Introduction

My name is Maxine Grossman and I am from Fort Myers, FL. I come from a family of five, first there's me, then my brother, and lastly, my sister. We're all pretty close in different ways, and we're very different people. My parents say opposite attracts, and it's certainly true with them. So we all joke that my brother is the mini version of my mom, me, my dad, and my sister is a pretty even mix. Our differences can lead to tension, but I love how we can all come together and celebrate our differences.

I am majoring in public relations and minoring in innovation. I'm obsessed with all things beauty and fashion and hope to work somewhere in this field one day. Some career dreams of mine include working for a fashion magazine, working for any sort of beauty brand (so far I've looked into Kate Spade and L'Oreal, to name a few), or possibly being my own boss by running my own beauty blog and/or YouTube channel. I am currently involved in the University of Florida's Greek life, as well as working as a fashion blogger for Her Campus UFL. I look forward to also completing at least one internship and studying abroad at some point in the next two years I have left here at UF.
I have traveled to two countries thus far in my life, and hope that this number is minuscule compared to how many places I travel before I die. I visited Spain in the summer of 2012, and most recently, I visited Israel in the summer of 2014. I can't even try to pick which one I enjoyed more.
Spain was amazing because I got to be immersed into the culture. Two summers prior to my visit, my family hosted a Spanish exchange student to stay with us. We all became very friendly, and my dad even became close to her parents. They always insisted we visit them in Spain, and so the summer of 2012 we finally did. My dad, sister and I all stayed in the families apartment in Madrid. Our trip lasted all of two weeks and over that time we visited so many tourist, as well as local, hot spots. We also stayed in the families country home in a little city that translates literally in English to "The Village," so I never learned the name of this town because they only told me it in English. We also visited Segovia and, my personal favorite, Toledo. The cities were absolutely magnificent, with such rich history and breath-taking art.

Israel was also very memorable. Together, my entire family (mom, dad, brother, and sister), two family friends, as well as our Rabbi and his wife, all traveled to Israel for my sister to become a Bat Mitzvah. This was such an incredible and moving ceremony, as I stood there with all the people I loved, in front of the Western Wall, where my ancestors had fought so hard for what we believe in, and watched my younger sister grow up, I felt so moved and infinite.
Israel wasn't just a soul-filling trip, it also was a beautiful vacation hot spot. In Tel Aviv, we stayed at a hotel where when you walked out the back door you walked onto sand from the beach. The Mediterranean Sea's color is indescribable, the weather was perfect, and the people were so nice. Tel Aviv is on the coast of Israel's coast, but is also a major city, with many industries maintaining headquarters here. So on one side you had the most magnificent beach, and on the other was a fun, lively city.

I love traveling, and could go on and on, which is why I hope to have a laundry list of places I've been one day. Traveling is my passion, and the main thing I talk about, if it's not something fashion related. I guess you could say beauty is what I live for.