Page 9 - Florida Sentinel 7-26-19
P. 9

  Local
TV News Journalist Authors Her First Book About Traveling
  BY KENYA WOODARD Sentinel Feature Writer
Stephanie Claytor is best known as a Bay News 9 multimedia journalist report- ing on people, places, and events in the Tampa Bay area.
Recently, the Twinsburg, Ohio native added “author” to her list of titles with the publishing of her first book, “Blacktrekking.”
But don’t expect a juicy, behind-the-scenes details from this award-winning broadcaster; rather, “Black- trekking” is a chronicle of Claytor’s experiences trav- eling the world.
Claytor said she’s al- ways wanted to share her ex- periences with others but didn’t know she would do it in book form until a couple of years ago.
“I’ve always liked to edu- cate people and I’m a story- teller at heart,” she said. “I’m always documenting what’s happening.”
Claytor has visited a total of 11 countries, most re- cently Japan. She’s lived abroad twice and spent her honeymoon on a secluded is- land in Bora Bora. When a friend dropped out of a trip to Ghana, Claytor soldiered on by herself, touring the slave castles and learning how to make Kente cloth.
Sometimes she travels alone, sometimes with her mother or husband.
“I really wanted to go to Ghana and he wasn’t inter- ested,” she said. “But when I
STEPHANIE CLAYTOR ... ‘Blacktrekking’ author
“I got paid every month; I had to get a roommate,” she said. “I had to speak Spanish. (Colombians) don’t speak much English.”
A couple of years ago, Claytor realized there was enough material for a book. But first, she began docu- menting her travels on her blog www.blacktrekking.com and built an online commu- nity.
The purpose of the blog –andnowbook–istoshow people that travel is available to anyone who is interested, Claytor said.
Traveling outside the country is an especially wor- thy experience, she said.
“Growing up, traveling
abroad wasn’t a big deal,” she said. “But I feel it’s important to see things for yourself, and educate yourself.”
So, if you have an itch to see the world – with family and friends or alone?
“Do it,” Claytor said. “You’re going to be exposed to so many new things. You’ll learn so much about yourself. It pushes you to get out of your comfort zone.”
More about Blacktrekking
You can learn more about traveling and living abroad and find Stephanie Claytor’s book at www.blacktrekking.com.
  said I wanted to go to Japan, he said ‘ok’. He picks and chooses.”
Claytor said she was first bitten by the travel bug as a youngster taking sum- mer vacations around the United States with her fam- ily. A trip to California when she was 10 had a profound effect on Claytor.
“It was an eye-opener for me,” she said. “I kept hearing this other language and peo- ple looked different from me.”
Another life-changing event occurred some years later when, as a college stu- dent at Syracuse University, Claytor was invited to spend Christmas break in Puerto Rico.
“It was fascinating to me,” she said. “I loved it so much, I went back for spring break.”
Claytor had decided she wanted to master Spanish
and researched immersive study abroad programs. Ini- tially, she wanted to go to Cuba, but after her mother expressed some concern, switched to the Dominican Republic.
She stayed for four months, soaking up the cul- ture and immersing herself in the language.
Upon her return home, Claytor decided she wanted a more extensive Spanish- language learning experience and applied for a fellowship from the Fulbright Program, an exclusive cultural ex- change program.
Claytor was awarded the fellowship and moved to Bogota, Colombia. For 10 months, she taught English while navigating her new sur- roundings in a place for 10 months.
Living abroad this time around ushered Claytor into adulthood, she said.
        FRIDAY, JULY 26, 2019 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 9-A

































































   7   8   9   10   11