*apologies for the quality of our photos here. These are from 2005, when we were still working with a 2 MP camera. Sounds like the stone age! In April 2005, I celebrated the defense of my thesis with what I considered a well-deserved trip to Italy. Barry and I flew into Venice, where we stayed …
If you’re lucky enough to visit Rome, make time to visit St. Peter’s Basilica. Don’t worry — even if you’re not Catholic (or religious at all, for that matter), it is most definitely worth the time.We’re not, and we still marvel over the architecture and art. Pay attention to planning your stop, though, as crowds …
Paestum, Italy. Other than a site filled with Greek ruins, I had no expectations for the city. However, it charmed us so quickly that, for the first time in all our travels, we changed our plans mid-vacation and stayed an extra night. We could’ve easily spend the rest of our trip there. It’s small and …
I’ve mentioned our serendipitous trip to Zaragoza before and I’m sure I’ll tell more stories about it in the future (in case you haven’t noticed, we like to tell stories about our travels). But in this entry, I’d like to focus on one of the things that struck me most about our visit — the …
While many consider Spain’s Balearic Islands to be a party destination, our visit to Palma de Mallorca proved that there’s a lot more there than clubs and techno music. In fact, the culture is filled with food, history, art and literature … with amazing beaches peppered in. We visited Palma in the summer of 2010, …
In addition to housing a UNESCO World Heritage site, Prague (Czech Republic) is home to a thriving musical, literary and artistic culture. A whimsical example of this is the John Lennon Wall, situated just off the main drag. During the Soviet Occupation, this site served as a form of artistic expression and peaceful protest. In …
The main drag in the Pearl of the Adriatic … watch out, though — it gets really slippery when there’s rain.
So, after an extended hiatus, I’m attempting to reconnect with our blog! I’ve missed you all, but working two jobs and planning a wedding will definitely take the steam right out of you. Plus, we haven’t had much of a traveling budget lately, so maybe I was feeling a little uninspired. But it’s 2014 now, … Continue reading
It’s been soup weather here in Louisiana: chilly, rainy and gray. But it’s lasted so long that my repertoire got a little tired … we’ve had gumbo, potato soup, white cheddar and broccoli, even chicken noodle. Then I remembered one of my favorite comfort foods to whip up when I’m in the mood for soup … Continue reading
I’m a bit of a budget travel snob. It’s not a particularly flattering aspect of my personality, but admitting you have a problem is the first step toward recovery, right? We pride ourselves on finding new, out of the way places even in very touristy cities … and, as a result, we often turn our … Continue reading
Okay, I admit it: I’ve been a bad, bad blogger. I haven’t posted here in a few weeks, and though I have plenty of excuses (I was sick! I was busy! I haven’t been at my desk!) none of them are very convincing. I think I’m in a travel-funk, because I know I won’t be … Continue reading
The traveler sees what he sees, the tourist sees what he has come to see. Gilbert K. Chesterton Continue reading
1. Ziploc bags: these are so useful that it’s literally hard for me to imagine a world without them. I use them for keeping wet clothes separate from dry, keeping pens nice and tidy in case of leaks, managing ticket stubs, receipts and other small pieces of paper that don’t stay well in our brains … Continue reading
“All journeys have secret destinations of which the traveler is unaware.” — Martin Buber Continue reading
So, you’ve decided where you’re going and started doing your research. Along the way, you’ve no doubt dog-eared pages, highlighted notable entries or bookmarked websites that caught your attention. Now it’s time to make sense of all those scraps of info … we’ll collect them in something we refer to as a “brain,” dubbed as … Continue reading
The tragedy in Connecticut makes it impossible for me to talk about the joys of travel. When so many lives are wiped out in just an instant, the lighter side of life becomes unreachable for a time. Many take up metaphorical arms after, fighting for/against gun control, blaming one party or way of life for … Continue reading
Apartments are a great and budget-friendly option for travelers, especially if you plan to stay in the same city for more than two or three nights. We rented our first apartment in Barcelona back in 2010, and it was by far the most reasonable place we could find in our preferred location. At 90 euro … Continue reading
The Continental Cajuns 