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.

Skiing in Bansko, Bulgaria

To ring in 2026, we spend New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day skiing in Bansko, Bulgaria. I have to start off by saying, I learned about Bansko from a travel podcast that recommended it as a great place to ski that hadn’t been discovered by tourists yet. After visiting, I can safely say that Bansko has very much been discovered by very many tourists!

The ski area was quite crowded, which of course can be expected for ski areas that week after Christmas. Overall, it was less crowded than most ski areas in the US would have been, with hardly any lift lines apart from the main gondola that takes you from town to the ski area. The beginner trails were packed with people and it was hard to find a seat at lunch, but the top of the mountain was emptier and more spread out. The lift tickets were also cheaper than they would have been in the US, coming in at around $65 per day.

We rented clothing and equipment from BSR Ski Rent. The skis and boots were pretty decent, but the jackets and snow pants had seen better days. We got spoiled last year in Japan with their amazing organization systems and high quality rental gear, so we came in with high expectations. Bulgaria, as you might expect, was not so organized as Japan, but we got some skis, boots, and clothing for about $25 and only reserved a couple of days in advance. I don’t think they actually track the reservation system and instead just see what they have when you get there, but our friend “Bob” from Bansko got us set up with what we needed, save for a few rips and tears and limited selection. We brought goggles, hats, and gloves from home, which were all very needed since temperatures were in the single digits (Fahrenheit)!

We stayed in an apartment at the Belvedere Holiday Club, which also had some pros and cons. It was a little overpriced for Bulgaria (at just under $200 a night), but on the other hand, where in the US can you stay walking distance to the lifts for that price? When we arrived, our room had not yet been cleaned from the previous guests—that’s the first time that’s ever happened to me with an Airbnb type of place! But it was an easy fix, and our host had it rectified in under an hour. They made up for it by leaving a bottle of prosecco to celebrate the new year.

The ski area was unique, since you walk to a gondola in town and then the gondola brings you to the base area to take other lifts. At the end of the day, there’s a long ski road to get all the way down into town. I’m not sure if Bryan had fun, since the trails were icy and crowded, but for me, it was enjoyable to get to see what skiing is like in another country.

We were also walking distance from the restaurants in town, so we tried a few places for dinner. The House was nice and cozy for traditional food and Alpen was a deliciously memorable Italian meal. We found that a lot of places would turn you away without a reservation, even if they looked completely empty, so it’s best to book in advance. Generally, Bulgarian food was delicious, with a lot of barbecued meats, fresh veggies, and really good bread. There were slim pickings for breakfast, so if you’re thinking about opening a breakfast cafe or coffee shop—you might find a market in Bansko. We either grabbed protein bars from the convenience store or skipped breakfast altogether, but Station had good omelettes on our last day.

The little town was quaint and peaceful with nice views of the mountains. New Year’s Eve was pretty subdued for us, but there was some live music and dancing at the restaurant we went to for dinner, and we saw a lot of fireworks going off at night.

On January 2nd, we were done with skiing and booked a day at the spa. We chose Pulse Therme in Banya because they have a brand new location with lots of baths and saunas to choose from. There were some issues with our arrival, because as we arrived the electricity went out, so the spa was closed. They brought us to their other location back in Bansko, but as soon as we got there, they told us the electricity had come back on at the first location and that it would be much less crowded. So we went back, and it was still extremely crowded! But after all the back and forth, we settled in, used the gym, and bopped around to all the baths, pools, steam rooms, rain rooms, and saunas that we could fit into our four-hour visit. It was a nice spa, besides being overcrowded, and I’m not sure if it was due to the electrical issue, but the hot tubs were more warm than hot.

That was all for our three days in Bansko. As you can tell, there were some ups and downs, but overall it was a unique experience and new place to ring in the new year. Happy trails!

**It’s a privilege getting to ski 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 skiing, in 185+ countries. To sign up, visit this link.

Kyushu, Japan Road Trip

Please forgive me for a few more delayed Japan posts from last year. My memory is fading in my older age, so it helps me to write these things down so I don’t forget! Kyushu is the southernmost Japanese island. I’m so glad we rented a car and drove around the island. It was a unique and laid-back experience, and we got to see so much more than we would’ve if we had just taken trains everywhere.

I flew into Fukuoka since I was doing a language program there and we flew out of Miyazaki. We spent five nights on this part of the trip. Here is a map of our route:

Fukuoka

I posted previously about learning Japanese and staying with a host family in Fukuoka, Japan in December 2024. From there, Bryan met me in Fukuoka, where it was essential that we eat ramen, since Fukuoka is the birthplace of tonkatsu ramen. We ran around the city visiting Christmas markets and seeing holiday fountain shows for one night, then we started our road trip.

We rented a car in Fukuoka and drove south. I drove—on the “wrong” side of the road and with most of the signs in Japanese to put my new language skills to the test.

Huis Ten Bosch

Our first stop was an unexpected Dutch theme park in the middle of Japan called Huis Ten Bosch. There were rides, performances, and an incredible display of Christmas lights. We spent the afternoon and evening checking out as much as we could. It was a strange sight in Japan but cool to see the amazing lights!

Nagasaki

We stayed in a very interesting, long and narrow hotel room in Nagasaki (Nagasaki House Burabura). The floor mattresses and tatami mats were normal for Japan, the cat murals and shape of the room were not! We enjoyed our stay anyway. The downstairs had a shared kitchen and living room area with tea and coffee and bicycles for rent in warmer weather.

The neighborhood was pretty, and we found a really delicious French bakery nearby (Aulong).

Next was a sobering visit to the atomic bomb museum (I know, a total 180 from the Christmas lights and bakery, but that’s what the itinerary called for). I thought it was a sad but very well-done museum, including a walking path outside to the fountain of peace.

Kumamoto

Before our trip, we watched a show on traveling in Japan with comedian Rhys Darby. That’s how I learned about the cute Japanese mascot, Kumamon, and how I persuaded us to make a stop in the city of Kumamoto. I think Bryan was mainly there for the bao buns:

But then we got to see Kumamon! He does funny dances and films videos to get people to visit Japan and Kumamoto… it worked on us!

Kurokawa Onsen

Our next stop was a “treat yourself” experience. We stayed for at a really nice ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) at Kurokawa Onsen Village (it was called Kurokawa Onsen Oko no Yu). The rooms were very comfortable with a peaceful view of the river outside and a short stroll to the hot springs.

The meals were outstanding and we got to eat them in our robes. I would’ve spent many more nights at this place, and I’m a little sad that we only spent one!

Fun fact, this stop was actually the first sign that my life was about to change a lot! I had been interviewing for jobs for a while, and while we were at the hotel I got the call with the offer of my new job.

Mt. Aso

We made a brief pit stop to see Mt. Aso, the second largest active volcano in Japan, after Mt. Fuji. We hiked around a little bit, but it was mainly just a quick viewpoint.

Takachiho Gorge

We made another short stop that day at Takachiho Gorge. The gorge was really beautiful and impressive. We took a walk along the river and I was surprised to see so many people boating in the winter weather.

We also had the most delicious noodle soups for lunch (sorry for my finger in the photo, but you get the idea!)

Miyazaki

Our “final” stop on this segment of the trip was Miyazaki. We had a truly magical time! We wanted to surf but weren’t sure about waves and renting boards. We ended up staying at a guest house where the owner happened to have two longboards for us to rent and somehow he found two wetsuits that fit our American bodies perfectly!

The waves were tiny (much to my liking) and we had two really fun days of surfing. People in the water were very friendly, and I was really impressed by their surf van setups. Good vibes all around in Miyazaki!

That finished the road trip segment of the trip. We flew out of Miyazaki for Osaka where we would continue our Japanese adventure.

Christmas in Japan

Ok, you got me. We actually did Christmas in Japan last year, while this year we were in regular old New Jersey. BUT, I never wrote about our Christmas in Japan, and it feels like a festive time to do it now.

First things first, a friend of ours had recommended staying at a really interesting looking castle near Kiroro Ski Resort. It was well off the beaten path near the town of Otaru, which is about an hour from Sapporo. So, that’s how we ended up here:

The castle hotel was nearly empty and kind of spooky! But it was interesting nonetheless. We weren’t sure, but I think we were one of the two or three only people staying there. Some things (like our broken bathroom cabinet) were a bit neglected, but it was an interesting experience for sure. Christmas in Japan was in full swing with decorations:

At the mountain, the skiing was fantastic! I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much snow, and it was nice and powdery. The slopes were miraculously uncrowded with hardly any lift lines around Christmas week, which is practically unheard of anywhere I’ve skied in the US. The resort had plenty of terrain and seemed great for families and all levels of skiers. We rented skis and snow clothes and found the whole experience to be very well organized and affordable.

And if you’ve never had ramen as a ski lunch, you are missing out!

Even though we were some of the only guests eating at the hotel, they did not hold back on Christmas dinner. Here’s Bryan modeling our amazing hot pot and Sapporo Classic beer (and giant space heater that was the main heat source in the room):

Our second day of skiing was a total blizzard! We could barely see since we’d brought minimal gear on the trip, but we still had a great time.

We finished the day off by heading to the German beer hall in the town of Otaru (Otaru Beer Warehouse), which was tasty and fun.

And then we took the train back to Sapporo to spend the next day eating soufflé pancakes and visiting the Olympic museum.

I’ve skied in many different places and a few other countries, and I can say that skiing at Kiroro were some of the best or maybe THE best ski days I’ve ever had. I hope someday to return and ski in Japan again!

Recap: New Zealand North Island Surf & Road Trip

Thanks to those of you who followed along our New Zealand north island road trip! If you’ve read all the other posts, feel free to skip this one, but I wanted to do a full recap of the trip in case it helps anyone else with their planning. We found October to be a pretty windy month for surfing in New Zealand, but we got lucky with waves some days and we got to see and do a ton of other amazing things along the way.

This trip took two weeks overall. I flew in and out of Auckland on Air New Zealand, which I really liked. We rented a camper van from Wendekreisen (the Koru 4 Freedom van), which was on the higher end of the options available. You could definitely do it for cheaper, but we wanted extra space because we expected the weather to be pretty cold and rainy, and we thought we might end up spending a decent amount of time in the van, which we did.

The weather ended up being better and less rainy than expected, and I would do the whole trip over again in a heartbeat!

Here’s a list of the places we stopped (with links to each post to read more):

• Whangarei Falls

• Spirits Bay

• Waipu Caves

• Raglan

• Mt. Taranaki viewpoint & Hawera

• Wellington

• Tongariro, Taupo Bay, & Rotorua

• Mount Maunganui

• Hobbiton in Matamata

• Coromandel Peninsula

• Auckland

And a map of the whole route:

Thank you for reading! Onto the next adventure…

Namaste,

Cori

**It’s always 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.

New Zealand Road Trip: Auckland (my last stop!)

The next stop on our New Zealand north island road trip took us to my last stop—Auckland! We arrived on Halloween evening, returned the van, and stayed in an Airbnb in the Ponsonby area.

The view from our patio was impeccable, and we were just off the beaten path enough to feel at peace, because Ponsonby Road is quite bustling with a lot of bars, restaurants, and shops.

My friend Mike (who I visited in Sydney) was just starting off a New Zealand adventure with another friend, so our paths overlapped for the night. We set off to see what Halloween in New Zealand was all about.

I was actually surprised to see so many people dressed up and places decorated:

We hit a few bars on Ponsonby Rd., including Parade where it was nice enough to sit outside. Then we had a delicious dinner (and a giant beer tower!) at Eden Noodles.

Auckland is a foodie city, and we definitely made plenty of time for eating. The next day was hanging around waiting for my flight, so we did brunch (not pictured) and walked along the streets in Ponsonby and K-Road.

There was a perfect secondhand bookstore called The Open Book where I bought the first book in my new favorite series (The Little Shop of Found Things.)

We did some more eating and shopping at Ponsonby Central. Grown Up Donuts (sadly not pictured) were a big hit.

Then it was already time for me to head to the airport and fly on home. That was a wrap on an amazing two weeks in New Zealand. Bryan would carry on to explore the South Island.

Thanks for following along on the blog journey!