Hi there, I’m Ava Meena. I created this blog to share my life as an expat when I moved to Germany in 2015. I discovered my insatiable love for travel during the year I spent living in Germany with my husband, Mr. Meena. Unfortunately, I also became very sick throughout that year, and I was diagnosed with lupus shortly after returning home to the USA. While lupus has limited my life – and travels – in many ways, it’s also given me a passion to share my life with an autoimmune disease and chronic pain. I’ve connected with so many people around the world who are going through the same thing and I am honored to share my journey with them. So this blog has evolved to the point where I now create content about my life and travels with chronic illness.
I currently live in Charlotte, North Carolina, with my husband and two sons. My children have introduced me to the world of rare diseases and furthered my passion to write about health and work in patient advocacy.
You can check out the My Life section of the blog to read more about me.
Meet Mr. Meena.
He’s my husband of 10 years, travel partner, and resident roller coaster fan (aka the reason why we have visited so many theme parks). He’s also a wonderful father and caring spouse.
Meet the kids.
Photo by Leslie Mason Photography.
My oldest was born in May 2018 and my youngest was born in May 2021. You may read about them as Baby Meena, Toddler Meena, or simply according to their ages (aka my three-year-old or Mr. 3). They are darling and great company to have alongside our traveling adventures and on my path as a chronically ill mom.
New here?
Check out my Start Here page or check out the map of where I’ve been.
Here are some options for following along:
