Today’s traveler interviews with the four fabulous ladies from MISSADVENTURES who have the most awesome job: traveling the world filming their travel show! Read on for more from Ellie, Steph, Hannah and Kat!
Who makes up the MISSADVENTURES team? MISSADVENTURES is made up of four Canadian girls from Markham, Ontario: Ellie Geronikolos, Steph Chong, Hannah McLean, and Kathleen (Kat) Espiritu. We’re all 24 years old, except Hannah, she’s 23, the baby of the group. We graduated from Ryerson University: Steph and Ellie were in Radio & Television Arts, Hannah was in Political Science, and Kat was in Film. In the show, Steph is the bossy one, Ellie is the tall one, and Hannah is whiny. Kat puts up with it all from behind the camera.
When did you each find your passion for travel?
Steph Chong: I went to England when I was 16 with my best friend – we did random things and it wasn’t the same as going on a family vacation. Just the feeling of independence and being able to explore on my own is what got me hooked.
Ellie Geronikolos: In high school I went to New York City for the first time. That feeling that I had driving through the tunnel and seeing the skyline, I knew I would want to feel the same for other places.
Hannah McLean: I think it was during the first time I had ginger ale in a plane, I knew I’d had to keep flying to keep drinking ginger ale in the sky.
Did any of you study abroad in college?
SC: Kat and I both studied abroad in New Zealand at Auckland University of Technology. Everyday leaving our apartment, we had to climb a 90 degree vertical incline to get to school. It was a mountain… maybe I’m exaggerating a little bit.
EG: While they were in New Zealand, I was at Bournemouth University in England. The highlight was when Hannah met up with me and brought me Lucky Charms from home (FYI, it’s 14₤ in England for one box). Then we backpacked through Europe for a month.
HM: My faculty didn’t have an exchange program. Apparently political science is such a specialized field that no other school in the world has it.
Tell us more about MISSADVENTURES.
EG: It started when Steph and I were working at a pub trying to figure out what we wanted to do with our lives. The one thing we wanted to spend the rest of our lives doing was travel – we went on a last minute trip to Vancouver for 2010 Olympics and invited Hannah. It was then we realized we had a dynamic going. We hoped that through our show other girls would learn from our mistakes and misadventures (haha!).
SC: And I just knew Kat was the perfect fit because we had worked together in university and backpacked SE Asia together. We pitched her the show and she was more than happy to jump on board to shoot and edit.
How do you choose the destinations to film in?
HM: It comes to me in a dream. I just think of the most delicious food and Google where it comes from. All kidding aside, we chose a place that none of us have ever been before – places that appeal to us as 20-something year old girls and have local activities that you can’t do anywhere else.
SC: No really, it all comes down to food.
We love your rating system for all the things you encounter along the way. How do you choose where you’ll stay, what you’ll do, where you’ll eat, etc.
HM: We don’t.
EG: Well, different ways. Sometimes we get recommendations from friends from home who have been to these places, sometimes from travellers we meet along the way, sometimes from blogs we follow. More often than not, we settle for what’s available.
HM: I research restaurants. Is it weird that I care more about where we eat than where we stay?
SC: We’re just really not big on planning.
What are your dream destinations for future episodes?
HM: We just shot our second and third episode in Barcelona and Marrakesh, so that’s two crossed off our list.
EG: I really want to go to Thailand. Like a lot!
HM: Brazil is my dream. Also, Bora Bora.
EG: No, I would save that for my honeymoon.
SC: I would love to see the Great Wall of China.
Check out the MISSADVENTURES website and follow them on Twitter!
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Awesome! Thanks DIWYY for featuring us
Definitely! Looking forward to more reports and adventures from you ladies!
Cool idea! I’m sick of watching trvael shows with all guys lol I’m excited to check it out!!
Good point! Samantha Brown was cool and all… but time for some more women!
Thanks Mel! We noticed the male-dominance of travel shows as well! We’ve got two more episodes in post-production and some mini’sodes in the works coming up
Great interview!! Loved the first episode and I can’t wait to see more!
Love the show – you girls are all awesome. I can’t wait to get out their and experience the freedom you are talking about!