Meet the Greenheart Travel Team: Sara Thacker

Meet Sara Thacker, Greenheart Travel’s Associate Director of Marketing!

Sara comes from a background of extensive travel, including a semester onboard the MV Explorer with Semester at Sea in which she circumnavigated the world, visiting 13 countries. She also spent a summer abroad in Costa Rica studying ecotourism in Carrera National Park. After graduating from college, Sara spent a year living and teaching middle school English in Seoul, South Korea where she learned to love kimchi and K-pop.

Upon returning from Korea, she decided she wanted to help people move abroad and have the same amazing cultural exchange experience she did by working at Greenheart Travel! Sara received a degree in Geography from The University of Wisconsin–Madison and is a die-hard Badger football fan.

Read on to learn more about Sara’s secret talent, one of her travel “aha” moments and why she loves working at Greenheart Travel.

Sightseeing in lovely South Korea!

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan – which is a small town in Michigan known for being the home of the University of Michigan. I grew up bleeding maize and blue and my parents have always had season Michigan football tickets, but I quickly found the righteous path when I decided to go to college at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Go badgers.

What is your favorite international city?

Seoul, South Korea has a special place in my heart because I lived there for a year teaching English. It’s not the most aesthetically pleasing city and it doesn’t have a skyline that will take your breath away, but if you think New York doesn’t sleep – you haven’t been to Seoul. I am also obsessed with public transportation, and Seoul’s subway system is UNREAL. It is second in size only to Tokyo’s subway (which is way more confusing!) and the longest line (line 1) has over 90 stops!

What is your secret talent?

A: I was on a competitive jump roping team when I was in middle school. We qualified for the national championships in Disney world and got to compete on the Indiana Jones stage and be on EPSN (it might have been ESPN 2, but shhh). Basically, I can school you in double dutch.

If you could eat only one country’s style of food for the rest of your life, which would it be?

ITALIAN. Pasta + wine = never get sick of it.

Complete the sentence: When I grow up I want to __________.

Speak another language. I’m not very good at learning languages, but it’s my dream to be fluent in at least one besides English. I’m working on Korean and Spanish… very slowly but surely.

What is your spirit animal?

I’m going to have to go with a koala bear.  I am really calm and laid-back, but if you mess with me I will remind you that I am indeed a bear. I also enjoy retreating to my “tree” and eating all day long.

What is your favorite travel “AHA! moment” or memory?

When I was in South Africa my junior year of college, we went out around 4AM for a safari game drive and hadn’t seen any animals yet. All of a sudden the sun started rising and the whole sky lit up an intense reddish pinkish hue. I took my camera out to snap some pictures and right in front of the amazing sunrise walked 3 giraffes. I remember being in such awe that these moments actually do exist in real life outside of national geographic or desk calendars!

What is your favorite thing about working for Greenheart Travel?

I know this will come off sounding cliché, but teaching English in South Korea for a year was easily the best (and most challenging) year of my life. Being able to help others have the same cultural exchange experience and life-changing growth as a person makes me incredibly happy.