Meet Heather: Winner of…”Post Your URL Day”…competition.

Heather Diving the Great Barrier Reef

Heather Rudd is this weeks WINNER of our “Post Your URL Day”…competition. Every Friday we give YOU the opportunity to post the URL of your own Travel Blog on our Facebook fanpage wall, and we randomly draw a winner from the URL posts submitted to be featured on our blog, our fanpage, and our twitter! Be in it to win FREE Exposure!

So, Who Is Heather?…

I’m a 30-year old career counselor turned career breaker from the USA and am temporarily calling Australia home! I spent most of my life in the mid-Atlantic state of Virginia, graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and later earning a Masters in Education. Between bing a student and working as a career counselor for uni students, I spent the previous 12 years of my life on a college campus!

Sometime between finishing my undergraduate degree and beginning my first job, the travel bug bit and bit hard. Seemingly overnight I went from never having thought about traveling to another country to wanting to see the world. A year and a half later, I went on my first overseas trip to Ireland with my dad. Three years later when I finished graduate school, I made my second trip abroad to Australia. And since that trip to Oz in 2006, I’ve been on the move!

Quickly realizing that an annual 3-week trip simply wasn’t enough, I decided to quit my developing career to take advantage of Australia’s 1-year Work & Holiday Visa, as this is my last year of eligibility (due to age restrictions).

Heather (on the right) in Istanbul

Tell Us About Your Travel Blog and It’s Purpose?…

When I was first in Australia four years ago, I spent my last night at the Opera House, watching the Wizard of Oz while the symphony played the score live. As the movie began to play, I found myself thinking “there’s no place
like Australia” (aka Oz) instead of the famous line “there’s no place like home”. While I do *love* home, apparently there really is no place like Australia for me — I’ve wanted to return for the last four years!

I started my travel blog There’s No Place Like Oz to help me reflect upon my first go at long-term travel and share these thoughts with friends and family. I’ve found that I tend to offer less in the way of travel tips and advice and more of my emotional reaction to events I encounter. And there are always photos…especially of food!

With friends in London

Why Do You Travel?…

I started traveling because I needed to…the urge, desire, pull — whatever you want to call it — was so great that I couldn’t *not* go. While I loved my multicultural church and attending a university with students from around
the globe, I wanted to physically travel to other countries to see new places, meet new people, and be enriched by different cultures. Each time I travel the list of places I want to visit grows.

I have been blessed to meet so many great people on the road and have some great friendships-for-life as a result. No matter how many places remain on my “still to visit” list, I will return to London time and time again
because of a tight-knit group of friends I was fortunate enough to meet several years ago.

Travel continues to change me for the better, and I’m eager to see how this experience in Australia will help me learn and grow.

Celebrating St Patrick's day in Dublin on my 30th B'day.

Where Have You Visited So Far?…

This is my second trip to Australia, I’ve been to Ireland twice, London four times, Germany, Barcelona, and Istanbul. The list is pretty small, but the number of trips over the span of just four years makes up for it.

In Australia I still need to visit Tasmania and Western Australia, but I’ve seen a fair bit of the country already! Two you-may-not-expect-it standouts – the South Australia Outback town of Coober Pedy and the Atherton
Tablelands area of Queensland.

Favorite Place To Date?…

Choosing a favorite place seems like it would only be slightly less difficult than asking a parent to choose a favorite child. Several places stand out for different reasons. London has a special place in my heart largely because of the memories I’ve made with my friends who live there. Sydney captured my attention four years ago and made a strong enough impression to bring me back now. When I first arrived in Berlin three years ago, it became the favorite place I’d ever been.

On the field with the mascot of the Brisbane Lions, Australia

What Place Has Surprised You the Most?…

My time in Germany was spent with a German friend I’d known online for a couple of years, and the second we arrived in Berlin I remember describing to him that I strongly felt a sense of “home”. The impression was so strong
in my heart and mind that I was left in awe. I’m still not sure what to attribute the feelings to, but I loved everything about the time I spent in Berlin, and I’ve never felt a connection to a place like I felt there.

Where Are You Currently and What Are Your Future Plans?…

After traveling around Australia for 3.5 months, I’ve been living and working in Sydney’s Inner West suburbs for the last month. I plan to be here at least through New Years (at the Harbour baby!) and then consider my next move…whether it’s onward travel in Australia or staying in Sydney for a bit longer. The visa lasts until May 2011, and depending on my financial situation, I would love to keep traveling before returning home.

New Zealand, SE Asia, India, southern and southeastern Africa, and Patagonia (and of course London) top my list of places to go next!

With my sister at Sherlock Holmes Museum, London

How Do We Learn More About Heather?…

You can start by checking out my journey’s through my travel blog There’s No Place Like Oz. And you can also follow me closely through Twitter. And, if you’re more into photos, check out my Flickr Account.