Photo 1 of 100

Over the course of my travels, there have been a handful of individuals, places, and wild animals that left an imprint on me so deep that it shaped and changed my perspective on how I interact with the world.

How do you share a lifetime of stories on one little screen? I have no clue, but I can share with you small snippets from every corner of the world that I have yet experienced. Transport you to new places that inspire your day, your dreams, or your next adventure. So here's the start to my series, 100 photos and stories from around the world that left an impact on my soul. Because photos that inspire stories...matter.

Photo 1 of 100: The Solo Trip that Started it All.

Jökulsárlón Glacier Lagoon, Iceland

The sound was electrifying, blasting out into the open air filled with hundreds of people, so loud I could hear it thrumming against my insides. Alongside hundreds of people, I sang along with the Foo Fighters as they blasted ‘Best of Me’ into the midnight summer of Reykjavik, Iceland.

Rewind a few hours, as I sat at the hostel bar befriending the other solo travelers having a meal after a day out exploring, and one of them, we’ll call him Miami, invited the gentleman next me, we’ll call him Paris, and I to come to this concert he was going to. Paris and I were both traveling light and, on a budget, but Miami insisted and was willing to pay a ridiculous amount for us to get in. It was one of those opportunities that felt right. The Foo Fighters? In Iceland? In the rain? During the midnight sun, where it never gets dark? Say less.

I had not traveled much growing up; my family and I had a trip to Cancun filled with too much tequila, and loads of summer family camping trips, but we never made it farther abroad. I made a simple pact with myself after college that once I had saved enough money, I was going to start traveling. I wanted to see the world.

It was a trip filled with fish I could eat for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Kind strangers who keep the kitchen open for you because you got there late and fill to-go containers with leftovers they had because they just want you to enjoy their family’s food. A brief love affair with a Parisian man, because…well. An ascending mountain dirt road that was lost in the clouds ahead of me, framed by two totems of Viking-looking creatures telling me I absolutely shouldn’t go this way – but Google told me to? Cue four hours later in the pouring rain, and me looking up at a 17% grade hill that has rain and mud washing down as I’m trying to drive up. Highway tunnels under mountains that go on for what seems like forever (there were roundabouts and stoplights under the mountain!). And at the end of the 8-hour road trip, I saw the biggest, most thunderous waterfall I have yet seen in my life. A sight I still feel to this day.

Then there is this photo I shared. It’s sad to think back and remember that I wasn’t going to go here. Most of my ‘set plans’ were thrown out the window once I got to the country, which was so fun. I had passed this lagoon in the pouring cold rain (also battling a wicked sinus infection from being cold and wet and camping in my car – but the local pharmacists were so nice and gave me all the meds I needed), and it just didn’t look like fun walking out into the lagoon and being colder and wetter. The next day, though, my last day, was spectacular. A sunny, bluebird day. I had to get up early to finish my last six-hour road trip back to the airport, and I couldn’t help myself. I had to stop and see the glittering, bright blue icebergs shimmering underneath the summer sun. It was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen. There were few people to witness this with me as it was early in the day yet, and I felt so grateful that I had detoured so much on my trip to finally be left with this last stunning image.

The landscape, the people, the culture, and the food of Iceland will forever have a special place in my heart. I look forward to returning someday and revisiting the sites that lit the fire for my love of exploration and adventure.

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