Visiting Chengdu, China was a highlight from my Round the World trip. (This is The Trip) Yes, I am somewhat panda-obsessed and yes, Chengdu is the home of the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding. But the city itself…
Not too dissimilar to my love affair with the Temples of Bali, I developed a love affair with the exotic beauty of Thai temples. The intricacy of the tiling and color coordination, the brilliance of gold, and the design of…
Though there are hundreds of Greek Islands, most people know of only a handful and have only visited a few of these. Islands such as Santorini, Mykonos, Crete, and Ios have become synonymous with the Greek Mediterranean and continue to…
Buenos Aires is the kind of city that makes you want to sit down at a small, dark cafe and take hours to drink a tiny cup of cafe-con-leche. I’ve been in lots of amazing cities that make me feel…
Seems like Hawaii is on everyone’s bucket list these days. I’m not really big on bucket lists, but Hawaii would probably have been on mine too if I had one. There’s something about the unique landscapes and island culture that…
It’s been just over a year since The Trip ended. It hurts just to say it. Not only that, but it’s been TWO years since Matt and I got married and subsequently flew to Buenos Aires, our first RTW honeymoon…
Draped over steep hills and cliffs facing the Pacific Ocean, Valparaiso is a city of uniqueness. Not only in geography but also in style. Walls are dressed up in local artwork, and Chilean culture is knitted into the the city’s…
With several weeks to spend in Hong Kong, the possibilities are endless. Not only is Hong Kong an archipelago of islands of all different personalities, but the city centers are brimming with interesting museums, shops, antiquities, and restaurants. Our homebase…
Hong Kong is a true international city. It is on the forefront of technology and business yet is also true to its traditional Chinese heritage. There are large groups of expats, Hong Kong natives, and mainland Chinese that call this…
Kangaroo Island sits off the coast of South Australia, only a short ferry ride from the busy streets of Adelaide. However, on the island, a different lifestyle exists. The rugged terrain is teeming with wildlife, such as kangaroos, wallabies, koalas,…
One of the things that struck me the most about Bali was the exotic and unique architecture of the Hindu temples that exist all over the island. Even in the middle of the most touristy areas of Kuta and Legian,…
One inherent, yet completely unglamorous part of long term travel is the multi-day, multi-continent epic journey. Typically, they involve several forms of transportation, jetlag, bad food, lack of comfortable seating/beds, and can last for days. It’s virtually impossible to avoid…
In Bali, we had the opportunity to see a performance of the classic Indonesian dance, The Ramayana Ballet. This story has been one of the most famous love stories in Indonesia for generations, having originated from a centuries old Hindu…
When you think of food in Argentina, the first thing you probably think of is steak. This makes sense, as meat is one of the most important elements of the cuisine. It is the heart of Argentinian cuisine, and Argentina…
Thessaloniki was our first mainland destination in Greece. After spending a few weeks in the Cyclades and on Crete, we were looking for a mainland Greece experience off the tourist pathway to Athens. Sitting all the way up in the…
As we get closer to the warmer weather, I feel a natural pull to spend more time walking around Brooklyn on the weekends. The trees are just starting to turn green, the early spring blossoms are almost reaching full bloom,…
During a visit to Angkor Wat in Cambodia, there are few a few things that every tourist seems to do. The first is a visit to the main temple of Angkor Wat for sunrise – sitting to the west of…
Aside from New Zealand being a dream travel destination for me, it was also a dream wine destination for me, a fairly serious wino. New Zealand has produced some of the world’s best white wines, in my opinion, and tasting…
China, depending on whether you are talking about the Mainland or the special economic zones, was an interesting culinary destination for us. We knew before even getting there that regardless of what our fellow travelers had said about food in…
After a day spent flying from Greece to Jordan, and from Jordan to Dubai, we arrived to a hot and dry night in the desert. We flew down Sheikh Zayed Road in an airport taxi, passing malls, skyscrapers, and mosques…
Only a boat ride away from the beaches of Bali, there exists a place where tourism has not yet spoiled the calmness. There is no pier for large boats to dock, limiting the amount of people who come to stay…
Greek cuisine has a little something for everyone. There’s plenty of vegetables, plenty of meats, plenty of dairy, and plenty of seafood. Depending on what you like to eat, you’ll find dishes that highlight the local flavors of Greece in…
Some people don’t know that I went to “wine school.” I put that in quotes as it was really hard sometimes to fully think of it as school. Yes there were final exams and yes we had textbooks, but with…
It’s now been well over a year since we got back from our trek to Everest Base Camp. Since then we’ve done a lot of things and been a lot of places, but if I close my eyes, I can…
For me, Southeast Asia was one culinary location I couldn’t wait to explore. Bring on the noodles, bring on the ginger, bring on the rice. For Matt, not so much. Since pretty much everything on the local menus (save steamed…
Australia was supposed to be a focal point on our trip. Not only is travel there easy in terms of language and infrastructure, but Matt would be able to eat almost anything. There is plenty to see and do, and…
Nepal was a really great food destination for us. Not only is the local food pretty much all food-allergy-friendly, but there were many dishes to choose from. Regardless of where we were – either deep in the Himalayas or in…
Looking back on the five weeks we spent in Thailand, it seems like we visited two separate countries. The northern part of Thailand is rich with with mountainous terrain, jungles, cool weather, and a strong sense of spirituality, where as…
It’s pretty awesome when you can wake up in the morning, make some eggs in the kitchen, drink your coffee while watching CNN International, and say “What should we do today, maybe go to the Acropolis again?” This was the…
It’s not often that chances come up for us to live out lofty dreams, especially when they involve flying halfway around the world. When those opportunities actually do come up, you have to take them. The Trip afforded both of…