My name is Finn. Growing up, I was always the quiet one. I did my own thing, but had solidified myself in a friend group. None of us were popular, none of us outcasts.

I took this with me into college, and it was there where I truly realized the part of my

life I was missing.

The friends I made there had an abundance of crazy stories and

adventures that could silence a room, mainly Lexi. She traveled the world, mostly by

herself, which opened her up to meeting some really interesting people

and getting herself into some really crazy scenarios.

I wanted that.

Was it out of my comfort zone?

Absolutely, but that's where we thrive, right?

So, after college, I asked her for some advice on how to

organize a solo trip.

I wanted to backpack, live it rough, stay with host families or in hotels, what she had done.

She asked where I wanted to go and we got talking about my possibilities.

I chose to travel Asia.

It's somewhere I'd never been, and the ranging cultures from country to country, city to city, intrigued me.

I love the way Lexi had spoken about each country. India, Uzbekistan, Thailand, Vietnam,

South Korea. So she'd put me in contact with people she'd met along the way.

People to house me or offer me jobs, and I planned my route. Lexi set me up with places to stay in most instances, despite the occasional hostile.

It brought out a side of me that I knew I had, but rarely showed.

I was talking to strangers, trying to speak to locals in the respective

languages, embracing the culture of wherever I was. I lived day to day from

...