Mandy Chang

Wanderlust Fulfilled

Oh, the places Mandy Chang went.

Sure, she had traveled far in business, immigrating from Taiwan in the mid-1980's, getting a master's degree in the computer field, working her way up to a management position at the First Commercial Bank of Taiwan. But Ms. Chang's true passion lay in her travels outside of the United States, sizing up new places, making new friends and, wherever possible, testing the swimming pool at every hotel.

Egypt. Russia. Turkey. Latin America. She had been to them all. In fact, Ms. Chang wanted to visit every continent by the time she hit 50, said John Goldman, who befriended Ms. Chang during a May 2001 trip to Turkey. She was 40. She had only Australia and Antarctica left.

"We were always having meaningful conversations about world events or traveling," said Tracy Grinker, another friend, who had talked with Ms. Chang shortly before Sept. 11 about taking a ski trip to Europe. "She was really interested in trying new things."

Ms. Chang once wrote Mr. Goldman that she fancied the idea of retiring in Spain. Naturally, it did not matter that Spain was one of the few places she had not yet visited.