Welcome to Exploralogist James!
ex·plo·ra·lo·gist
/ˌekspləˈ räləjəst/
noun. person who is curious and excited about the world around them and embraces new places, people, experiences, and the unexpected, whether near or far.
Why the term Exploralogist ? Well, it's my own creation to describe part of my identity and also an homage to the 25 years I spent working as an Epidemiologist.
Exploralogist James aims to encourage and maybe even inspire you to discover and embrace your own inner exploralogist, whether through new adventures near your home base or in more exotic, faraway places. My interests in travel, photography, and the outdoors will feature prominently as I develop my creative side (bear with me) after far too many years of left-brain work.
Over the past 20 years, travel has helped define the person I am today, influenced what I value, and to contemplate my place in the world. Now, I’m hoping that travel and exploration will play a big part in how I spend shape this next chapter of my life. One of my favorite things about traveling is that it’s the ‘gift that keeps on giving.’ It starts with the excitement and anticipation that comes from planning your trip, to the trip itself, and re-living those experiences when you reminisce.
For me, travel also has the power to keep challenging and changing you. On the eve of each trip, I lie in bed contemplating all that I will experience—sights, sounds, smells, feelings, and meeting new people—and how when I return, I will be a different person for having had the privilege of that experience. Even returning to a favorite place is a new experience, for time has passed, the place has changed, and maybe even more importantly, you are also a different person with a different lens from the first time you visited the place.
Thanks for joining me on this adventure!
Exploralogist James
I grew up in a small, rural village (above) nestled in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of northern New Mexico. I spent my childhood exploring my rugged surroundings by bouldering, hiking, collecting rocks, and dreaming about someday venturing out so much further into the world. I have fond memories of going to garage-sales with my grandparents, where I collected maps, globes, vintage suitcases, and old sets of encyclopedias to read about far-off places.
I got a small taste of travel in high school through out-of-state school trips, but it wasn't until my late 20s when I finally had the opportunity to expand my horizons further. I've visited 38 countries but feel that I've just started scratching the surface. Some of my favorite destinations include Iceland, New Zealand, Morocco, Mexico City, and Paris! I also feel a deep spiritual connection and love for the Sandia Mountains and the Rio Grande bosque, here in my home base of Albuquerque, NM.
I recently retired from a fulfilling career as a public health epidemiologist. Now, I’m forging a new path, gradually setting aside my deeply ingrained epidemiologist tendencies in favor of my inner exploralogist.
Besides travel, my other interests include hiking, biking, photography, nerding out on data and statistics (still), playing with my two chihuahua-mix doggos, hanging at local coffeeshops and breweries, volunteer work, and improving my Spanish.