It’s Not About the Castle, Vladimir.
I was walking alongside the road, in a Ukrainian village I couldn’t have pointed to on a map before this trip, when I met Vladimir. We had been riding on the same bus, but he discovered I…
How to Use Kiev Public Transportation (and Live)
With Eurovision coming up, I thought it might be handy to write a guide to Kiev public transportation for our thousands of out-of-town visitors. But then I thought, Oh man, is there anything less sexy to write…
My Magical Weekend in Cluj Napoca, Despite the Odds
Perhaps I had grown lazy, or over-confident, but at the time, catching a bus for a weekend in Cluj hadn’t seemed like such a big deal. I had done some vague research on departures from Bucharest, and…
What To Do in Bukovel For Anti-Athletic People like Me
The original plan for my New Year’s break was a solo trip to Moscow. (Because what would be more fun than going from the epitome of European cold to even blisteringly colder? What could I enjoy more…
Dear Tasty Mexican Food, I Still Look at Our Photos
Dear Mexican Food, I’ve had a crush on you from afar all my life. As a kid, my favorite food was a cheese quesadilla from La Cocina (hold everything but the cheese, please – that’s right, just…
5 Reasons to Get a CELTA to Teach English Abroad
In 2012, I hit early retirement. If only. Wait, what I mean is, I was hanging out with my aunt down in Florida, having just quit my job without any plan for further action. Everything I owned…
10 Examples of What Solo Female Travel is REALLY Like
It would be nice to think that, here in the 21st century, solo female travel wouldn’t be that much different than solo male travel. It would be nice. But ignoring the differences between male and female solo travel…
Oaxaca: Where Local Life Spills onto the Streets
I arrived in Oaxaca in the middle of a protest. I had heard Oaxaca was a bustling city – but I was expecting parties and parades, not sit-ins and political rallies. In fact, I had planned my…
17 Alternative European City Breaks
It started when I was fifteen. My aunt and I were embarking on a tour of Spain, two weeks of glorious sunshine to meander our way from Madrid, down along the Costa del Sol, up to Barcelona…
8 Reasons to Visit Normandy, France’s Hidden Gem
Before we talk about why you should visit Normandy and how it’s more than just World War II history, let’s do a little word association exercise to see if you’re anything like me. Ready? France. Paris. The…
