Kali Kucera
Author
Kali is the author of a full-length fiction work Unawqi, Hunter of the Sun; an anthology of short stories, South Sound Legends & Tales; a travel guide (Bananas & Volcanoes; and co-author of two others, South America Borders 365 Days on the Fiesta Continent; as well as a prolific blogger on both travel and entrepreneurship.
Unawqi, Hunter of the Sun
In a time when supernatural and industrial worlds are staged to collide, an Andean boy finds himself in the center of an epic struggle between the cosmos and the Earth. Unawqi is born with both insurmountable power and a fate of certain death, both of which are challenged by his hunt of the emperor, Aakti, the Sun: the very force that desires to abandon the Earth unless Unawqi can overcome him.
Available on Amazon →
South Sound Legends & Tales
A compendium of the heart of Kali’s craft, several urban legends told about his beloved South (Puget) Sound region. Stories include The Amocats, Bay’s Charm, The Meadow Over Tacoma, The Legend of Golden Fern, Lady Charlotte, Milo’s Curse, The Less Told Tale of Never Never Land, Sticky’s Sanctuary, Strawberry Hill , Vic the Anxious Waiter, Where the River Runds Hard, and Old Man with Sunflowers in his Arms!
Available on Amazon →
South America Borders
Everything you need to know about crossing borders between South American countries, including transportation options, customs and duties, alternative routes, and more. Written by veteran South America land-based travelers and writers Kali Kucera and Lorraine Caputo, it also includes contributions from several other travel professionals and their advice is often that small bit that is incredibly instrumental in making the difference between getting over the border or not.
Available on Amazon →
365 Days on the Fiesta Continent
A complete guide and calendar to spending a year on the fiesta continent, South America. We take you in a methodical fashion from one festival, pilgrimage, saint’s celebration, annual international concerts, blessing of the ships, culinary exhibitions, and tons more reasons that Latin Americans love to bring people together to share joy. Tips included on what to bring with you, what to avoid, and how to time your visit.
Entrepreneur
Kali left his corporate career in 2012 to launch AndesTransit, a land-travel ticket and reservation hub that covers 20 Latin American countries from Mexico to Argentina. The company acquired LatinBus in 2016 and has developed several other subsidiaries for specific countries as well as one dedicated exclusively to luxury land travel in Latin America. While in its earlier days it mostly served young backpacking college-age adults from Europe and Australia, now the audience is much more diverse, stretching across every age bracket and every continent.
It wasn’t his first venture, however. When Kali was still in his early 20’s, he created a short-lived venture, The Seattle Seminar Shop, an adult education enterprise for short-term learning experiences ranging from Accounting to White Water Rafting and everything in between.
Consulting & Project Management
Never wanting to leave being immersed in the productivity and operational challenges of other industries, Kali has continued to consult companies in every industry on business strategy, project management, accounting practices, remote or distributed team formation, and overall establishing reliable productivity rhythms. A seasoned employer of online freelancers, he deeply understands the nuances of the gig market from every angle and every vertical. At the end of the day, my consulting leans into helping clients synthesize their work into narratives that communicate value, either in summary reports or in technical systems that anticipate the questions of stakeholders and reveal answers in an accessible and meaningful delivery.
Volunteering
Kali follows in the line of a long family tradition of giving a portion of our lives to the public good. He is passionate about not just joining causes, but often starting them when a need is being unmet. Here are just a few of the non-profits or projects Kali has taken a leadership role:
Alliance Co-Chair, Workshop Moderator, Architect of Gaming and Interactives Initiative. Braver Angels is leading the nation’s largest cross-partisan, volunteer-led movement to bridge the partisan divide. Through community gatherings, real debates, and grassroots leaders working together, we’re creating hope — and showing Americans a braver way.
Mariposas Collective is a grassroots effort driven by love of neighbors, feelings of solidarity, and a desire for justice, providing relief for immigrant travelers in the form of food, water, clothing, information, and a kind word.
Founded Tacoma’s wildly successful paid laureate position and attendant competition, now administered by the Tacoma Arts Commission with a legacy of multiple laureates earning the title for an appointed term of public service.
