"I had my own little eat, pray, love moment. I had to. To be completely honest with you, I felt completely lost. I didn't know what I was going to do with my life." - Aimee Cabakoff AKA Sustainably Aimee

Sustainable travel expert Aimee Cabacoff talks about suddenly losing her visa in Australia and being forced to leave with a broken heart and no direction. Plus, her travels in Israel and how spending time with a Bedouin tribe made her more mindful. How a mosquito bite landed her in the hospital with a dangerous blood infection. And, how she turned her passion for travel into a full-time career.  

After several years living all over the world in places like Bali and Australia, Aimee returned to the U.S. and was sad to see how wasteful our culture had become. That's when she launched SustainablyAimee and, through her social media platform, she gives tips and advice on how we can all reduce waste and reduce our carbon footprint.

Photographer and outdoor adventurer Melissa Miller talks about her childhood passion for dog-sled racing. How a solo trip through Alaska taught her so much more than bear safety and how to change a tire. Plus, why she finally left  her health-care job to become a full-time travel blogger. 

“I think the universe has a way of responding and if your intentions are ‘I want to explore. I want to connect to more of humanity,’ then I think the reward outweighs the risk.” -Ashley Company

Once upon a time Ashley Company was an inexperienced solo traveler exploring Latin America, where she bungee jumped on accident in Costa Rica, found herself with nowhere to stay one night in Nicaragua, and discovered an authentic African town in Colombia. Eventually Ashley made her way to Africa, where she now leads wildly popular travel excursions full of authentic interactions and purpose-driven fun. Listen in for laughs, inspiration and so many useful travel hacks.

Ashley Company is a social entrepreneur who's traveled more than half the world to 100+ countries. As an inspirational author and storyteller, she is known for delivering impactful talks about Black identity, Africa tourism, cultural competence, and women in leadership. Ashley is the founder of Jelani Travel and the non-profit Jelani gives, which curate life changing experiences for Black women and girls, and impact thousands of people across the globe through purpose driven travel.  

Today on Travel Itch

[00:00] - Intro

[01:16] - ‘Travel saved me,” breaking a family cycle

[04:06] - Ashley finds out that to travel, she must first go alone

[09:48] - Ashley gets stuck in the rain at night in Nicaragua with no where to stay

[13:00] - Ashley bungee jumps on accident

[16:33] - Traveling Africa can be difficult, Ashley’s sets out to make it accessible

[19:32] - A Kenyan restaurant in North Carolina is her launch point to a new career

[23:14] - Ashley’s ideal Africa travel itinerary

[27:46] - Ashley’ shares 3 of her favorite travel hacks

[30:53] - Bringing to live her travel companies, Jelani Travel and Jelani Gives

[33:39] - What’s next for Ashley Company and her travel companies?

Ashley’s Quotable Moments

“I believe that when we change the way that we see Africa, we can change the way that we see ourselves.” 

“I knew that there was more. Once you show somebody that there's something more out there, they have something more to fight for and to be motivated and inspired by. That is why I say travel changed me.”

“I was like, well, if I'm going to go do this by myself then I want to pick the friendliest place in the world. I literally Googled it and it said Costa Rica.”

“I found Afro Mexicans, Afro Peruvians, Afro Ecuadorians. Even though Black people were in all these places, Black Americans were not. I didn’t see one other person like me in all that time I traveled.”

“There are so many things you can do in order to travel without being rich because I've been to over half the world's countries and I'm not rich.”

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Episode Resources:

• Ashley Company | Shop travel books and merchandise
• Ashley Company | Jelani Travel
• Ashley Company | Jelani Gives
• Ashley Company | Instagram
• Ashley Company | Youtube

Pang Wangle Links

• Pang Wangle | Shop eco-friendly travel wear
• Pang Wangle | Instagram
• Pang Wangle | TikTok

Ashley + Pang Wangle in Africa!

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One-minute Travel Itch podcast trailer from host Jennifer John. It's more than just interviews about travel. It's about discovery, because the more you explore, the more you find. Produced by outdoor travelwear brand Pang Wangle.