Vinayak Rao

“What is your passion?"

When someone asks me this question, it doesn't take me long to come up with an answer. Travel is the one passion that occupies my mind and thoughts more than anything else in the world. I always tell people that my dream job is to host a travel show, much like Anthony Bourdain's 'No Reservations'. Getting paid to eat exotic cuisine, sample local beverages and travel the world (in first class mind you) would be a dream job for almost anyone! But for me, it is so much more than that.

Traveling allows you to see things that you would never have before. It also allows you to broaden your mind and expand your social capital by experiencing new cultures and meeting new people.

Take my photo above, for example - it was taken on top of "Mount Topo Do Mundo" in Brasil by Fernando Marino, the most hospitable and welcoming person I've ever met. Fernando grew to become one my closest friends in my network and had I not taken the time to visit him in his home, I would have been deprived of the chance of seeing one of the most beautiful mountain ranges and of meeting one of my closest friends.

Most people don't know that I was born in India and lived there for over eight years. I moved to the United States in 2001, and saying I was culture shocked would be like saying Barack Obama is a famous person; a total understatement. I was lost in a new world that was vastly different to the one I had left behind.

So what did I do? I adapted. I took in every bit of American culture as I could, the cuisines, interests, vernacular, accents and so much more. This educational opportunity was like no other and after a few short years, I was yearning for it again! In 2011 and 2013, I had the opportunity to travel to Argentina and Brasil, respectively. Again, I had arrived in a new world that was vastly different to the States and again, I was lost. It was enthralling.

I have a personal goal to visit all seven continents and to experience as much of the worlds culture as I possibly can. While it is great to travel to a country as a tourist, it means so much more to travel to a country with the goal of immersing yourself in a culture.

Traveling gives you the chance to build new relationships and networks with people that you would have never met before! It is my goal to see and experience as much of this Earth's vast splendor and connect with as many of its incredible inhabitants as I can!