Thank you Vanessa!

I think the first time my cousin ask me if I wanted to New York with her, I kind of hesitated and made all sort of excuses not to go. I said, I don't have a passport, time, money, and most used excuse is, I have other things I need to do first before traveling. But she reassured me that it is perfectly safe and I will have the best time of my life with no regrets. Thankfully I took up on her offer and had an amazing 2 weeks of my life in New York the BIG APPLE. That was years ago while I was 15 years old.

A couple years later my cousin appear again and said to me, "Hey! I have a deal for Japan you want to come?" I was like OMG JAPAN!!!! Ahhh! It has always been my dream to go to Japan but making the first step on my own was hard to do. Since this time is not just out of state, but out of the country. My cousin knew I always wanted to go to Japan and she called me instantly about it. I knew if I didn't take this opportunity I would never go by myself. In my immediate reaction in my mind is YES! YES! I want to come, but the other side of me says, what about money? school? work? visa? I really had to consider all of those before I jump into something huge like this. Eventually I figure out what I needed to do and was on my way to Japan.

I think the struggle for everyone and even myself about traveling is... the fear of change or doing something new. It is not the money or time. It is the fear of going to somewhere unfamiliar to us and getting to know a new culture and customs. It might also possibly be the endless excuse people make about why traveling is dangerous like you might get robbed, sick, or even killed! Trust me I use to think all these possibly might happen, I guess I have my lovable Asian parents that tell me all these things about "Why I shouldn't do this...etc" just to keep me scared like a little turtle so I will never have to move away or go away somewhere far. I love my parents and I don't blame them, it is their way of showing "love" to their children.

Then when my cousin came to lived with us, she re-educate and taught me many things I would never knew. She was there with me half of my teenage years and I thought she was like my big sister I never had. I had many First moments with her, like my first alcohol experience, my first sleeping overnight experience,my first driving experience, my first travel experience, and many more. She's been taking me places I never dream of going and she made it happen for me. I guess she is the person that made me who I am today. I just want to thank her for giving me the help and support to become a great person. Also to guide me to my first travel experience.

Her model is "Live life the way you want and never let anyone discourage you."

Japan trip 2009

caught her sleeping in public

airplane to Panama 2009

You are AWESOME!

Thank you Vanessa!

My suggestion is, have an open mind and listen to what others have to tell you, you will learn something new. Instead of thinking to do something, take the action to do it first.

In Panama, their mannequins have huge knockers, the curious person that I am I touched it! Vanessa made me do it! hahaha