Guest Blog: Sam Taggart
This month I'm excited to introduce you to yet another friend of a friend from the City of Brotherly Love. (What's in the water down there?) Philly-native Sam Taggart considers himself a bit of a nomad with a passion for immersing himself in each new country he visits. And in the past few years, he has been lucky enough to immerse himself in quite a few.
Name: Sam Taggart
Age: 32
Current Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates "at least for this week"
Occupation: Marketer & Community Builder
Sam always had an itch to travel and move around but didn't really scratch it thoroughly when he was younger. A week after graduating from university in 2009, Sam moved to New York to work at a startup, which meant that travel wasn't quite in the cards yet. In 2012, he started to put together a dream trip to Southeast Asia, but he knew it would require at least 3-4 weeks to do it right. Unfortunately, he never really had the courage to ask that kind of thing of his employers, so it kept getting put off. Fast forward to a few months before his 30th birthday, when Sam now had a clear feeling that it was time to move on and, among other things, finally take that trip. "If not now, when?" So, he quit his job and almost immediately booked a trip to Thailand. What was initially meant to be only a month-long trip has since turned into 2+ years on the road.
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| Pai, Thailand |
Jet Set Jess (JSJ): How many countries have you visited?
Sam Taggart (ST): I've been lucky enough to spend solid time in 23 countries, with half of those visits coming in the past two years. I don't count long airport layovers, otherwise the number would be slightly higher.
JSJ: What country do you consider a home away from home?
ST: Thailand has a super special place in my heart, particularly the north. It's the place where I started my travel journey, which led me to massive changes in my life, and where I spent the most time while traveling in Southeast Asia. It's a beautiful country, the people tend to be incredibly warm and kind, and the food is delicious. I'm thankful, though, because there are a lot of places around the world that I now feel "at home" in. I dig the nomadic lifestyle and I also adapt quite quickly.
JSJ: What country is your absolute favorite to spend time in?
ST: I haven't been back in eleven years, but I also really love Argentina. I studied abroad in Buenos Aires and spent a summer there in high school. It's quite a large country with a wide range of stunning nature. The people are great – I love South Americans – and the food culture is carnivorous but delicious if that's your thing. It's just a really vibrant culture, overall.
JSJ: What is your favorite place in U.S.?
Well, I'm originally from Philadelphia, and to me it's massively underrated maybe because of its proximity to New York City – but it has so much to offer especially when it comes to food, culture, and history. So, don't knock it till you try it. That said, it's hard to beat NYC, especially as someone who loves to travel, eat, and experience new cultures. The city really does have something to offer for everyone, at any time of the day or night. Just spend as much time away from all the tourist traps as possible, and you'll be good. I visited the Pacific Northwest for the first time a few years back and I was obsessed. Seattle and (especially) Portland are really fantastic cities, with such a mix of cultures and foods – and the nature out there is absolutely stunning. I did a few days camping along the coast in Oregon by myself and those were some of the best days of my travels. The desert in the southwest is like being on Mars. Highly recommended. And then Martha's Vineyard is a special place for me. My family has been going there for decades and decades, and I first went when I was two months old. Beaches, cards, books, poor cell phone coverage – pure relaxation. There's something magic about coastal New England in the summer.
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| Phở in Hanoi |
ST: This is an extremely tough question because I love to eat. I think in terms of the quality of food, Spain would be up there. The Mediterranean diet is so simple, clean, and fresh, with a real focus on ingredients, and I've never been to Italy otherwise that might be my answer. Vietnam has some of the best individual dishes I've ever had – particularly a deliciously brothy pho one morning from a local spot in Hanoi that I will never forget. A good bowl of pho takes real time and care and touch, and it truly comes out in the flavor. The spices in Thai food are phenomenal, but it takes some practice to get used to. And I'm a sucker for street food, which Thailand absolutely crushes. As far as a food city, beyond New York, which has basically everything you could ever want 24 hours of the day, it would be Penang in Malaysia. I won't say "the," but definitely "a" food capital of southeast Asia. Heavy influence of Chinese flavors, as well as Indian. Spicy, sweet, salty, crunchy, brothy – you name the texture or flavor and you can find it in Penang.
ST: Well, my phone is quite important, for communication and also it doubles as my camera. There are a few apps I'd recommend, including Maps.Me (you can download maps offline in case you don't have data somewhere) and Google Translate (with a few languages saved for offline use). A good international travel adapter and rechargeable battery are both important. I also try to always have a $100 USD note along with a couple smaller USD notes in my wallet, just in case. (If you're truly stuck, almost everyone will take American dollars). But I try to go as minimal as possible. Besides that, it's just clothes, my laptop, and basic toiletries. What else do we really need, you know? Next time you travel, I'd recommend doing an audit of what you actually use / wear and what you don't. Then the time after that, only bring what you needed / used the last time. There's something really liberating about traveling with not a lot of stuff on your back.
JSJ: And what would be a bucket list trip for you?
ST: I spent about eight hours in Tokyo on a long layover and basically spent my entire time hopping around between various 7-Elevens – but I really want to go back to Tokyo and the rest of Japan at some point and do it right. Ramen is probably my favorite dish. And (good) sushi. Yum. I try to eat vegetarian these days but I would definitely cheat in Japan. I find Japanese culture quite beautiful. And something important for me when I travel is a balance of city/culture/food and nature, which Japan has for sure. Nepal is another place I'd love to go to for some of those reasons. I recently went to Bulgaria for a couple of weeks and was super impressed – so I want to go back there along with some nearby countries like Serbia, Slovenia, and Hungary. They weren't really ever on the radar for me, but now they are in a big way. So, never say never. In Africa, I've only been to Morocco and Egypt so far, so one day I'd like to do a months-long trip through the continent. And just as a curveball, I've heard you can do a horseback riding trek across Mongolia, which sounds pretty incredible. But I haven't looked into it too much.
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| Penang, Malaysia |
Thailand? Argentina? Martha's Vineyard? Philly? I can help get you there. Contact me today at jessica@ellitravel.com or at (917) 261-4634 to learn just how easy (and affordable) it is to work with me!
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