Monthly Dose of Travel on The Chat

I firmly believe travel teaches us valuable life lessons in ways we never expect. It has allowed me to fall in love with the world, see and believe that we are all the same irrespective of where we were born or raised and most importantly it has allowed me to appreciate different perspectives.

If you follow Humans of New York, then you have to come to see that it doesn't matter if you live in New York or Karachi, humans are the same everywhere. Negative news stories tend to take over the airwaves and we rarely hear about good that takes place everyday. When we experience the world for ourselves, we see that stereotypes are often not true and people are inherently good. I believe this is the reason platforms like Airbnb, Couchsurfing and Uber are successful. Strangers are the best part of travel because they make you realize what humility really means. They are the ones who invite you in and offer you a feast even though they don't have much to  give.

I was on The Chat back in August to discuss my love for travel and had a great time with the ladies. It was just like chatting with a group of girlfriends. Oddly enough, they invited me back a month later to discuss fall travel destinations. Starting in November, I'll be on once a month to discuss holidays around the world! I am so grateful for the invite and for their faith in me. My hope for the monthly segment is to use it as a tool to raise awareness for the different cultures present in Jacksonville. We have many different nationalities amongst us but we do very little to incorporate them into the community. 

I'd love to hear about which holidays from other parts of the world have made an impression on you. I have a list from my travels and can't wait to start sharing them with you. Watch The Chat weekends at 3 p.m. on NBC12 and ABC25.

If you would like to watch the previous two interviews, you can do so with the links below.

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/videos/entertainment/television/programs/the-chat/2015/08/12/the-chat-wednesday-august-12th-travel-with-sabeen-perwaiz/31553655/

http://www.firstcoastnews.com/videos/entertainment/television/programs/the-chat/2015/09/18/72425150/

World Travelistas

Angie Orth and I were recently interviewed by First Coast Magazine  for their July bucket list issue. The interview focused on our love of travel and why it is an important component of our life. Grab the issue at your local Northeast Florida bookstore! You can also read the interview here. 

Photo by Renee Parenteau

One Year Since Cambodia

It has been nearly two months since my last post. I've been meaning to write but keep getting pulled in lots of different directions. I have a long list of posts to write on Vietnam, Hawaii, Montreal, Asheville and Savannah and I promise to get to them before the summer is over. 

While attending a wedding party this weekend, a conversation on Cambodia led me to realize it has been exactly one year since I moved back home. I remember when I was getting ready to move to Asia like it was yesterday. At the time, a lot of my friends were worried I was giving up on the momentum I had achieved and were not sure I was making the right decision for my career. You already know how enriching that experience was for me.

The past year has been full of professional and personal development highs for me. I have been working at the Jacksonville Chamber since August and have enjoyed every minute of it. I am managing a cutting edge project with the goal of improving our region's college attainment rate from 36% to 60% by 2025. You have no idea how baffling this statistic is for all the locals. People just assume everyone goes to college and graduates when in reality more than half don't.  

I also recently learned that I am an Aspen Ideas Festival Scholar for 2015 and part of  Leadership Jacksonville Class of 2016. Both programs present an opportunity to engage with a dedicated group of leaders, locally, nationally and worldwide.

The amount of support and advice I have received in Jacksonville has been unbelievable. I've said this before and I'll say it again but the women here have helped me in countless ways. They have made themselves available for multiple coffee dates and lots of honest feedback sessions. 

The pressure to be great is huge because I don't want to let anyone down. But it is also the motivation to keep going and to keep setting higher expectations for myself. I have never felt a greater sense of community then I do now in Jacksonville. I am excited to be part of the change and can't wait to see what comes next.