About Em’s Odyssey
Hey! I’m Emma!
I’m Em, a 20-something-year-old from New Zealand.
I write about destinations, photography, tips for travelling at this age
and some other writing shenanigans. I absolutely love
a game of football (soccer), I’m keen on horses and would kill for
a good ol’ chicken sando at any given point in time.
If you like travelling, taking photos, writing whatever comes to mind
or meeting new people and trying new things – this is the place for you.
Updates every second Friday (MST).
My Travel Stats
6
Countries Travelled
1
Working Holiday Visa
2
Continents
100%
Stoked on Life
About Em’s Odyssey
This blog as an extension of myself! I write everything that I post with love and I want to use this space to meet new people, share my knowledge and record the adventures and beautiful places I’m lucky enough to experience.
Em’s Odyssey is for the 8 to 108 year-olds who love to travel, push the boundaries of their comfort zone and are suckers for a bit of good-old that-made-me-feel-something art. Whether it’s written, audio or visual.
I started using this lil spot as a bit of a dump for my creativity as I’ve become sick of the dopamine-rich environment that social media is these days. I hate the idea that there’s a couple of milliseconds to impress someone before they scroll away. Art is meant to be pondered and appreciated. I no longer want this to be my source of creativity – and while I’ll still be active, I don’t want it to define me anymore.
I owe everything I do and my creativity to the God who created me. I’m a Christian, and I love to find new things every day to appreciate.
My favourite verse is the typical one, but so very good –
“For I know the plans I have for you,
says the Lord. Plans to prosper you and
not to harm you, to give you hope and a future.”
Jeremiah 29:11
Countries I’ve Been to:
The Americas
United States
Canada
Asia
Vietnam
Pacific
Rarotonga
Australia
New Zealand
Currently
Hawaii
How I Got Here
In 2021 I moved to Queenstown, NZ to study Adventure Tourism Management. These two years were some of the best of my life. I got to bungy jump for class, night ski after school and swim in crystal clear waters every day. Studying in this beautiful part of the world only expanded my love of travel and is the reason I applied for a visa in the states.
2023 was the year I found my freedom and travelled to Canada to meet up with my best friend. Graduating that March had given me a heck of a lot of freedom, my leash was now as far as my bank account would let me go. After a month travelling with my friend, I came home to get saving for my year in the USA.
Now that I’m working overseas, I have no excuse! This is only the beginning of my travels, and I’m super stoked to have a place to record all of the creative bubbles that fill my brain as I journey around the world.
Destinations to Travel
Wishing you could get away and travel too? Check out some of the posts from some of my favourite spots! You can also read more travel posts here.
People & Businesses I Love!
These are some of the wonderful people I’ve met while on my travels that have businesses and creative outlets just as I do! Check them out or give them a follow for me!
Summer Laine Jewellery
I met these two beautiful girls Keana & Kristen in Hawaii. Summer Laine sells cute beach-inspired jewellery that goes towards supporting all of the animals that Keana fosters.
Ariana Documet
Ariana is one of the purest souls I’ve ever met! We worked together at Brundage mountain and she does a lot of lifestyle and beauty vlogging via tiktok.
Fungaia Coffee Co.
Trevor worked at Brundage mountain as well, and has created his own mushroom blend of coffee.
Photography & How I got Started
I’ve been a ‘photographer’ since 2016. This is when I picked up my dad’s Canon EOS 70D and said hey, I can do something with this. But there are handycam videos of me wanting to be behind the camera from when I was about 3 or 4. It’s in my blood.
In 2020 I was lucky enough to win a photography competition that set me up with my very own camera. A Nikon Z50. It was a great little camera, but I couldn’t afford the mirrorless lenses. I’d grown up with Canon and preferred the feel, so in 2022 I saved up for a Canon EOS 90D body. This is what I shoot with today, typically on a 18-200mm lens with the Okko Pro Circular Polariser Filter.
I’ve run courses covering the basics of photography and taken lots of photos in different situations. Everything from automotive events to fine art and jewellery.
Photography Tips
Wanting to get more into photography? Start with my post on aperture below. If you’re wanting to keep yourself up late at night, the astrophotography post is for you! And if you’re looking to get that extra edge in your photography – check out the composition post.
My Camera Gear
Canon EOS 90D
Canon USM 18-135mm Lens
Canon 50mm Prime Lens
Canon A-1 Film Camera
Recent Posts
Poetry
a love letter from mountain time
a poem
I wrote this a few weeks after landing in the United States. I’d started my new job, met some awesome new people and the emotions I touch on in this poem come and go constantly.
Being here with the people I am with – citizens of a foreign country feel as though I’m standing on the other side of a very thin pane of glass. Unless I make a permanent decision to move here – it’s likely I’ll only get this time with them. Because of this, there is only so much time I can spend with them, only so much of myself I can pour out and only so much I can observe.
And that’s the beauty of it. Ephemeral.
You can read more of my poetry here.