Right around that point in our visit to Italy when we figured out that ‘parcheggio’ meant parking and not some bizarre underground board game circuit, my travel bud and I…
Going to Ireland? Say “I Do!”
Apologies for the lateness of this article! I just got back from a fabulous week of hosteling, hiking, and culture-seeking in Ireland with my sister. This isn’t my first trip…
Football Fever!
All around the world, people are full of football fever! It’s the first weekend of the month-long sports fans’ heaven known as the FIFA World Cup. Every four years FIFA,…
Kentucky Road Trip
It was the summer after my first year of college. I had spent the entire three months working for the American Red Cross in my small county in Ohio and…
Some Thoughts on Going Home
The night before I travel long distances, I tend to feel anxious and even slightly ill. I’m filled with a vague, unsettling nausea and a sense of impending disorientation. I’m…
Giving Great Advice
“Germans don’t have friends the way you do here,” Hannelore tells me as we sip our lemon ginger tea. “Here, you call someone a friend when you hardly speak to…
Clubbing with Mom
A very common Friday night in Barcelona might look a little something like this: Friends together eating dinner and drinking a little sangria (or whatever tasty beverage can be thrown…
Dark History in the City of Light
It’s easy to plan a visit to Paris that appreciates the city for only part of what it is: you float along the Seine on a bateau-mouche, climb the famous…
Breathing Through the Fear
By Day Two in Germany, I’ve already fallen in love with it. It’s beautiful here- chilly, yes, but the sun is nice and the neighbours are friendly. The town is…
Single-Serving Friends
by Lisa Everywhere I travel, tiny life. Single-serving sugar, single-serving cream, single pat of butter. The microwave Cordon Bleu hobby kit. Shampoo-conditioner combos, sample-packaged mouthwash, tiny bars of soap. The…
The World is a Big Place After All
One of the inevitable truths of travel is that things will go wrong: trains will be missed, reservations lost, sunglasses, toothbrushes and the occasional shoe (among other, more important things)…
Finding Berg Nanstein
Finding Berg Nanstein: an ode to being lost “It’s a girl’s day out!” we squealed in delight And dropped The Boy off ‘fore we drove out of sight. We had…
Adventure vs. Comfort
Choosing Between Travel Personalities by Lisa As a child, I went to a ritzy private school on scholarship. Many of the other kids would talk about going to their family’s…
PS I Love You Ireland
I was watching the movie, PS I love you last night, and became absolutely fascinated with Ireland. The main character’s husband was from there and she went to visit the…
Castles and Cars
If I had to give a single piece of advice to travelers, it might be “Make friends with people who own cars.” Obviously, when meeting new people, it’s probably not…