The Story Behind Live la Vida

It Started With a One-Way Ticket to Spain

What started as a one-year plan turned into 30+ countries (and counting). Now we share honest, experience-first travel guides to help you make the most of every trip.

We’re Mark & Amanda, and some of our best decisions have started with a passport.

We’re just two people who fell for each other and for travel, and we’ve been adventuring together ever since! We met during freshman orientation at St. Anselm College in New Hampshire, bonded over a shared curiosity about the world, and never really looked back.

After graduation, we did something that felt a little crazy at the time: we packed up and moved to Alcalá de Guadaíra, a small town outside of Sevilla, Spain, to teach English. We had only planned to stay for one year but we loved it so much that we stayed for a second!

From Spain to Everywhere

Those two years in Spain shaped us more than we expected. We had studied Spanish in college, which meant we could actually connect with locals rather than just navigate menus. Mark joined a semi-professional basketball team, which opened doors to a side of Spanish life that most visitors never see. We learned the rhythm of a slower, more community-driven culture, where a long lunch isn’t an indulgence, it’s just how life works.

That stuck with us. No matter where we travel now, we always build in unstructured time to slow down, find a good cup of tea and just soak it all in.

Since then, we’ve explored 30+ countries together, from the volcanic landscapes of Iceland to the souks of Morocco, the ruins of Peru to the saunas of Scandinavia, and plenty of places in between. When we’re not on the road, you can find us at home in Central Massachusetts, cooking an elaborate dinner, deep into a board game night with friends, or on a golf course (Mark is patient; Amanda is a work in progress).

What We Do

Live la Vida is our corner of the internet for curious, experience-driven travelers. We write destination guides, “One Day In” itineraries, hotel and tour reviews, and practical travel tips, all grounded in what we’ve actually done, eaten, and figured out the hard way.

Our travel style has evolved over the years, but the core has stayed the same. We plan ahead so we don’t miss the things that matter, but we always leave room to wander. We’re not hostel travelers and we’re not luxury resort people either. We’re somewhere in the middle: happy to splurge on a great meal or a hotel with an incredible location, but always thinking about how to make a trip work without breaking the bank. We love museums (Mark’s inner teacher never fully clocks out), cooking classes, and any experience that gets us a little closer to the culture!

We write for travelers who are actively planning trips and want honest, specific guidance from people who’ve been there. Whether you’re a seasoned traveler researching a new destination or someone just starting to explore the world, we want Live la Vida to feel like advice from a well-traveled friend, not a guidebook.

Work With Us

We partner with hotels, tourism boards, and travel brands that align with the Live la Vida ethos: authentic experiences, honest storytelling, and content that actually helps people travel better.