destination. We doit please? always we mention the names and the references of all travelers who telling the travel experiens in our journal.Whould be a pleasure to have your testimony in the summer 2011 edition. Thank you very much, greetings from Argentina Claudia Cortina Ricci.