Developing a Sense of Home When You Travel

For those TravBuddies who know me, it comes as no surprise to note my favorite place on earth is Ambergris Caye in Belize. I've been traveling here since 2005, and the island has such an immense draw that I cannot stay away. I come back every year and I find myself in tears as I board the plane home -- each time it gets harder and harder to leave.

Before I really started traveling a lot, I thought I just missed this place perhaps because it was the annual "vacation" spot. My secret place to get away from work, life, and stresses back home. I quickly realized that it was much more than that.

Ambergris Caye feels like home.

Have you ever traveled somewhere that you instantly feel a connection with? Perhaps a place you visit again and again, or somewhere you uprooted your entire life for?

That's Ambergris Caye for me. I have developed a deep and personal relationship with this island that extends far beyond a cool place to "vacation" every year.

Only about 26 miles long, the main town of San Pedro is where most people live and it really only encompasses a few miles in each direction. I never thought I could see myself living in a small town, but strangely, this island packs in a ton of adventure, great food, and some of the most incredible people you will ever meet.

It's these friends and the subliminal draw of the island that bring me back time and time again.

Right now, I happen to be back on the Caye -- but this time for work. I am down here on assignment, scouting story angles, and developing additional social media coverage in an effort to promote tourism to the island, and the country of Belize as a whole. It's an incredible opportunity to take my passion for Belize and channel it into my profession. And I'm even more fortunate to have a fellow TravBuddy, Krysta (kre0123), along on the journey, who is assisting me with social media coverage, photography and more.

And for the record -- in just two days, she's already landed under the island's spell.

The other night, we met someone here who shares many of the same sentiments I do about the Caye. He said he can't explain it, but something just pulled him to this place. He quit his new job back in the United States, liquidated his properties, and packed up for his new island life, much to the dismay of friends and family. When Krysta asked him if was happy with his decision a year later, his face lit up and his giant smile said everything we needed to know.

In the upcoming weeks, look for more posts and an interview with Krysta about her time on the island and some exciting upcoming adventures in her own travel life.

Where is the one destination that you keep returning to and why -- what keeps bringing you back there? Have you walked away from your job and life to follow a dream of moving to a new country?