Meet Tess Kazenoff of Long Beach

Today we’d like to introduce you to Tess Kazenoff

Hi Tess, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Throughout my entire childhood in New Jersey, I loved the idea of moving to California. I didn’t know anything about it beyond Hollywood and the beach, but when it came time to go to college, Cal State Long Beach had “beach” in the name, so I was sold. Even though I was not at all prepared, off I went, without any idea of what to expect.

Long story short, mental health challenges and trauma that I’d previously buried began to catch up with me as soon as I moved across the country. So after just one semester, I dropped out and went back to New Jersey. I felt ashamed and like a failure, and I was also just really lost about what I wanted to do next. That all changed a few months later, when a friend and I went on my first international trip to Costa Rica. I fell in love with traveling, and knew one thing for sure: traveling was what I wanted from my life.

I enrolled at a community college to study photography, and after completing my associate degree, I decided to give California another try. Coincidentally, I wound up back in Long Beach. After learning that most of my credits wouldn’t transfer, I ultimately decided to just start from the beginning once more. Traveling the world and writing sounded like a good match, so basically on a whim, I chose to study journalism at Long Beach City College.

It turned out that that was the best decision I could have made. For the first time, my academic life felt like it was going smoothly. I loved how journalism constantly taught me about new people, things, and experiences, and the process of figuring out the best way to tell that story.

In the back of my mind, I had the idea of starting a travel blog, but fear of failure and judgment held me back. After graduating from Cal State Long Beach (weirdly, I ended up returning to where I’d began, 8 years before), I finally set up the website and began writing some posts, but I put my plans on hold when I was hired at a local newspaper that I had interned and freelanced for while in college.

After a little over a year, I was laid off, and I knew I could no longer keep holding off on pursuing my dream of travel writing. This February, I finally launched the travel blog that I had been dreaming about for years.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I feel like I’ve had to rebuild and start completely over multiple times in my life. When I first dropped out of school all those years ago, at 19 years old, I had to learn how to financially support myself, heal my mental health, and somehow try to figure out a new career path.

My time in New Jersey was very tumultuous, ultimately leading me to start fresh in California when I was 23. While it was very much needed, in many ways, it felt extremely isolating, and like I’d had to let go completely of my former life. Adjusting to life across the country has been an ongoing challenge, and then, losing my job last year was another difficulty, that has forced me to reevaluate my priorities and goals, while of course coping with financial stress.

But amid the many periods of instability and insecurity, they’ve all served as much-needed redirection. Looking back at these challenges, I know they were all important moments that have shaped me and my path.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m currently focused on growing my blog, Tess the Traveler, which features budget travel tips and destinations. I also share a lot on my Instagram, @tesskazenoff. I love having an outlet to share my experiences and information that I hope will help future travelers, while showing that it’s possible to travel affordably.

Travel has meant so much to me, and has not only influenced my professional and academic decisions, but has impacted me so much personally, from helping me to heal my mental health, to even leading me to meet my husband! I really believe that travel is such an important tool for expanding your horizons and learning more about the world, and I want everyone who wants to, to experience it.

But apart from that, I’m also a freelance writer/journalist! Of course, I love writing about travel, but I’ve covered all sorts of topics as well, from sustainability, to education, health, food, and more. Any chance I get to take photos also makes me happy!

What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
I love so many things about Long Beach, and the Los Angeles area as a whole! I’m really appreciative of getting to live in a place with such an amazing blend of cultures, and living so close to the beach makes me feel really lucky too! I’ve lived here nearly seven years now, and I still feel like a tourist in some ways — I get excited going to all the main tourist destinations, and feel like there’s still so much more for me to see and do here.

As for the difficulties, like I mentioned, being far away from where I’m from isn’t always easy, especially as this area becomes increasingly unaffordable. Through my work as a journalist, I’ve had the chance to learn a lot more about the many challenges facing Long Beach and L.A. — but also all the amazing things and people that are here. I credit journalism for really helping to deepen my connection and love for this community.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://tessthetraveler.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tesskazenoff/
• Other: https://tesskazenoff.wixsite.com/portfolio