About me | why I travel the world

I started this page to document this year of travel for family and friends, but if you’ve stumbled upon it—welcome! I’m honored that you’re here, and I’d love to share a little about myself.

Yes, I’m actually called Guido but, despite the name, I’m neither from Italy nor do I have any Italian roots. I was born and raised in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and moved to the US when I was 16.

Or, I mean, “moved”.

For the past 13 years, I’ve stayed in the US under nonimmigrant statuses, both as a student and as a full-time employee.

I could always lawfully live in the country, though the visa stamps on my passport constantly reminded me that my days were, sooner or later, numbered.

And, well… here we are.

After many years of studying, working, and building a life in the US—a place I had, to an extent, come to call home—my time in America (as they say it) was up.

I’m thankful for the opportunities I’ve had, the people I’ve met, and all the places I’ve been fortunate to visit in the US.

In Brazil, I used to be in a place where everyone around me, for the most part, lived in the same neighborhoods, vacationed in the same destinations, and listened to the same music.

I then joined a high school in Florida—a couple of years living on campus, surrounded by classmates from every corner of the world.

And I mean that.

Over two years, I had teammates from Colombia, Bermuda, Turkey, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Lithuania, India, Russia, Mexico, Senegal, Japan, and of course, the US.

I would spend my mornings with them: running, lifting, and playing basketball, the game we all loved.

Then I would spend the afternoon with classmates from even more countries - China, Thailand, Vietnam, Egypt, Chile, Venezuela, Panama, Honduras, England, France, Denmark, Norway, Australia, etc.

We were all so different and we were all so similar.

We were all very proud of our respective cultures, languages, and homelands—yet, at the same time, we embraced and celebrated each other’s differences.

Growing up in Brazil, you mostly dream about visiting the US and Western European countries. China, for example, was just the place your parents joked you’d reach if you kept digging deep enough in the sand at the beach.

My experience fraternizing with folks from far away opened my eyes to the vastness, diversity, and sheer beauty of our world. As I was finishing up high school, I’d often tell a friend: “I can’t wait to go to India one day”. Or China. Or Thailand. Or Italy. Or Mexico.

One day…

I went on to college, and I was very fortunate to attend a university that also drew people from all over the world.

I kept living and breathing the international atmosphere, but aside from a few occasional trips here and there, I always felt like I was falling short of my promise.

In 2017, I graduated and took my first job out of college. Through it, I had the chance to visit many places I either never thought I would go to, or that, at least, weren’t top of mind: Ukraine, Sweden, Mexico, Panama, Colombia, Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda.

I lived the jet-setter life for a few years until the COVID-19 pandemic brought my travels to an unexpected standstill.

Almost a year went by and the restrictions slowly started to be lifted. I changed jobs and went back to traveling a bit more.

Just as my life was falling back into place, everything changed…

Perhaps a blessing in disguise. The immigration waters got a bit turbulent for me, and my green card process was paused for over a year.

As my timeline was severely impacted, I decided to give myself this year to explore the world and go to the places I’ve dreamed of visiting for so long.

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