What is Traveling Ink?

If you are a friend of mine, chances are you've walked with me through the past ten months of building this site - and this dream - called Traveling Ink. But more than likely, you are a friend of a friend, or arrived here via a Google search. So what's Traveling Ink all about? Where did it come from? And is there something here for you? If you have landed here reading this blog, I think the answer is "yes", and I'd love to tell you about it.

I've lived in Charleston, SC for about a decade now, and I've had the privilege of having a handful of interesting jobs along the way. Some of them have revolved around my passion for the creative and my current career, photography. Others have just been happy "accidents" as I got myself acquainted with the city and began to make it my home. One of those jobs was working in the carriage tour industry. While there, I found out I love horses (I'd been a little scared of them previously). I learned a ton of Charleston history. And most significantly, I learned that people visiting the city always have questions. People asked me where to eat, which house museum I liked, and what places to go in town. Why were they asking me these questions? I was a local. That was it. They wanted a locals take on things.

When I first had the idea of starting a travel blog, I was planning to have it compliment a cross-country road trip I planned on taking a couple of summers ago. While the trip hasn't happened (yet), I didn't stop traveling around the southeast, and I didn't stop enjoying the abundance of perks the city of Charleston has to offer. That said, it was a natural progression for my blogging interests to turn to my own backyard.

Here are some of my disclaimers... I'm not a professional foodie. But I do have taste buds, and I know how to use them. I want to send people to restaurants where I have eaten or that are favorites of my friends. I am not a professional music critic. But, I do have ears, and they work pretty well too. I'd love to recommend a local band or symphony performance. I'm not a certified tour guide with the City of Charleston, but I have about 25 friends who are. I'd love to share their knowledge with you when it extends beyond my own. You may be starting to get the picture. So, I've never blogged before. But I am fairly well-versed on my subject matter at this point and am making it my mission to become even better acquainted to better serve you.

For those visiting the city, I want to be your Charleston connection, an online concierge for the the Lowcountry. For my fellow locals, I want you to enjoy your city more. There are ridiculous amounts of wonderful things here. I want to host events for you, get you in the know, and help you on your way if you want to take a road-trip of your own. So, tell me what you'd like to do. Let me know how I can help you. Take a look around the website and be thankful for Charleston, whether it is your favorite vacation spot, or home of 20 years.