Although a bit out of your way for nightly dinner reservations, if you happen to be in Nairobi, Kenya, this restaurant is not to be missed. In fact, it’s hard to avoid, as it seems …
November 9, 2012
Go Abroad!
Kenya for Carnivores
Xi'ian's Silent Army
Once in a great while, the simplest of acts, even performed inadvertently, can have far-reaching effects. In Xi'an, China, there is a massive army that has stood in silent formation for more than two-and-a-half thousand …
November 5, 2012
Demre, Turkey: The Sea is Free
Before my sister, Stormy, began college at UCSD, I thought it imperative that she have an adventure. So for the summer, I flew her to Antalya, Turkey, where I had been living. For her 18th …
November 5, 2012
Shoestring Travel: Barcelona
After traveling all around southern Spain this past year, we figured it was finally time to give some love to northern Spain. We started with 3 days in Spain's Catelonian capital, Barcelona. The minute we …
November 3, 2012
Trying to Fit In at the Củ Chi Tunnels
Vietnam is a unique country in many ways. First, it’s Southeast Asia’s “skinniest” country. Second, the country is still divided over geographical, political and cultural lines. The North and South divide is an active component …
Oz's West Coast – and the Unexpected
When you think of a national park, your mind rarely conjures up images of people falling in love. The classic boy-meets-girl scenario is usually left to Hollywood's far-fetched romantic comedies. But here’s a story about …
November 1, 2012
Transylvania: A Dracula Tour
Transylvania, land of Dracula and part of the Austro-Hungarian empire for more than 1,000 years, is today in the isolated region of north-central Romania. It's been said that Transylvania sits on one of Earth's strongest …
Midnight at Greyfriars
For as long as I can remember, I have had a fascination with cemeteries – be it their peaceful, yet morbid exteriors or the fact that I'll probably wind up in one someday. I never …
October 30, 2012
Shoestring Travel: Milan, Italy
After traveling via train from Florence for two hours, we arrived safely in Milan. We were grateful that the city seemed much cooler than Italy's more southern cities we had recently visited. While Milan is …
October 26, 2012
How to Hunt a Lion
After two years of invitations, I finally made it to Africa to visit my friend Moses, a Maasai elder, at his village in Kenya. That first night, while sitting around a fire, he offered to …
Into the Heart of Magic Realism Country
There is a family somewhere near the Colombian Caribbean coast who have a novel way of caring for their elderly, infirm grandfather. Supposedly, along the banks of the river Magdalena, the very same river that …
October 22, 2012
Shoestring Travel: Florence
An easy 1.5-hour train ride from Rome got us into Florence midday. After gathering our bearings (and a map), we set off to drop our bags off at our flat before exploring the city. We …
October 19, 2012
Moscow's Love Lockdown
There is an old Russian folktale that says that in days gone by, young married couples were locked inside a granary shed for privacy during their wedding night. True or not, it’s a story that …
October 18, 2012
Adventure (via Scooter) in Ubud, Bali
When my cousin Natalie and I left the Monkey Forest Inn villas in Ubud to stay in a different villa for her birthday, I had no idea the adventure I was in for – as …
October 18, 2012
Land of Haydn: Burgenland, Austria
Many people are largely unfamiliar with how important Franz Joseph Haydn was to classical music. He is called the “Father of the Symphony” and “Father of the String Quartet,” yet he is not as well …
October 14, 2012