Leaving a job you hate to pursue your dreams takes a lot of courage, but that didn’t stop Kiersten Rich from deciding to go down this road. What started as a soul-searching trip turned into a decade-long adventure that lead to the launch of her travel website The Blonde Abroad.
Rich is a California native who fell in love with travel after spending a summer in Spain after stumbling upon a flyer for an intensive study abroad program flyer on her campus. After a month in Spain, she embarked on a backpacking trip to Ireland, France, Germany, Italy, and England, which helped her discover a new side of herself.
This was one of the most empowering experiences of her life, but she didn’t decide to become a travel blogger right away. She finished college and found a wealth management job, before deciding that the corporate environment simply wasn’t for her.
She decided to turn to travel again, and started her blog in 2012, after traveling across Australia and South America. About a decade later, she went on to visit over 70 countries, and she’s hoping her story will encourage other women to do the same.
“I established The Blonde Abroad when I stopped living a life bound by limitations and decided to follow my heart and live a life without borders. I have met hundreds of beautiful souls throughout my travels and knocked some big adventures off my bucket list,” writes Rich on her blog.
