I’m wanderlust-ing pretty hard right now (is that how it works? Can we wanderlust “hard?” I am pretty sure that is what I do). It gets bad during the winter, when every time I close my eyes all I see is palm trees, sand and endless horizons. After the holidays have passed and the cold settles into the urban air, the idea of an ocean breeze combing my hair with the perfume of shells and seawater seems almost too good to be true. And for the moment, it is. But I have a few more weeks off before it’s back to dissections, muscles, bones, nerves, arteries, and veins… So — at least for the time being — I like to think anything (and by “anything” I mean “anywhere“) is still possible. I can’t think of a better way to kick off 2013 than with a little trip (please please please!), so here’s to hoping I can make the magic happen… SOON.
But first, with my wanderlust fluttering around my mind like a captured butterfly, I’ve decided to bring back an old TwT tradition: the Mystery Snapshot!
Please try and guess where this photo was taken — what city/town/village/country/hemisphere/continent/street… Do your best, and submit your guess as a comment. As always, there is a hint in the photo. All right answers will get an honorable mention in the next post (and if you’re a travel blogger, a link to your site!). Good luck, and happy travels (or, at the very least, happy wanderlust-ing)!
It’s an exciting time in the land of TwT. Usually, I associate “exciting” with travel, adventure, novelty… But for now, it takes on a different form. Something I’ve worked so many years to feel is finally settling into my system. A chaotic decade of exploration, both within myself and as far away from myself as I could get, is touching down on a runway and I’m peering out through a small oval window with a twinkle of excitement and anticipation. I am so grateful, so happy, so relieved, so… inspired, I guess you could say… to take on the challenge of grad school, and to have the opportunity to do so. I know that a lot of people say “now the real work begins,” but they have a different idea of what that “real work” is. For me, working hard is working hard — I can do that. I want to do that. What’s more difficult has been figuring out what, who, where I want to pour my heart and soul into in order to want to work that hard for something.
El Morro. Old San Juan, Puerto Rico.
The “what” (as well as the who and where) is being constantly answered as things evolve in my life. But this moment that I am in right now is just full of hope, excitement, and humility for me. One year ago, this moment felt almost impossible to get to. Two years ago, I was sailing on a catamaran in the Galapagos Islands, as far away from school as I could get. Three years ago, I was horseback riding on the beach in the Dominican Republic. Four years ago, I was in physical therapy for a knee injury, and flying to Sint Maarten to live out my own personal romance novel (whew, and it was a good one!).
Ghost tree. Rome, Italy.
I know that having a blog and announcing acceptances to grad school probably doesn’t seem very humble (I think many of us struggle with this desire to share happy moments without “flaunting” them as Facebook so temptingly allows us to do), but it is really me just trying to wrap my head around the happiness I feel right now, and me hoping that my story somehow inspires someone else’s story (or perhaps that’s overly optimistic? I think NOT!). This is a time in my life that I have worked so hard to get to. It is a place that seemed farther away than any country I’ve ever visited. There has been so much beauty in the learning where I want to go, and also a lot of difficult confusion as I slowly untangled the lining of a hopeful quest to hook some answers. But now it’s time to feast on my catch. And, as always, I am a HUNGRY girl!
Galapagos Iguana. Ecuador.
I know there are a lot of things throughout our lives that bring on this type of euphoria (engagement, marriage, promotions, babies, work achievements, awards, rewards, friends, travel, love, family, etc.), and I see them happening to other people all around me. So, as 2012 comes to an end, I hope you all have gotten to enjoy and experience this euphoria in some form over the past year. And if you haven’t, 2013 is about to begin. Based on what has happened to me over the past year, I can genuinely tell you that I believe anything is possible this upcoming year, especially if you’re willing to work hard for it. Half the battle is just deciding what we want.
Friends take pictures as we rise to the peak of Pichincha Volcano, a thousand feet above the second highest capital in the world, Quito, Ecuador.
Thank you for the continued support and for joining me on this freaky trip we call “being twenty-something,” through the motion sickness of getting tossed around by life (remember Juan the Amoeba? I DO!), and through the euphoria of seeing some of the most beautiful things I have ever seen (and felt). THIS right here — this smile, this hope, this satisfaction, this gratification that I feel — THIS Is what it’s all about. This is what we’re all living for. These moments don’t come along every day (sometimes they take years to go get to, echem) so cherish whatever form of it you have right now.
And before I get WAY too cheesy, happy freakin’ holidays, people.
Rachel Tavel, DPT, CSCS, is a published travel writer turned Doctor of Physical Therapy (DPT). She earned her BA in Spanish and Archaeology from Bowdoin College and her DPT from NYU.
After Bowdoin, Tavel interned at American Express Publishing, where she worked with Travel + Leisure, Food & Wine, Executive Travel, Departures, and Centurion magazines.
In 2007, she co-authored the Frommer's guidebook, "MTV Best of Mexico" (Wiley Publishing, 2007), for which she wrote the Acapulco, Ixtapa, Zihuatanejo, and Taxco chapters.
From late 2006 to early 2010, Tavel served as the editor of an independent school's annual magazine. In addition, she worked as an editor and writer for the VIVA Travel Guides to Argentina, Quito and Guatemala. Her photography has been published in Everywhere magazine and the VIVA Guides to Quito and Argentina.
After a six-month stint working as a staff writer for VIVA Travel Guides in Quito, Ecuador, Tavel returned to the US to fulfill the 10 pre-med pre-requisites (at NYU and Harvard Extension School) to apply to Doctor of Physical Therapy programs.
In 2013, Tavel was admitted to NYU's Doctor of Physical Therapy program. She graduated in 2016. While there, Tavel became a Certified Strength & Conditioning Specialist (CSCS) and earned her certification in basic mat Pilates.
In addition to working as a physical therapist, Tavel contributes to various blogs about health/fitness/wellness, including the Huffington Post and Bustle.com. [See "Tavel Links" for more information.]
Last but not least, Tavel is writing a travel memoir about her adventures as a twenty-something career-changer... Stay tuned!
In the World:
Argentina, Austria, Barbados, Belgium, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, France, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Nevis, Portugal, Spain, St. Kitt's, St. Maarten, Turkey, United Kingdom, USA, Vatican City.
In the US:
Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Maine, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, Rhode Island, South Carolina,Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, West Virginia.
Travels with Tavel 