Travel internationally at least once a year

booked for Berlin & Amsterdam. Barring any upsets, I should be there for my birthday in November!

Accomplished this goal for the year. Yay! Now, thinking about next year.

2010 ideas:

- New Zealand
- Japan
- Hawaii (not international, but I’m willing to count it)
- Baja, Mexico
- Alaska (again, not international, but you can see Russia from there!)
- Nicaragua

Those are my picks for 2010. Would love to visit China again, of course. But we’ll see. Next time I go, I want to take my father with me, so that will take some planning.

Ticket is bought. I’m on my way to London!!!

UPDATE: Figured out how to get miles from my Virgin Atlantic flights to my US Airways account. By the end of my trip to London, I should have enough miles for a free plane ticket! Whoo!

I’m using it for Boston in June.

When life closes a door, it opens a window—at least I’ve heard a saying like that before. A few weeks ago, I was disappointed about not going to PR. But since then, two great international trips came up.

My boyfriend is going to London to work/research for 2 weeks, so, I decided to treat myself to a weekend trip to see him… and London.
THEN, my boss asks to meet with me and she tells me about some stories she wants me to work on—one in Berlin and one in Amsterdam! She wants me to go by Sept.

Yippee!

Sooo… my sister is graduating in June and now I have to finance my family’s visit. Prob won’t have enough money for PR in June.

Now I have to figure out a cheap way to travel internationally before the end of the year… Canada?

So… my best bet right now is Puerto Rico in June for NAHJ. I’m figuring that I need about $1000 for this trip. And another $1000 for Aaron. I have about $500 in savings, but saving right now is difficult.

I need a game plan if I’m going to reach this goal. It is also an opportunity to network with other Latino journalists.

I think I need to list out my expenses and see where I can trim. Then I have four months to save.
Here goes…

need to save $$

a friend told me she saved for months so she could travel through southeast asia. she said every penny was put away—she didn’t even eat.

that’s what I have to do. I have to save every penny. figure out how to spend less everyday. get free stuff. not buy new clothes—but figure out a way to look professional at work.

that’s my goal. its a goal in a goal.

possible places for 2009:

- ecuador: June / Sister studying there
- puerto rico: June / NAHJ convention
- baja: Summer / Aaron field collecting trip

but my sister is studying there next summer, SO, if I save my pennies—literally, I have a HUGE change jar that I will cash in when its time to buy my ticket, hoping to make a visit when she is there.

Right now, that’s my goal. To get to Ecuador in November. I’m working on two possible stories now that my EP likes. So, hopefully they will send me down. I have very dear friends who live there now, and they said they will take care of while I’m there and help me with my stories. So, barring any unexpected things—its Ecuador or bust for winter 2008!