About

Aitutaki, Cook Islands

Hello

안녕하세요

Bonjour

hola

Aloha

Hi! My name is Brooke and I'm the main person behind the keyboard and camera. Welcome to Twenty Minutes in Burma, the place for sharing some of my past travels, experiences of living on a tropical island in the middle of the vast Pacific Ocean, and itineraries for those intrepid enough to venture out into the wide world.

Ocean County, New Jersey, USA

I originally grew up in a small town on the Jersey Shore (fist pump!), but eventually migrated my way out west to the beautiful islands of Hawai‘i in 2004. Since then, I have lived on the island of Maui, and for the past 10 years or so on the "Big Island" of Hawai‘i. Sprinkled in between those ten years was a two year stint in New York City for grad school, but Hawai‘i is where I've spent the majority of my adult life - it truly feels like home.

Kailua-Kona, Hawai‘i, USA

While I wish my life was spent traveling the world for a job, the reality is that blogging is not my full time profession. I write here as a hobby when I have time between my main jobs as university lecturer and writer at a local magazine. Therefore, I don't have any tips about how to quit your job and live a life on the road - though I certainly envy those who are able to pull it off - but I can show you that you even those who hold more traditional jobs can get slightly off the beaten path and discover a world of beautiful sights, delicious foods, and friendly locals.

Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam

My travel style is a bit of a blend of everything. Sometimes I travel solo, but mostly its with my partner in crime, Ben, with the occasional friend or family member thrown in for good measure. We don't have unending streams of income, so we're always on the look out for a good travel deal, but we do enjoy traveling comfortably and indulge in the maybe more-than-occasional splurge. I am fortunate that Ben happens to work for a major hotel chain which offers lots of hotel room discounts, but we do venture off the corporate hotel track here and there. I will say that I will never recommend a hotel on this site that I wouldn't recommend to a close friend or family. Fair is fair.

St. Petersburg, Russia

You may be wondering about the different greetings above - all of them are languages that I am attempting to learn (some more proficiently than others), so feel free to drop any language tips my way - I welcome all the help I can get! :)

So, what are we waiting for? There's a big world out there to explore and little time to do it. We better get started - won't you join me?

See you on the road!

~Brooke