Meet Our Friend Afar: Ryan

France - www.AFriendAfar.com

Tell us about yourself.

My name is Ryan, husband of Friend Afar, Meagan, and high school teacher and coach.  I teach foreign language (Spanish), but I am also a certified history teacher, too.  One of the ways that I love to combine these two disciplines is by leading student study abroad trips.  I have twice taken my students to Europe, and I hope to organize another trip very soon.  I love all things sports, especially Atlanta Braves baseball, soccer, golf, and (American) football.  I also love movies, television, board games, and any kind of trivia game.  I think traveling is great because I can experience nearly all of the things I love while I am away from home, albeit in new and exciting cultures which have their own unique traditions, customs, and practices.  And to think that I can return home to share my stories and inspire a captivated audience of eager young minds in my classroom makes the experience of travel all the more thrilling!

Where did you travel for your first trip abroad? Was it for work, school, or vacation?

My first trip abroad was to Vancouver, Canada during the summer between my senior year of high school and freshman year of college.  My mom had a work conference there, and my grandma and I tagged along.  The experience was so exciting because I felt like I was in a completely different world.  The trees were different, the animals were different, the food was different, the cities were different, and the people were different.  My grandma and I traveled out to see the sights during the day while my mom was working, and then we would all explore the city at night.  We also just so happened to be there during the Celebration of Light international fireworks competition, and we watched the show from our high-rise hotel balcony downtown.  It was definitely a memorable first trip abroad!

Mexico - www.AFriendAfar.com

Ryan in Cholula, Mexico

Do you speak a foreign language? How has that influenced your travel?

As I mentioned, I do speak a foreign language, and the very fact that I do can be attributed to my experiences with travel.  I studied Spanish in high school, but I never intended to continue using it after graduation.  During my first year of college I got a chance to participate in a mission trip to Juarez, Mexico to build houses for families in need.  I don’t really remember how it happened, but somehow I was chosen as the designated interpreter to communicate with the Mexican family for whom we were building the house.  At first this task scared me tremendously, but by the third and final day on our work site I felt so proud of the relationship that I had formed with that family of complete strangers who spoke a foreign language and lived in a world so foreign to me.  I think it was in that moment that the world shrunk for me.  No longer did I view other cultures as so distant and incomprehensible.  From that trip on I embraced the excitement of using my Spanish skills, and the very next semester I re-enrolled in Spanish courses.  The following year I spent an entire semester studying abroad in Puebla, Mexico where I lived, worked, played, and traveled with native Mexicans.  My language skills got better and better to the point where I now teach Spanish to high schoolers.  My knowledge of Spanish has also allowed me to travel with confidence to places like Costa Rica, Panama, and Spain.  In each of those places I learned so much more about the Spanish language, lessons that I can then take into my classroom as well.  So in a sense, not only has my speaking a foreign language influenced my travels, but my travels have also influenced my language skills to a great extent.

[Editor’s note: Ryan and Meagan met on another trip to Juarez while building houses with Casas por Cristo. That’s where it all started!]

Mexico - www.AFriendAfar.com

Of all the places you’ve visited, which place is your favorite and why?

My absolute favorite city is Rome.  I’m a huge history nerd so being inside the Colosseum or the Sistine Chapel sends shivers down my spine.  Plus, you can’t go wrong having the most delicious food on the planet for every meal.  Also, I don’t think one is truly living life to the fullest unless they have gelato at least once a day (but really more like two or three times a day!).  When Meagan and I honeymooned there, I remember saying to her how around every corner we turned it looked like an image on a postcard.  It is the perfect city for finding a bench in a square (or a spot on the Spanish Steps) and just spending hours watching the world stroll by.  Now that’s amore!

Rome - www.AFriendAfar.com

What places are at the top of your travel list right now?

I spoke earlier of my love for all things sports so pretty much all of the top places on my travel list are sports related.  I would love to follow my favorite team, the Atlanta Braves, around the country to some of America’s iconic baseball parks.  I would also love to take a golfing trip up and down the British Isles, making sure to get in a round at The Old Course at St. Andrews, the home of golf.  I also really want to travel to northwest England to see my favorite soccer team, Liverpool, play a home match.  Finally, I would love to experience the Olympics or the World Cup in another country.  I’d love to be there from start to finish, going to the opening and closing ceremonies and attending matches all day every day.

Paris - www.AFriendAfar.com

Ryan just attended the Tour de France for his 30th birthday and took this great shot at the Arc de Triomphe!

Has a book or movie influenced your travel?

I had a Spanish class in college where an assignment was to show a film and lead the class in discussion about the major themes of the work.  I chose the film Diarios de Motocicleta (The Motorcycle Diaries).  It is the story of Ernesto “Che” Guevara before he became the Cuban revolutionary figure that most people know him to be.  It is based on the true story of a motorcycle journey that Che and his friend took from Brazil to Peru.  As the adventure unfolds, they become transformed by their observations of the lives of the impoverished indigenous populations of South America.  Through the characters they encounter, they witness firsthand the injustices that the destitute face, and they are exposed to people and social classes they would have never encountered otherwise.  There is a quote from the film that has resonated with me ever since I watched it over and over again in preparation for my assignment presentation.  It reads, “Deja que el mundo te cambie y podrás cambiar el mundo (Let the world change you and you can change the world).”  I think often about this notion that if I truly want to make a difference in this world then I have to go out and see and experience it, warts and all.  Only then will I be able to fully understand the greatest challenges and needs of our society.

What advice would you give to someone traveling abroad for the first time?

A wise Alaskan native once told me (how I came to meet that wise and well-traveled man is another story for another day) that in order to truly experience a place you really need to travel that place by land.  It is easy to see the world by hopping from metropolitan city to metropolitan city via plane or even from major sight to major sight or subway station to subway station.  But you miss so much along the way that truly makes the experience memorable.  Traveling should not be about checking boxes off a must-see list.  It should be about living like a local, even if only for a few days or a few hours.  Stroll the streets with no particular destination in mind.  Buy your meal in a local market.  Take a train.  Rent a bike.  Go where the wind blows you.  Feel the vibe of a city.  You can still go to all the tourist sites and eat at the well-reviewed restaurants, but don’t forget to slow down and embrace the rhythm of life that your destination has to offer.  The moments that I remember most in my years of travel are often the most quiet and intimate ones that were never captured on camera or found in a guide book – a picnic under the Eiffel Tower, a late-night walk along the flooded cobblestones of St. Mark’s Square in Venice after all the tourists have left the city and the locals come out to play, or an ice-cold soda after a long, hot trek through the Panamanian jungle.  These are the memories that I cherish the most, and these are the moments that will make you want to continue traveling time and time again.

Venice - www.AFriendAfar.com

 

Meagan grew up in the North Georgia Mountains and spent her first trip abroad in Italy. She’s been traveling all over the world ever since, learning Spanish, Japanese, and Thai. She travels for the food, the culture, and the history.

The Joy of Getting Lost - Venice, Italy - www.AFriendAfar.com

The Joy of Getting Lost

We put a lot of effort into not getting lost in our daily lives. We put even more effort into avoiding it while traveling.  We use the GPS apps on our phones. We take guided tours in foreign cities. We stop and ask for directions at every turn. We make sure to get from one important location to the next, and we take the easiest and the fastest way possible. We don’t even notice the buildings, the scenery, the restaurants, and the people who we’re rushing past. Sometimes, however, we get really, hopelessly lost.

Below, you’ll find two great reasons to enjoy those times when you’re not quite sure where you are and two of our favorite stories about what we’ve discovered when we’ve been lost. We hope they’ll inspire you to be both curious and calm when you can’t find your destination. Maybe they’ll even inspire you to put away the map and get intentionally lost!

Live like a local.

My husband and I honeymooned in Italy, and we were lucky enough to spend 5 days in Venice, far more than the typical tourist schedule of a quick day trip. We had just spent the last week and a half in Florence and Rome, checking off those must-see museums and historic sites. By the time we arrived in Venice, we were ready for a change of pace.

I know what you’re thinking. Venice is full to the brim with tourists! How could we possibly find a change of pace or any peace and quiet?

Once we checked into our darling bed and breakfast, which was wonderfully located away from the crowds on a quiet street and quiet canal, we made our way out into the city. Unlike every other tourist we met, though, we weren’t headed to the Rialto Bridge or the Piazza de San Marco. We weren’t even headed to Lido or the Guggenheim, Murano or Burano. We decided to just wander along through the alleys with no map in hand. We discovered empty streets that ended at canals lined with archways and window boxes overflowing with flowers. We found great bars where we enjoyed an aperol spritz and a gelato. We ate dinner in a great restaurant, and we honest to goodness didn’t hear anyone else speaking English. We watched beautiful boats pass singing gondoliers. We sat along the canal and watched daily life pass us by. We saw Venice, but we saw it without the rest of the summer crowds jostling past us.

Don’t worry. We had more than enough time to see everything that one goes to Venice to see. We even took time for a Vivaldi concert. That first day in Venice, however, was one of the best days of our trip.

Discover some place unexpected.

It’s one thing to set out with the intention of getting lost. Well, as lost as one can get on a small cluster of islands. It’s another thing altogether to have a limited amount of time and not be able to find the destination that you’re most excited about. This is what happened to my husband and I while we were in London.

To add to the stress of not being able to find the British Museum, we were chaperoning nine of his high school students on their first trip abroad. It was not an easy feat. You might be thinking, “How hard can it be to find one of the most popular museums in the world?!?” I would have agreed with you prior to our attempt to get there from whatever random spot we were dropped off at, but we were given wrong directions twice, and someone even said, “I don’t know which museum you’re talking about; they’re all British,” and he MEANT it. Yes, thank you very much. (I should note that we landed a few hours earlier, and neither my husband nor myself were at the top of our travel game because, as I mentioned, we were dragging nine exhausted teenagers behind us.)

This ended up being a great learning lesson for our students. We helped them step out of their comfort zone and ask for directions, and we also talked to them about how to stay optimistic and not get scared when things go wrong. But do you know what the best part of our extra long walk to the museum was? Just when our students said “we have no idea where we are,” we looked up to see a street sign. We were on Drury Lane! Yes, DRURY LANE where the MUFFIN MAN lives! It was the best detour ever!

The Joy of Getting Lost - London, England - www.AfriendAfar.com

So there you have it: some of our favorite stories from getting lost abroad. Do you have any similar stories? We’d love to hear about them! Tell us your favorite stories about getting lost in the comment section.

 

 

Meagan grew up in the North Georgia Mountains and spent her first trip abroad in Italy. She’s been traveling all over the world ever since, learning Spanish, Japanese, and Thai. She travels for the food, the culture, and the history.

Secret Rome – Why You Can’t Miss This Secluded Spot

Rome is a top tourist destination in Europe, and it’s one of our favorite cities! It’s hard to imagine that there could be any hidden spots in a city so full of tourists, but I have a favorite place to share with you today – a little secret Rome you probably haven’t heard about. My fellow A Friend Afar blogger, Stephanie, told me about it when I honeymooned in Italy, and she had heard about it from a friend, too. It’s the perfect little secret spot where you can escape from the crowds and get the best view of the city! I hesitate to even show you a photo of what you should expect to see there, but if not, how can I convince you to visit??

A Secret Spot in Rome

The Keyhole at the Knights of Malta

Just a short walk from the Circus Maximus is the Villa del Priorato di Malta, where the ambassadors of the Knights of Malta to Italy and the Holy See are located. You can read more about them here, but I bet you didn’t know there was more than one sovereign territory in Rome!

To get there, make your way up the hill through the rose garden, the Roseto di Roma Capitale, which lies just to the west of the Circus Maximus. You’ll be heading toward the Santa Sabina church with a gorgeous courtyard overlooking the city. Local romantics and families were enjoying their picnics when we walked by in the evening. It’s a great spot to take in the architecture of the city, and I highly recommend it just before sunset!

Rose Garden in Rome

Mosaics mark the path through the rose garden. So very Roman!

Just past the courtyard and on your right, you’ll find a large green, arched door with a large keyhole right in the middle of the handle.  It’s on an ornate building with crosses and shields carved into the facade. There’s an inconspicuous address plate with the number 3 right next to the door, but other than that, there are no indicators to help it stand out. Here it is on the map.

This is the gate for the Knights of Malta! You’ve found it! The most enchanting view in all of Rome is just beyond that door! Take a peek through the keyhole, and you’ll be rewarded with the view below.

Keyhole of the Knights of Malta

On the night we visited, there was a beautiful event, possibly a wedding, going on at sunset. The view of St. Peter’s, along with the candlelit walkway, took my breath away.

 

Meagan grew up in the North Georgia Mountains and spent her first trip abroad in Italy. She’s been traveling all over the world ever since, learning Spanish, Japanese, and Thai. She travels for the food, the culture, and the history.

A Favorite in Firenze: Shopping for Leather Goods at the Florence Leather School

Florence is famous for so many things to do and see: the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore (Il Duomo de Firenze), Michelangelo’s David, the masterpieces in the Uffizi, the Ponte Vecchio, red tile roofs, and for those of us searching for a special souvenir, leather.

Il Duomo di Firenze

Il Duomo di Firenze

I could spend all day in the Uffizi (and I have!), but I want to tell you a little about my favorite place to find local artisan leather goods: The Leather School, or Scuola del Cuoio. I love stopping by the Scuola del Cuoio for so many reasons. I love its history, its location, and the variety of artwork being produced inside.

History

The Scuola del Cuoio was established shortly after World War II. Franciscan friars of the Santa Croce monastery partnered with the Gori and Casini families, prominent leather artisans, in order to assist war orphans by providing training in the leather artisan field. The friars’ old dormitory, donated by the Medici family during the Renaissance, was turned into the classrooms.

The school’s workshops opened for business in 1950, and some of its first customers were the U.S. Air Force and multiple American Embassies in Europe. It’s fascinating thinking about the school’s history and philanthropic goals while visiting the workshops and courtyards!

[Photo Source:

[Photo Source: “Santa Croce (Florence) – Facade” by Diana Ringo – via Wikimedia]

Location

By now you’ve learned that the school is located on the grounds of the Basilica of Santa Croce. It’s a beautiful church, the largest Franciscan church in the world, and it was finished in the mid-15th century. My favorite part of the Santa Croce, however, is not the same detail that I admire in other Italian churches from it’s time period. It’s not how it’s decorated that draws me in every time; it’s who is inside! The Santa Croce is home to elaborate marble tombs to world-famous Italians like Michelangelo Buonarroti and Galileo Galilei! I love a little history with my travels! Ok, I love a LOT of history with my travels, so the Santa Croce always captures my interest!

The tomb of Galileo Galilei in the Santa Croce

The tomb of Galileo Galilei in the Santa Croce

Leather Goods

The handbags created at the Scuola del Cuoio are high quality works of art. If you’re looking for a lifelong handbag, these are a great choice. The leather quality is amazing, and the stitching is  strong. They have a classic look and will age beautifully. A bag like the one below would be the perfect travel companion for many years worth of adventures.

A handmade bag of the highest quality of leather is a pretty expensive “investment piece” for most travelers, especially those that have dedicated their budgets to seeing instead of owning. My favorite affordable options are the passport cases that can be monogrammed and the python bracelets. Whenever I wear my stack of python bangles, I think about my honeymoon.

[Product Photos from Scuola del Cuoio]

Not in the market for a handbag?

Florence’s charm extends far, far beyond the shopping crowd and the art galleries. One of my favorite activities in Florence is to just get lost, mosey around side streets and along the river, and then finally settle in at a cafe where I can watch the city go by.

Ponte Vecchio

The Famous Ponte Vecchio

Take a leisurely stroll from the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, through the Piazza della Signoria, and then along the Arno river to the Ponte Vecchio for a beautiful sunset view of the city. Be sure to grab a gelato or a waffle with nutella along the way. You can never go wrong strolling down cobblestone streets in a beautiful city with a delicious snack! And sometimes that steaming hot waffle dripping with nutella makes for the best memories, too!

The author taking her own advice – on her way to the Ponte Vecchio with a nutella-covered waffle in hand. (She may have already eaten it.)

I was serious about that waffle.

I was serious about that waffle. The fist pump proves it.

Meagan grew up in the North Georgia Mountains and spent her first trip abroad in Italy. She’s been traveling all over the world ever since, learning Spanish, Japanese, and Thai. She travels for the food, the culture, and the history.