My new journey.....

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Samuel Kemp, and I live in Aruba. For the past 39 years, through our family business, Kemp's A1 Apartments Aruba (www.a1aruba.com), I have been associated with the tourism industry, though I went to college to study computer science and have been a public servant for the past 12 years.

I have been happily married to the love of my life, Laura, for the past 8 years. I also have a 19-year-old daughter from a previous relationship. I have quite a few hobbies, but none that I like as much as traveling, something that, at an early age, my parents made sure we did quite a bit of. Now, at 45 years of age, I find myself wanting to work less and travel more. I know it's wishful thinking, but I will settle for at least traveling while working.

That is where my new journey comes in. Over the years, I have found that my current work, though fulfilling financially, does not really satisfy my sense of fulfillment, satisfaction, and happiness, so I have been looking at alternatives for a while now, first on a part-time basis and then more and more as a career change option. Don't get me wrong. I work for the government of my island nation; the work is not hard, and the pay is not bad; however, I find that there is something missing for my job satisfaction. Being multilingual and having ample insight into many cultures and customs, I have decided that the best thing I can do from now until my retirement is to work full-time in the travel industry. Having received some formal training in the travel industry in high school, I am now resuming my education to become a travel professional (travel agent), but this is just the beginning of my journey.

Over the years, I have also let myself go a bit, becoming overweight and very sedentary, despite the pleas of my late mother and other family members who mean the best for me. I have been a bit lacking in personal training and general fitness, which have caused sleep apnea, back and knee problems, depression, and other ailments that are affecting me at an age when most are in their prime. So I had an epiphany and started to think about what really makes me happy, and that is traveling. In my current situation, I can travel once a year (a long trip) or sacrifice and work overtime at work to be able to accumulate money and time off to take a few small, short trips. As I previously stated, there is nothing wrong with it in and of itself, but I have noticed that the many years of shift work, as well as not adhering to a strict eating schedule or eating fast food, have also contributed to my weight gain and depression.

During a trip to Mexico in 2022, I made a pledge to my family and some close friends to transform my life. I committed to prioritizing my health and weight loss, while also focusing on my mental health and general wellbeing. This blog aims to inspire others facing similar challenges and serve as a testament to the success of my journey. If you enjoy travel content, I will strive to regularly update this blog with the places we visit and the experiences we have, documenting my daily journey towards owning my own travel agency business.