Hi, I’m Annie, your friend the nomad!
I’m a world wandering photographer and cultural anthropologist turned travel blogger who believes that travel should be transformative—and fun!
My adventures have taken me all over, from reconciliation work in Palestine and studying abroad in Italy to digital nomading through Mexico and Central America. In between, I’ve found myself on service trips along the US/Mexico border, almost ten trips to Hawai’i, and countless outdoor adventures throughout my home state of Washington and beyond.
Here on Your Friend The Nomad I share inspiring yet practical travel itineraries, stories, and guides full of my top recommendations from places I’ve traveled and loved. I hope they help you travel deeper, support local, and have plenty of fun, too!
My goal with this blog has always been to
Share all the hidden gems, tips, and recommendations I’d send to a friend for each and every destination 💌
You’re in the right place if…
This is the type of travel you love
Epic adventures, like searching for Mayan artifacts and remains while caving in Belize 💀
Immersive cultural experiences, like a local-led journey through a traditional kalo farming village in Hawai’i 🌿
Budget-conscious luxuries, like a boujee Amalfi Coast catamaran tour that actually saves you money (I’ll show you how!) 🍷
Thank you for being here!
Kind words from my readers 💕
1,000,000+
Readers in the past 3 years
“All your guides are worth their weight in gold! Thank you!”
COMMENT ON MY VIRGIN VOYAGE CRUISE GUIDES
“Thank you very much! We went yesterday and your GPS pointers made it possible!”
COMMENT ON MY MEXICO CITY CABLEBUS GUIDE
“Such helpful advice for my family’s first trip to Kauai!”
COMMENT ON MY KAUAI TRAVEL GUIDE
Most Visited Destinations:
The Longer Story of Your Friend The Nomad
Your Friend The Nomad was born while living out of a suitcase during a nomadic exploration of Mexico.
My husband, Josh, and I had both lived abroad before—him in Germany, me in Palestine and Italy. But this was our first time doing it together, and our first time traveling full-time without an end date!
We planned as we went, staying in month-long Airbnbs in different corners of the country, all while clocking in and out of our remote jobs at the same tech company—him in sales, me in content writing.
This type of travel allowed us to immerse a little bit in local life—while also experiencing all the ‘must-see’ spots and discovering plenty of hidden gems along the way.
For example, during our month in Oaxaca City we attended a local church, found the coffeeshops we loved to frequent during work hours, and figured out the routines of grocery shopping at local markets and taking out the trash on the right day.
Then on the weekends we’d explore the countryside—my favorite spot was a small rural village called Santiago Apoala, which is surrounded by hiking trails and hidden waterfalls.
We also did the ‘touristy’ stuff like a historic walking tour of the city, a day trip to the petrified waterfalls of Hierve el Agua, mezcal tastings, and eating our fair share of mole.
And then we’d pack everything up and head to a new corner of Mexico and get to know that place, too.
At some point I realized that we had a lot to share about the places we were visiting—a lot more than could fit in a single text message to a friend when they asked for my Mexico recommendations.
Funny enough, I already wrote blogs for a living—just for a tech company and a few freelance nonprofit clients. So starting a travel blog just made sense!
So in January 2023, I launched this travel blog, and what started as a collection of tips and recommendations from our Mexico travels has grown into a more robust resource covering many of the other destinations I’ve lived in and traveled to—like Italy, Japan, Hawaii, the Caribbean, and beyond.
These days, I don’t travel full-time—but I actually think that’s helped me grow as a travel blogger! With my two sweet kittens back waiting for me at home, my trips are shorter and I want to maximize every moment of my adventures abroad.
I plan my trips obsessively—always looking for the highest-rated biggest-bang-for-your-buck experiences and hotels, because… why wouldn’t you?
After months of research I finally make it to the destination and put it all to the test—was that boat tour really all it was hyped up to be? And what restaurants did I actually want to keep come back to every night of the trip?
Then I distill all of my tips and tricks into a collection of inspiring yet practical guides made just for you!
Along the way, some of my favorite travel adventures to write about have included:
- Staying in a B&B with a Mt. Vesuvius view in my great-great grandfather’s town in Italy, Vico Equense
- Foraging with locals and taking in the views in a tiny Japanese Alps town, Tanekura
- Chasing waterfalls and hidden swimming holes in the rainforests of Puerto Rico’s El Yunque
- Hiking through a hardened lava lake, snorkeling with manta rays, and visiting a sacred valley on Hawaii’s Big Island
- Dancing to live reggae, swimming beneath waterfalls and driving the winding jungle roads of Saint Vincent with locals
Recently, I started Your Friend The Blogger to help other travel lovers build profitable, purposeful, and passive travel blogging businesses.
