Switzerland Part One: Ayent

This is an important post. So important, in fact, that I will have to make it two posts. Because it’s about the most stunningly beautiful country I’ve ever visited—Switzerland!

Once we decided to head into eastern France, it was only a matter of time before I convinced us to go to Switzerland. It was a new country for both of us, and Bryan’s 50th country, so that’s what got him on board.

The beauty of Switzerland smacks you in the face as soon as you cross the border. The views of the Alps are everywhere. And everything feels fresh, crisp, and pristine. We stopped for gas and quick burgers, and my jaw dropped looking around. Plus, the burger employee asked why I left Bailey outside and invited me to please bring her in. Respect!

Our first stop was Ayent, Switzerland where we stayed at Mayen2003 Ayent, a historic chalet that was built in the 1700s. As we zig-zagged up the two-way road i(that was barely wide enough for one car, let alone two) into the mountains, my heart was racing. But the views were worth it.

The whole town made me want to go skiing, but it was August, so we would have to settle for hiking.

But first, surfing! Bryan did a session at Alaia Bay, a state of the art wave pool where you can surf in the Alps. Sadly, I chose not to go, because I was saving up all my money to spend on fondue and raclette, and I had just visited my first wave pool in Australia less than a year ago. It was amazing to watch, though! And had even more incredible views!

Now onto hiking… We did the best hike ever at Bisse du Torrent-Neuf. It was a 4.6 mile hike with a little bit of everything. Art (yes, there were prints of paintings hanging in the forest at the beginning of the hike), history in the old chapels and pictures of what the cliffside trail looked like in the past, bears (signs and statues), four suspension bridges, a tunnel, two bars/restaurants, and views upon views.

It was mind bending to know we had driven up so high, only to hike even higher, and to see mountain peaks that were still even higher than us. And it was hard not to feel some vertigo hiking on the edge of a cliff on the side of an Alp. We did not bring Bailey on this one, because she doesn’t like walking on metal grates, and the suspension bridges would have been too long and wobbly to carry her.

I also learned a bit about Swiss cuisine in this part of the trip. Apparently, raclette and fondue are not popular summertime treats (who would have guessed?!) Swiss people usually eat those meals very sparingly and in the wintertime. Also, we were still in the French part of Switzerland seeking Swiss German foods.

Nevertheless, we were able to find some places that could satisfy my Swiss food interests. We had rosti (potato) raclette at Les Brasseurs Sion—where I learned that raclette is stronger than I remembered and pretty salty for me. And Pinte Contheysanne for a serious fondue spread. The server seemed like she thought we were a little crazy for ordering it in August, but she helped us out regardless. If I lived in Sion, I don’t think I could limit myself to once a year!

I also picked a lot of delicious fresh plums off the neighbors’ trees in Ayent. And we surprisingly found a really good Thai food truck (Malagor Thai Food) down the street from our chalet. Strange to say that our first two meals in Switzerland were burgers and pad Thai, but we made up for it with the raclette and fondue.

Around that point, we decided we needed to stay in Switzerland longer in order to visit the Swiss German side, so we booked a new reservation and drove further into the mountains…

To be continued.

A Day in Dijon

Dijon was a quick pit stop for us. We both like mustard, and I wanted to try more burgundy-style food, so it made sense. We arrived in the afternoon and had to get some work done. The B&B Dijon Centre hotel was an easy location wth good wifi.

On the way to dinner, we did two quick mustard tastings at Maille Dijon and La Moutarderie Fallot. It was fun to try all the different kinds, but I learned that, unless you want something fancy or a personalized mustard jar, you can get a lot of the dijon mustards in the regular grocery store, so I didn’t end up buying anything.

Our dinner was just OK, and I don’t remember the name, so I won’t share it here. We both ordered off the house menu to try the boeuf bourgonion. It was good, but the service left a lot to be desired and the food took a really long time to come, considering we ordered something off the most common menu. Oh well, they let Bailey come inside with us, so that earns bonus points in my book.

After dinner, we walked around the city following the Owl Trail—emblems of little owls that lead you to important points in the city.

In the morning, I walked Bailey to the park, then we met up with Bryan to visit the Les Halles Market and out for brunch at Morning Glory Cafe.

And last but certainly not least, we took Bailey out for her own brunch at Touffu Pet Store, where she got to gobble up one specialty pup cup, complete with dried sardines, before we hit the road.

Then it was time to leave Dijon and take our journey to a new country…

Summer in France: Morvan

At this point, we made a major pivot from our original plan. When we first thought about doing a summer trip to France, we knew we wanted to spend most of the time on the southwestern coast, near Capbreton. But nature had other plans in mind.

This summer was one of the worst that France has experienced for heat waves and wildfires. There were major wildfires along the coast and close to Bordeaux around the exact same time that we were planning to stop in Bordeaux and continue our drive out to the coast.

It was hard to tell from the news websites exactly where the wildfires were located and how bad they were, but we knew that the air would be smoky and roads would be closed. We decided not to take our chances and made the last-minute decision to head east instead.

That’s how we ended up in Morvan.

This was the most remote and immersed-in-nature feeling of our trip. Morvan was full of beautiful, lush, green forests. We spent our time hiking the trails behind our guest house (Les 4 Saisons en Morvan), having picnics by the lake, and whitewater rafting.

We learned that Morvan is also an excellent place for whitewater rafting. National rafting teams from France and Europe actually come there to train and compete. We went with AN Rafting Morvan and had a great time. The class III and IV rapids were more intense than I was expecting. It was the perfect amount of thrills plus some milder sections that were fun and relaxing in between.

And I can’t write about Morvan without mentioning the cuisine. It’s part of the burgundy region, so we got to try amazing wine and food, like burgundy-style escargot, the usual charcuterie, and a delicious fresh trout lunch at Moulin Tala. On our last night we stumbled upon a really nice and really good wood-fired pizza placed called Pizza des Champs. We spent three days and nights in Morvan and enjoyed good food the entire time.

Cycling in the Loire Valley

From Paris, we drove about two hours south to the Loire Valley to the town of Tour-en-Sologne. We arrived in the evening to rest up for a cycling adventure the next day. We spent two nights at Logis Hotel du Chateau, and I would recommend it as a nice and easy place to stay with a dog.

In the morning, we drove into town for breakfast and found a market (there’s always a market in France!) We bought some fancy yogurt and ate it at a cute bakery nearby (with croissants and coffee, of course). We were loaded up and ready to ride.

We rented e-bikes from a lawnmower repair shop near our hotel. It may have been forbidden to ride with Bailey in the trailer like this, but the shop attendant didn’t ask any questions. When the owner came back and saw us riding away, we heard him yelling in French to the attendant, and we pedaled a little faster.

I’m not sure if Bailey enjoyed riding in the trailer. Sometimes she seemed like she liked it, when we were going fast and the road was smooth. She definitely did not like having the screen closed, so we tied her to the seat harness and kept it open. I think she would’ve liked a bigger carrier with a flat bottom (this one had a raised seat bench), so she could comfortably lie down. Bryan ended up riding behind us for emotional support, because she would cry if he got too far ahead.

We cycled about 12km to our first stop, the Chateau de Chambord. The path was a combination of roads, smooth dirt trails, and very bumpy dirt trails. It was beautiful cycling through the forest and felt like we could’ve spent a few more days there exploring different areas (maybe leaving Bailey back at the hotel).

We carried on our cycle tour and rode along the river. We found a cafe for lunch with a lovely view of the water, but they were only serving a limited menu. There’s usually a period each day in France, between about 2 and 5PM where most of the restaurants close and take a Spanish-style siesta. Unfortunately, that was the time when our cycling hunger hit the hardest, but we ordered some prepackaged ceasar salads and were able to refuel.

The paths by the river were less well-groomed and the deep tire ruts were not very accommodating to the trailer, so we decided not to push on further. We cycled back through the forest trails to the hotel for work and later had a mediocre dinner at a restaurant close by. Our meals in the Loire may have left a lot to be desired, but the cycling and scenery made the visit worthwhile.

Another Week in Paris

I was delighted to return to Paris for another week while Bryan was in London on his work trip. My friend Karina kindly offered for me and Bailey to stay at her place, so again I got to experience the city feeling like a local. She has a lovely apartment with a patio in the 11th arrondissement.

The first night of my stay overlapped with our friends Seth and Kerry again, so we agreed to meet up for dinner. Walking into the Montmartre neighborhood, I noticed that the streets and bars were packed with people. At first I thought it was something related to soccer, but then I realized they were all wearing Tour de France shirts and watching the race on TV. As I got closer, I saw barricades set up in the street. Apparently I had stumbled onto the course, where the cyclists had passed through only minutes earlier. At that point, they were racing towards the Champs-Élysées to finish the race. It was exciting to see the crowds and to know that, if I were more tuned into world sporting events, I could’ve even seen the race!

I was glad I left Bailey at home since things were a little crazy in the streets as the race was ending:

I found Seth and Kerry, and we sat outside induldging in French onion soup (it’s just onion soup here), beef bourgignon, and goat cheese salad.

Then we walked up to one of my favorite places in Paris, the Sacré Couer, for a glimpse of the sunset and moonrise.

It was good to see friends again. They were heading off to Germany, so we said goodnight, and I settled into my solo (with a dog) week in Paris.

Dog Friendly Activities

Bailey and I continued seeking out dog-friendly activities in the city, and we found some great ones.

Coulée Verte

Paris has a 4.5km path that takes you up above the city (I learned that it was the model for the highline in NYC), through lush gardens and green spaces, and under tunnels. It gets you fully in touch with nature, and it’s dog friendly. Just make sure to check the entry and exit points to know where you can access the trail.

Bois de Vincennes & Chateau de Vincennes

The Coulée Verte leads all the way to the Vincennes forest, the largest green space in Paris, where there are loads of trails to walk with your dog. We walked through the forest and caught a glimpse of the Chateau de Vincennes. I was originally thinking of staying out in this area, but it was a lot quieter with less to do, and I was glad I chose to stay in Paris.

Le Bone Appart

We made a return visit to Bailey’s favorite dog cafe, Le Bone Appart. She found a lot of dog friends to play with and enjoyed a croissant-shaped cookie.

Canal Saint-Martin

We didn’t spend a lot of time here, but it was a nice place to walk with Bailey, and I’d like to revisit it someday. Apparently people even go swimming in the canal when the weather is hot.

Humans-only Activities

Food Tour

I’m not sure if you really need to go on a food tour in Paris, because it’s so easy to find amazing meals and snacks everywhere. Just pop into any bakery or restaurant. But I had an Airbnb discount, so I booked a lunchtime tour with No Diet Club (a great name, by the way). It ended up being more like a walking tour with snacks along the way, which was nice for not feeling too stuffed. And I got to try some foods that I wouldn’t have found on my own, like falafel and the most incredible cream puffs (choupettes de chouchou) and raspberry-pistachio macarons.

59 Rivoli

After the food tour, I had a little bit of time left before work, so I stopped by 59 Rivoli, a six-story working art gallery on a main shopping street in Paris. The entire building is a creative masterpiece, from the quirky exterior to the painted staircases inside. There was so much to see in every room on every floor, and some of the artists were there working, so you could say hello.

Later that day, it was time for Bryan to pick me up and carry on our own Tour de France.

Until next time, Paris.

Summer in France: Le Mans

Le Mans was not part of our original itinerary. We would’ve like to stay in Brittany a little longer, but Bryan found out that his work team would be having an offsite in London, so we needed to pivot. That meant heading back to Paris for the flight. I was happy to do it, since I could never complain about extra time in Paris. We split up the drive by staying in Le Mans.

Le Mans is best known for the 24-hour driving circuit race (though I did not know about that). However, we found it to be a charming small city with a lot to offer apart from the race. It has a very well-preserved medieval old town and a stunning cathedral that is one of the largest in France.

We stayed at the Mercure Hotel in a room with this lovely patio:

And we had one of the most delicious and memorable meals of the trip (which is saying a lot since there were many delicious and memorable meals on this trip) at La Baraque a Boeuf. The beef was amazing. I ordered a starter salad as a break from all the meat, bread, and cheese, but I learned that in France they sometimes also add meat, bread, and cheese to the salad.

That evening, we discovered that the Nuit des Chimeres was happening, which is when all of the historic landmarks in the city serve as projector screens for an artistic light show. We waited until nightfall—pretty late when the sun sets around 10pm—and followed the trail of lights to see the displays throughout the city. It was a mix of really impressive video and still projections. Some were serious and some were silly:

In the morning, we walked through the old town and visited the inside of the cathedral. Then it was time to make the drive back to Paris so Bryan could make his flight and I could enjoy a few more days in the city.

Summer in France: Brittany

We knew we wanted to visit Brittany during this trip, but we weren’t exactly sure where we wanted to go. When we found out that our friends Seth and Kerry from back home were going to be in Carnac and the Quiberon Peninsula, we decided to overlap. We ended up loving Brittany! The Breton culture is slightly different from other parts of France, so we enjoyed experiencing another region.

Carnac

Our first stop in Brittany was the coastal town of Carnac. It was probably our least-nice hotel of the trip, since it was basically just four white walls and a bed with very little space around it. And the wifi was just barely strong enough for a Zoom call, so I had to do my calls from my hotspot on the outdoor patio in the day and night. But most visitors don’t come there to work, and the town itself was quite charming.

There was a very big and very nice market in the morning across from our hotel. I wish I had more time to browse, but we’d already made plans to meet our friends at the menhirs—the alignments of prehistoric stones for which Carnac is best known, kind of like a Stonehenge of Brittany.

We walked through rows and rows of the stones, taking our best guesses at what their purpose was back in prehistoric times. We walked through the forest, too, plucking wild blackberries straight from the bush for a snack.

Afterwards, it was time for a beachfront picnic and a dip in the sea. I thought the water was suprisingly warm compared to July in New Jersey.

For dinner, we ate mussels on the promenade and then ran into a reggae concert. We’re used to going to summer concerts together back home, so this was a welcome substitute.

Then it was time to bid adieu to our friends, hoping our paths would cross again along our separate journeys through France. And we set off for a new part of Brittany.

Penmarch

As we headed further west, the beaches became more rugged and the crowds less touristic.

We stayed at a nice bayfront hotel (Les Ondines). The town was quiet, and we enjoyed our peaceful morning and evening walks along the water. Unfortunately, there wasn’t any swell to surf, so we found ourselves venturing out to sample the Breton cuisine. Crepes and cider became obvious favorites. We liked both the sweet and savory crepe varieties from Creperie Amzer Zo. We also tried Far Breton—a prune cake, which sounds weird but I l loved it—and kouign-amann— sweet rolls from a really nice bakery (Boulangerie Du Phare).

On our walk back to the hotel, we saw that they were setting up for some kind of festival. There was a Surfrider Foundation booth—an organization that Bryan used to volunteer with, so we went over and talked to them. We learned that there would be a summer music festival later that night.

We decided to return later on, and we were treated to an awesome summer music festival (Kerity Summer Party)! There were three bands and a DJ set. We had a great time listening to Petit K, and then we were blown away by the punk rock music and bagpipes from Leex. It was an incredible show! It was cool to see an event that felt truly local. We were too old and tired to stay for the DJ set, so we headed back to the hotel and said goodnight to Brittany.

Summer in France: Giverny

We celebrated our four-year anniversary in Giverny. It was about an hour and fifteen minute drive from CDG airport. We arrived to the loveliest guest house (La Réserve) in the afternoon, and we were welcomed with a tray of snacks and homemade cider.

Bailey made fast friends in the backyard with the very large household dog. She liked running around the property and spent the stay getting to know different farm animals. The cows and pigs were amicable; the goat and donkey were not.

We had our anniversary dinner at La Musardiere. The food was so flavorful and fresh—I had smoke trout rillettes, a ceviche-style fish with watermelon and peanut lime sauce, and a strawberry pavlova for dessert. The flowery garden was the perfect, peaceful ambiance for a romantic anniversary evening. They even a special flower bouquet for the table.

The next day, after enjoying the hotel’s wonderful breakfast, we set out for Claude Monet’s house and gardens. This year marked the 100th anniversary of his passing. We decided that it might have been better to come during the 99th year, because number 100 has made the gardens extremely popular and full of visitors. But in spite of the crowds, it didn’t take us too long to get into the gardens or the main house, and we enjoyed walking through the flowers and lily ponds and checking out the art pieces in the house.

Giverny was a beautiful and luxurious two-night visit. Thanks to Bryan for planning the perfect stay!

Summer in France: Paris

Bailey and I made it all the way to France! I think I’ll write a separate post on the process of getting over here, since that’s another story in itself. But we landed early in the morning, after Bailey held her pee for about 13 hours straight. What a trooper. We took an Uber Pet straight to our Airbnb for early check in.

This was my third visit to Paris, so I had hit a lot of the main tourist attractions before. This trip was more about finding dog-friendly activities, trying a few new things, and hanging out with my friend, Karina, who has been living in Paris for about six years. I found the perfect Airbnb in the Jourdain neighborhood. It was quieter and off the beaten path, so it let me feel like a local while still having easy access to public transportation. It was nice having a kitchen to cook my own meals and a communal patio to eat outside.

On our first day, Bailey and I met Karina at the Parc des Buttes-Chaumont and caught up over drinks and snacks at The Puebla Pavilion. The park ended up being one of my favorite places to walk with Bailey during the trip. It’s a huge, beautiful green space with lots of trails and spaces to lounge. Afterwards, I stocked up at the grocery store, ate dinner at home, and called it an early night to try to ward off my jet lag.

I needed the rest to prepare for the holiday ahead. Bastille Day was approaching, and Karina let me know that celebrations usually happen the day prior. We’d been planning to attend the Firemen’s Balls, when the local fire stations open up at night for music, drinking, and dancing, but unfortunately they were canceled this year due to the intense heat wave.

Instead, Bailey and I started the day with a long walk to Le Bone Appart, a dog cafe that became another one of our favorite stops on the trip. It’s a little shop with coffee and treats for humans and dogs. They have French-themed toys and berets for sale, and there are usually plenty of dogs and dog-friendly humans to play with. Bailey recommends the VIP pup cup.

Later that day, we met up with Karina and friends at the Square du Vert-Galant for a picnic. Bailey braved the metro with her mandatory muzzle, then it was a gorgeous walk along the Seine to get down there.

We feasted on charcuterie, then trekked back to the Airbnb to feed and drop off Bailey for the evening. We had a Bastille Day boat party to attend. Karina and I rented city bikes to race back to the river in time for the boat’s departure.

We made it just in time and set off for a sunset river tour of Paris, DJ, drinks, and dancing. Once it got dark, we were treated to one of the best fireworks displays I’ve ever seen, a drone show, and the twinkling and sparkling Eiffel Tower herself. It felt like a truly special experience to be there for the celebration.

The return boat ride was interesting, since the police closed the Seine due to traffic, and our boat captain said we might not be able to leave until 4am. I was slightly panicking with Bailey at home and my tired, jet-lagged body stuck on the boat. I attempted to go with the flow, holding onto the railing to support myself, and we ended up getting back by 2 AM, two hours later than planned. Bailey was sleeping soundly at home when I arrived.

The next day I slept in as late as having a dog would allow. We had a pretty lazy day of lounging before I worked. In the evening, I met up with friends to watch France play Spain in the World Cup. As you can see from the subdued crowd, it was sadly not a victory.

At that point, Paris was still in a heat wave, and my apartment had no AC. I trekked around the city looking for a fan. Most of them were insanely marked up, since the city had run out of fans during the last heat wave. I finally found one (for an outrageous 37 euros!), and when I got it home learned that I would have to assemble it myself. It was simple enough, but I didn’t have a screw driver to do the final tightening of the frame. In spite of the shaking and rattling, Bailey and I got some relief. The apartment wasn’t too terribly hot, since French buildings are designed to stay cool, and the people have a system of leaving the shutters and windows closed all day until the temperature drops below 80 F, then opening them for a breeze through night and morning.

That worked pretty well, but the Parisians like to stay out late, so opening my windows through the night made it difficult to sleep with street noise. I got into a routine of staying up late until the air cooled down, waking up early for Bailey, and taking sticky afternoon naps on the couch with the fan running full blast.

Day four was my biggest tourism day. I took the train into the city center to visit the Musee de L’Orangerie and see Claude Monet’s water lilies. I didn’t reserve my slot in advance, so I waited about forty-five minutes, which wasn’t too bad, other than that I chose to wear pants in the July heat. The room with the water lilies painting was small but lovely and impressive.

Downstairs, there is a bigger collection of paintings by Paul Cezanne and Henri Rousseau that makes the whole experience really worth it.

I was in the center of it all. I visited the Louvre years ago and found it overwhelming, but I enjoyed walking along the promendade.

In my previous visits, the inside of Notre-Dame was closed, so that was a priority stop this time. The line (still hot!) moved quickly, and I was in and out of the beautiful cathedral in no time at all.

I headed back to walk Bailey through the mosaics of the Belleville neighborhood to find a view of the Eiffel Tower at a distance. Then I had my first and most delicious croque monsieur of the trip at La gueule enfarinée. It’s been awesome to find that dogs are welcomed outside and even inside of almost every restaurant in France.

My interrrupted sleep schedule caught up with me the next morning. I’d booked a croissant-making class that started at nine, knowing it would take an hour to get there on public transportation. I either slept through or turned off my alarm, and woke up startled at exactly eight. There wouldn’t be time to do dog chores and make the train. So I texted the organizer that I would be late, quickly looped Bailey around the block and fed her, then grabbed a last-minute Uber to somehow arrive to the class on time.

Luckily, there was a steady flow of coffee in the classroom. In the expertly-led workshop at Maison Fleuret, we learned to prepare, fold, and shape the dough to make the perfect croissants, pain au chocolat, and pain aux raisins. I hope I can replicate my newfound skills at home, but if not, at least I had some yummy treats for the rest of the week.

That night, I met up with Karina and her boyfriend for a documentary movie at a bar and outdoor cinema (La Recyclerie). The venue was amazing—they’ve built these garden bars on the old abandon train tracks throughout the city. Of course, the documentary was in French and the visuals weren’t very appealing, so for my sake, we only stayed for half, then headed back to the bar to have some beers. We went out in the city afterwards, but I departed early to get back to Bailey and try to fix my sleep schedule.

On my last day in the city, Karina met me at the Saint-Ouen flea market. We walked through the massive assortment of antiques and thrifty items that wrap through rows and rows. I wished I had a french home to decorate, because there were so many cool, vintage finds.

Afterwards, we met up with another of her friends who is a fellow world traveler and exchanged stories at a diferent garden bar along the old railroad tracks.

That night, the three of us had dinner at my favorite brasserie in Paris (well, maybe the only one I know, but it’s really good!): Brasserie Bellanger. The beef tartare (with frites, of course) and paris brest for dessert were outstanding.

Then suddenly, it was my last day. I learned by the last night once the heat wave cooled off that if I kept the windows closed, I could sleep much better through the night. A major shout out to Miliki Cafe for keeping me caffeinated through the week and for brunch on the last day.

It was time to meet Bryan at the airport for the next phase of our French adventure…

Stopping Home: LBI & Red Bank

Between trips, I had a couple of weeks at home in New Jersey to visit with family and do some of my favorite things. It was Fourth of July weekend, so I celebrated in the typical American fashion, by eating a hot dog, watching fireworks, and making festive drinks:

I visited some of my favorite LBI places. Breakfast at Mustache Bill’s is a necessity, as is dinner at Harvey Cedars Shellfish Company. They’re not open long after Labor Day, so I made sure to squeeze them in during my short time home. Not pictured were other important stops at Barry’s Do Me a Flavor (for the garlic knots!), The Bagel Shack, Guapos Coffee, and The Local (chicken salad, sushirrito, apple/fig/brie sandwich… basically everything). Hmm, this is making me think I need to do a separate post on my LBI favorites…

I also surfed with some of my favorite people, played beach volleyball, and did a full moon yoga and meditation session on the beach (and my first night surf!) with Surfing Waves of Light.

Bailey met my sister’s new puppy, Hudson. She was mostly indifferent, but somewhat tolerant of her pesky new cousin:

She also surprised everyone by going for a swim in the bay. She usually hates getting wet, but there were geese to chase in this instance.

My sister and her husband moved to Red Bank about a year ago, so we have been getting to explore a new area of New Jersey. I took some great classes at Open Heart Yoga, and Bailey and I found a quiet piece of nature at Fair Haven Fields Natural Area. There’s much more to discover on the northern Jersey Shore, so I’m excited for the months and years to come.

Overall, it was a short and soul-nourishing stop at home.

Cross-Country Road Trip: California to New Jersey

Maybe we’re crazy, but this was our fourth time driving across the USA together. The cross-country journey is always a mixed bag of emotions—excitement, boredom, awe, exhaustion, and more. For us with a dog, it’s a lot of gas station stops and Motel 6’s (no pet fees!) But those are perfectly balanced with incredible landscapes, national parks, and campgrounds. And when it’s over, you tend to forget the endless, droning miles and remember all the wonders in between.

We wanted to mix it up from the last time we did this drive, three years ago, so we plotted a slightly different route. Here’s where we went (and no, we didn’t drive through Lake Erie, but you get the idea):

Capitol Reef National Park

The first morning, I took Bailey for our last beach walk in Leucadia, then we packed up the car and headed west. We arrived in Torrey, Utah around sunset and had a nice dinner at Rim Rock Patio overlooking Capitol Reef National Park. We stayed in a cute, tiny cabin (Torrey Trading Post and Cabins) in a dark sky community to see some stars, rest, and wake up early for a hike in the park.

I’d visited Bryce and Zion National Parks before, but I’d always wanted to check out Capitol Reef, and it really exceeded my expectations. We started the day with the Chimney Rock trail hike. We were worried about the heat in June for Bailey’s paws, but it wasn’t too hot yet in this part of Utah. The views of the rocks and sunrise were impressive, and the hike got our hearts pumping with some elevation.

Afterwards, we set off on another shorter hike on the Fremont River Trail, which actually ended up being my favorite. We hiked through orchards with an abundance of apricots ripe for picking, then followed along the river until we got to the no-dogs-allowed zone. It was shaded and a perfect afternoon hike for us. Finally, we took a drive down toward Capitol Gorge and stopped for a picnic lunch, where we took in the view and ate our leftovers from the night before.

Arches National Park

Moab, Utah was a lot hotter, so I was glad we arrived right before sunset. We drove from our hotel (Red Stone Inn) into Arches to watch the sunset around the balancing rock and found a good spot to eat some takeout burritos. They weren’t very good, so I won’t share the restaurant, but the views were perfect. The next morning, we did a humans-only hike to the Delicate Arch. It was crowded, but completely worthwhile. As soon as you come up over the final crest of the hike, you’re greeted with strong winds and an awesome view of the arch. It’s a stunning feat of nature.

Great Sand Dunes National Park

It was the last month of our National Park pass and we were putting it to work. Our next drive took us to southern Colorado and the Great Sand Dunes. We stayed in a nice campground (Base Camp Family Campground) just outside the park with these metal tent shelters to protect us from the wind. That made a huge difference, because it’s super windy out in the desert!

In the morning, we rented sandboards and headed out into the dunes. Hiking was tough in the soft sand, but we think it was Bailey’s favorite park since she got to dig to her heart’s content. We also found that sandboarding was a lot harder for our 30/40-something bodies than we expected. Once the sand was heating up, we left and stopped for a fantastic brunch at Mountain View Diner. Then the drive took us further north into Colorado.

Colorado Springs

When it comes to road trips with a dog, I’ve found national parks to be overrated and state parks to be underrated. National parks often don’t allow dogs at all, or they have a couple of very short dog friendly trails that are close to the main roads with no views. I understand the need to protect the native wildlife, so state parks can be an even better alternative. We found a nice one at Cheyenne Mountain State Park in Colorado. Our campsite was wooded and secluded with views overlooking Colorado Springs. A family of deer passed through in the early morning, and Bailey shockingly didn’t even bark at them. We were all at peace here.

In the evening, we hiked at Garden of the Gods. The main area was busy, but once we got up into the trails, it was much less crowded with lovely views of the rocks. Afterwards, we found burgers and white russians at a Big Lebowski themed bar. I would highly recommend for great food and drinks!

Elk Horn, Iowa

After Colorado, the drive starts to get a bit flat and boring, so we had to spice it up with novelty fast food and trolls. We stopped in Elk Horn, Nebraska at the Museum of Danish America to visit one of Thomas Dambo’s troll sculptures. This one was one of my favorite trolls yet, since he’s traveling in a boat and connecting the US to Dambo’s heritage in Denmark.

We continued the drive to the Crest Country Inn in Williamsburg, Iowa, which ended up being a nice road trip stop with a large, cozy room, fishing-themed decor, and breakfast included. We stopped for dinner at Culver’s, a Midwestern chain with custard milkshakes and cheese curds so you can make your own poutine. Not healthy by any means, but a new and different experience for us.

Clinton, Iowa

We saw four more trolls in Clinton, Iowa (here’s a post that describes where to find them all). We saw one lounging in the grass, our first indoor troll, and one holding up a tree. We were only expecting to find three, but at our first stop, we talked to one of the volunteers who worked on the construction of the trolls. He told us that the volunteer team had worked hard and finished early, so Dambo gifted them with a fourth, more abstract troll, hidden deeper in the forest at Eagle Point Park. It was a worthy stop for me, since I’ve been hunting these troll sculptures around the world.

Chicago

Later that day, we drove through thunderstorms around Cleveland and stopped in Chicago. I don’t have many photos, since it was raining heavily and we spent dinner catching up with one of Bryan’s friends—it was nice to have a home cooked meal after a week on the road! However, I always have photos of Bailey, so here’s one where we stopped for human and pup cups somewhere in the midwest. And a brewery in Chicago.

Erie, Pennsylvania

At this point, life on the road was getting kind of tough. Between working remotely from coffee shops and rest areas and two icky, carpeted Motel 6 stays in a row, we needed some reenergizing time in a nature. On the bright side, the rest areas and coffee shops we found were nice and had solid wifi. And we’re resilient folks, so we powered through to Presque Isle State Park in Erie, PA. We took a walk on a gorgeous, peaceful lake beach, and I even took a dip to cleanse my soul. Then it was back in the car and further east to go…

Allegheny State Park

Our final stop was a total re-immersion into nature. Allegheny State Park is right on the border of Pennsylvania and New York. We arrived as the sun was setting, so we decided not to set off on a hike—there are lots of black bears in the area. Instead, we set up camp, ate some tasty Mountain House meals, and enjoyed a fire. It was a bittersweet end to the trip. We were looking forward to sleeping in a non-motel bed and never seeing the inside of a Toyota Corolla again. In the morning, we did a short, woodsy hike that was a bit confusing and never amounted to a view. Then we stopped at Tim Horton’s to try some coffee and breakfast from our Canadian neighbors.

Home Sweet Home

Jersey, sweet Jersey. Later that day, we arrived home, hung our camping gear out to dry, and slept as much as we could. There were bagels and beach visits in store, as we unpacked and (yikes) already started to re-pack for the next trip. Bailey, as always, was happy to be home.

Day Trip to La Jolla, CA

One more California post before I catch up to present day…

During our spring in Encinitas, we took a day trip to La Jolla. It wasn’t too exciting for Bryan, since he lived in San Diego for eight years previously. But it was quite exciting for me, as a San Diego novice.

We started the day at Fig Tree Cafe in Pacific Beach. We tried the massive breakfast sushi appetizer, followed by a customizable trio of pancakes and french toast (pictured here). Portions were very large and very delicious.

The next stop was my favorite, because seeing California sea lions never gets old to me! Even after we went swimming with sea lions earlier this year in Peru, I still love to see them anywhere and everywhere.

This time was a bonus because it was pup season, so there were lots of babies.

In the same area, we also saw tons of pelicans closer than I ever have before. These guys do some crazy things with their beaks and necks!

After that, we headed up the hill to Legends Gallery to admire some of Dr. Seuss’ original artwork. In case you didn’t know, Dr. Seuss lived in La Jolla for a few decades and there are many places to see his work and memory throughout the city of San Diego. Legends Gallery is one of them.

It’s a small place, but you could spend almost an hour there looking at all the different pieces. What a creative imagination!

We made one final stop on the way home. It happened to be National Donut Day, so we stopped at Sidecar Donuts in Del Mar (not exactly La Jolla) for a treat to end the trip.

Day Trip to Julian, CA

While we were spending the spring in Encinitas, we decided to take a quick day trip to Julian, CA. Julian is about an hour and a half from Encintas, but it feels like a completely different world! There are forests and hiking, plus the quaint small town of Julian itself.

We started the day hiking Volcan Mountain (about 5 miles). It was very hot that day, so the steep climb at the beginning was intense, but there was a winding trail that offered a decent amount of shade.

Bailey helped us navigate the route to the top:

After the hike, we found a cidery and winery close by at Storm Ranch. Julian is well known for its apple orchards and apple picking in the fall. I guess I was too tired to remember to take any photos, but the cider flight was extremely refreshing, and dogs were allowed inside.

The next stop was lunch at another dog-friendly establishment: Julian Beer Co, where we had a serious BBQ lunch to replenish after the hike. Everything tasted great.

The town of Julian was wildly crowded on a spring Saturday, but we managed to squeeze a spot at the picnic tables outside. And we couldn’t forget Julian’s staple: apple pie. The line at the cute pie shop next door was wrapped all the way around the building and into the street. Luckily, we figured out that there is a separate window where you can walk right up and order a pie to go. When we tried it at home later, I would totally understand why the line is so long. It was delicious!

Spring in Encinitas

Encinitas was one of the first places I visited in California. For a gal from upstate NY studying in the suburbs of Delaware, southern California was a true utopia! I discovered first-hand that Encinitas was one of the nicest (and most expensive places to live) in the country. I figured I would never live there unless I became an engineer-slash-software developer.

Well, flash forward about 15 years and I am not a software developer, yet there I was living in Encinitas! It is possible! Mind you, we were paying about $4,200 a month for a small cottage (technically mobile home), but it had two bedrooms, two baths, and multiple porches, and it was walking distance from the beach. I never thought I’d live in a mobile home park either, but it worked for us.

We found our place using the website, Furnished Finder. It was our first time trying that process, and it worked out well. Before we drove out there, it was a little stressful talking to landlords and trying to secure a place—one fell through at the last minute—but we were ultimately really happy with our landlord and the cottage.

We spent early April to mid-June working remotely, surfing, playing beach volleyball, eating tacos and burritos, and enjoying Encinitas. It was nice having a mini-home base again after a few months of bouncing around staying with family and in hotels. I joined ClassPass, took guitar lessons, cooked lots of meals in the cottage kitchen, and we got to reconnect with old friends, since both of us used to live in SoCal.

California has a serious appreciation and lifestyle preference for being outside. We loved how easy it was to include beach, hiking, or picnicking with friends into our daily lives. My only complaint was the east coast work schedule meant I had more early morning calls than I usually do, which definitely conflicted with my surf schedule. Those pesky jobs, and all.

Bailey loved it, too. There was a lively dog park right across the street, and most restaurants allowed dogs. In general, California tended to be much more dog friendly than New Jersey—it helps that you can eat outside for much more of the year.

Overall, we were very pleased to be back basking in the California sunshine (even when we were there during the marine layer months of May Gray and June Gloom). We almost didn’t want to come back to the east coast, but the next adventures were calling our names…

Cross-Country Road Trip: New Jersey to California

March and April were pretty crazy months. We came back from South America, I took my North Carolina trip, completed a big work event in San Francisco, flew back to the east coast to pack the car and grab the dog, and a day later we started driving to San Diego. I’ll share here about the route we took. There might have been some questionable map choices, but it worked for us this time. We took six days to do it, which was the maximum we could squeeze between work travel.

Here’s where we stopped:

Knoxville, Tennessee

We powered through days one and two, with the goal of making it to Austin and spending some time there. We kicked off the road trip with about 13 hours of driving, unfortunately for Bailey in the back seat. Of course, we had to stop for barbecue in Tennessee.

Austin, TX

I lived in Austin for five years, so I always want to spend ample amounts of time visiting. We rented an Airbnb for two nights, and I was able to do many of my favorite things like yoga, Juiceland, Tacodeli, Epoch coffee, and Alamo Drafthouse. We got to visit the troll statue, and I was so sad to learn it burned down shortly after our visit. I was expecting the city to feel different, since I’ve heard it’s changed so much, but it still felt like the place I used to call home.

San Angelo, TX

Since we were working, we only planned a short drive after Austin. We stopped at San Angelo State Park to camp for the night. It felt pretty, quiet, and remote. We picked up groceries from an HEB not too far away, and there was a gorgeous Texas sunset.

Roswell & Albuquerque, New Mexico

At this point, we were ready to see some alien stuff, and Bryan had never been to Albuquerque, so we decided to start heading north again. New Mexico is always enchanting, however in my opinion, Albuquerque is one of the least enchanting parts. We ate some burgers and drank some beers at a brewery, and that was about it.

Mojave National Preserve, California

This was probably the best part of our trip (besides revisiting Austin). The Mojave National Preserve is amazing! There was beautiful desert scenery, wide open spaces, and the trails are much more dog friendly than Joshua Tree nearby. The desert was just starting to heat up without being too hot, so we were able to do a six mile hike. It was the perfect, peaceful place to spend a couple of nights.

Carlsbad, California

We ended our road trip in Carlsbad, California. Our longer-term Encinitas rental wasn’t quite ready, so we stayed in my friends’ guest house for a week (Carlsbad Beach Getaway), which is in the perfect location for bike riding, beach and surfing, tacos, and any of your Southern California desires! We were all ready to unpack our bags and car and quit driving for a while.

North Carolina Road Trip: Greenville, Wilmington, & Raleigh

After coming back from our trip to Brazil and Peru, I decided to make a quick turnaround and head for warmer weather again. In March, the ground in New Jersey was still covered in snow—our car even got stuck when we took Bailey to the dog park! No, thank you. It had been a while since the last time I visited my uncle in Greenville, North Carolina, and I also wanted to check out Wilmington, so I packed up the car (which thankfully still ran just fine after almost two months in the snow!) and headed south.

First, I took Bailey to my alma mater, the University of Delaware, with official nostalgia stops at Newark Deli & Bagels and Brew HaHa. Bailey wasn’t loving the car on this road trip, so it was a good point to stop, stretch our legs, and administer more dramamine.

We made a couple more dog-friendly stops along the way. I’m kicking myself for not bookmarking or remembering the name of one coffee shop off I-95 in Maryland. It was extremely dog and laptop-friendly, inside and out!

Bailey was still feeling drugged-up later in Virginia, so this was not her best photo:

Greenville

We arrived in Greenville just in time for dinner. My uncle made BBQ and invited a couple of friends over for drinks and laughs. Dessert was yummy tiramisu from his friends’ bakery, Boston South.

That weekend in Greenville, we took a nice walk in Wildwood Park for some nature time. It’s been wonderful seeing my uncle recover from a stroke and diabetes diagnosis three years ago and get back to his old self and moving around again. We saw a very entertaining production of Grease at the Paramount Theatre in Farmville. And we had some afternoon drinks at Pitt Street Brewing—that’s become a favorite spot for my visits to Greenville. The spring flowers were all in bloom, and it was a lovely weekend.

Wilmington

Next stop, I drove out to the coast. I’ve always fantasized about someday living in Wilmington, and it lived up to the hype. I can tell it likely faces the same traffic and crowd troubles as coming over the bridge to Long Beach Island, NJ in the summer months, but with good reason. I felt like I was visiting at the perfect time of year.

I rented an Airbnb hotel room-turned-aparment just over the bridge from Wrightsville Beach, and I was treated to many beautiful sunrises and sunsets throughout the week.

I loved the glimpses of local surf culture. I saw a few groups of women surfing together in the early morning, then quickly showering off in the parking lot before heading to work. I brought my board and caught some fun small waves.

For food, I had to get my standard southern delicacies—Bojangles & Mellow Mushroom pizza. Then I also tried some local favorites: Sundays Cafe (the best!), Drift Cafe, (nice breakfast!) and Adapt Kitchen & Juice Bar (smoothies & bowls!). My uncle came out to the beach for a night, and we had a really good dinner at Fish House Grill. It was a great visit all around and a nice taste of Wilmington and the Wrightsville Beach area.

Raleigh

My last stop was Raleigh. I’ve visited the city a few times before, so this time, I was really there to see the Thomas Dambo trolls! There are five of the recycled wood troll sculptures throughout the city. I woke up early and drove over to see as many as I could. The trolls are scattered throughout Dix Park, and they weren’t too hard for Bailey and me to find.

Mother Strong Tail was the coolest one I’ve seen, with a tail that wraps a long way through the forest:

There are two other trolls in North Carolina—in High Point and Charlotte—but that was a little too much driving for me this trip.

I went straight from the trolls to work for the day at a WeWork co-working space (which I didn’t love and should’ve just gone to a regular old coffee shop!) I’m glad I woke up early to see the trolls, because the weather completely turned to pouring rain and hail later in the afternoon. It was time to make the long drive back. I didn’t make any scenic stops on the way back to New Jersey (besides a scenic Shamrock Shake at McDonald’s) but Bailey and I arrived safely home around 1am.

Surf Trip to Chicama, Peru

After our visit to São Paulo, Brazil, we headed to Peru to surf in Chicama. First, we spent a few days in Lima (which I wrote about in my last post: The Time We Got Stuck in Peru). Then we took a short ~1 hour flight to the tiny airport of Trujilo, followed by a ~30 minute taxi ride to Huanchaco.

We had a night to explore the little beach town and ended up eating yummy Thai food on a secluded rooftop.

In the morning, it was too foggy to surf (at least for us in a brand new place), so I went for a run and saw more of the village. Huanchaco is right on the beach. There was an outdoor gym:

And I saw many of these traditional reed boats that the fishermen still use today. Apparently these might have been some of the first vessels ever used for riding waves:

Later that morning, it was time for our ~40 minute taxi to Chicama. We stayed at the Chicama Boutique Hotel. I don’t think I’m revealing any surf spot secrets—Chicama is very well-known and the closest spots to surf were pretty crowded!

There are definitely cheaper options for places to stay, but the boutique hotel is right on the break and helps with arranging board rentals and boat trips. Plus, this was my first multi-day vacation of the year, and I was ready to relax in luxury!

The hotel was worth the splurge:

And the waves were 1,000% worth the expense for the boards and boat trips. Chicama’s wave is one of the longest in the world, so most people hire zodiac boats to pick them up and bring them out to the break. They picked us up and dropped us off so quickly that there was hardly any time to catch my breath and rest after each wave. Onto the next one!

I had a couple full 60-second rides—the longest of my life! It was a majorly welcome change from winter surfing in New Jersey.

It was like surfing on another planet. Take a look at this beauty:

We usually ate dinner at the hotel, because the drone photographers would show the video footage from earlier in the day. But we were happily surprised to find some other great food in the small town (like Burgers & Brownies, which is pretty self explanatory as to why we liked it!)

Unfortunately, we might have been too adventurous with eating out, because we ended up getting sick after a couple of days. I think the culprit was a ceviche lunch with some passionfruit juice that might have been made with water. We ended up with whatever the Peruvian version of Montezuma’s Revenge is.

My decadent breakfast turned into this:

Luckily, the worst part of the sickness only lasted for about 24 hours. And I had some extra time to explore the colorful town of Puerto Malabrigo while walking to the pharmacy.

Overall, the trip was completely worth it for the quality of waves in a beautiful setting. Some people dream for all of their lives of going to a place like Chicama. Even though I am still pretty new to surfing, I feel extremely grateful for the experience!

**It’s a privilege getting to surf in other countries. I make sure I’m covered with affordable and reliable travel medical insurance in case anything goes wrong. I choose SafetyWing because their Nomad Insurance policy covers activities, including surfing, in 185+ countries. To sign up, visit this link.

The Time We Got Stuck in Peru

Back in February, I lost my keys in the snow. One morning, it started snowing in New Jersey, so I walked Bailey up to the beach. We frolicked around the sand dunes, walked to the bay, and then went back to the house. Throughout the day, it snowed and sleeted about 12 inches, covering the roads in layers of wet snow and crunchy ice. Later that day, I reached into my coat pocket for my car keys, but they weren’t there.

I looked in all my pockets, my purse, the garage, the laundry basket, but they were nowhere to be found. At that point, I was pretty sure they’d fallen out of my pocket into the snow, and since a foot of snow and ice had dumped on top, there was no way to check. On top of that, I wasn’t exactly sure where they’d fallen out. I only knew they had to be somewhere in the .1 mile stretch between the bay and the ocean. I walked back and forth down the lane in the spitting snow, half-heartedly hoping to find them. I kept looking around the house, knowing full well they probably weren’t anywhere in there. My neighbor even kindly helped me shovel and check the driveway around my car. But still, no luck.

Oh, I should probably mention that I don’t have a spare key. My car never came with one. Of course, when I told my family members and neighbors that the keys were lost, they asked if I had a spare. Nope. Just the one, buried in the snow.

Over the next few days, the temperatures stayed below freezing. Our street turned to a thick sheet of ice. I slipped, skated, and crunched back and forth, searching for the keys. I started to give up the little bit of hope I had of finding them before spring, so I made some calls to explore my options. AAA wouldn’t come because of the wintry weather. The local locksmith couldn’t make a copy of the master key without reprogramming the system in the car. I finally called Toyota and learned it would be around $800-900 to reset the car and get a new master key. Yikes (my car is a 2016 Corolla)! My job is fully remote, and I didn’t feel compelled to drive around town on the ice rink, so I decided to wait and hope for a thaw.

The thaw never came, but my trip to South America was quickly approaching. I (maybe irresponsibly) decided to abandon the keys and the car for almost a month. I got a ride off the island and eventually to the airport, leaving all my troubles behind.

I already wrote about our stay in São Paulo in my last post so in this post, I’ll only talk about where we went after that… Peru!

Landing in Lima

We flew from São Paolo into Lima for a quick stop. I had visited the city about 10 years ago, and I was excited to return. It’s such a pretty city with amazing food and relaxing coastal paths.

We stayed in the Barranco neighborhood, with cliffs overlooking the ocean and a walkway for easy access down to the beach.

We ate at La Bodega Verde cafe multiple times for perfect patio seating and healthy breakfasts.

We went on an awesome food tour, where we learned about the history of the city and tasted local delicacies: tamales, pork sandwiches, yellow potatoes, tropical fruits, donuts, and the best, ceviche! Our arrival coincided with National Pisco Sour Day, so we celebrated that, too.

Apart from all the eating, we toured the city:

And took a day trip to the Palomino Islands to swim with sea lions:

I really recommend the visit to the Palomino Islands. The water is very cold due to the Humboldt current, but it was worth it to be so close to the sea lions. These particular sea lions are friendly and playful, so they come right up to you. You also get to see lots of little Humboldt penguins.

After our two lovely days in Lima (including watching the Super Bowl and seeing the Bad Bunny halftime show with lots of fans!), we flew to Trujillo and traveled on to Chicama. I will write about that part in my next post, because it was a separate surf trip, so stay tuned for that. The Lima airport has gotten an upgrade since the last time I was there:

Back to Lima

We spent four days in Huanchaco and Chicama, and then returned to Lima. It was Valentine’s Day, and we had the not-so-original idea to visit Love Park with just about every other person in the city! It was felt special though, with live music and dancing.

This time we stayed in the Miraflores neighborhood, which feels a little more central, but is also a high tourist area like Barranco. We stayed in a nice guesthouse that was off the beaten path and had a quiet patio for breakfast:

While we were staying at that guest house, I received some amazing news… my neighbor had found my car keys in the sand dunes during her beach walk! It felt like a miracle. That was a big weight lifted off my shoulders for when I returned home.

Punta Hermosa

Our next stop was a beach town about an hour south of Lima called Punta Hermosa. We spent the week working, surfing, and checking out the town. The weather was a little foggy, but it usually cleared up later in the day.

I almost don’t want to tell anyone where we stayed because I want to keep it a secret all to ourselves, but I will share because the hosts were so kind and helpful: Chino Surf House. It was simple, peaceful, and very close to the beach. I hope to return someday!

We got to hang out with Lua, the best house dog:

Back to Lima

After our week in Punta Hermosa, it was time to head back to Lima. This is when the trip started to get interesting (wink, wink). We were at a cooking class on Sunday, my “last day”, when I got a text from United that my flight had been canceled. I set my stress aside just long enough to make this delicious ceviche:

Later I found out that, due to all the snow back in New Jersey, I wouldn’t be able to leave until Friday. To be honest, I wasn’t heartbroken. That just meant more sunsets and more ceviche! Lima is pretty inexpensive when it comes to accommodation (we also had travel insurance to help with some of the costs), and I didn’t have anything important to hurry back for.

San Bartolo

The next day, Bryan’s flight also ended up getting canceled and rescheduled, so we added another stop to our itinerary. We opted to check out San Bartolo, another beach town that is just a little past Punta Hermosa. We weren’t as lucky with surfing as we were in Punta Hermosa. We didn’t bring our own boards to Peru, and we couldn’t find anywhere close enough to rent them (we didn’t have a rental car).

We stayed at Kauhuhu Casa Hotel, which was really nice, and we dined out at lots of outdoor restaurants all over town. Overall, the town was much quieter than Punta Hermosa with not as much going on at night, but I’m glad we stayed there for the experience.

Back to Lima (last stop!)

Would you believe we went back to Lima one more time? It really is a very easy and livable city. I was sad to leave and return back to winter, but I knew it wouldn’t be too long until the next adventure.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading! Know that the moral of this story is to leave all your troubles behind and get to South America… everything else will work itself out as you go! And yes, we did eventually make it home and my car keys still worked—even the buttons.

**It’s a privilege getting to surf in other countries. I make sure I’m covered with affordable and reliable travel medical insurance in case anything goes wrong. I choose SafetyWing because their Nomad Insurance policy covers activities, including surfing, in 185+ countries. To sign up, visit this link.

Staying in São Paulo

At the end of January, we took a trip to São Paulo, Brazil. There’s something special about Brazil and Brazilians, for me. I could feel it even before we boarded the plane from the US. Everyone is so warm, friendly, and talkative. I think I made four new friends before we left the ground.

I hadn’t been back to Brazil since a study abroad trip in 2009, but I dusted off my rusty Portuguese and managed to get around and even had a few fun conversations.

This was a trip for Bryan’s work, so it was a little out of the ordinary in that we got to stay in a fancy hotel we normally wouldn’t stay at, and I spent more hotel time than usual. But it was also the time right before Carnaval, so one of Bryan’s colleagues took us to the pre-Carnaval rehearsals, and it was so amazing to see it all in action!

São Paulo is a big sprawling city. Some say it’s not the prettiest:

But the JW Marriott is always pretty! We were there during rainy season, but we did catch a few moments of sun:

And you can’t go on a trip to Brazil without talking about the food. First, there was the hotel breakfast buffet featuring every fruit imaginable:

My other favorite Brazilian foods are feijoada (a black bean and meat stew), moqueca (a fish stew with coconut milk), and rodizio (an eating extravaganza with every type and cut of meat— we tried a new one called Assador and it was really good).

We visited Bolinha for a classic feijoada lunch:

The Japanese food is also incredible, because Brazil has the largest Japanese population outside of Japan. We had the best sushi meal at MAK.Okuwa, but I forgot to take a photo!

The pre-Carnaval party was definitely my favorite part. It felt like a bucket list travel experience. The samba schools go through all of their routines in the Sambadrome. There’s music, confetti, and incredible costumes, almost like the real deal.

The next day, on a Sunday, we visited Paulista Avenue. They close the street to cars and there are lots of shops, museums, and markets to stop in. We got there and had brunch at mug.sp just before a huge thunderstorm, so we ran into the MASP art museum just in time.

There are a lot of great museums in São Paulo. I also visited the Afro Brazil Museum where they showcase inspiring Afro Brazilian art from throughout history. My only warning is that all the signs are in Portuguese, so it takes a bit of effort or a lot of Google Translate.

São Paulo also has a famous area for street art, called Beco do Batman or Batman’s Alley. This artist was my favorite:

And, of course, Batman himself:

At first glance, São Paulo is mostly buildings. And it is… at second glance and at third glance, too. But there are a few parks, especially Ibirapuera Park. It’s almost 400 acres of trails, lakes, and green space that offers a nice escape in the middle of the city. After being mostly indoors all week, walking through it on my last day was truly a breath of fresh air:

And that was our week in São Paulo! It probably won’t go on my list of favorite cities, but Brazil is still one of my favorite countries, and I hope to someday get back to see more of it! Tchau for now!

Three Places to Visit in Bulgaria

To start this year, we took a trip to Bulgaria. I’ve already written a post about skiing in Bansko, so I won’t include that here. But we spent about a week visiting three other places that I’ll talk about in this post: Sofia, the Rila Monastery, and Plovdiv.

Our flights and all of our travels were in and out of Sofia. We found that this made the most sense since we were relying on public transportation instead of renting a car. It was usually more time efficient to return to Sofia than to take trains between places. We flew into Sofia, took a private taxi to Bansko, then came back to Sofia for a couple of nights. Next, we did a day tour to the Rila Monastery and later took the train to Plovdiv. Going back and forth to Sofia might not have been the most sensible itinerary looking at a map, but it matched with the train schedules and what we wanted to do with our days off work.

Sofia

We spent about four nights in Sofia in total. On the surface, it wasn’t too much different from other western European cities, with modern cafes, international cuisines, landmarks, museums, and things to do. But on my last day, I took a free walking tour that revealed the rich history of the city. There were layers leftover from the Romans and the Ottomans that create a really interesting blend of architecture and ruins. It snowed that day, and it was pretty to see the city dressed in white—though I was completely frozen!

We were a little lazy about going out to eat in Sofia because we’d gone out a lot in Bansko, so we got takeout a few times and even tried the McDonalds (we don’t usually eat American fast food, but we like to see the unique items in other countries!) I have to say, it was our best international McDonalds yet. I also ate at 718 Breakfast & Brunch twice in one day since my Bulgarian coworker recommended it, and it was a nice cozy shelter from the snow.

Our Airbnb was so nice, we almost never wanted to leave it:

We also visit the Red Flat, a museum/apartment decorated to show what everyday life was like in communist Bulgaria. The household actually didn’t seem too different from growing up in the late 80’s or early 90’s in the U.S.—there was a rotary phone and a vinyl record player for the Gen Z-ers to wonder about. The main things that were different were the travel restrictions and work policies.

Bulgaria has gone through some tough times since the fall of communism, and it was apparent in some parts of Sofia. Areas like the train station were really run down and there was graffiti everywhere. But for the most part, it was similar to other European cities I’ve visited and it was interesting to learn the history and see the leftover relics of time.

Rila Monastery

From Sofia, we took a day tour to visit the beautiful Rila Monastery, which also included a stop at the much smaller Boyana Church. It was about a 2 hour bus ride from Sofia, stopping at the small church along the way:

It doesn’t look like much from the outside, but there are some very old and beautiful images painted on the inside.

After a short stop, we headed to the Rila Monastery. On our tour, we learned about the monastery’s operations and history throughout the centuries. It’s still active and you can even stay there as a hotel (we chose to return to our nice warm Airbnb in Sofia!)

The paintings around the outside of the main church are amazing:

The striped arches reminded me of visiting the Cordoba Cathedral in Spain. You’re not supposed to take photos inside the church, but it was quite ornate and impressive. We took the audio tour to learn more about each area of the monastery.

However, as much as I enjoy learning about history and beautiful churches, my favorite part of the whole experience was waiting just outside the monastery… at the bakery! We sampled some of the best of Bulgarian cuisine, mekitsas, which are basically fried dough with jam and powdered sugar. Yum!

There was an option to hike to a cave, but we skipped it due to the cold weather and had lunch at one of the two small restaurants nearby. Then we headed back to Sofia on our tour bus.

Plovdiv

I think Plovdiv ended up being both of our favorite stops on the trip. It’s a slightly smaller and more slowed down city than Sofia.

We took the train from Sofia. Here’s our first class car:

The weather was better for us here than in Bansko or Sofia. Even though it was January, the temperatures were pretty mild and in the 50s Fahrenheit. Our Airbnb was almost as nice as the one in Sofia, and it had a balcony:

We took a free walking tour that revealed more of Bulgaria’s layers of history. Plovdiv is the oldest, continuously inhabited city in Europe. You can see more ruins of the Roman Empire under modern city streets. And an amphitheater that’s still in operation for summer concerts:

We ventured out of our Airbnb this time and tried a few restaurants. My favorite was Aylyakria gastrobar, where we tried tarator yogurt and cucumber soup. It was tasty.

Overall, I thought Plovdiv was a much more charming and unique city than Sofia, and I’m glad we had the chance to spend some time there.

All things considered, we had mixed feelings about Bulgaria… Parts were very run down or stuck in the past, but other parts were a beautiful expression of the country’s history. I want to see as much of the world as I can, so of course it was worth it to see a new place and experience a different culture. If you’re interested in history or experiencing this part of the word, then I definitely think these three places are worth the trip.