When I was in my 50’s and traveling on a group tour in India, I met a woman on the trip who inspired my future travels. I had always had a lust to see the world and open up my eyes to different cultures, lifestyles and indescribable beauty. “Have you ever heard of The Travel Century Club?” she asked. I hadn’t, so she explained that it was a club for people who had traveled to at least 100 countries or territories. “I’m in,” I thought, and from that moment on wouldn’t go back to the same destination twice until reaching that goal. Well, three years ago, when I stepped onto The Falkland Islands, I stopped to throw my hands in the air and yell “100!!”
Where to next? How about immersing myself into different cultures by staying for an extended period of time in one place and living like a local. Great idea but, being single at the time, I really didn’t want to do this alone.
As fate would have it, I had begun doing workshops with MEA and quickly realized that I had found a community of like-minded thinkers (and travelers) with an openness to experience all that life has to offer, together.
“What a great group to see the world with,” I thought.
When I presented this idea at an MEA Corazon (MEA’s most loyal alums) brunch at a reunion, my idea was met with many “shining the pearl’ acknowledgments. An endorsement from the MEA leaders and I knew this idea could actually happen.
At the next reunion I met Betsy Benoit, who in her highly enthusiastic way said, “I want to do this with you” and a partnership was born with the birth of the MEA Alumni World Travel Experience!
We searched for a desirable destination and a gorgeous 8-bedroom villa and soon landed on a place in Graveson, France in Provence. Although this travel group would be an MEA-sanctioned experience, we were solely responsible for how it came together. We leveraged word of mouth and posting on the MEA Facebook page and portal. To our amazement, we had over 48 people sign up for our first informational zoom meeting. By the time we made our way to Provence in May of 2023, we had every room filled for the entire 4 weeks!
We began the new experience with a welcome dinner in our villa prepared by a local French chef, and the group immediately jelled. We all shared stories of our lives and expectations for the time we’d be staying. Betsy and I did plenty of research, offering suggestions of villages to visit and activities to explore but we made it clear that we were not tour-guides and that the experience would just organically evolve.
Each day was an adventure as we all went in different directions and later came back with stories to share. One day, Andy proposed a kayak trip and 8 of us joined the group for a really memorable day. Another day when the running of the sheep was going to pass through the charming town of St, Remy, the entire house decided to meet up in town and we all had a blast together.
Although each week had a different mix of singles and couples and friends, on many days, groups got together to share car rides and get to know each other better. By the end of each week, new friendships had formed and everyone left with incredible memories of adventures and the new community we helped to curate.
Needless to say, we hit on something special in our experiment so, in 2025, we found a spectacular palazzo in Umbria, Italy in a small medieval hill town called San Gemini. All rooms were filled again, and we even had 8 returning guests. The group’s vibe was similar, and Betsy and I were grateful to see and hear that the fruits of our labor had meant a lot to people – what a dream come true!
“Thank you so much for making this happen” was said to us over and over again, making us feel so fulfilled. Seeing an idea become a reality with such positive results reaffirmed the power that anything is possible if you focus and implement!
And the journey continues…. we have secured a 9-bedroom palace north of Seville, Spain – San Benito Palace has incredible amenities at our disposal. Situated in a national park –Sierra de Sevilla – there will be plenty of outdoor adventures available as well as day trips to nearby villages and cities.
The experience begins on September 19th and goes through October 17th.
If you’re interested in joining us for a week or two, or the month, please reach out to Drew at [email protected] or Betsy at [email protected].
Together, we can keep the MEA alumni community thriving around the world!
-Drew
Drew Hyman has been a lifelong professional portrait photographer and an avid traveler. Living a healthy and active lifestyle, his passions are family, friends, cultural activities, volunteering and doing whatever it takes to outlive his father who made it to 101!