Welcome Wanderers
Discover who I am, my reason to be here and what I can offer you.
Hello there!
I wanted to take a minute or two to introduce myself to those who don’t know me yet and to let you know what to expect from Sunhats and Chardonnay.
But, first of all, thank you so much for subscribing. I’m so pleased to have you here. If you have not yet subscribed, you can do so now.
Who Am I?
My name is Laura. In my personal life, I’m a Canadian citizen, wife and mom of two adult children, who is about to embark on one of the most liberating and challenging phases of life; Retirement.
In my professional life, I held positions in Administration, Accounting, Environmental Consulting and Travel. Although I recently retired from my main job, I am still working as a part-time Travel Advisor for a North-American wide travel brand.
For as long as I can remember, I have been interested in exploring the world and discovering the unique and historical interactions between humans and their environment. This drive to explore was compounded by a desire to go beyond the boundaries of the small town I grew up in.
At university, I studied geography and my goal was to someday travel the world. I participated in an exchange program that brought me to Australia.
When I returned, I was a changed person.
I no longer wanted to study the environment per se, but rather, I wanted to share my experiences of the places I had been. The world is too beautiful to exist in a vacuum. I became a travel agent for the first time in 1988. Shortly thereafter, life got in the way and an alternate career path was chosen.
The Beginning of My Writing Journey
Throughout the decades since that pivotal solo trip to Australia, I have held a deep passion for encouraging people to travel or to seek education overseas. There is something about travel that takes us out of our comfort zone and places us in a position to view the world with new eyes.
We often learn about ourselves in ways we do not expect.
In 2019, I decided that my knowledge of travel and views of the world were something that others might appreciate. Over several sleepless nights, Sunhats and Chardonnay was born and created as a travel blog. (If you want to read more about the name, read here.)
During the last four years, I wrote over 130 articles on destinations, cruises, itineraries and travel tips. During this time, I discovered I have a passion for writing. I enjoy the research and describing the details.
Now, as I age, I find that my interests have strayed beyond the travel niche and include more relevant topics of mental health, aging, retirement and other mid-life matters.
A New Way To Share
With this expanded subject matter, my original travel blog no longer fit the framework of how and what I wanted to write. I needed a new way to transmit my thoughts, feelings, observations and details to a wider audience.
Since December 2023, I have made Substack my home and I have reacquainted myself with my passion for writing.
I am thankful that I have this opportunity for a fresh start and my hope is that you will find my new content interesting and refreshing.
What You Can Expect
In this newsletter, I’ll be sharing all kinds of tips on travel, aging, retirement and other topics to help with self-improvement and mindset. As we age, often our priorities change and I want to create a place where the older reader can embrace life with these changes in mind.
To achieve this, most of my articles or essays will be well-researched long-form content but there may be some shorter, off-the-top-of-my-head thoughts and comments intermixed.
My goal is to give you knowledge so that you can understand a new destination or an alternate way of looking at the world. There might even be a completely random post every now and again.
What’s Next
I want to embrace life as I transition through the phases of retirement and I am inviting you along for the ride. I speak from experience and write from the heart.
Whether in a new destination or holed up in my office writing, I hope you will join me on this adventure we call life.
And if you are curious, my new project in fiction writing is coming soon!
My debut book, INTO THE REALM – The Secret of the Castle falls within Middle Grade Fantasy genre. It blends my curious imagination, a theme of friendship and my deep love of Scotland.
If I’ve intrigued you, consider subscribing for a while so you will never miss an update.
And, while I love writing and I don’t do it for the money, it does takes a tremendous amount of effort and time to prepare my posts. You can help support my efforts by becoming a paid subscriber.
Or, if you would like to support my writing but you do not want to commit to being a paid subscriber, please consider a one-time donation.
I want to thank you for sticking around. Please feel free to share Sunhats and Chardonnay with your friends so that we can build a meaningful community together.
Thank you so much. I look forward to writing more and connecting with everyone.
oh my goodness! What a beautiful post -- the writing, the photos...you took me on an inspiring journey. Thank you!