GEOGRAPHICAL JOURNEYS After spending my Junior Year of College Abroad in London, England, I was hooked on traveling. But even budget backpacking across the US and Canada quickly emptied my bank account and I searched for a way to incorporate travel into a paying job. After stints as a travel agent (surprisingly no traveling), bank customer service rep (definitely no traveling) and Legal Researcher (lots of traveling, but only around my home state of Connecticut) I joined the US Department of State and set out to see the world.

Tegucigalpa, HONDURAS 1990-1992 My first tour was at the US Embassy in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. I figured I'd be one of those single, career-gals, but I ended up meeting the love of my life at the airport the day I arrived. My suitcase was being ransacked by Custom Officials and he rescued me (and my belongings).  Eighteen years, two kids, two dogs, two careers, seven countries and nine international moves later we're still journeying happily together. FAVORITE SOUVENIRS:  My husband, two dogs. FAVORITE MEMORIES:  All of it.

Prague, CZECH REPUBLIC 1992-1993 FAVORITE SOUVENIRS:  Bohemian Crystal, Lifelong Friends FAVORITE MEMORY:  Standing on the ancient yet frigid Charles Bridge at Midnight, January 1, 1993, with my husband, sister and her husband-to-be as Czechoslovakia separated peacefully into two separate countries - the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic.

Washington, DC 1993-1997 FAVORITE SOUVENIRS:  My membership in the Washington Romance Writers and the Romance Writers of America and the realization that I am a Writer. FAVORITE MEMORY:  Feeling completely at home with my fellow writers and realizing this is the direction my life journey is heading.

Brussels, BELGIUM 1997-2000 My last tour as an employee in the US Foreign Service. FAVORITE SOUVENIR:  Our first daughter. FAVORITE MEMORIES:  The birth of our first daughter, seeing my husband as a stay-home dad to our daughter and knowing I'd been lucky enough to find a man strong and confident enough to be loving and nurturing.  My last day at a paying job as I embarked upon my most-fulfilling career to date, that of a stay-home mom and writer.

Warsaw, POLAND 2000-2002 My first tour as the accompanying spouse of a Foreign Service Employee.  Not only did I enjoy finally getting a chance to be a full-time stay-home mom, complete with baby playgroups and sing-alongs,  but I got a lot of writing done, too.  FAVORITE SOUVENIR:  Boleslawiec Pottery (too much of it, but it's really beautiful and useful), a few life-long friends. FAVORITE MEMORY:  Taking a tour of the Warsaw Ghetto - it really brought history home to me.    Discovering Polish law requires people to shovel not just the sidewalk but the STREET in front of their house. With snow falling most days during the six-month winter I got a lot of exercise.

Belize City, BELIZE 2003-2005 FAVORITE SOUVENIRS: The fictional island of La Isla Bonita I created for my first women's fiction manuscript, GREETINGS FROM PARADISE.   I modeled it on Belize City. FAVORITE MEMORIES: Two-hour driving trips to Chetumal, Mexico, for McDonald's and groceries.  Overseeing the beauty of the Caribbean from the window of a commuter airplane and then landing safely on an impossibly short runway that jutted out into the ocean.

Shanghai, CHINA 2006-2007 FAVORITE SOUVENIRS:  Our second daughter.  Although she was born in VA we moved to Shanghai when she was just 7 weeks old.  Gorgeous Freshwater Pearls and designing jewelry. FAVORITE MEMORIES:  Mastering the art, and language skills, to haggle in Mandarin.  My Chinese ayi (helper), Xiao Wu (pronounced Sh-ow Woo).  Taking my kids to an aquarium in Shanghai and watching the local crowd stare at them instead of the exhibits. Now, we're back in the Washington, DC area for a few years.   Who knows where we'll journey next?