Hi, I’m Nelia.
I’m a Northern California woman in my early 50s, an event professional, and someone who spent twenty years as a caregiver and advocate for my daughter Sabrina, who had a severe developmental disability and epilepsy. She passed away earlier this year. Losing her is still new and raw, and I’m not sure it’s even quite hit me yet. So much of who I am was because of her.
For a while now, travel has been important to me and something I’ve been wanting to do more of. Sabrina couldn’t really travel, so my husband and I would take turns traveling with our youngest. There’s something about being somewhere new that cuts through the noise, hands you back your perspective, and reminds you that the world is bigger than your pain.
Her Next Road started as The Culinary Travel Guide, a food and travel blog. It’s becoming something more — a space for women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s who are navigating grief, empty nest, reinvention, and the particular exhaustion of having held everything together for so long. Women who are ready for what’s next, even if they don’t quite know what that is yet.
You don’t have to be ready. You just have to be curious.
I’m glad you’re here.
A few more things about me:
- I believe travel is one of the best things you can do for yourself, at any age, in any circumstance
- I live in Northern California with my husband Ken and my teen daughter Alexa
- I own Blue Plaza Events and have worked in the event industry for 25+ years
- I grew up in a Portuguese household — lots of food, lots of culture
- I am not a foodie in the traditional sense — I’d rather find the hole-in-the-wall spot where locals actually eat than sit through a six-course tasting menu
- I love cocktails, coffee, girls’ trips, and the particular magic of sidling up to a bar somewhere new and not knowing what’s about to happen
