Hi, my name is Carla and I’m the creator of Passportamore.com.
Passportamore came about simply because I love my Passport!
This little blue book has taken me to places all over the world and given me life-changing experiences, opportunities, and memories. I want to share, inspire, and encourage everyone who comes across my site, through my stories, experiences, and travel tips.
Although I am the creator of this blog you will also see posts from my daughter Janine, who herself is an avid world traveler. She has lived in countries like England, Thailand, and Canada. Janine has a wealth of knowledge to share with you all as well in the blog posts she shares on passportamore.com
My goal is that all types of travelers will be able to benefit from my blog, from novice first-time travelers, to well experienced world travelers. I want to share travel stories and tips helpful for the single mom, the recently retired, and even teens looking to start their journeys in the world. Both solo travelers and group/family travelers will learn about my best travel tips, strategies, ways to save and things not to miss on a trip.
My Exposure to Travel and Culture
Growing up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, my desire to travel and see the world has always been there since I was young. My Italian neighbor, Mrs. Valenti with her thick accent, would talk about her love of Italy and share samples of her homemade Italian food with me.
My mom’s sister was traveling the world back in the 1970s. My Aunt Connie & Uncle Billy and their kids we the quintessential Airforce family. They lived abroad and traveled across Europe. When aunt Connie would come home for a visit she’d always bring me beautiful hand-woven tapestry clothing, delicious chocolate candy, and vibrant stories of her life abroad.
When I was 17, I went on my first trip abroad. It was apart of a 10-day trip to Spain through my high school. This was really the beginning of my quest to learn more about the other side of the world that I’d never seen before.
I realized early on that it wasn’t the destination that excited me, it was meeting the locals and tasting the food. Learning to embrace a culture and lifestyle that was vastly different from my own. I fell in love with the otherness of travel, and I hope you do too!
Host Mom Extraordinaire!
I travel the world, going wherever I can, whenever I’m able to. But I truly started my journey exploring the world by not leaving my community at all. in 2009 I took a leap of faith and invited the world into our home. I did this through our local high school’s foreign exchange program.
The AFS program had been at our high school since the early 1950s, hosting international teens and sending high school Americans to study abroad. AFS was introduced to me by my then, 16-year-old son, Miles. In 2009 he went abroad to Japan and when he returned home he asked me to host a student. And the rest was history.
By volunteering to be a host family, this has created even more ‘family’ all over the world. We have hosted some of the nicest, smartest, most mannerable kids on the planet. but I’ve also hosted some of the most edgy, wild, and nutty drama queens that you could image…And I loved every moment!
Now that my own kids have both completed university, and life is beginning to settle down, I thought it was finally my turn to explore the globe and travel more intentionally and best of all for myself.
So Why Start a Travel Blog
I started my travel blog honestly to have another place to put my memories. But I realized that I could also help people learn from my experiences and even my mistakes. I want people and especially underrepresented groups in the world of travel to be encouraged to go out and see the world. All the time people ask me, “How can you afford all of this travel?” “How do you find the time to travel?” “Where can I find the best deals on where to stay?” So, I started my travel blog Passportamore.com, to answer all of these questions and more with just the click of a button.
My Travel Style
In order to travel the way I do I did not quit my job. I never homeschooled my kids. And I haven’t sold everything to travel the world nomadically (yet).
On the other hand, I’m also not a luxury traveler, with expensive luggage, staying in the penthouse of a 5-star western style hotel and honestly, I’ve never even stayed in an all-inclusive resort before.
I’m a just single, bold, audacious mom, who’s not afraid to try new things. I put both my kids and myself through university (more than once). I like to try new foods, be a little nosey and hear about people’s life stories and hang out among the locals all around the world.
I love the thought of riding among the locals along in a Ghanaian tro tro, Mozambican chapa or a tuk-tuk in Thailand. But what I enjoy most is getting up early to shop in the narrow passageways of the souks and bazaars.
I think of travel is a skill. Which means with practice you can be more confident, and prepared to travel the world at a moments notice. Passportamore will show you how to travel on a budget, find the cheapest flights to the most interesting places, and have unforgettable experiences.
You will learn how to decide on a destination, and how to embrace the food, traditions, and cultures of your travel destination and most of all, enjoy the world of travel! So, I hope you want to stick around to see what what adventures we get up to next!
