Hey there! Welcome to Compasses & Quests!
We’re Lia and Matt, a couple of young adventurers who believe the best moments in life come from time spent on open roads and trails. Recently, we packed up the bare necessities and headed down to South America for a year to experience its countless wonders.
We are avid campers, road trippers, and thrill seekers. Throughout this journey of life, we are on a quest to travel wherever the road takes us, as long as there are beautiful views and new adventures to be had.
Lia
I’m a 20-some-year-old who is just figuring life out on the go. All I really know is that I want to be able to look back at my life with a soul full of adventures and some badass stories to tell.
My passion for travel started before I can even remember. I was born in Colorado, but moved to Indonesia with my family when I was a baby. I spent my childhood in paradise on a few remote islands until we moved to a big city in Ghana (talk about culture shock). Life overseas provided me with amazing opportunities to travel to over 40 countries, and I developed a love for experiencing the unknown.
My family moved back to Colorado so my sister and I could attend high school and college in the U.S. I stayed in Colorado for college, studying marketing and finance and minoring in Spanish. But, travel has always been my biggest passion, so this blog and my adventure-themed general store, Tawny Pine, were born. Thanks for following along!
Matt
My story started in Pennsylvania in a town an hour north of Philadelphia, but my parents packed up and brought me out to Colorado before I could even walk. As a kid, I immersed myself in sports and spent most of my time with a hockey stick in my hands or shooting a basketball out in the backyard. I grew up with a passion for traveling and a love of the outdoors, and I was able to travel throughout the United States and into Canada and Mexico as well.
I stayed in Colorado for college, where I studied integrative physiology (more than you’d ever want to know about cells and the human body) and added a business minor and a certificate in public health. In 2020 I completed my Master’s in nursing and am now working in the Emergency Department at a hospital in beautiful Montana.
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Both of us had big plans for 2020 adventures. While the global pandemic threw us for a loop, we feel so lucky to be able to explore the areas close to our new home in Montana.
As the world begins to open back up, we are incredibly stoked for the future travels ahead. We hope that the stories we share will be helpful and informative while inspiring others to pack a bag and leave the comfort of their homes on a quest for adventure!