Despite its nice parks, Bucharest was still a bit urban for my liking, and I was happy to escape. Away from Wallachia and into Transylvania. Super excited about that, as I’m just a huge Twilight fan. It’s like Dracula, but better. So what better way to celebrate one of the greatest novels/movies of the century than to visit the famed motherland of the vampires.
Continue reading Come freely. Go safely; and leave something of the happiness you bring →

Ambition really strikes when ordering plane tickets, and that ambition lead me to think it was a good idea to do a double red eye. First, from Rio to Lisbon, where I would spend a day, and then from Lisbon to Bucharest, where I’d stay for a while. I still think it’s a nice idea in theory – Lisbon is a great city to spend a day – but it definitely makes for a tiring trip. Continue reading We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. →

In accordance with my plan for the year, I’ve parked myself in Buenos Aires for almost the next three months. Because traveling is tiring, and I’ve been at it for a while. The theory is, I’ll have a bit more consistency, can develop some decent habits, catch up on work, and be part of a community. My AirBnb is in San Telmo, which is probably the third most popular district for expats – more of an artsy area than the typical “gringo ghetto” that pops up in these major South American cities. Continue reading I will come again, and I will be millions →

My annoying-on-paper flight from Buffalo to Charlotte to Miami to Lima to Montevideo went about as smoothly as I could have hoped. My Lima to Montevideo flight was scheduled to take off at 11:59pm, but we ended up watching fireworks from the runway for a few minutes before taking off. It was interesting to see New Years from the sky, and fireworks aren’t really shot very high. Continue reading I like looking at everything from far away, except you. →

From Porto, I took the train down the Lisbon, but went directly to Sinta for the weekend. The town is 40 minutes outside the city center towards the coast. Very touristy place, but more space to hike around and see some palaces, castles, coasts, and beautiful homes. Rumor has it that Madonna just bought a place here, so how bad could it be? Continue reading We leave something of ourselves behind when we leave a place, we stay there, even though we go away. →

Porto is one of those popular “digital nomad destinations” due to its European culture, nice weather, low cost of living. So I decided I’d go there for a bit. I’m actually staying in Vila Nova de Gaia, the city right across the Duoro River from Porto. It’s the side with all the wine on it, where I belong. Continue reading I’m a rebel just for kicks, now →

Return trips for me are rare, but Edinburgh is a nice place. Forget all that sunshine, beaches, and warm weather in Spain – not sure how anyone tolerates all that. I’ll take this constant sea of 60 degree mist any day. After arbitrarily choosing a hostel, upon arrival I realized it was the same one I stayed in over three years ago. I get older and the kids in here stay the same age. JK it’s an old person hostel. Continue reading Wherever I wander, wherever I rove, The hills of the Highlands for ever I love →

I came into Barcelona with rather high hopes. Not exactly sure why. Heard mostly good things about it I guess? But my initial impression is underwhelming. The fundamental reason, I think, is that I just don’t get it. I’ll say it: tapas are just overpriced tiny foods. And I don’t understand the appeal of all these outdoor eateries – just because you put an umbrella up doesn’t change the fact that you’re just eating on the street. Continue reading The trick is to enjoy life, accepting it has no meaning whatsoever. →

We flew straight from Galapagos to Lima to jump over the not so noteworthy expanse that is northern Peru. We spent the first few days in Miraflores (the Gringo area), which is what you’d expect for a more affluent section of a large city. Walkable, neat outdoor mall on the coast that afforded a nice sunset or two, and a reasonable selection of coffee shops and vegetarian places in the main area. Continue reading It makes you wonder. All the brilliant things we might have done with our lives if only we suspected we knew how →

After three months in Colombia, it was time to move on to a whole new world. Ecuador, a Latin American country that just uses US dollars. If you’re wondering where all our Sacagawea dollars went, the answer is Ecuador. They have a rich appreciation for Native American culture here. Continue reading I was told that I could listen to the radio at a reasonable volume from nine to eleven →

I’ve been living in this apartment in Medellín for about 6 weeks, tallying about two months total in Medellín, which I think is the longest I’ve lived anywhere in a few years. The theory was it would be good to have some more consistency and become part of a community a bit more. Which makes sense in theory, but I think you actually need to make an effort to engage with the community for it to work. Continue reading ¿Plata o Plomo? →

After a few days in the hostel in San Jose, it was time to start making my way towards Panama. There were a couple people also going in that direction, so I had some sustained social interaction from place to place over the next week. The first stop on that trip was Puerto Viejo, which is on the Atlantic coast in Costa Rica. Continue reading Fear is not real. The only place that fear can exist is in our thoughts of the future. →

Why wait? I figured I’d start the year in a new place, so to Costa Rica I went. With a few days before my family arrived, I stayed in San Jose for a couple days, which isn’t nearly as bad as people said it was. Stayed in the University Area and there were a couple very nice hostels. Mostly people landing and then leaving in the morning, but the WiFi was good, so that’s fine by me. Continue reading See, here I am now by myself, talking to myself. That’s Chaos Theory! →

I had decided to come to Yerevan to get the rich cultural experience and see the surrounding natural beauty (the flight to NYC was cheaper from Yerevan than Tbilisi). Upon entering Armenia, it was incredibly snowy, and it only got snowier throughout the week. So, I opted to just stay in the city center rather than venture out on treacherous, freezing day trips. Continue reading Honey, would you put a bumper sticker on a Bentley?! →

I decided to enter the social realm for a few days, booking four nights at a hostel in Riga to start off the trip. The password at the hostel was “justonebeer”. Which of course is “just one beer.” But I’ve been drinking very little and listening to questionable music, so I thought it was just a weird spelling of “juston ebeer”. Surely, a mistake anyone can make. Thankfully, I did not say this aloud so my reputation as someone with some dignity remains intact.

Continue reading Two Latvian look at clouds. One see potato. Other see impossible dream. Is same cloud. →

I haven’t been a very good tourist here in Tallinn, just kind of settling in quickly given my extended stay. I’m nearly 20 days in, and I’ve done a ton of walking around, but not a lot of going inside to see things. I can appreciate the reserved Estonian mentality, everyone keeping to himself/herself and more or less ignoring everyone else. Fitting just in, I’ve managed to go this entire time without having a conversation with anyone, despite everyone speaking good English.
Continue reading It’s a war over my tangerines →

Finally back home to Seattle. Home this time being a Hacker House in Wallingford, which turns out to be a fairly nice area between the hipster lounge that is Ballard and Fremont and the University of Washington. It’s an annoying 10 minute walk anywhere, but past that I don’t have any complaints. The common room of the house has a bunch of nice desks, and it overlooks Lake Union. Continue reading Let’s drive to the country side, leave behind some green-eyed look-a-likes →

A lovely 9 hour night bus ride along twists and turns got me to Pochutla. I took a shared taxi to Puerto Angel, then a taxi from there to Mazunte, where I plan to stay for at least a couple days. It’s supposed to be a lazy beach area. I only paid 65 pesos, unlike those suckers who paid 150 at the bus station and didn’t get to walk through Pochutla or Puerto Angel.

Continue reading A half full moon in Mexico City I think of you →

I walked down to Chapultepec Park Wednesday afternoon to see the National Museum of Anthropology (Museo Nacional de Antropologia). It had an extremely beautiful interior and was laid out very well, not to mention all the authentic artifacts from the area. While I’m not usually thrilled with natural history museums, this one was definitely worth going to. Continue reading I have nothing to do the rest of my life but do it and the rest of my life to do it →

I had planned on staying in San Pedro another week, but after a Spanish class that wasn’t ideal and a notification that there would be no power in San Pedro for an entire day, I decided to just head back to Antigua.  So I did that, stayed in a nice hotel to get some work done, and planned out the rest of my life. Continue reading But second chances are rare. Right? And that’s worth celebrating →

Worked most of the day in Kotor since there was only one bus that went, and it was at 3:15. So I took the nearly 4 hour ride in a small bus that seats about 20 with a group of locals through the Montenegrin countryside. Apparently Zabljak is not a popular destination this time of year. As I dozed in and out of conscience staring out into the dark, it occurred to me how comfortable I had become with a situation like this, which not long ago, and to most now, might seem rather concerning.  Only way to get around though, if you ask me. I mean, they’re on the Euro, how bad could it be? Continue reading Every Allied country gave me a medal, even Montenegro →

My bus ride between cities was finally only two hours this time, after my string of 6-8 hour journeys. Just had to cross from Croatia into Montenegro basically. And as nice as Dubrovnik was, it was a little too nice, so when I arrived in Kotor I felt like I could breathe a bit more. Even though its old town area is also quite touristy, everything had a bit more of an authentic feel to it. Continue reading Enough to travel the world with you until one of us has to take an honest job →

I started my new, lonely Dubrovnik experience with a walk down to the new town and through the harbor. On the way back, I stumbled upon Cafe Bar Art and had a couple cups of coffee while I worked on my computer. It was colorful and quirky, with bathtub seats and odd decorations.  Whether that’s your taste or not, it was a great place to chill out and have a coffee or a beer, so I might go back. Continue reading Though I would treasure your friendship, I’m mainly interested in your facility with murder →

The first night I went to Charlie’s Bar with a guy from my hostel in Sarajevo, which was fun. The next night I went to Caffe Bar Mosquito to have some coffee, a beer, and get some work done. Similar to Iceland in that their coffee shops turn into bars, which is kind of cool. I’m mostly working, so not a whole lot of sightseeing is accomplished each day. Continue reading Even Beethoven had his critics. See if you can name three of them. →

Continuing my ongoing quest to use every London airport, I left from Stansted this morning and flew to Budapest on Ryanair, which went extremely smoothly. My hostel is fairly centrally located, and I quickly located the nearest Starbucks, McDonald’s, Burger King, and Hooters, so I don’t think there will be any issues here. Continue reading The plot thickens, as they say. Why, by the way? Is it a soup metaphor? →

Got up early and decided to walk to the airport, taking a stroll through some neighborhoods of Reykjavik I hadn’t seen before. Flight was less than an hour long, so the puddle jumper dropped down in Egilsstaðir around 11:30, on the other side of the island.  My orange Kia Sportage was ready to go, and I was on my way. Continue reading Walk up to me and erase my memory →

In addition to Seattle, it was between Portland and Vancouver, so I decided to go for Vancouver since it will be more difficult to get up there again.  So we went to Vancouver, taking the Victoria Clipper from Seattle to Vancouver. Continue reading Ain’t no use in complainin’ When you’ve got a job to do →

After a couple weeks in Seattle, we decided we would rent a car and drive the Cascade Loop around Washington State. I remember trying quite successfully to miserably tire my sister out. Anyways, we started with a couple nights down at Mt Rainier (technically not on the loop), and then circled back up to drive through the mountains. Continue reading Now don’t you worry we’ll all float on alright →

I decided to AirBnb in Seattle, so I rented a Condo just off the train line between the airport and downtown Seattle in Othello. It’s about a 15 minute ride into the city and it’s much cheaper than staying directly downtown. Plus it comes with a gym, rooftop area to cook and relax, and it’s close to a couple parks to run. Overall, a pretty good location. Continue reading I am looking for a dare to be great situation →

I went to 1000 Figs for lunch and had a falafel pita.  It had a lot of asian foods in it that I didn’t know, but I enjoyed it.  Other than that, my post-Mardi Gras activities have started and ended with sitting in the apartment with a cold and headache.  Either I’m sick, or a 4-day collective hangover is literally killing me. Continue reading And I will look down and see my murmuring bones and the deep water like wind →

Had lunch at Juan’s Flying Burrito.  Quite good but their veggie burrito had a lot of jalapenos in it, and I think I got all of them in one bite.  My mouth was fiery for a while and I was sweaty.  Still good though. Continue reading Now the only thing a gambler needs Is a suitcase and trunk →

I enjoy Amsterdam even though I haven’t really done much in it but walk around yet.  But that’s enough really to get a good feel for it.  Lots of canals, lots of bikes, good restaurants, and entertainment from cool museums to the more exotic if you’re so inclined.  But Wednesday was another day spent inside working for the most part. Continue reading The only girl I’ve ever loved Was born with roses in her eyes →

Since Bruges takes a day or two to see everything, spending 7 days here is a bit of a challenge.  But I’m trying to provide an update, even if it’s just me looking at the same things again.  It’s getting increasingly cold throughout the week, which is not pleasant.  And I did pace myself here, so I do have things to do.  Wednesday morning I actually made the trip up the tower. Continue reading We shall strike a balance between culture and fun →

I woke up in my clothes at 4am, checked out, was at the airport by 5:15am, and landed in Berlin at 8am.  Their transit wasn’t too hard to figure out either, so I dropped my stuff at the hostel around 9 and then strolled around for a few hours.  I do a lot of strolling.  There were some museums and palaces and old structures and stuff that I looked at.  There was also someone with bubbles.  I saw a little girl fall off a statue and cry.  I had a bagel at Dunkin Donuts for breakfast because I didn’t know how to say any of the German stuff at the street fair. Continue reading Get some rest, Pam. You look tired. →

So my flight was moved back a day due to “technical difficulties” so I had basically two days in New York.  Since I didn’t have a whole lot else to do, I decided to ride around on the subway for most of the day, while doing some work.

The flight was a bit more “budget” than the one I took to London.  It didn’t come with a blanket and pillow.  Very disappointing.  I was sitting next to a cute girl, but there was an open row where I could lay down and sleep, so I snagged that right at the beginning of the flight.  Priorities, ya know? Continue reading Everything you look at can become a fairy tale →

I went to the 1000 islands camping with dads family.  We took a long walk to get ice cream, and people were drinking a lot of those Bud Light fake margaritas.  I did not have any of them. Continue reading The record shows I took the blows and did it my way →

Monday

Checked out of the Hostel and made my way back to the Hyde Park room.  Got settled.  Actually used the dresser drawer.  Had a real desk and real WiFi so I tried to do some real work for a while.

Ended up watching Netflix instead a lot.  Decided on “Suits” since it’s obviously one of those shows that I would like and it only has 2 seasons on Netflix so it isn’t a huge investment.  But I watched way too much of it of course and got a minimal amount of work done.  An apt prelude to my return home. Continue reading And did you exchange a walk on part in the war for a lead role in a cage? →

My time in East London had come to an end and I was moving on to the next hostel.  Just to change things up, really.  So I checked out and spent a little time pouring over work in the coffee shop next to the hostel before setting out to find the new place I’m staying in South London. Continue reading To improve is to change; to be perfect is to change often. →

So a couple hours after arriving in London, I ran to the bathroom in a Pret a Manger and had my phone stolen while I was in there.  Which I’m annoyed about, but not really that upset.  It was a piece of crap, but it’s still an inconvenience.  At least he/she didn’t take my laptop or passport, which were also sitting right there.  Mainly, that just means I won’t be taking any more pictures. Continue reading I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human. →

Started off the day at The City Cafe, which was just around the corner from where I was staying.  Had a vegetarian breakfast which included some form of “vegetarian haggis” – although I have no idea what could have possibly been in it.  It was OK. Continue reading I was very impressed with the capable and stylish manner in which you dealt with that situation →

Finally, I’m out of Belfast.  What a depressingly horrible place.  It should be sister cities with Rochester.  I finished it off by having a vegetarian fry for breakfast, getting some work done, then getting wasted on Irish car bombs at the Europa hotel #toosoon?, which was right next to my bus station.  JK I hung out at the coffee shop next to it.

And then I was off to Glasgow.  

Continue reading To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive. →

Big surprise, it was raining Wednesday morning, so I decided to forego my plans for another walk in Howth Head.  After getting a bit of work done in the hotel, I got an early start on my travels, taking the DART to Dublin and then a bus to Belfast.

Belfast is dirty.  But they have a lot of nice coffee shops and affordable places to eat, despite the fact that I have to switch back to £’s from €’s.  The hostel I’m staying in is small but nice, WiFi in the bedrooms which was great because I had a couple important calls today I needed a great connection and quiet for (which went well).  So this place has worked out well for my “working and travelling” plan. Continue reading I cook the world’s best duck flambe →

Sadly, it was time to finally leave Galway this morning.  I relaxed a bit in the morning and took the 9:00 express bus to Limerick, then transferred to the bus that took me to Killarney.

It’s kind of a cool little town.  Lots of shops.  Lots of restaurants. Lots of pubs.  All more or less copies of each other, expanding out down a few different streets.  I circled through everything this evening but just decided to go to Tesco and buy some things to make for dinner. Continue reading For everything that’s lovely is But a brief, dreamy, kind delight. →

Work was annoying yesterday, so I decided to take an impulsive trip for a break this morning.  Maybe I’d bump into Kate Winslet. “Board the Bus to Bunratty” doesn’t exactly have the same alliterative, romantic quality as “Meet me in Montauk” but it’s what I have to work with. So I got up a little early to take the 7:05am bus to Bunratty, which is just over 2 hours away.  The destination of choice: Bunratty Castle.  Because if you don’t make spontaneous trips to castles when in Ireland, then what’s the point. Continue reading Have fun storming the castle! →

Stepping off the ferry, I could almost smell the locals’ hatred for what the rest of the world has done to St. Patrick’s day.  Not that they don’t enjoy the holiday, but it isn’t a reason just to get hammered.  Even I couldn’t help but cringe at some of the tourist ensembles (most of whom I assume are college students here on break). Continue reading Being Irish, he had an abiding sense of tragedy, which sustained him through temporary periods of joy. →

Friday.

I had another pretty unimpressive day, from a tourist perspective.  Also from a regular person perspective.  I mean, I went to a Starbucks.  And a Caffe Nero.  Two chain coffee houses in one day (I had a lot of work to do today, so forgive me). Continue reading I had neither kith nor kin in England, and was therefore as free as air. →

So yesterday I overdid it and wore myself out too much, so today I relaxed a bit more and worked a lot to make sure I got everything done I needed to.  And I didn’t quite finish, because I work a lot anyways, so I need to work a bit more tonight and tomorrow morning to catch up for the weekend.

Anyways, yesterday I walked about 20 miles.  That might be a low estimate.  I don’t know why I walk everywhere; it’s kind of stupid.  I also get lost walking everywhere, which adds to the problem. Continue reading After all, I’m just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her. →

At the Philadelphia airport, I had a little extra time so I sat down and ordered a $9.25 Yuengling and watched half of a women’s college basketball game.  What was the worst hour of your life? That was mine. Just two days ago I purchased a $6 pitcher of Yuengling and was able to drink it without being affronted by such atrociousness.

Then I boarded my flight from Philadelphia to London at about 10:35pm. And they started by serving dinner. Who eats dinner at 11pm? So I just had wine for “dinner”. Continue reading Go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for all of this to blow over →

Like the rest of the world, things don’t really open until at least 9 on Saturday.  I actually had trouble finding a coffee shop to work in (I was out of the hotel at 7), but eventually found a place to get some work done. Continue reading Chapter One. He was as tough and romantic as the city he loved. →

I like to get an early start, so I walked to a coffee shop and worked from 7-10 to make sure the Internet doesn’t fall apart.  Thoreau said something to the effect of “a morning walk is a blessing for the whole day,” but I don’t think he took his morning walks in Midtown.  Anyways, I went to Culture for a couple hours, which was a busy little shop with good espresso. Continue reading Chapter One. He was too romantic about Manhattan as he was about everything else. →