About

Hello! I’m Riana, a travel writer based in Vancouver, Canada when I’m not off exploring the world.

I’ve lived, worked, studied, volunteered or travelled across six continents and almost 50 countries and have been writing about my travels on Teaspoon of Adventure since 2012. My favourite adventures involve my partner (Colin), our daughter (Baby C) and our dog (Ellie).

As the founder of Teaspoon of Adventure, I help everyday travellers discover the world, making the most of their limited time and budget. With thoughtful itineraries, experts tips and helpful guides I show regular travellers how to balance bucket list highlights and slow travel moments, based on my real adventures around the world.

Teaspoon of Adventure proves that you don’t have to be an athlete, an adrenaline junkie, a millionaire or a full time nomad in order to have an adventure. And that no matter what stage of life you’re in – travelling solo, as a couple or as a family – there’s an adventure fit for you!

Follow along and get inspired to grab your own teaspoon of adventure!

You can read my latest posts here, learn more about working with me here, and subscribe to my weekly family travel newsletter to stay up to date on everything TOA.

My travel writing and features

I’ve been blogging at Teaspoon of Adventure since 2012 and working as a professional freelance writer since 2016. As an experienced travel writer, I’ve written posts for Tripadvisor, Going, Business Insider and many more publications.

As a travel expert, I’ve been featured in print publications, online publications, on podcasts and on TV. My press features include The New York Times, Washington Post, CBC News, The Real Stuff with Lucie Fink, Amateur Traveler Podcast, Liberty Leave and House Hunters International.

For more of my press features and published travel writing, please visit my features and interviews page.

I have done sponsored work with many travel and lifestyle brands such as Mixbook, LEVEL8, Discover Cars, EatWith, Iberostar and Allianz. I have also collaborated with tourism boards and hotels, such as Visit Brussels, SWEETS Hotel Amsterdam and Hotel Indigo (IHG) on sponsored stays & review posts.

If you’re interested in collaborating with Teaspoon of Adventure on a project, please check out my Work With Me page for more details and get in touch.

Who is Teaspoon of Adventure for?

Teaspoon of Adventure is for everyday travellers who seek adventure…but not too much!

It’s for part-time adventurers who fit vacations around real life. You take all of your PTO but still have to schedule trips around work deadlines and school holidays.

It’s for travel lovers who prioritize both bucket lists and slower moments. You’ll see the Eiffel Tower then sit at a neighbourhood cafe and people watch.

This is the travel blog for you if you crave adventure, but you still have to deal with things like your fear of heights, your limited budget, or your kid’s nap schedule. You want to see the world, but you don’t want to rush through every trip.

I believe in finding a way to follow your passions, without winning the lottery, quitting your job or dropping everything. And I believe that the best trips balance tourist hot spots and local gems, making time for the must-sees and to get lost along the way.

The evolution of Teaspoon of Adventure, from 2012 to now

I started Teaspoon of Adventure in February 2012 from my dorm room at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.

I was in my second year of school and feeling totally lost. I had no motivation to get my school work done. I would leave assignments until the last minute and but still stay up all night, searching for some kind of inspiration.

At that point, I had only had a small taste of travel but I knew I wanted more. So I started my blog as a way to vent, to get out my feelings and to map out my next adventures.

I couldn’t leave my dorm room but through my blog, I could go anywhere. I spent nights searching for flight deals, looking at exchange programs in Italy and researching volunteer opportunities abroad.

And then, in the summer of 2012, I came across an insane flight deal to Europe and took off on my first solo trip and first time to Europe. That’s when everything really changed.

Travel became a reality and my eyes were suddenly opened to what my world could be.

Since my university dorm room days, this blog has grown and transformed. It started out as a place for me to document my travels and let my parents know that yes, I was still alive.

Now, Teaspoon of Adventure is still a place for me to share my travel stories. But it’s also a place for me to use those experiences to help you plan out an adventure of your own.

These days, Teaspoon of Adventure is where I share my travels to inspire yours.

Let me show you how you can visit a bucket list city on a budget and with only a few days of vacation. Allow me to craft your itinerary through a country you’ve always wanted to visit. Sit back as I introduce you to my favourite foodie spots or share a tale from my time living abroad.

Learn from my mistakes, follow my tips, take advantage of my travel research, copy my itineraries and get inspired to plan a trip of your own!

My story and travel history

I was born in Burnaby, BC way back in 1992 and then moved to Toronto with my parents. I consider Toronto my hometown but at heart, I’m a west coast girl. So after graduating from high school, I returned to Vancouver to study at the University of British Columbia (UBC).

During my time at UBC, I really fell in love with travel. I found ways to travel to Europe solo, volunteer in Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), work in Japan, study abroad in Amsterdam and even win a free trip to Australia, all while studying full time.

After graduation, I was still totally transfixed by travel. But I was also craving a bit of the still life. So I started working at a non-profit in Vancouver and then got a job back at my alma mater, UBC. I suddenly found myself a couple of years into the workforce and totally uninspired.

I was back in the same place I had been in my dorm room at UBC in 2012 when I started this blog. I dreaded going to work every morning not because my job was awful, but because I was bored. Work wasn’t exciting. I wasn’t passionate about what I was doing.

I suddenly realized that at 24 years old with no mortgage, no kids and very few responsibilities, I didn’t need to be in a soul-sucking job. I was way too young to be spending all of my time at a job that I didn’t care about.

So I quit.

After working with a therapist and reflecting on a family loss that reminded me how short life is, I gave my notice, headed off to Vietnam for three weeks, and came back to focus becoming a full time freelance writer.

I’ve been freelancing full time since Nov 2016, transitioning into different marketing projects in social media and content writing. The flexibility of working from home, and working for myself, has allowed me to say yes to so many exciting adventures, such as adopting our dog, Ellie, moving to Prague for a year, and travelling internationally with our baby.

The next couple of years saw me going on lots of fun adventures:

• In 2017, my partner, Colin, and I travelled through North America to San Francisco (twice) and Mexico (twice).
• In 2018, we fulfilled one of Colin’s bucket list trips by visiting Ireland, his ancestral homeland. I went to Europe in the fall with Colin to London and Iceland and again with my dad, on his very first trip to Europe, to Amsterdam and Paris.
• In 2019, we started the year with a bang by spending three weeks in Southeast Asia!

And then in perhaps the biggest life change of all: Colin and I MOVED TO PRAGUE. We rented out our condo, sold most of our stuff (and put the rest in storage), Colin took a leave of absence from his job at the hospital, and the three of us (our dog, Ellie, included) packed up and moved to Prague sight-unseen.

We spent the next year exploring as much of Europe as we could, from Oktoberfest in Munich and castle-hopping in Sweden to drinking wine in Tuscany and crossing bridges in Budapest. We hosted visitors, exploring Italy and Austria with our moms, and Spain with my siblings. And we even made it to Morocco!

Sadly, our year in Prague was cut a few months short thanks to the pandemic. After a mad dash back to Prague from where we were on vacation in Croatia, and an even wilder trip back to Canada, we returned to Vancouver mid-March 2020, two and a half months earlier than expected.

The rest of 2020 had some incredible highs, like getting engaged, and some very big lows, especially with Colin working on the frontlines in the hospital. It was obviously a very slow year for travel, but gave me time to pursue my other hobbies such as reading, writing and baking.

As the world began to open back up, so did our travels:

• After getting married in September 2021, we honeymooned through Canada’s Maritimes.
• In 2022, we spent a week in Kauai with family, a long weekend in New York City, and went on our first trip back to Europe visiting Amsterdam and Belgium.
• 2023 started with a spontaneous solo trip back to London. In April 2023, Colin and I crossed a huge country off of our bucket list: New Zealand! We also got to travel with my parents and siblings on an Arizona road trip in the fall.

We started 2024 with a trip through Provence and the French Riviera in France and then got some very good and long-awaited news in late spring: I was pregnant with our daughter! The rest of the year involved lots of appointments and preparing for our baby, a trip back to Toronto and our babymoon on Vancouver Island.

2025 began with welcoming Baby C in January and settling into our parenthood groove over the spring. In June, we packed up our Vancouver apartment and then set off on our Baby Trip: nine months of travel with our baby and our dog!

We started on BC’s Sunshine Coast and then spent the summer with my family in Toronto. In the fall, we headed to Europe where we lived in Orleans, France for six weeks, road tripped through Normandy and across to the UK, lived in London for five weeks, and then finished the year off in Brighton!

We finished off our Baby Trip in 2026 with another month in Brighton, a 1st birthday trip to Malaga, Spain, and a final month in London. From London, we flew home to Vancouver and settled into our new apartment.

The rest of 2026 has seen us finding our groove as a family with work and childcare, plus going on more local adventures. We’ve visited Victoria, BC via seaplane, headed back to the Sunshine Coast, and will be off to New York City in the fall.

Where should you go next?

So you’ve learned more about me and what’s going on here at Teaspoon of Adventure. What’s next?

• For my latest adventures, stories and travel tips, head back to the home page.
• If you’re looking for specific locations, check out my continent categories: Africa, Asia, Europe, North America and Oceania.
• If you’re thinking about moving abroad, check out my living abroad posts.
• And if you’re travelling with little ones like we are now, check out my family travel posts.

Or if you’re interested in working with me, you can visit my work page.

Still can’t decide? Take a read through some of my favourite and most popular posts:

• Start with my most popular post: My dream road trip across Canada.
• Read all about my first solo trip to Europe (and the reason why this blog exists!).
• Can’t travel right now? Read one of my favourite travel books or watch our episode of House Hunters International (!!!)
• Discover the best and the worst parts of our time in Southeast Asia and travelling Europe for a year.
• Find out what you need to know before you visit New Zealand and how much a trip to New Zealand really costs.
• Follow along on my life abroad while living abroad in Prague, living abroad in France, living abroad in London and living abroad in Brighton
• Learn my tips for packing and moving and my favourite way to remember a trip with a photo book.
• Traveling with a partner? Check out these tips so your relationship survives longer than your jet lag.
• Travelling alone? Here’s your solo travel guide. Not sure where to go? Find the perfect solo trip destination.
• Travelling as a family? Review my baby packing list essentials and see how much our nine month family trip really cost us!

And when you’re done all that, follow me on social media! I’d love to connect with you on Substack, Instagram, Twitter (X), Facebook and Pinterest. You can also visit my contact page and get in touch there.

Thanks so much for stopping by and learning more about me and Teaspoon of Adventure!