Jun 28, 2012

World Travel Buzz Interview: The Traveling Triplets!

Justin Jones / Interviews / 2 Comments

When I first came across the Traveling Triplets a few months back, I knew that these girls were poised to make a big splash in the travel blogging world.  They are three beautiful, talented travelers who have combined their varied talents and varied travel styles together to make one awesome, inspiring travel blog. Their secret to their success? Besides a shared passion for travel, each brings a unique set of skills to the table.

Kylie (triplet #1) is the firstborn triplet! She is a photographer and videographer who lives in Los Angeles. A humanitarian at heart, Kylie loves to volunteer when traveling and can never get enough of babies and  children from other countries. She is the goofy funny one who probably laughs more at her own wit than she is willing to admit.

Lisa (triplet #2)  is the health nut of the 3. She is always down for a challenge, loves to cook, bake, exercise, and explore. Lisa enjoys pushing things to the limit and making life fun!

Megan (triplet #3), also known as the “crafty triplet”, Megan finds freedom in life by running an online business selling handmade accessories. She is the youngest of the three, and possibly the most passionate traveler — she won’t let a year go by without a trip abroad!

In the following interview, the girls share their cherished travel connections, favorite travel tips, and their love for the humbling and inspiring world of travel!

 

World Travel Buzz: As triplets, people probably often assume that you all share the same personality and travel style, but I know that you’re all very different and unique people. What skills and traits do each of you bring to the group?

KYLIE: I’m the artsy fartsy one who is always documenting everything and making people pose and do funny things. Despite my ridiculous creative ideas and methods of self-entertainment, I am also known to be the worrywart. I like to know that I am safe, that my belongings are safe, and that everyone I am with is going to be okay. While Lisa is the mother bear, I’m sort of like that hawk scoping the scene with a bird’s eye view.

LISA:  I do feel like I am the mother bear of the bunch, and a big ol’ softie at heart. I am a natural leader, but can never get enough giggles in my day.

MEGAN: I think we are similar in a lot of ways, but our differences are distinct. Kylie is always prepared and educated about what she does and where she travels, Lisa is always down to try something new and eager to learn, and I am both spontaneous and easy going when it comes to travel plans.

LISA: We balance each other out quite beautifully when combined.

WTBz: So, what’s your travel style? Party? Culture? Volunteering? Connecting with the locals? A little of everything?  What’s the balance?

KYLIE: I’d have to say somewhere between volunteering and connecting with the locals. All these styles include culture – as it is innately embedded in everything we do when we travel. Much of my adventuring includes some kind of volunteer work, whether it is working with humanitarian organizations or just stopping by orphanages to hang out with the children. When I’m not volunteering, I’m adventuring with the locals like the locals because honestly – that’s the best way to really connect. Eating dinner in an intimate setting, such as a personal home with a local family is a far greater learning experience that eating at a local restaurant.

LISA: I would have to say a little of everything. I mostly travel to have a good time and immerse myself in a new culture. I love to learn about foods in different countries and how to cook famous dishes. I love to experience first hand what life is like through someone else’s shoes, and I dream of providing health care to children in orphanages in Africa.

MEGAN: When I travel I like to dive into the local areas rather than going the typical tourist route. I will find fun activities I can do to learn something new about the culture. I love meeting locals and learning the “dos and don’ts” of each area.

WTBz: What was your first experience with traveling? Was this when you’d say you became a Traveler? Or did you really discover your passion for travel later on?

KYLIE: I’d say my first REAL experience with traveling was when I moved to China. That was when it all happened – quickly. I was addicted immediately. Once I tasted the life of a people on the other side of the map, I was in for the long haul. All it takes to get me to light up and have a stupid smirk plastered on my face for weeks on end is to throw me in a place where nobody speaks my language –where I am the foreigner. It’s an incredibly mysterious and alluring feeling to know you’re being watched just because you don’t look or act like everyone else.

LISA: My first experience as an adult was with my husband for our honeymoon to the Bahamas. Yes, this is when I felt like I truly stepped into the world of traveling. Leaving the country and all was a big deal.

MEGAN: My first experience traveling abroad was when we went to Canada with my family. I was too young to really remember anything. I would say I became a traveler on my honeymoon in Panama. We backpacked through Panama and stayed at several different places ranging from beach huts to hostels. It wasn’t the “typical” honeymoon, that’s for sure.

Can you explain your passion for travel? What do you love about it? What do you get from it?

KYLIE: My passion for travel stems from my interests in cultures, diversity and poverty. I studied International Cultures, Communications and Intercultural Peace-building (Conflict Resolution) for my undergrad and although my interest was there before, it only skyrocketed with an educational and academic backbone to support it. I love learning. I love seeing things first hand and experiencing them in real time. It solidifies the things you read in books and other academia and suddenly the world is real to you.

LISA: The thing I love most about traveling is the learning I experience and the new set of eyes it gives me to look at the world through. I enjoy the gratitude it gives me and the humbling experience traveling truly is. 

MEGAN: I love seeing and learning new things that change the way I think and look at life. I always take home new experiences and have something to look back on and look forward to. To me traveling is a constant reminder to never take life too seriously, and go have some fun!

WTBz: Do the three of you usually travel together?

KYLIE: The three of us are at different stages in our life, which has made it hard to travel together. We usually travel independently with our spouses, but we are saving up for a legitimate Traveling Triplets trip! I prefer to travel with my husband but I daydream of traveling with my sisters so we will see that it happens!

LISA: Growing up we traveled as a family, now I travel with my husband. I prefer to travel with family or my spouse. But a group of friends is never a bad idea. The more the merrier is how I feel!

MEGAN: We have not traveled together as triplets very much besides family vacations growing up. Since we all got married we have lived in different places that have made it difficult to do things together. I travel with my husband and sometimes friends. It really makes a difference on what you do and where you stay depending on who you travel with, so we prefer to keep it simple and travel as a couple.

If you could travel with any one (real, fictional alive, or dead) who would it be and where would you go?

KYLIE: My three older brothers and of course triplet sisters – all 6 of us, just crusin’, would be a dream come true!

LISA: My hubby Chase and we would go to Africa, hands down. I’m dying to go on a safari and helping out at an orphanage.

MEGAN: Hmmm… I’m awkward with people I don’t know so I’d probably say my sisters and we would go to Greece just like on Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants!

Many people who don’t travel always think they can’t afford it. What do you have to say to that?

KYLIE: Quit spending so much money on unnecessary crap like fancy make up, new clothes, shoes and your iPhone. Word on the street is, money doesn’t grow on trees after all, and it certainly isn’t coming out of our butts. So, that being said, we budget and save. Simple as that! Pick a place – save up – and make it happen.

LISA: Pish posh, if you can afford food, nice clothes, a fancy or even sustainable house, with money for entertainment and toys, surely you can set some aside funding for life-changing experiences that only traveling can bring you.

MEGAN: This is so true, we get asked this all the time. Aside from the obvious budgeting and planning, I think anyone can make something happen if they want it bad enough. Choose a lifestyle that enables you to do what you love! I can’t imagine sitting in the same place my whole life oblivious to what is going on in the world around me.

WTBz: If you didn’t travel, how would your life be different?

KYLIE: Without travel I wouldn’t be nearly as humble. Period.

LISA: My life would be more closed-minded and naïve. I wouldn’t know the world I live in because I haven’t been living in it. In order to live, you must see, travel, experience, learn, and love.

MEGAN: I think my life would be more stable and I’d probably buy a house and plant some roots. I still plan on doing those things, but in a way that can incorporate my traveling lifestyle. When I’m not on the road I am at home working on my business and hanging out with family.

WTBz: Alright, here’s a fun one, what was the most grueling adventure?

KYLIE: Kayaking the Napali coast (Kauai). I was famished and had to pee soooo bad but I was afraid of jumping in the middle of the ocean and getting eaten alive by sharks. Eventually my bladder got the best of me and I did it anyway, and realized how magical it was swimming in the middle of the ocean after all! It was terrifying kayaking along the choppy coastline and getting tossed around by waves in a little kayak far far far away from land. I felt a bit shipwrecked but also pretty awesome. It was easily the scariest and raddest thing I’ve ever done.

MEGAN: I haven’t had any nasty or unbearable experiences really yet. I did find the squatter toilets in China both confusing and difficult, especially without toilet paper. I quickly learned to always carry toilet paper in my purse!

WTBz: What’s your best travel tip?

KYLIE: Don’t be afraid to laugh and smile when weird and embarrassing things happen. I’ve been walked in on in the bathroom (or lack thereof) mid-squat too many times to count, things have gone wrong, I’ve missed busses, language barriers have stirred up some real miscommunications and I’ve gotten sick. All these things come and go and honestly – they make the best stories. Hands down.

LISA: Enjoy the experience and be open to things that may seem nasty, dirty, or unsanitary. It may just change you for the better.

MEGAN: Just go with the flow!

WTBz: Any good travel romance stories?

KYLIE: One time I slept in a bamboo hut on a beach in Thailand with the hottest man alive – my husband. That, and the fact that I got hit on a lot in Ecuador. Flattering.

LISA: Being married and all, the romance is always easy to find everywhere I go. I remember in the Bahamas we were on an island called Coco Cay and found a side where no one else was, and had pure privacy. The water was crystal clear and the sky was flawless. Nothing can get quite more romantic than a tropical island get away.

MEGAN: My husband and I spent Valentine’s Day in Paris exploring the city and locked our love away on lovelocks bridge. That same trip my husband surprised me and planned a cozy mountain getaway in Andorra. We snuggled by the fire and made dinner, it was so romantic!

WTBz: One of my favorite parts of travel is connecting with the people I meet along the way, both locals and other travelers.  Can you tell us about one of your most cherished travel connections?

KYLIE: Sarita! My dearest little chiquita in Ecuador. She is my angel. If I could take her home, I would – but she already has an incredible family. I adore her to the moon and back. We rolled around in the grass, played with her dogs, tickled piggies, chased cows, held hands non-stop and ate potatoes in the field together. She will always have a special place in my heart.

MEGAN: My favorite travel connection was meeting my relatives in France. I got to meet my grandmother’s brother and his lovely wife, and my cousin who lives in Paris. It was awesome being in their element and seeing life through a local’s eyes.

What is the focus / goal of your website?

KYLIE: Traveling Triplets is about sharing, connecting and inspiring.

LISA: To inspire people, and show them that that the world is full of adventure, love, kind people, delicious food, and funny moments. Anyone can travel and experience their dreams, no matter where they are or how much they do or do not have.

MEGAN: We started our website as a resource to refer people after frequently being asked the same travel questions. We like to focus our blog on the triplet bond and traveling. The goal of our site is to inspire others to see the world and do what makes them happy – even if that means just strengthening a relationship. We hope as our site grows we can positively influence more and more people!

WTBz:  Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us!

You can follow The Traveling Triplets on their website at TravelingTriplets.com and on twitter at @traveltrips3.