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Hi new travel besties! We are so excited to welcome you to the Passports and Coffee Podcast. This podcast is for all of our corporate world millennials who want to start escaping the 9-5 while using that hard earned PTO. We are firm believers in using our PTO throughout the year and want to inspire and encourage fellow corporate world millennials, just like us, to start doing the same. Because let’s face it, just because we have full time jobs doesn’t mean we can’t explore our own backyards or even the world.
The first episode of the Passports and Coffee Podcast is all about getting to know the co-hosts. So who wants to meet the hosts of the Passports and Coffee Podcast?
The Passports and Coffee Podcast is co-hosted by real-life travel besties and fellow corporate world millennials Cheraya Miyoko and Kayla Reid. Before we get into where and when our friendship began, let’s first get to know the hosts a little bit better.
Who is Kayla?
Hey travel besties! My name is Kayla and one of the co-hosts of the Passports and Coffee Podcast. I am so excited for you to get to know me but first let’s cover the basics. I am a full-time registered nurse. I have been a nurse for almost 12 years where I have spent the majority of my career on a neurosurgical/trauma ICU at a level 1 trauma hospital. Currently I am a rapid response nurse at a small community hospital. As you can imagine, my days are long and my job is stressful. So I use travel as my way to unwind and de-stress.
I am so much more than just a registered nurse. When I am not saving lives, you can find me in my home state of Michigan where I’m exploring my amazing backyard. Michigan is such a beautiful and underrated travel destination in The Midwest and I enjoy sharing it’s beauty on my YouTube Channel and Instagram.
Now that you know what I do and where I live, I want to share some fun facts about me that I think you should know!
- I am a huge animal lover. I am a fur mama to a dog named Mojo and to two cats named Archie and Olivia.
- I consider myself an extroverted introvert. I thrive in my own solitude and truly enjoy being alone. One of the main reasons why I love to travel solo.
- I don’t watch much t.v. but I am obsessed with 90 Day Fiancé and am a sucker for Hallmark Christmas movies.
- I’m a Capricorn. If you know anything about zodiac signs, I exhibit all of the characteristics of a Capricorn.
Those are just a few fun facts about me. I would love to know a fun fact about you! I would love to be travel besties on any of my social media platforms. To follow me, click on any of the links below!
Who is Cheraya?
Hey travel besties! I am so excited you are here! If we haven’t met yet, let me introduce myself so we can get to know each other better. My name is Cheraya I was born and raised in Minnesota, and I love my home state!
By day I am a full time barista/Starbucks manager and in August 2022, I celebrated my 16 year anniversary. By night you can find me researching new places to explore, and sharing my experiences on Youtube!
Now that we got the big things out of the way, its time for some fun facts about me:
- I am a huge fan of a few reality TV game shows like, Amazing Race and Survivor
- I am super proud of my ethnicity and love to hear what peoples guesses are (take a guess, I’m not offended)!
- I am a fur mama to two kitties, Koa and Mochi
- My big three signs are all water! Pisces, Cancer and Scorpio! I really resonate with my signs with the exception of being overly emotional.
Thanks for hanging out with me and now its only fair you tell me a fun fact about you! Leave my a DM on any of my platforms below and come say hi!
How we met/Where we have traveled together
Now that you know us a little bit better, I am sure you are now wondering how we became travel besties. Our friendship goes back to 2019 when we met in Vietnam on a Flying the Nest Expedition. We originally bonded over our love for coffee and our want to see the world beyond our respective home states.
Our time in Vietnam came to an end and we went our separate ways. Kayla went home to Michigan and back to work. And Cheraya continued her travels through SEAsia as she was at the beginning of her year abroad traveling the world. Kayla and Cheraya stayed in touch and planned to meet half way through Cheraya’s travels in Peru at the end of 2019.
I am sure you are wondering why we decided on Peru. Well, Kayla saw these epic sky domes in Peru and talked Cheraya into trekking the Salkantay to Machu Picchu, which to this day may or may not be the worst idea we have ever had. The story of trekking the Salkantay is for another day.
We spent almost a month in Peru traveling from Lima to Cusco. This is the first trip we embarked on since we met in Vietnam and we quickly realized how well we travel together. After spending a month together, we became closer friends.
Fast forward to February of 2020, when Kayla met up with Cheraya in Europe. At this point, Cheraya was about to end her year long journey abroad. We spent two and half weeks exploring Greece, Turkey and Bulgaria.
We had the island of Santorini to ourselves where we watched the most epic sunset while drinking wine. We celebrated Cheraya’s 30th birthday in Turkey with a traditional Turkish Bath and then ended the trip with a night train to Sofia, Bulgaria to learn about this less traveled country.
The end of this trip marked the start of the pandemic. We both made it home days before the international borders closed.
Kayla quit her job in the ICU days before the outbreak of COVID in Michigan and started her new job as a rapid response nurse with a new health system. Kayla was thrown into the panic of the pandemic.
With travel up in the air, we were unsure of when we would see each other next, let alone when travel would be possible. But come the end of summer in 2020, Cheraya visited Kayla in her home state of Michigan. We road tripped to the Upper Peninsula where Kayla showed off some of the best sights that Michigan has to offer.
Kayla visited Cheraya in her home state of Minnesota in the fall of 2020. We explored Minneapolis and road tripped Minnesota’s North Shore, which is the best fall road trip you can take!
Our adventures continued in 2021. Our travels remained domestic where we road tripped through Colorado and South Dakota. We focused on visited more of our national parks and in 2021 we checked off Great Sand Dunes, Rocky Mountain, Wind Cave and Badlands National Park.
We started our 2022 adventures with a road trip through Tennessee. Our main purpose for heading to Tennessee was for TravelCon, which is a conference for travel content creators. But in true Cheraya and Kayla fashion, we extended our trip and created a full road trip with stops at the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Nashville and Memphis.
While we were in Nashville, that is where the first talks about starting a podcast began. What started as a drunken idea has now become a reality. So how did this idea begin and why did we decide to start a podcast?
Why a Podcast?
We both work full time and we understand the importance of a healthy work-life balance. But far too often we see our fellow corporate world millennials leaving PTO on the table and hearing statements like, “I don’t know how you find the time and money to travel.” We want to change that narrative. When you make travel a priority you will be surprised how affordable travel can be and how you can maximize the vacation time you earn every year.
Being passionate about educating, inspiring and encouraging fellow corporate world millennials to start taking advantage of their PTO, we came up with this crazy idea to start a podcast. Our hope is to share with you all of our insightful travel tips and crazy untold travel stories to inspire and encourage you to start exploring your own backyards and even the world.
Simply put, we want to open your eyes to the fact that you don’t need to quit your job to travel the world. It is possible to climb the corporate ladder while also checking off major bucket list travel goals. Don’t believe us? Tune into the podcast every Monday to hear how we are traveling to bucket list destinations while climbing the corporate ladder. Are you ready to be inspired to travel the world?
thank you for listening!
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Passports and Coffee Podcast
Hi travel besties! It's Kayla and Cheraya, your co-hosts of the Passports and Coffee Podcast. We are fellow corporate world millennials looking to escape the 9-5 and are encouraging you to do the same.