Kelsey Mikeska always wanted to travel the world, and when she got the opportunity to work as an Au Pair in Sydney, Australia she knew this would allow her to live out her dreams.

“Within a month, I found a family, booked a ticket, quit my job and moved,” Mikeska said.

Her journey has changed her life in countless ways, and now she’s back in Pittsburgh studying photojournalism and planning her future adventures.

From August 2015 to April 2016, Mikeska of Pittsburgh lived in Sydney. She also took a month long trip to New Zealand and returned to the states this May.

An Au Pair is someone who helps with housework or childcare in exchange for room and board. It is a common way for people to travel without paying for it entirely by themselves.

Mikeska can’t remember a time when the idea of traveling didn’t enthrall her. When she went to Germany for the first time, she knew she had found a passion.

“That was my first taste of going outside the U.S., it was amazing. It changed everything,” she said.

When Mikeska came across the idea of being an Au Pair, she knew this would allow her to travel without paying for it all on her own. She narrowed her destination down to three locations – London, Paris or Sydney. Although the furthest choice, she chose Sydney because of its warm weather.

Mikeska admitted that her family was skeptical at first, but said overall everyone was very supportive. She said she had made plans to move after high school, but ended up not going through with it, so it was expected.

Madison Mikeska, Kelsey’s younger sister, said she thought Kelsey was joking when she first told her she was moving to Australia.

“[Kelsey] would always talk about going places, but whenever it was real I was very happy for her because she was finally doing something she wanted to do,” she said.

Mikeska wanted to wait until it was a done deal to tell her friends. Alyssa Stipetich has known Mikeska for about six years, and they have become best friends and travel buddies. She said Mikeska’s story has inspired her and has made both of them want to travel more.

“I would love to travel that far for that long and seeing somebody actually do that makes it seem more possible,” Stipetich said.

She began her journey with a 16-hour flight to Sydney.

She admitted that the first week in Sydney was the hardest for her, as she only met her host family a few times over Skype calls.

“I was basically alone,” Mikeska said. “It’s like being in kindergarten all over again and not knowing anybody and you have to make friends.”

Meeting people from all different places was the most rewarding part of the journey for Mikeska.

“I now have friends from Germany, from Australia, from New Zealand, Holland, England…just from all over the world,” Mikeska said.

Mikeska met Liselotte Willemsen through a Facebook group for Au Pairs working in Sydney. The two decided to meet up because neither of them knew anyone there. Willemsen had a similar story to Mikeska, and they quickly bonded.

“I think Kelsey is so brave and I’m so proud of her,” Willemsen said. “I did the same thing; I left everything at home behind because I needed a change in my life and needed to go somewhere else to figure out what I was going to do with my life next.”

The two had many adventures together; Willemsen said one trip was a four-week-long road trip through New Zealand. Willemsen said she realized how strong their friendship really was on that trip.

“We share this love of traveling, discovering new places, and Kelsey is truly one of my closest friends,” Willemsen said. “Even though she lives on the other side of the world now, we still talk often and I feel like this friendship will last for much longer.”

Although Mikeska was always interested in photography, the journey also influenced her decision to come to Point Park as a photojournalism major. Mikeska always loved documentary photos in newspapers and magazines, and said her dream job is to be a documentary photographer working for National Geographic.

“When I was on my travels, I took pictures of everything, and it just really made me want to do it even more,” Mikeska said.

Her collection includes photographs from the Figure 8 Pools, Anna Bay Sand Dunes, Lake Marian and more. She shoots with a Canon EOS Rebel T3 and a GoPro Hero 3. Video is also something Mikeska has an interest in, and she made sure she filmed a lot while exploring. She started a YouTube channel called SomewhereWithKelsey where she shares videos of all her adventures.

Mikeska plans to keep up with her interest in video through continuing to document her travels and by adding some cinema classes into her schedule at Point Park.

Mikeska said that her experience overseas changed the way she lives her life now.

“I feel like I’m more open to talk to people,” Mikeska said. “It really opens your mind to the way the rest of the world works.”

For anyone who wants to travel, Mikeska said that being an Au Pair is a great option to look into.

“It’s a good way to see another part of the world, and since you’re there for so long, you really get into the localness of it,” Mikeska said. “You learn how to walk somewhere and not have to look at a map, you know what bus will take you downtown without having to ask somebody – and you get to make money.”

Mikeska also suggested living in cheap hotels or even working a normal job while traveling.

“I met a lot of Americans over there that have retail jobs and they are just living there,” Mikeska said.

Mikeska transformed into a world traveler. Her abrupt decision to move across the world shaped her as a person and led her to what she wants to do in life.

“Any time I get the opportunity to go somewhere, I’ll do it,” she said.