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Mexico

My Walkabout In Mexico

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If you haven’t read me before, I’m recently 60 year old Phil Taylor, author of ThePhilFactor, one of the longest running blogs in the history of the Earth, and a handful of novels. In June, my lovely wife of 33 years passed away. After six months finding my emotional stability, I decided that I had enough cold snowy winters in upstate New York. You know when you see those reports of Buffalo, New York getting several feet of snow? I live in that part of the state. So, long story short, I decided to, as my Aussie writer friend Bel Woodhouse would say, go for a “walkabout” to find where I fit in the world. Right now, I’m officially 5,434 kilometers from home and I couldn’t be happier. Everything hasn’t been perfect, but that’s how I like it. It’s my goal to get a real feel for living on the island of Cozumel.

First off, let’s talk about AirBNB’s. Mine is fine. It’s a small apartment, which is all I really need for one guy on his own. It’s walking distance to everything in the town. I like that.  It would be nice if there weren’t roosters crowing at 4 a.m. as if someone was tearing them apart. I don’t like that. But you know what? If i choose to stay here I’ll get used to the roosters. They are up only marginally earlier than me. Yesterday I had a fantastic day all over the island with my friend Bel Woodhouse who is International Living’s Mexico correspondent, and that’s really what this article is about.

Me & friend/writer/artist Bel Woodhouse

One thing to know is that Cozumel isn’t a big island but it’s also not small. It’s about 30 miles from end to end and it’s about ten miles wide. I’m sorry that I’m not fully versed in the metric system, but by the end of my journey, I will be. Most tourists visit the island and only see the first four or five blocks from the port where their cruise ship parked. When you go, don’t be that tourist. There is so much more to Cozemel than bars and t-shirt shops.

Apparently, anything might be crossing the road.

If you’ve ever taken a cruise that stopped at San Miguel, Cozumel, you probably didn’t wander into the jungle. I know some of the bars are wild, but they’re not the only jungle in Cozumel. If learning that Cozumel is an island is new to you, you are not alone. I’m not referring to me, but I know someone who had been to Cozumel on a cruise and had no idea that it wasn’t part of the mainland. Don’t be that tourist.

The Mayan ruins is a must see stop when you’re on Cozumel. These aren’t the only ones either. For about $5-$10 American you can have your own personal guide take you through all the ruins in a site.

I was lucky enough to persuade this lovely lady to pose with me. I think we’re engaged now.

You can get up close to some of the Mayan ruins, but you can’t climb all over them. You might not want to because the ruins are truly in the jungle and there’s some jungle residents who think that you’re in their neighborhood,  such as this impressive neighboorhood watch member.

After the ruins visit, we went to the Mayan Bee Sanctuary. At first I was feeling my skin crawl at the idea of intentionally being near bees. But these are special bees. No stingers, they just make some really delicious honey. Winnie the Pooh would get himself into big trouble here.

The bee is not actual size, but I am!

Following our tours of the ruins and the bees, Bel and I visited a tiny village in the jungle that has been there for centuries. Other than a tiny, beautiful church, it also had a tequila maker that had free tastings, and it was fantastic. If you haven’t heard, Mexico is good at tequila. After that visit we headed to the beach for lunch…

Lunch on the beach. No crowds, no cruises, just this quiet little place. Places like this still live on Cozumel.

So this has been my first steps into the rest of the world to see where I want to be for the next chapter of my story. Maybe I end up here in Mexico, or maybe somewhere else. It was such a perfect first day that I felt that I had to end the day with this:

Bel, thanks for your help. Folks if you have any interest in moving to Mexico, you can find Bel on IG as thetravelbag.guru and at International Living. I may not look all that big in this picture, but the whole world just became a whole lot smaller for me. Thank you for reading and thanks for coming along for the ride. ~Phil

P.S. As someone who has worked in and around the medical industry for over 30 years, when you go on a long trip like this, before you go, pack some medical basics like ibuprofen, band-aids, Neosporin and sun screen. Traveling the world is nice but having a medical issue pop up can ruin a “Trip of a lifetime.”

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Philliver's Travels

Walking the Earth Alone… And So It Begins!

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Almost 6 years ago I started this blog to add humor to the online travel writing community. Unfortunately, due to my wifes illness, I didn’t get to travel as much as I was hoping for. So today, I am re-starting my travel goals. Quite possibly, if it’s Sunday morning when you read this,  I’m boarding a flight to Mexico.

I’m looking to move to another country. Previously I had a job that had a fair amount of travel and I got to see some of the world and I loved it. I’ve spent 99% of my 60 years on this planet in the United States and  I’ve never lived outside of  upstate New York, which can be beautiful at times, but it can also be a cold, frozen tundra in the winters.

Pic from The New York Times. Not my house.

I’ve chosen Mexico as my first look-see trip because it is close to the United States and if I lived there it would allow me to easily visit my kids that live in the States. I’m going to tell you something that I haven’t told anyone yet. I’m a little terrified about my Mexico trip. I’m going alone and I’m not staying in a resort. I want to see what it’s like to live in Mexico, so I rented two AirBnb’s. Four nights in each in different parts of Mexico.

Cozumel will be my first stop. Cozumel is an island renowned for its stunning coral reefs, world-class diving and snorkeling, and beautiful white-sand beaches. Visitors can also explore Mayan ruins, and , indulge in authentic cuisine, and enjoy a lively atmosphere. 

I would wager a guess that most of you don’t remember the launch of my travel blog. On the first day of Philliver’s Travels, I interviewed Bel Woodhouse, a photographer and writer for International Living, an online magazine that helps people decide where else in the world that they might want to live.

That’s Bel there and she’s going to take some time to show me around the island this coming week, for which I’m trememdously grateful. You can read my first interview with her HERE. I’ll try to write this week but I can’t promise how often. Follow me on Instagram at Phillivers_Travels to see what I’m doing this week! C’mon, follow me. I don’t want to walk the Earth alone, I want you to come with me!

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travel humor

Walking The Earth Alone

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When I began this travel blog in 2021 I had dreams of humorously chronicling my adventures, and those of other travel personalities that I’d interview. As often happens, the universe had other ideas. That’s why I’ve been absent here. I am now at a turning point in my life, and I intend to finish what I started with this blog and myself. I hope you enjoy it.

I didn’t know that I loved travel until I started traveling. As a kid my parents took us camping in the northern New York mountains, but it was the same place every year. It was nice, and I had a ton of fun with all my cousins whose families joined us every year, but it didn’t spark any desire to go elsewhere. There was also that one trip to Kingston, Ontario Canada, but that was just an elementary school field trip. Shout out to Mrs. Hill who spent the entire years field trip budget on that.  Then when I became an adult it was a couple Disney World trips with the kids, and that one trip to San Diego. All fine, but that was it. Then I got the job that lit a fire in my heart to see the rest of the world.

In one inspirational moment, I said one sentence that got me the job and changed the course of my life. I was flown to Richmond, Virginia. Not super exciting, I know, but a company liked me enough to fly me there for two weeks of training. On one of the last days of that training, myself, Michael Vick,  George Thorogood and most of the nations media ended up in the same hotel lobby at the same time. That was certainly memorable, but that’s not what triggered my burning desire to see everywhere. It was the next work trip just three weeks later when the entire company went to Cancun. Yawn, I know there’s a billion kids on Spring Break there every year, but fortunately I was not there during Spring Break.

That’s me & Mona Lisa over my shoulder just hanging out in the Louvre in Paris.

It was a big resort in Mexico, and that week was the longest time I’d ever spent in another country. It was the first time that I stayed long enough to notice and enjoy the different culture. Fortunately, my job kept taking me to other places in the world and in my head and my heart, there’s no going back. I want to see all of the world, and live in other countries. Unfortunately, I’m no longer with that company, but yay, now I can pick which countries that I see and which I might want to live in.

That picture is of me in Italy in 2009. To this day I love that picture. That was my first trip out of North America/Canada. My first overseas trip, and I still have that shirt and wore it on a trip a few weeks ago. If all goes well you’ll see some more pictures of me in that shirt.

I’ll tell some stories from past trips and talk about future trips. I’ll interview some other travel writers, and chronicle my travels in hope that the story will end with me on a beach with a cup of coffee in my hand.

Thanks for reading me! ~Phil

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Travel Tips

Be Kareful With Your Hotel Keurig

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I love my morning coffee as much as anyone else, and I love it brewed in about 30 seconds by a Keurig. In fact, I try not to stay in hotels that don’t have a Keurig in every room.

Keurig’s are great machines, and I have no problem with them. What I do have a problem with is looking into the water receptacle of a Keurig in my hotel room and seeing that it is full of black mold. That is not Keurig’s fault.

It’s the fault of the hotel and the housekeeping staff. I know the picture above isn’t very clear, but I’m sure that you can imagine the queasy feeling I had when I discovered that mold in the coffee maker that I had already used once.

A word of advice, look into the water receptacle of your hotel room Keurig before you use it.

Safe travels  ~Phil

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Destinations

Weird New Year’s Traditions From All Over The World

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Picture credit: livingmividaloca.com

As I’ve done with other Top Ten lists, one of these is fake and the first person to pick the right one can have a paperback or Kindle version of one of my books. (Yes, I realize that’s not a big incentive and might in fact scare some people away)

10. Wearing Colorful Underwear: In many Latin American Countries, as well as Spain and Italy, wearing different color underwear is supposed to bring different kinds of luck or prosperity in the new year. White is thought to bring peace and harmony, and red obviously is for love and romance. I wonder what purple does for you? (asking for a friend)

9. Plate smashing in Denmark? Apparently people in Denmark smash dishes and plates on their neighbors doors to bring good luck. Really? That sounds like vandalism to me. I wonder if I could get away with doing that here in the States. I’d just tell the police that I’m Danish.

8. Ecuador Effigies: In Ecuador they burn effigies, called año viejo, of public figures like actors, music stars or politicians at midnight in order to banish any bad luck or ill-will from the previous. I don’t know about you, but I don’t think that I’d love the idea of people burning a scarecrow of me. I’d be worrying what comes next.

Picture rights: Imaginative-Traveller.com

7. Beware Falling Furniture: At midnight in South Africa people throw their old appliances and furniture out the window. Man, what I wouldn’t give to be a furniture salesman on January 1st!

Picture rights: Imaginative-Traveller.com

6. April New Year’s in Thailand? April 13th-15th is the start of the New Year in Thailand because that is the start of the New Year for their religion, Theravada Buddhism. They celebrate by having a big water fight, believing that symbolically throwing water on each others washes away bad luck. Now that’s a New Year’s tradition I’d enjoy! Where I live, if we threw water on each other on New Year’s Day, everyone would get frostbite.

Picture rights: Friends-Family-Food.com

5. In Bangladesh, Put Your Money Where Your Mouth Is: The New Year is celebrated by everyone in the family eating a pastry, with wine, at midnight and if you find a coin in your pastry, you will have good fortune in the coming year. Yikes! That sounds dangerous. I hope they’re chocolate coins!

Picture rights: DW.com

4. The Psychic Germans! In Germany they melt small pieces of lead in a spoon over a flame, then pour the melted metal into cold water. The shapes formed by the Bleigießen (lead pouring) reveal how good their coming year will be. If the lead forms a ball, luck is going to roll your way. If it’s the shape of a crown, that means good luck with money, while a star signifies happiness and a cross will bring death. Wow, that is kind of terrible isn’t it?

3. Travel Insurance in Colombia: In Colombia you might think that once the clock strikes midnight everyone is trying to flee the country because you’ll see many people running around their house or even their entire block with a suitcase. They believe that doing so will ensure good travels in the coming year.

2. All The Single Ladies in Ireland…are hoping he’ll put a ring on it. Apparently the single women in Ireland put mistletoe (which apparently wasn’t effective at Christmas) under their pillows and then burn it in a fire the next day hoping to lure the love of their life. Geez, I hope they take it out from under their pillow before setting it on fire. If I’m in Ireland and I meet a girl who likes to set things on fire, I am probably going to run the other direction.

Picture rights: Casa Bay Villas

1. Some people Like their grapes in wine…: This one was contributed by my friend, international travel writer Bel Woodhouse (follow her on IG @thetravelbag.guru) In Mexico they eat 12 grapes at midnight. Some eat them one with each toll of the bell to bring good luck in the coming year. What happens if you have a grape allergy? Are those people just out of luck? That doesn’t sound like a fair tradition. Personally, I’ll just drink enough wine to ensure that I’ve taken in 12 grapes. That’s at least one bottle, right?

Ok, remember that I said one of these was made up? The first person to guess it in the comments gets a free paperback or Kindle copy of one of my books. Happy New Year to each and every one of you. I’d better get going if I want to squeeze all ten of these traditions at midnight! ~Phil

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America

My 50/50 Challenge: Sweet Home Alabama

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Picture courtesy: PlanetWare

This is my first in my 50/50 challenge to myself to write a travel review of every state in the United States. 50 states in 50 days is my goal. One down, 49 to go!

The rest of the world knows Alabama for two things: A song by the band Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1974, and the Alabama University football team. If you’re a sports fan and planning to visit Alabama during football season, you’ll want to go to a ‘Bama game if you can score tickets. Don’t worry though, there’s plenty of other things to do in the Cotton state if you can’t.

If you don’t want to hike and climb mountains, Alabama has a little bit of the gulf shore all to itself, so you can tan and swim in the beautiful, warm blue waters of the Gulf of Mexico.

Alabama also has a rich musical history with blues and southern rock. If you want to get in out of the sun,  you can tour the Muscle Shoals recording studio where many a hit record was created. If you’re a destination activity vacationer you can also plan your trip around one of the many music festivals that occur almost year round.

Regardless of you’re taste in vacations, Alabama has a little bit of something for everyone. Next up tomorrow, Alaska!

Safe travels! ~Phil

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Airline flying

Jerks on a Plane

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I have never seen Snakes on a Plane, but I often see jerks on a plane. Here’s the story of one of those flights…

Oh it’s a big pretty white plane with red stripes, curtains in the windows and wheels and it looks like a big Tylenol~ Johnny in the 1980 movie Airplane!

 Travel is always good fodder for a blog post and my trip this week was no different. Here are some things I learned waiting in the security line:

1) If you’re over 75 you don’t have to take off your shoes or jacket. Apparently TSA believes that there is a mandatory retirement age for terrorists.

2) TSA also believes that only medical professionals wear scrubs and the rest of us are completely unable to obtain these super secret garments. While waiting in line I noticed a guy behind the cordoned off area in scrubs. Then a few minutes later I noticed he was well ahead of me going through the scanner.

In summary, I’m going to dress up as an elderly physician next time I have to fly. I’ll be through security in minutes.  Unless of course I have to get my hands dusted. When I went through the scanner, an alarm pinged. I quickly checked my pockets thinking I might have forgotten some change. No, I was informed, I had been randomly selected to have my hands checked for explosives. I flexed my biceps and replied, “If you want to see something explosive check these out!” Needless to say, after hearing that line the entire security area, passengers and TSA, broke out in lighthearted laughter. Lighthearted laughter in the security line? Just kidding, that would be a first.

Almost as soon as my plane left the ground chaos ensued. We weren’t given permission to move about the cabin but suddenly people were getting up and running willy-nilly in the aisle because it was a little chilly. It looked like an elementary school hallway at dismissal time.  Overhead compartments flew open up and down the plane as panicked passengers grabbed coats and blankets. The captain came on the p.a. announcing he was turning up the thermostat. Holy crap, I thought to myself, what a sense of entitlement these idiots have if they think it’s ok to violate FAA safety regulations because they might be a little chilly for a few minutes. If I was the incognito federal marshal on that plane I’d have been tempted to stand up and point my gun at these dolts telling them to sit down and shut up. Or maybe I’d just show my biceps again.

The worst offender of fashion and airline etiquette was Captain Denim. He was a roughly 60 year old gentleman with greasy hair receding  in front but long enough to reach the collar of his denim jacket in the back. He was also wearing denim jeans with the elaborate, bright stitching that draws your attention but also makes you think This guy really doesn’t have the kind of ass he should be drawing attention to. As soon as our plane touched the runway Captain Denim popped out of his seat and took down his Volkswagen-sized suitcase and planted it in the middle of the aisle. The flight attendant  had to tell him very sternly three times to put it back in the overhead compartment until we reached the gate. Again I thought about pulling out the biceps but I figured this wasn’t the place for my particular brand of vigilante justice. And I didn’t want to get laughed at.

Seriously, I do want to thank TSA and the airlines for getting me safely from place to place. They do a tough job and do it well. Writing a blog is tough too and if you like what you read here please hit the Facebook share button below.

Have a great weekend! ~Phil

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Destinations

Travel Tips Tuesday!

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Happy Tuesday everybody. Well, I guess it’s more of a happy Tuesday if you’re getting ready for a trip this weekend. I’m not traveling this weekend, but I just returned from a trip (which you’ll hear more about on Saturday) and I’ve already got my next trip planned.

As we all know, travel is fun and exciting, but it can be a little less than fun when things go wrong. So, to kick things off for my new site, I collaborated with freelance travel writer and International Living magazine/website contributor, Bel Woodhouse , to give you some things to think about before you leave home.

10. Have a “Go-bag” You know who has go-bags? Criminals & smart travelers. (One of those two are my target audience. Which are you?) What I mean by a Go-Bag, is when you travel, don’t take your home phone charger. Don’t take your entire medicine bottle from the cabinet, and for cripes sake, don’t take your toothbrush from home! Buy an extra phone charger, travel toothbrush, tiny tubes of toothpaste, and a weeks worth of your meds. Put them in your suitcase and leave them there! ALL. THE. TIME. That way, you’ll have less things to remember to pack, and if you leave those things behind at your hotel when you’re heading home, you won’t be out of luck until you can replace those items. As a man that has bought and lost my fair share and your fair share of phone chargers, having a Go-bag is a smart move.

9. (From Bel) Always have a good old fashioned paper map. Don’t rely on technology. Batteries go flat, coverage gets spotty, phones are stolen. Paper doesn’t let you down. I’ve had one in 30+ countries and have never been lost, mugged or had anything bad happen. EVER.

8. Count your kids: Traveling as a family? This ain’t your local shopping mall. Don’t take your eyes off your little ones. If there’s anything Home Alone taught us, it’s that you need to count your kids wherever you go. MacCaulay Culkin was left home alone and look how he turned out:

7. (From Bel) Know where you are, where you shouldn’t go and how to get back to your hotel, accommodation or nearest taxi.

6. Do the Math! Growing up, I hated mathematics. When you travel, it comes in handy. Just because it seems like you have plenty of time to get to your gate, don’t be fooled. If you show up at the airport Friday through Monday, four days of the week, you need to factor in extra drop off luggage line time and extra security line time. On those four days there’s a higher volume of travelers and lines will be longer and slower. Also, if you have connecting flights, book your flights with at least a one hour and ten minute window between the first flight landing and the second flight taking off.  Trust me on that one.

5. (From Bel) Keep the majority of your money on your person, not in your wallet in case someone lifts it.

4. How to tip the housekeeping staff: If you’re staying in a hotel or resort with daily housekeeping, tipping them is customary, but how and when you tip makes a difference. $5 a day American is pretty standard, but should vary depending on the hotel you’re at. Let’s say you’re staying five days, do you dole out that $5 each day or wait until the end of your stay? Don’t wait until the end of the stay. Leave at least a $10 tip the first morning and spread the rest out over the week. My reason? Sometimes if you tip well early, you get better service, like a few extra coffee pods, extra towels, chocolates on the pillow, or just a generally better room cleaning. These folks work hard. Don’t be stingy!

3. (From Bel) Have situational awareness. Take note of what and who is around you. I was in a market in Nicaragua and made eye contact with a guy, then held my camera close until he moved past me only to push over another young woman and steal her camera. Know who and what is around you and keep an eye on your stuff.

2. Talk to the hotel/resort staff before going out: Not every hotel has a concierge, but the staff at every hotel is knowledgeable about the surrounding area and they always have tips and tricks to make your adventures safer, less costly, and more fun. Ask them if there’s some not so well known restaurants that are secret gems.

1. (From Bel) The biggest thing -Always be polite, manners get you everywhere in every country. Show respect. You are a guest and you’re not entitled to everything you want. I have seen many tourists be invited by locals on free tours and into their homes for a meal just by being polite. It opens doors and means the world to people no matter what country you’re in. It is the difference between a traveler and a tourist.

Thank you Bel for visiting #ThePhilFactor and thank you for being part of my Philliver’s Travels blog launch this coming Saturday.

Bel: “I love helping any way I can when someone has the courage to reach for the stars and try to achieve a new dream, project or just have a creative outlet. If you have the courage to try, you can enrich your life in so many ways. I used to be in the Navy, now I’m living my dream life in the Caribbean. Anything is possible when you have the courage to try.”

I couldn’t have been luckier to find Bel on IG (@thetravelbag.guru) and she couldn’t be any nicer. Come back on Saturday for the Philliver’s Travels blog launch and my interview with Bel. Have a great Tuesday! ~Phil

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Destinations

An Interview with International Travel Writer Bel Woodhouse!

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Phil: Bel, thank you for being part of my blog launch. I’m thrilled to be able to ask you a few questions. From Instagram, it always looks to me like you’re living the life so many of us want; waking up to warmth, sunshine and sandy beaches. So, I thought you’d be a perfect guest for the launch of my new travel blog. You grew up in Australia, which I’ve heard is a pretty nice place. How did you catch the travel bug? And what made you decide to live somewhere other than Australia? 

   Bel:   I love Australia and have seen most of it, so decided I wanted to see the rest of the world. I got the travel bug after spending a month in Bali as a 40th birthday present to myself. The trip was spent contemplating and deciding what I wanted my life to be. I speak Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian language) and after talking with locals and enjoying tours, I realized that I loved being immersed in another culture. 

What made me decide to live somewhere else? That’s easy, life, food, culture, festivals, different landscapes, nature and everything another country has that is different from Australia. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a proud Aussie, but I wanted to see the rest of the world. I wanted to see grand European sprawling oak trees, explore all seven oceans, slide down jungle rock slides while jaguar spotting in Belize, learn Spanish, learn how to cook like a Mexican … the list goes on. I wanted to see and experience so many other cultures.

Phil: Once you decided to be a world traveler after you got out of the Navy, where did you go first? 

 Bel: Straight to the top norther half of India, then onto Cambodia, which I have dreamed of since I was a little girl. To see those amazing huge trees spreading over ancient ruins as the jungle reclaimed temples was one of the most beautiful spiritual experiences of my life. I adore Cambodia.

Then I went on a month-long trip through Central America which included Mexico, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica. From there I went back to Belize, intending to stay and settle, but I preferred Guatemala, so I popped next door to Guatemala and lived in Antigua for 2 years. 

Phil: How did you become a travel writer?

 Bel:I did the  Travel Writer’s Program through Great Escape Publishing and that taught me how to write, what editors look for, how to pitch a story, how to build my professional profile etc. Basically it taught me how to  become a travel writer. Then a lot of hard work. I write for them now sometimes and it’s such a wonderful feeling. They class me as a success story and all I did was read some pages and put into practice. Easy peasy.

Phil: In your books about Guatemala and Mexico, why 21 reasons? How did you choose that number? 

Bel: The number came from David Anicetti, who was the original author of 21 Reasons to Visit Antigua, Guatemala. I was doing ghostwriting at the time and re-wrote a few chapters for him. He liked my writing so much that he sent me the whole book and made me co-author, and a partnership was born. Now, we have four books in the series. I write them and do the photography, and he does the formatting, publishing, marketing side of things. Together we are 21 Reasons book series. 


Phil: Where are you currently writing aside from your blog?

Bel: I am a full-time writer, photographer and videographer. I freelance and write for publications world-wide on a broad range of topics. I do a lot of writing for International Living, Great Escape Publishing (about writing and photography) and am a presenter for their photography workshop next month. I’m speaking about how to make $$ with your smartphone photography and also how photography can be a force for good in the world.  

Phil: As a seasoned world traveler, do you still have any bucket list places that you haven’t been to yet?

Bel: Geez Phil ask a hard question … I have so many. I want to explore Spain, and do the El Camino (a huge walk across Spain) to see it’s quaint villages and golden churches. I want to swim in the beautiful Greek isles, stay in a Scottish castle, hug the largest trees on Earth in The Grove of the Titans in California where the giant old sequoia’s and redwoods are. I want to be lost in the striations of orange, terracotta and red ochres of the Antelope Canyons delicately curved caves and tunnels. I want to see the lake of lightening in Nicaragua, I want, I want, I want … you get the idea. 

My bucket list grows daily and is longer than my street. I can’t wait to see it all. I honestly believe I will spend the rest of my life experiencing the magical cultures and peoples of this world. There is so much beauty to be shared.  Languages to learn and amazing food to learn how to cook. It is a thirst that will never be quenched. My wanderlust delights in tormenting me with places to go next. 

Phil: Bel, thank you so much for your time and for being a part of the launch of my new travel blog. I would encourage my readers that if you thirst for travel adventures please find Bel all over the internet. You can check out her books on Amazon and follow her colorful life on Instagram.

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