Part of what makes Marcella so interesting is her long, long, (no, really) long list of world travels. She has been everywhere, sometimes just on a whim.

During the Depression, her father got her involved with a local newsletter as a paid writer. Called the Lincoln Heights Review, for two years she reported on the comings and goings of families in the neighborhood. She was paid 10 cents an inch. It was an early gig, but it ultimately led to a career in writing.

One of her first professional writing jobs as an adult was as a traveling journalist. She was sent to South or Central America - I believe she said she went to Mexico - to write about the country and culture. Mind you, this was around 40 or 50 years ago. While Wikipedia tells me that Mexico ranked eighth in international tourist travel in 2006 with over 21 million visitors, I find it hard to believe places like this existed in 1955. I doubt 21 million people visited Mexico then, either.

What she got to experience is a dream of mine: Go to a foreign country with a largely uninfluenced culture and wander. Wander extensively. With travel being as easy and common as a William Shatner facial expression these days, places like that just don't seem as common as they were even half a century ago. I've only been to one such place, near the southern tip of South America, and I didn't get much of a chance to immerse myself in the culture (as a hulking, 6'3" white guy, I witnessed locals cross the street to avoid me).

In addition to travel writing in Mexico, Marcella also had the opportunity to go to a place I've always wanted to visit: Iran. The Middle East. The "Cradle of Civilization."

My envy knows no bounds.