Hello World! What is this blog and why are you here?
Welcome to The T Word on Travel! Why did I pick the name you ask? There are a couple of great people in my life that have always affectionately called me “T” instead of Tanya. Tanya + Travel = The T word! I love to spill the TEA on my adventures around the globe, so please join me as I provide advice and tips on how you can travel too! (I promise there won’t be this many terrible puns going forward, thanks for playing along!)
Why are you here and what is this blog about?
A little more about me…. I currently reside just outside of Edmonton with my husband, pre-teen son, and 2 beagles. At the end of 2023 I decided to switch gears from working in real estate full time, to travel blogging. I wanted to combine my passion for travel, propensity for creative writing, and my love of helping people!
I was a Realtor for 19 years, and owned my own company and real estate brokerage for 7 of those years. The hours I put in recently became overwhelming and were taking a toll on my mental and physical health. These days everyone expects you to be accessible 24/7, and in real estate there is no exception.
I found myself stressed and working until 10:30/11pm at night, only to crash for a few hours and wake up to texts and missed calls at 7am. Crazy right? But in the real estate world, people work at all hours of the day and night! It felt like there was no ‘off switch’. Even as we headed out of the country on holidays, I was still ‘on’. I returned phone calls, set up appointments, and negotiated contracts all while on vacation with my family. I cannot remember a single vacation that I was completely unplugged. I started to wonder when was it my turn for a break?
Then one morning at 4:30am, wide awake and stressed from a deal collapsing over a disagreement between buyer and seller, I realized there was no break coming. Ever. Don’t get me wrong, I loved real estate. I loved being creative with videos, photos, write-ups and helping stage houses. Those things made me feel alive and I loved seeing real time results from my efforts. I was good at real estate – I could talk to people easily, list homes at fair prices, and I am very calm under immense pressure.
Real estate is an emotional journey and most often is people’s largest asset in their lives. I understood that and took it very seriously.
In the end though, it was too much time away from the family, not enough money made from my substantial efforts and internally made me a giant ball of stress.
I have had several new diagnosis over the last few years starting with Hashimoto’s disease which is an auto-immune thyroid disorder. I was initially diagnosed with hypothyroidism at age 25. Once you have one auto-immune disease you’re likely to get at least 6 more. I currently have 4 and waiting on further tests this year. I found myself looking to step back from the center of things and find something that allows my creativity to flourish, but from a place of my choosing.
So, here I am trying out the online blogging world for the first time. With my history of creative writing from real estate and added love of travel, I thought I could be of some service to other people looking to make their travel dreams come true.
My family is also considering a major move to the country of ancestors origin – England. My husband and I feel at home there and have visited the country 8 times in 20 years. We know the areas we like, and are further researching our options. I recently received my United Kingdom Passport, and the next step will be applying for a visa for my husband and son.
You may also spot a couple of other fellow travelers in my photos – my husband Curtis and my son Henri. My son Henri has a natural way with the camera – both in front of it and behind the lens. My husband Curtis also has a real passion for traveling and exploring the world. He never got on a plane until he met me at 18 years old!
I hope you’ll follow along with my journey and find some useful tidbits along the way. Thank you for being here!
“All that is gold does not glitter,
Not all those who wander are lost;
The old that is strong does not wither,
Deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
A light from the shadows shall spring;
Renewed shall be blade that was broken,
The crownless again shall be king.”
? J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring
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