Resilience – Alan x the World

By: Lizeth Cuellar Salgado

The title of my story is Resilience, traveling changes us completely, I am 43 years old and I can tell you with great pride that I have traveled to more than 69 countries. Something that never crossed my mind, I travel alone and it is the best thing that could have happened to me.

I have had the opportunity to cry, laugh, learn, be a better person with each country, each landscape, each guide on my tours.

In addition to spontaneous conversations with each person in each place such as cafes, restaurants around the world. The people are so kind and they have made me learn so much that I will never have enough time to give thanks for all that traveling around the world has given me.

I started traveling when I was 18 years old, the first time I wanted to go to New York and I went to apply for my visa and it was denied. So in the end I ended up visiting Europe and that same year Canada. I think the phrase is very true and the fact that there are bigger plans for us.

Because of those two trips, my insistence and resilience to travel grew more and more. I had a normal office job Monday through Friday and worked to pay for college and even a master’s degree, but I still didn’t travel the way I wanted. Although I don’t deny it, I wanted to travel further and further.

Due to this stable job I managed to get my visa for the United States and I went to New York, of course. My heart was broken by heartbreak and in Times Square it was where, crying, I decided that I should search more and travel more.

I returned to Puebla and quit my office job and bought a one-way ticket to Cancun. I was so lucky that a prestigious hotel hired me with no hotel experience. Since I studied administration and my master’s degree is in business.

I went to interview for the cruises and of course they said I needed more years of experience. I remained resilient in the hotel working and a couple of years passed. I was so happy working at sea that I forgot about the cruises. One day of rest I was in my bed looking at Facebook and social networks, and I saw that there was going to be a recruiting event, so I literally threw away the sheet and got ready to go to the hotel where the event was. Fortunately I have always had the habit of waking up early, so I arrived on time. There were a lot of people waiting, I remember well, I had a book and I started reading until my turn was over.

I still remember how the recruiter told me, would you like to work for Disney Cruises and my heart beat so fast I couldn’t believe it. Furthermore, I was already 34 years old at that time, for me that was not something that could happen.

And well, I was resilient and I went step by step. The process was long until two months later the email arrived that made me change my life completely. In this email it said you have been accepted to work. I still didn’t believe it until I started processing documents and a visa. Wow, my heart was still beating so hard.

Until eight months of long waiting they assigned me my first little boat and I still couldn’t believe it. It was hard but we managed to get a first four-month contract. Some time later I liked that environment and now I have been working for eight years and 4 months.

My life changed when I was 35 years old, I radically started traveling with the cruise and I had money to go wherever I wanted to travel thanks to my work. I’ve almost completed my wonders of the world, I only need the Chinese Wall. And I have had the opportunity to travel to more than 69 countries and those that are missing.

I already have my United States tourist visa and now I come and go, how ironic, no one would have ever thought that it was denied to me and my heart was broken.

My story could go on and on but I would like to share with the world how important it is to be resilient with our dreams. With tears on my face, I have seen places that I would never have thought to see and that I was passionate about hearing about in my history and geography classes.

Another factor I faced at the beginning was the fact of traveling alone, as a woman, people talk without knowing. I was faced with bad comments, even the type they will kill you. Until I was brave and started to stop those people, I lost people along the way, of course. And I don’t regret it. I even made the joke about how you talk about something you don’t know and you can speak badly about countries, if you don’t even go out to Cholula. I am from Puebla, so Cholula is a very close Magical Town.

Be brave and fight your own battles. Never lose faith and hope to achieve and see your dreams and goals come true.

Keep going and your heart will take you to your destiny and the places you belong. Never doubt that you deserve the good you are receiving. Be grateful and live each trip with all your heart and soul.

Exploring the world with Lizeth La Mexicanita

Thank you, I hope you liked my story.