“Kinkakuji” built in 1397

I have loved traveling since I was about 8 years old traveling to different states to complete in track & field events. At that same time I remember seeing the Harlem Globetrotters on TV walking through "Peace Park" in Hiroshima, Japan and thinking to myself, "wow, that is such a beautiful place. Keep in mind I was only 7 or 8 years old when the though of seeing the world was burned into my life dream to visit Asia. I was a big fan of "Kung fu" movies, which played every Saturday morning after cartoons.

Fast forward to January 1991, I entered Marine Corps boot camp at Marine Corps Recruit Depot (MCRD) San Diego. Being from Detroit, Michigan, I had never been to either coast so while in phase 2, the field evolution of basic training, I saw the ocean for the first time in my life March of 1991a few months before my 21st birthday. After graduating, I went to attended my "Military Occupational Specialty" (MOS) school in Virginia, upon completion of MOS school, every Marine fills out a wish list for duty station preference; "East Coast", "West Coast', or "Over Seas". I chose Over Seas, ans little did I know my first dream was realized. I was given orders to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. This was an hour drive from Peace Park in Hiroshima Japan, where 14 years prior I watched the Harlem Globetrotters walk through and thinking "I want to go there one day". My orders were only for 1 year but I submitted 2 requests for extension after being there for 3 months which were approved and I ended up staying for 3 years. I met my wife in February 1993. We got married "September 11,1993" and have been married since and still going strong. After leaving Japan it took 3 years for me to get back to Japan only this time orders had me stationed on Okinawa, the island prefecture of Japan. Another 3 years and time to relocate again to back to Okinawa. Only this time for 6 years until retiring from active duty.

I travel to Japan every other year to visit my wife's family. Each visit, we go on a road trip to see a different tourist attractions around Japan. What makes me unique with respect to destination Japan is the 14 combined years I lived there and the many toured  family trips taken around the country.

Another unique quality I posses is the experience of having visited 32 countries and counting. Not every country I visited was for a vacation but I had the fortune to experience the culture of them all and the cuisine of many of them. Outside of Japan, I had the most cultural vacation experiences in Thailand, Australia, and Singapore. I completed my study abroad in Peru also include on the cultural vacation experience list. Following and closing in on the list is the Bahamas, and Jamaica. I can't name all the destinations I've visited and of course a few of them have very little vacation attraction. (Hint: 3 of them were in combat zones)

What makes me unique overall; is the fact that I have visited more destinations than most people could ever dream of giving me a diverse multicultural perspective of the world we live in. I have actively immersed myself into the cultures that I have experience and found an appreciation for the cultural differences that exist from country to country.

The planet Earth is a beautiful place, and the adventurous minded traveler would surely be missing out if the opportunity to travel is ignored.