Meet the face behind the posts

Hi, I'm Julieta and I come from Chile, South America. I lived my childhood on a small island called Butachauques. This is an island located in the south of Chile where about 300 families live.

At that time there was no access to electricity or drinking water. There was only one school that had the first 7 grades of elementary school.

To finish elementary and high school, I left home at the age of 12 and lived in two different boarding schools in Quicaví and Ancud, in the province of Chiloé, Chile.

I went to university in another city called Concepción and in the end I moved to Santiago, the capital of Chile, to finish my degree (I am a pharmacist) and ended up staying there for 8 years.

Today, as I write this, I find myself living in a city called Mississauga in the province of Ontario, Canada.

I came to Canada with the International Experience Canada program, specifically with a Working Holiday, then I moved to a LMIA work permit thanks to the sponsorship of my employer, then I left that job and I am currently on my second Working Holiday visa.

I have crossed from one side of the world to the other with my partner, Aldo and my kitty Cora to live this adventure and get out of our comfort zone.

I'm not sure how to describe myself, but I would say I am a cat lover, I love learning new things, I'm passionate about veganism and other ways to help planet Earth.

Lately, I am starting to believe that I am brave for leaving my country and leaving all the stability I had, it has not been easy, but there are many lessons learned from this.

I consider myself an introverted person and very afraid of what others will say, so opening this blog has been a way to challenge myself... in the end I said to myself: Julieta, life is too short to be hiding in your comfort zone, so let's do it!

My motivation

In 2021, my partner and I travelled to Canada, initially just for a year, to live an adventure and get away from our adult life in Chile.

However, this desire to get out of our comfort zones started back in 2019. We did everything, I mean paperwork, research, more paperwork, more research on our own to understand what we had to do to leave our country in an organized way, and it seemed to work out.

Today marks a little over two years and a half here, and it has been a roller coaster of emotions, challenges, celebrations, tears, laughter, everything.

We have had so many reflections on what our life would have been like if we had known about all the programs available to travel when you are young (especially if you are under 35). That makes us feel that if we had had the information earlier, this would not be our first trip to living life abroad.

From these reflections, this idea was born to try to inform others of all the possibilities they have to travel and explore new places. It is never too late to look for another way, if you are motivated.

Some facts you may find useful to know more about us:

We were 2 normal adults (32 and 37 years old) with 9 to 5 jobs living in Santiago, Chile.
We had job stability, a place to live and no major debt.
We planned our trip by ourselves since to buy suitcase, tickets, documents, everything.
We travelled with our 8 year old kitty Cora from Santiago to Toronto, Canada.
This could be an added bonus: we travelled in the middle of the pandemic.

So one day and after several turns I decided to open this blog. I'm not sure if anyone will read this, but if I can find just one person who reads it and feels inspired to pursue their dreams, I will consider myself accomplished.

Meet my family

I am not alone in this journey. Fortunately I have two fundamental pillars that support me in all these things I want to do. Let me introduce you to my family :)

Aldo

My partner in crime

Aldo is the most energetic person I know (after 9am, of course, he's a night owl). He is always thinking about our next adventure and how to increase the adrenaline pumping in our bodies. I think that's why we complement each other, I'm more of a stay- at-home kind of person. He says I have a checklist for everything, well, he is the one who gives me encouragement when things don't go as planned, I hope he stays by my side for a long time.

Corita

The Chief Operating Officer

Corita (@corita_bella) is the CEO of our home. She is a beautiful 8 year old calico who was adopted 6.5 years ago from a shelter in Santiago, Chile. We have been together for a long time and she was the first one with a secured ticket on the trip from Chile to Canada. Her passion is sleeping 23 hours a day and ignoring the stupid humans (slaves) that live with her.