Jae-Ha Kim

Newsman Chris Matthews is a proponent of young folks studying overseas or taking a year off to travel before settling down in their careers. “I wanted to bop off to Europe, but I had to save money for graduate school,” says Matthews, 66. “I remember talking to the head of admissions at school about it, but he advised me to stay home and work. And that’s what I did. Taking time off seemed like such a luxury back then.”

As a kid, Sara Moulton didn’t know she wanted to be a chef, but she says her mother did. “When my parents took me on a trip to Europe, I not only loved all the food we ate but I took notes about it,” says the New Yorker, who may be the only chef whose work has been name-checked by the Beastie Boys. “I even wrote about what I ate on the airplane. I was a typical teenager, but I guess I always was really interested in how food was made.”

Daryn Kagan, 47, has traveled extensively to cover the war in Iraq and shine a light on hunger and AIDs in Africa. A resident of Atlanta, Kagan says that if you were to come to her home you’d be served a cup of tea from one of the mugs she picked up on her travels. “Everywhere I go, I buy a coffee mug,” she says. “It’s really fun to pull one out and see the ones I brought back from Nairobi, Venice, Kansas City or wherever. I get to live my travel adventure every morning when I get a cup of tea.”

Pattie Boyd is one of rock ‘n’ roll’s most famous muses. Married first to George Harrison and later to his best friend Eric Clapton, Boyd was the inspiration for such songs as “Something,” “Layla” and “Wonderful Tonight.” In her New York Times bestselling memoir “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me” (Three Rivers Press, $14.95) – just released in paperback – Boyd talks not only about her life with the musicians, but also her early love of travel and exploration. Based in her native Great Britain, the former model prefers being behind the camera these days. Though Boyd cites India, Africa and Thailand as a few of her favorite destinations, she says there’s nothing quite like Venezuela.

It has been a decade since Hanson burst onto the music charts with their ubiquitous hit single “MMMBop.” Today, the boys are all young men in their 20s with families of their own. The trio of brothers – lead guitarist Isaac, drummer Zac and keyboardist-vocalist Taylor – is still making beautiful music together and touring to promote their latest album “The Walk.” As it turns out, “The Walk” provided inspiration for the Oklahomans to return to South Africa (where they had recorded some of their album) over the Thanksgiving holiday to donate 50,000 pairs of shoes.