Duff Pacifico

Truth be told, it’s not just planning travel for other people that I love; I love the whole idea of travel and experiencing it for myself is part of that. Discovering new worlds is inherently captivating to me, and has provided some wonderful experiences for my family and me.  

I’ve done a substantial amount of travel, but I live for safaris. I’ve been to Kenya, South Africa, and Tanzania. The experience of coming face-to-face with a lion or seeing an elephant at close range is unforgettable.  

The best part for me though has been seeing the world through my son’s eyes. One of the greatest experiences for me was setting my son and his friends up to be pen pals with some of the local children in Tanzania before one of our trips. The anticipation of meeting mystery friends added so much excitement to the experience, and the pure joy they had when they finally met and played soccer together is something none of us can ever forget.  

With my son in college now, my travel focus has changed. I just returned from a yoga retreat in Sardinia. As soothing as the trip was, and as beautiful as the crisp blue water of the Mediterranean was, what stuck out to me the most was the landscape of the inner island—those arid mountains weren’t what I was expecting, and in a strange way, they reminded me of Arizona. I also met some wonderful people and saw a side of Italian life that most people don’t take the time to discover. 

Through all my travels, more than discovering shared landscape, I like discovering shared humanity: my number one travel tip to all travelers is to always bring a local dictionary with you and always try to use it.