Miaonthemap

🌍 Watch out world 🌎

We’ve got another Wanderful takeover talking ALL about Wanderfest by 🎉

Hey all, 🙋🏼‍♀️
Mia here! ( )
I’m a traveling teacher and relocation specialist who took my traveling feet to New Orleans for Wanderfest 2022!

I am STILL reminiscing about:
▪️The Speakers ( and …) to name a few
▫️The Food (nom nom nom 😋 )
▪️The Friends (travel friends are the best)
▫️The Culture (that voodoo walking tour though… ) 😍
💃🏼 And yessssss ALL of the dancing and moving ( + and )

Follow along in the stories to relive what Fodor’s is calling “The New Travel Festival to Have on Your Radar”.

See you there!

With love,
Mia

It’s been almost 6 months since returning from Costa Rica. 🇨🇷

I bought a plane ticket on a whim while sipping a cappuccino in a Grand Rapids coffee shop. (Thanks ) 😍

✈️ I had no plans other than to get a change of scenery to help break some of the bad habits I’d developed over the first year of the pandemic.

🌍I needed the outdoors and a community again. I had no idea how long I was going for or what I was going to do there.

📚About a month before leaving, I signed up for a Spanish language school where I made amazing friends and was placed in a home stay with a funny and loving host family.

👟 My days became filled with learning Spanish, walking around Heredia, often with my new friend and soul sister .hohenadel and visiting my favorite coffee shop ☕️ before with .

🏖 Weekends were spent with visits to waterfalls or the beach when I wasn’t spending it with my host family.

😎All this to say, for anyone hesitant to buy that plane ticket-this is your sign. Buy it and prepare yourself for a trip of a lifetime.

With love,
Mia

All bundled up and ready for the weekend.


Life has been a balancing act between:

🌟 My own independent teaching business

🍎 Two ESL platforms ( and )

🌟 Working as a Relocation Specialist and helping international clients move to Indiana

🍎 Learning the ropes as a server at an amazing Morrocan Restaurant

+

🌟
🍎 And nourishing my creative side

😃

I don’t always get it right but I sure am glad each day holds something new to learn.


🧘🏼‍♀️Any tips for maintaining balance? Holla at your girlllll 😂 I’d love your words of wisdom.


̇day

Sending a lil’ Monday love to you all.


Keep trying and
Be gentle with yourself.





📸 .villegas.3

Sea lions, waterfalls, beaches and amazing restaurants. What does California not have??😍


It’s been so easy to get outdoors during this trip. I loved getting to show my students the sunrise this morning from my laptop 👩🏼‍💻 and answer questions about my vacation. 🏝


These views were amazing and the company…unbeatable. Thanks for being a phenomenal host .


Can’t wait to come back to the Golden State again soon! 🎉 ✈️



Cali peeps…where are your favorite spots in this state for nature and seafood? 🦞




❤️

“She needed a hero. So that’s what she became.”

Learning to fly has been an incredibly empowering journey. ✈️

Not only do I learn about myself and all of the cool things I’m capable of…but I’m also seeing the world around around me with a new lens.


Grateful to have gotten to share this love of mine with my best friends of 17 years and counting. ♥️


Has there been something that has changed YOUR perspective recently?

Last night my Active Imagination turned a gray sky into tie dye 🪄

Sometimes It greets me in unexpected moments; when I find myself tapping my pen against my meeting agenda or trying to focus on my last student of the day…📝

It greets me with the warmth and excitement of an old friend who knows ALL of my secrets ♥️

Sometimes It tickles my thoughts with memories of mango sticky rice and tuk tuks veering near my flip flopped feet..
🛺
My Active Imagination, just like me, is a traveler. It teaches me ✨ the magic✨ I hold when my lashes swoop down before bed and I get to catch the most incredible sunset atop of Lion’s Head 🇿🇦🦁

It even ran with me to Lake Michigan when my nose picked up the scent of crisp firewood 🪵 turning into embers 🔥.

When the chill of winter hits me deep in my bones…I call on It to bring me the warmth of sunlight or a summer night complete with jean shorts and fireworks 🎆.

Sometimes though, I leave It behind for the day.

I place my feet firmly on the ground 👣 and take in the the beauty, the heartache the laughter and light. I remind myself that even in the mundane moments, the stars still shine and hugs feel warm and I can create music with the tips of my fingers;

📨📫that the mail person will come each day with paper envelopes that have traveled across the country and beyond;
that the soles of my shoes are worn from countless adventures 🌲 and with just the right mixture of sugar and flour and chocolate chips a whole house can smell like home.

And although I love my active imagination with all my heart ♥️ I always remember that the best magic we have is you and me and this world of the mundane magical moments right in front of us.

🛁 Remember my previous post about drinking beer in a bathtub…in a restaurant??


Here is a bit of photo evidence from 🍻


I loved learning about the history behind the building and the bathtub of Taft’s Brewing Co.


🍺 Based off of the former President William Howard Taft.

🍺 Legend has it that Taft had an allergic reaction while bathing and became stuck in the White House bathtub.

🍺 This is a story, although with little evidence, that has been passed through the grapevine many times.


At , you can hop in the tub to enjoy your brew and take in the BEAUTIFUL building that holds the brew house.


🍺 Have you been to yet?


What deliciousness did YOU order? 🍻


Swipe right to see what we got 🤤 You can’t go wrong!


📸: .villegas.3

Hey Cincy,
You sure are pretty 🥰

On my first trip to I loved visiting:

📍 to check out the AMAZING international food selection.

📍 to soak in the ambiance (and the bathtub 🛁;)
😋 Taste a “Big Billy” and discover a new favorite ale: Nellie’s Winter Ale 🍺

📍 which holds a winter series full of fun events/

📍 to gorge myself on delicious waffles and crepes. 😋

📍To cap off a great day, be sure to take a drive over the . You won’t want to miss it! 🌅

Have you been to Cincy? What are YOUR favorite spots?
🚗

Happy Friday! Excited to explore Indy a bit more this weekend.


And remember friends, get some good rest and take care of yourselves if needed. It’s okay to take a break every now and then. ♥️

🌅 In Japan, it’s custom to watch the first sunrise of the new year.

Although I’m not currently in Japan, I’m excited to share all about my experiences living and working in Japan as an English teacher. ✈️ 🇯🇵 ♥️

Come to my presentation with .nomadic.network on Thursday, January 27th. ➡️(Link in bio).

If you can’t make it, you can still sign up and catch the recording later! 🎉

You get to hear all about the incredible experiences I had exploring the country, trying mouth watering food 🍱 🤤 and learning about the culture!

I’ve also got some hiring tips and teaching stories in there for ya!

PS-Did help me buy a $400 roundtrip ticket so I can go back sometime in the near future? 🙀

They sure did. 🙌

Do you want to visit Japan someday? I could always use a travel buddy! 🌍

nomadic.network .us

🙋🏼‍♀️It’s been a hot minute! I took a lil IG break to focus on some big projects coming up and to sort out my mini 30 year old crisis 😂. All good now!

✨Even though I find myself daydreaming of street food in Mexico 🇲🇽 or hopping in a Songthaew in Thailand…

✨I’m learning that Indiana also has a lot to offer. (And no people, I’m not just talking about the stellar selection at ). 😍

✨There’s an abundance of great restaurants, wonderful people and a surprising amount of things to do.


✨I’ve been using and to find some great spots to check out!



✨Have you been to Indiana yet??✨



📸: .villegas.3