THE BACKSTORY
In 1998, with nothing but a traveler’s eye and a knack for storytelling, Ellen Barone left a secure academic career for the wild blue yonder—and never looked back.
From her first assignment to hundreds of journeys across six continents, she transformed curiosity into a creative life. In 2023, she distilled those adventures into her memoir, I Could Live Here: A Travel Memoir of Home and Belonging.
In 2015, Ellen built on 15 years of travel and tourism media production to pivot into marketing communications and content management. She’s based in New Mexico, though she’s just as likely to be writing from Peru or Portugal. Ellen also shares tips and tales at YourLifeIsATrip.com.
When she isn’t discovering a new place, you’ll find her curled up with a book, geeking out over design and local artisans, researching her latest curiosity, or daydreaming in a hammock.
Ellen welcomes collaborations and speaking engagements—get in touch to discuss your next project.
Photo Credit: Rebecca Holmes
Meet Ellen and Hank
From an improbable start over three decades ago, Ellen and Hank Barone embarked on an unconventional path defined by adventure. In 1994, Ellen, aged thirty-one, and Hank, fifty-eight, spontaneously eloped during a three-month summer vacation. Two years later, they set out in a Subaru Outback towing a pop-up tent camper, only to return home after over a year on the road. Within fourteen months, they relocated 2,000 miles away to start anew. And for much of the past two decades, they’ve traveled the world.
