Edward Valenta: Age 9 with younger brother Kevin. Does first day of school count as an adventure?
For those of you that don't know me the experience of travel and discovery is one of the most highly regarded things in the world to me. My family was big on family and the family was a big one, with relatives spread through dozens of states. The road trip was the favorite method for staying connected with our kin and this took me through many states in my youthful years. Add to this a few flights to California and one trip to England and we visited a lot of family and historic sights growing up. My father was in Rotary International and we played host and tour guide to may foreign exchange students as well, including Japan, Brazil, Ireland, Germany and Sweeden. These early influences rooted my interest in exploring new lands and after high school I promptly signed up to be an exchange student in Spain for a year before starting University. Between a long Chrismas Holiday and 6 weeks of backpacking at the end of my studies I got through most of Western Europe during that year and dipped my toe into Central Europe a little. That was the start of a long obsession with travelling. I would return to Spain for the millenium and ended up on the front cover of El Mundo on Jan 1st 2000 (but that story is for another time). Studying abroad so thrilled me that I didn't think twice about the chance to spend one semester of my junior year in Australia which was followed by a summer internship in Munich, Germany (with only 4 days at home in the States before heading out again) I got a good paying internship the following year and rigged it so I had 2 months off before finishing up college and took off to Europe for another month and then Indonesia/Singapore for the second month. I got a good paying corporate job out of college and faced with less time but more money kept the trips limited to a few weeks in Central America, namely Belize and Costa Rica. Unfortunately life sometimes gets in the way (which isn't all bad) and the amount of time on the road ebbs and flows as the sands of time slip through the hourglass. Weddings, work, family events and the like take time that once was reserved for the road. The last few years have seen my pace of international wandering decline slightly with just a ski trip to Whistler and a week in the Basque region of Spain/France on the list. Don't get me wrong they were amazing trips, albeit a tease of what was out there to see. Fortunately the brief lull will soon come to an end with a nice 17 day trip to South Africa for another of my loves, soccer, and the World Cup. Departure is set for June 10th with a couple of long layovers in my favorite country on earth, Spain. For the sake of history and adding content I'll post some brief recounts from pervious adventures and some preparation info before June. I look forward to writing these to not only share with you but to relive the experiences myself. Focus will naturally go with my interests which include natural wonders, surfing, SCUBA Diving, Soccer, learning languages, art, bartering in markets, partying with locals, local food including street meat, and local breweries and beer. Enjoy!
