About M&J

“When the virus of restlessness begins to take possession of a wayward man, and the road away from Here seems broad and straight and sweet . . .  “

 

This unfinished thought from Steinbeck’s “Travels with Charley” epitomizes the nature of our disease. We have acquired a talent for bouncing around the globe without ever calling one place home for very long.

In the summer of 2009 we embarked on our very first two-up trans-American motorcycle journey in order to see, taste, and feel our way across a country that we barely know. We had no other choice but to travel light, bringing only a few necessary items and trusting that the road will provide the rest along the way.  All too often we lose meaning in the clutter of our daily lives; it is liberating to know that we need very little not only to survive but to enjoy ourselves.

The spirit that drives our journeys  is finding the joy in simplicity, whether it be from a good stretch of road, a sweeping vista, a break in the storm up ahead, a delicious meal, or from the kindness of a perfect stranger.

In March 2010 we left our home in warm and sunny Southern California to spend a few months in Oregon and Washington. In July 2010 we moved to Oahu, our current home.

 

 

Justin hails from the Pacific Northwest but his true origins lie in Calabria, a region of southern Italy. He is ingenious, sly, hardy, and completely impervious to the sun. He likes to put sriracha on everything.

 

 

Manami is a Seattle born, Georgia raised, half-Japanese half-Polish girl who has a gift for making friends with wild animals. She has an eye for detail and the memory of an elephant. Slight in stature, Justin thinks she has the littlest voice and clothes of anyone in the world.

 

They both love travel, good books, and food. Both graduated from John Cabot University in Rome, Italy where they obtained degrees that neither seem to be using at the moment.