Natasha Sydor

Planning your first trip abroad is nerve-racking, exhilarating, and scary. Will you pick the right location? What about getting the right price? How do you choose the perfect activities? What cities should you go to, and how will you get there?

One of the world's oldest professions is making a strong comeback. No, not that one. Matchmaking, the process of introducing a couple as potential partners in marriage, is newly alive and thriving. Matchmaking's roots can be traced back thousands of years, to a variety of cultures as far-reaching as the Jewish shadchan to the Japanese nakodo. The notion of someone familiar with both parties introducing a couple - with marriage the goal - was a long-accepted practice amongst many people.

Adventurers come in all shapes and sizes, from all walks of life, with different reasonings and ambitions for their adventures. For me, I love the unknown: experiencing everything and anything I can from countries, to cultures, languages, knowledge, hobbies, treks, physicals feats, and more. I love the adrenaline, fear, and growth that is associated with it all.

Once upon a time, movie stars used to rule Hollywood. When a film needed promotion, they'd appear in newspaper articles, magazine spreads, talk shows, etc. Although not much was really known about their personal lives (thanks to a team of crafty publicists), their fans still went to see each new film. Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, Bruce Willis, Denzel Washington, Sandra Bullock—the list goes on and on.

Fred Sweet is passionate about all things fashion and film. That's precisely why he created the La Jolla International Fashion Film Festival, and why his passion led to it becoming one of the greatest fashion film festivals in the world.

Becoming a fan of the Lord of the Rings series was a path I had no choice in taking. Meaning, my father imprinted it on me.