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Mapless Adventures

No Map. No Plan. Just Life.

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About Me

Nicole L

Nicole L

Hiya! I'm a 35 year-old native Arizonan, who started traveling around the US and Mexico as a child, and haven't stopped. I've been to 23 countries in a wide range of travel styles, writing about my personal experiences and sharing travel guides and tips (including teaching abroad in Thailand), with a little history thrown in. Hope you enjoy!

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  • Scuba Diving
    Travel,  United States Virgin Islands

    What Life Was Like Post Two Hurricanes

    February 18, 2018 / No Comments

    I honestly have struggled putting words to paper. I've attempted multiple times and it's just been so difficult. Finding the right words, finding the initiative to write, finding the motivation. Every ounce of energy and focus it takes me to write a blog post had been depleted since Irma and Maria.

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures

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    Scuba Diving Acapulco

    Contiki Mexican Fiesta: Scuba Diving in Acapulco

    May 1, 2014
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    Contiki Mexican Fiesta: Acapulco to Taxco

    May 13, 2014
    Scuba Diving Cancun Header

    Scuba Diving in Cancun- My No Regrets Day

    April 17, 2014
  • Hurricane damage
    Caribbean,  United States Virgin Islands

    Life After Hurricane Irma

    December 30, 2017 / No Comments

    It took 3 hours of hard labor and some neighborly support to finally clear our drive. However, it didn’t really matter. The island was still under a 24 hour curfew, for good reason, of course. We were just annihilated by Hurricane Irma about 15 hours prior, so the day afterwards wasn’t much fun. We were safe, little damage to our apartment itself, and thankfully we still have phone service (which was a rarity and quite frankly didn’t really matter since only about 1/8th of the island had it- if that). It took about 36 hours before we risked leaving the comfort of our apartment. Though none of us wanted to…

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures

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    Islands of the British Virgin Islands

    March 19, 2017
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    Royal Caribbean Day 5: St. Lucia

    December 7, 2018
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    Royal Caribbean Day 7: Day at Sea

    December 20, 2018
  • United States Virgin Islands

    What It’s Like Experiencing Hurricane Irma

    October 22, 2017 / No Comments

    September 6th, 2017 will be a day I’ll never forget. Something I never could have prepared myself for or every something I ever thought I’d experience happened, Hurricane Irma. I mean, I have heard of major storms and I have seen the aftermath of things like Sandy and Katrina and most recently, Harvey. But experiencing Hurricane Irma was something I was NOT prepared for nor was I ready. I’m a desert girl raised in Arizona. The worst storms I experienced growing up was a haboob or a bad monsoon. Sometimes the occasional thunderstorms when visiting family in Minnesota/Iowa or the occasional snow storms during college and graduate school, but those…

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures

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    Scuba Diving

    What Life Was Like Post Two Hurricanes

    February 18, 2018

    My Family Visits the USVIs

    May 13, 2017

    Living the Island Life: St. Thomas, USVI

    September 20, 2016
  • Friends,  Travel,  United States Virgin Islands

    Friends Trip to the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico

    August 6, 2017 / No Comments

    This mapless adventure details the start of my summer break and vacation with my best friend;showing her the island I called home for 10 months, taking her to a new country (passport stamp included), and exploring the beautiful city/some of the island of Puerto Rico... 2 Friends, 12 Days, 3 Countries, and many Mapless Adventures!

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures
  • Family,  United States Virgin Islands

    My Family Visits the USVIs

    May 13, 2017 / No Comments

    I have waited for this week to come since my family booked their flights nearly 3 months prior. It's hard to live so far away from family at times but one of the best part is being able to show them a new part of me and a new country. This wasn't just a normal family trip however. This was my younger brother's FIRST EVER time off the continental United States, and it would be his FIRST time receiving a PASSPORT STAMP.

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures

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    4 Days in Chiang Mai with the Parents

    June 23, 2020
    Parents in Laos

    Planning My Parents Trip to Thailand

    April 30, 2020
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    My Parents Visit Lampang, Thailand

    June 16, 2020
  • Career,  United States Virgin Islands

    Living the Island Life: St. Thomas, USVI

    September 20, 2016 / No Comments

    I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone. I’ve traveled. I’ve lived away from family. I’ve lived in another country. I’ve experienced many firsts. OR so I thought. My life in St. Thomas, USVI has been more of a life experience than I EVER  EXPECTED. I knew it would be different and truth be told, it didn’t take long for me to fall in love with this beautiful, cultural-filled, island-life, country in the Caribbean. But, boy, was I in a complete culture shock when my “work-social” life began to emerge. If you know me outside of this blog, then you know that for the last 4 years, I haven’t really EVER worked…

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures

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    Something about “Starting Fresh”

    July 23, 2014
  • Career,  Travel,  United States Virgin Islands

    The Beginning of My Island Life

    September 1, 2016 / No Comments

    It’s hard to start this post because since landing on St. Thomas last Friday, it’s been completely overwhelming. People always say “it’s island time” and until you are immersed into the culture and lifestyle that doesn’t mean anything. “Island Time” has a whole new meaning to me, and I’ve only been here for a week. I’m positive that is going to change again and again as I continue to become immersed in the daily living of St. Thomas. For those who don’t know, St. Thomas is 1 of 4 islands which form the U.S. Virgin Islands (along with St. Croix, St. John, and Water Island), an unincorporated territory of the…

    Read More
    Nicole | Mapless Adventures

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    Living the Island Life: St. Thomas, USVI

    September 20, 2016

    Something about “Starting Fresh”

    July 23, 2014

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About Me

Nicole L

Nicole L

Hiya! I'm a 35 year-old native Arizonan, who started traveling around the US and Mexico as a child, and haven't stopped. I've been to 23 countries in a wide range of travel styles, writing about my personal experiences and sharing travel guides and tips (including teaching abroad in Thailand), with a little history thrown in. Hope you enjoy!

View Full Profile →

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mapless_adventures

No Map. No Plan. Just Life. | Stories, Guides and Tips from a Solo-Female Traveler exploring the world through Mapless Adventures

Nicole | Travel Blogger
Not being able to travel all the time is rough, bu Not being able to travel all the time is rough, but having a group of friends like mine makes staying put a little easier!!!
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#rockingthe80s #borninthe80s #80sfashion #80sparty #nottraveling #friendships #weekendparty
Cycling has been my outlet and my escape from the Cycling has been my outlet and my escape from the busyness of life! Since October 2022, I’m down 18 pounds! I’m hoping for another 30 and know I can do it! 2023 is my year I stop messing around and actually accomplish what I say I’m going to accomplish!
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So what’s my phrase this year:
FOLLOW THROUGH
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I’m the person who starts a project and never finishes, or gives up because I don’t want to put the necessary energy into it anymore. Enough is enough. I need to follow through with what I start, whether it’s my fitness journey, my saving money goal, my house projects, or my work goals, I need to be better at completing all the things I start. 
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#newyearnewme #itsabouttime #theyearofme #myword #followthrough #letsgo #cycling #ifit #finallygoingtodoit #weightloss #weightwatchers #qsciences #iwillfinishwhatistart
Extra thankful this year! 3 countries and counting Extra thankful this year! 3 countries and counting babe! Next up…to be determined but you are my favorite travel partner!
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#happythanksgiving #travelpartners #travellife #travelblogger #thankful #thankfulfortravel #wheretonext #nextdestinationplease #nextdestination #maplessadventures #travelbloggerlife #travelvibes
Jerome, Arizona is a beautiful hillside town locat Jerome, Arizona is a beautiful hillside town located along highway 89A between Sedona and Prescott. It takes about 2 hours from Phoenix and is a good location for a day trip adventure!
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Jerome was established in 1876 as a copper mining camp and at its peak in the 1920s, was the fourth largest town in Arizona with around 15,000 people.
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The mine closed in 1953 and the population dwindled to less than 100 people, promoting the town to a ghost town. In 1967, the federal government designated Jerome as a National Historic District.
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#jerome #jeromeaz #jeromearizona #smalltownarizona #ghosttown #historictowns #explorearizona #arizona #arizonaliving #azlife #arizonalife #daytrips #arizonagirl #jeromeghosttown
Day trip to Jerome, Arizona was a success! • We Day trip to Jerome, Arizona was a success!
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We wandered Haynes, a small ghost town with lots of old equipment and trucks, at lunch at the Huanted Hamburger, went wine tasting @caduceuscellars and the Original Jerome Winery, and ended the day with a Ghost Tour learning about some of the history of the mine and mining industry!
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I highly recommend visiting Jerome if you need a fun and unique day trip from Phoenix!
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If you like haunted hotels, you might want to stay the night at Jerome Grand Hotel, which is the old hospital and still has the original elevator!
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#jerome #jeromeaz #jeromearizona #daytrip #arizonasmalltowns #ghosttown #miningtown #arizonatowns #explorearizona #arizonaadventures #wanderarizona #arizonagirl #arizonalife #arizonaliving #arizonalifestyle
Another non-traveling weekend even though I’m on Another non-traveling weekend even though I’m on fall break from work! Instead we are doing a staycation at my parents condo and are enjoying the day in true German fashion… at Four Peaks Oktoberfest at Tempe Town Lake!
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#fourpeaks #fourpeaksbrewery #fourpeaksoktoberfest #oktoberfestArizona #tempetownlake #tempearizona #fourpeaksbrewing #weekendadventures #saturdayvibes #saturday #maplessadventures #notcurrentlytraveling
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