Matt's Story
After graduating from Villanova University in May 2010, Matt promptly began working as a financial analyst for the New York law firm Dewey & LeBoeuf. After two years of service, he left Dewey to work in compliance for Sullivan & Crowmell, just as Dewey was filing for bankruptcy. While harboring aspirations of attending law school, he also felt the tug of wanderlust, and set out to travel the world before settling down.
In October 2013, Matt bought a one-way ticket to Sydney, Australia, intent on spending a year living and working Down Under. While in Australia he learned to scuba dive on the Great Barrier Reef, worked as a deckhand on a super-yacht, pruned grapes as a vineyard farmhard, and made some very dear friends. He then spent a few months backpacking around Southeast Asia, before returning home to New York to visit friends and family.
However, the prospect of settling down seemed like a daunting task, so Matt set out to explore more of his own country. Never having spent more than a week or two outside the Northeast, he spent the summer working at a lodge outside of Denali National Park in Alaska, subsequently exploring the West Coast of the U.S. He is currently working as a photographer in Steamboat Springs, Colorado.
The travel bug is still deeply engrained in his bones, and Matt plans on spending the foreseeable future exploring both the world and his own country, writing about everything he sees and does.
Verse America is dedicated to those adventures.
Here on Verse America, you’ll read about the things Matt has seen and the way it's made him feel. There’s little he loves more than sitting down and telling a story about a third-world country he's visited, or a zany encounter he's had on the road. Matt wants to share this all with you, so that wherever you are in the world you can experience a little bit of what’s out there, and know that there are amazing people with unbelievable stories just beyond your doorstep. Traveling isn’t just a leisure activity; it’s an approach to life… you can easily travel at home; no matter where you live. It’s all about approaching each day in an exciting way, and not necessarily conforming with the routines and expectations governed by the social web you live in.
You’ll also learn how Matt packed up his life into a bag and hit the road, and how you can do it too. You’ll see photos of all the places he's been, and tips on how you can do the same. Verse America is here to share experiences, and encourage anyone who wants to break out of their comfort zone to do it: you don’t have to live a life of long-term travel to live a life filled with adventure!
Note: all photographs and images on this site were taken by Matt unless otherwise credited.