Traveling with a partner can be tricky… but Jenna and Micah do it all the time. Even better, they write about it on Wander the Map, a collection of stories — and really great photos — about their adventures around the country, and the globe. A corporate maven with a side business by day, Jenna writes and produces, while Micah — a professional photographer and videographer — sets up the visuals. The result: A beautiful, eye-catching stream of stories that are an absolute delight to read.
We spoke with the two behind the blog about their motivation to travel, where they’re heading next, and advice on traveling, well, with each other.
Trip Tribe: Your travel postings seem to capture snippets of your trips as you have them, sort of giving a real-time account of your journey. How do you choose what to write about?
Jenna and Micah: Basically, we write about the adventures we have and activities we do on our trips — we love to fill our trips to the brim, and when we get home, we pick out interesting tidbits to write about. Some of our favorite activities are hiking, kayaking, snorkeling, and anything unique we can find to do in nature. We always compile a photo essay because we can be obsessed with photographs; we also write about specific activities that we participate in and sometimes feature our accommodations, too.
TT: Any tips on traveling with your significant other?
J&M: Try to find a balance between what you both like to do—he wants to go to a sporting event? Ok, then she gets to visit the museum she has had her eye on the following day. Compromise so you both get to see what you want, and keep an open mind if you are doing an activity that doesn’t normally hold your interest. You never know—you may even end up having fun! Biggest rule, be a good sport and don’t complain!
That being said, don’t be afraid to give each other space and split up once in awhile as well. If you both feel like doing something different, that’s ok—it just means you will get a chance to miss each other a bit and will have more to talk about when you meet up again.
TT: Your Florida Travel tips are a great resource. Any more travel tips coming for other places?
J&M: Thank you! We try to give tips about every destination we visit, but we will be focusing a lot more on Minnesota shortly, as we are moving back home and have lots we want to write about. We want to show people what a unique and fun destination Minnesota is, and we think people will be pleasantly surprised!
TT: How do you decide where to go?
J&M: There are so many destinations on our list that we want to visit, so usually our decision is made by picking a place where we can find cheap plane tickets and good deals on a hotel. Also, every once in awhile, we will travel to a specific spot because of an event.
TT: Where are you going next?
J&M: The next big trip that we have planned is Greece this fall. Everything up until then is up in the air, but we are planning a couple more close to home weekend trips in Florida before we move back to Minnesota and a few other road trips this summer as well.
TT: What’s your favorite travel blog (aside from your own)?
J&M: Never Ending Footsteps. Lauren works and travels her way around the world, and always gets herself into crazy mishaps along the way. Her stories are hilarious, and we find that they always seem to suck us in!
TT: Describe yourselves in six words.
Jenna: Curious. Planner. Organized. Jokester. Adventurous. Cheerful.
Micah: Artistic. Creative. Adventurous. Humorous. Sociable. Musical.
Jenna and Micah created Wander The Map, to share their experiences and provide tips and inspiration for others. Always up for an adventure, they travel as much as their schedules allow to capture the world through photos, videos and words.
This interview was originally published March 2014.