The Jet-lagged Journalist

Hello, and welcome to my travel blog! I’m very excited to share my journey and love to explore with anyone interested in reading about it.

I wanted to start off by introducing myself. My name is Chloe Ernst, I’m twenty-one years old and I’m a flight attendant for a major US airline. My itch for traveling started young; I grew up in a small(ish) town, Clovis, in the dead center of California, where I spent most of my nights scheming up a plan with my older sister on how we would get out of there one day. The majority of our family lived in the Bay Area, so I spent a lot of time in Santa Cruz. I noticed that just within that three-hour drive between Clovis and Santa Cruz there were major differences in how people dressed, talked, ate, etc. I was insanely curious to know what kinds of foods, music, and cultures there were around the world for me to experience.

Once I had graduated high school, I decided it was time to venture out. School was online due to COVID, so why would I stay in my little shell if I could essentially do school anywhere else. Back story: My Dad grew up in Oahu, Hawaii; I had visited the island before and had taken a vacation to Maui, although I had never been to the Big Island. I applied to live on a commune on the Kona side through a website called WWOOF where I would be working about five hours a day, Monday-Friday in exchange for food and shelter on a farm. (I’m going to publish a whole separate post about WWOOF/the commune life because I could go on forever about the experience). I got accepted and bought a one-way ticket. I was off and ready to experience something great! I met some amazing people, went on the most beautiful hikes, swam in the warmest ocean, and learned more than I was at my online college. After a while, I was ready for the next big thing.

Since I was about thirteen, I was obsessed with the thought of moving to Texas. In my hometown, I was a barrel racer and addicted to all things country. My sister and her best friend had moved to Austin, Texas when I was fifteen, and I decided I was going to move there one day too. One thing about me is if I have an idea stuck in my head, there is no turning back; Austin was one of those ideas. I was back in California, saving up, but not actively looking for places. I thought I would move in a few years or so. I had been praying for God to give me a sign of what to do next with my future; he placed it on my heart to go to Austin as soon as possible. I didn’t know why or how I was possibly going to do this, but I trusted in him. I found a roommate, gathered my savings, packed my car, and drove from Clovis, California, to my new life in Austin, Texas.

I had always considered becoming a Flight Attendant (also a whole different blog post yet to come). So I applied to a few airlines I was interested in. I got an in-person interview with the airline I hoped to work for. My parents were just moving to Dallas, so I decided to end my lease in Austin after being there for a year to pursue my dream of being in aviation. I was at a job I liked, had a good group of friends, and was (and still am) in a relationship with a boy who also lives in Austin; leaving wasn’t going to be easy. I moved back in with my parents in Dallas and signed a contract with the airline. While I was at Flight Attendant training, I got based in Washington DC. This was extremely unexpected, but there was something so exhilarating about it at the same time. After successfully passing training, I moved to the nation’s capital, where I’ve been ever since.

I have so many good things to say about all the places I’ve lived before, and I can’t wait to write all about them. Thank you for reading about how I got to where I am today. I hope it gives you a little insight into who you are reading about in my future posts.