About Summer

I may be a world traveler now, but I didn’t leave the country until I was 19 years old! Traveling wasn’t easily accessible when I was growing up.

I’m from the US and grew up in a small town in the South. I moved to the Atlanta suburbs in high school, which changed my life. I love being near urban areas and meeting different people from all walks of life. I always dreamed of living in a big city as a little girl, and this was the first step for me.

I studied and worked hard to get into the University of Georgia. I always loved reading and writing but decided to get a degree in Nutrition Science and apply to PA school. The economy tanked when I was a senior in high school, and I wanted a clear path to success. Little did I know, life isn’t so simple.

I started college in 2009 and decided to study abroad for a short summer semester in Australia. I traveled around the country for 3 weeks and visited the outback, the Great Barrier Reef and even a rainforest. I loved this adventure and diligently researched more study-abroad trips when I returned home.

In 2012 I decided to spend two months studying in Innsbruck, Austria. On this trip, I also traveled to London, Munich, Amsterdam, Prague, and two small towns in Italy. It was one of the best summers of my life, and I will always cherish that summer.

Once school was over, I applied and interviewed at several graduate programs but wasn’t accepted due to my lack of clinical care hours. I started working as a nursing assistant and built my required hours as fast as possible. I was also working a second job on the side and quickly burnt out. I began dreaming of traveling the world but didn’t even have the money to buy a plane ticket.

I got the crazy idea to apply to the airlines because I knew their employees received free standby travel (hence the name of this blog!). My neighbor was a flight attendant and referred me once applications re-opened. I didn’t think I would seriously get the job but prepared diligently for my interviews. Surprisingly I was hired in October 2014 and began training in February 2015.

I started in Boston and was assigned my first international trip to Amsterdam. For the first six months, I regularly flew to Amsterdam, London, and Paris with 24-hour layovers. I eventually transferred to my home base in Atlanta and then decided to put in a base transfer to Los Angeles. I moved to LA in February 2016 and have been here ever since.

Since starting my new career, I’ve been able to travel all over Europe, the Caribbean, and South America. I even took a solo trip to Thailand and Australia. Whether I’m lying on a beach in Jamaica or exploring ancient ruins in Egypt, I’m happiest in a foreign country taking in new sights and experiencing the local culture.

While I love the opportunities flying gives me, I wanted to start this blog to further express my creativity and share everything I’ve learned from years of travel. I also love photography, fashion, skincare, and food and love incorporating them into my travel content.

When I’m not traveling, I love reading, cycling, playing with my cats, and convincing my husband to come along on a new adventure.

I’m actually pretty introverted, so it’s not easy putting a big part of my life on the internet. I still decided to start this blog though to help other women feel empowered to travel and learn a little more about the world they live in. I am so happy I get to share all the random travel knowledge I’ve accumulated over the years with you. If you made it this far, thank you so much for reading this and getting to know a little bit about me!

Love,

Summer