The definitive (and interactive) answer to everyone's favorite question: "so where all have you been?"
Map, The.
Where do I begin?
On my panicked internal response to the ubiquitous question of "How was your trip?" after I returned from a month traveling through eastern Asia.
Collecting Goshuin: my favorite Japanese souvenir and activity
Goshuin, or hand-made calligraphic seals that are painted and stamped at Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines, are scattered across Japan like a secret endless scavenger hunt to be found by those in the know. Here I show you the 22 goshuin I collected with a map if you want to collect them yourself!
RomE-biking
The basilica of Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore, floodlit in gold, scintillated against the indigo sky. I flew beneath its lofty towers, only remembering that I sat astride an electric bicycle whenever I hit a particularly ill-placed cobble.
Gluten-Free in Italy
Italy. The promised land of cuisine: pizza and pasta, bruschetta and focaccia. Sounds amazing…unless your body has a problem with wheat. I'm here to tell you: absolutely don’t let this idea put you off of traveling in Italy. It’s 2023, baby, and we’ve got options now.
Cowboys of Venice
“Is it me you’re looking for?” the gondolier greeted us, his arms spread as wide as the grin that was tucked underneath his impeccable winged moustache.
A Dubrovnik travel guide
The following things are firmly on my "Would do again" list. Most are also on my “Have done again” list!
Tulip Pedals
Picture spending a long weekend biking through the Dutch countryside when it’s absolutely blanketed in blooming tulip fields. You pause wherever you want along the route, maybe for a cappuccino at the seaside, or a family-farm-made gelato, or a thousand photos of hypersaturated blooms that nestle right up against the bike path. Horses and ducks wander over to see what you’re up to. Squat wooden windmills wave cheerily at you from a distance.
When airlines give you lemons
While we’re on the subject of airplane food, let’s talk about British Airways.
Touring Edinburgh
Once upon a time I rarely took guided tours since I tend to be both a cheapskate and a lone-wolf wanderer. Then I realized that the most foolproof way to get locals to hang out with me is to pay them to do so. Talk about subversion of the captive audience!
Edinburgh: Harry Potter tour
I confess I’m a bona-fide Potterhead. I have the Deathly Hallows tattooed on my back and have taken more Sorting Hat quizzes than I know what to do with (Raven-puff, for the record, since I’m nerdy but also miscellaneous). I’ve been to the Leavesden studio tour near London and the Universal Studios theme park in... Continue Reading →
Edinburgh: Whisky & Folklore
As evidenced by my illustrious undergrad career, I do not need any help with drinking whisk[e]y. My sophistication, on the other hand, is always in dire need of a leg up. I’m one of those people who can tell you if wine is made from red or white grapes, or whether I like the taste... Continue Reading →
Scotland: West Highlands Tour
This time, I was in luck. Before I even boarded the tour minibus, the driver/guide Brian* offered me the copilot's seat right at the front and directly next to his. I accepted before he'd even finished explaining the footnote that my seat folded down to block the bus entrance so I'd always have to be... Continue Reading →
Pre-Ankara-wedding disaster time
Or why being anywhere near Copenhagen gives me anxiety.
Sheep fight in the Faroes
Somehow, I knew what was going to happen from the moment I laid eyes on the ram, even though it all began innocently enough. He was just standing on a boulder above my head, facing away from me and chomping on some grass. His stringy wool was pitch black and it was falling off in... Continue Reading →
A wedding in Ankara, real original!
When arguably my two best Turkish friends invited me to their wedding in Ankara with 4 months’ notice, I only swore at them for a second before I tripped over myself to change all my preexisting travel plans to the Faroe Islands for that weekend.
Taking the Healing of the Sea in Croatia
Dates of visit: July 5 - 11, 2021 On the third day, I made my peace with the salt. You could say it was only a matter of time, considering I’d arrived on the Mediterranean coast in the middle of a July heat wave, but given my history as a heat-phobic woman I’d say it’s... Continue Reading →
Ideas for Iceland : A travel guide
A travel guide and honorable mentions
What to pack for a midsummer carry-on-only Icelandic road trip
Iceland is a country to be experienced outdoors. Bring layers, expect rain and wind, and you're good to go!
Greatest Hits Volume II: North America
Photograph-and-prose love letters to some favorite places in North America.
A taste of Iceland
The Land of Fire and Ice, they call it, which could only be more fitting if they mentioned the rest of the elements too.
A Traveler without travel
Where some people have hoarded toilet paper for comfort, I have hoarded unspent travel dreams.
A series of ridiculous events: Fieldwork
True short stories about being a field biologist in the Americas
The Quest to Hielo Azul
I could punch a puma in the teeth right now.
A series of ridiculous events
True short tales of absurd things that have happened to me around the world
Greatest Hits: Europe Edition
A series of abstracts on my favorite European places
On Wanderlust
Imagine that you stand on the tropical shores of Indonesia, staring south into the endless tropical blues of sea and sky bisected by the distant horizon. Imagine, just for fun, that you decide to board a wooden canoe and paddle it 400 miles to Australia. Even equipped with advanced weather forecasts and handheld GPS units... Continue Reading →
Pandemic-stranded, Part II
Taking the scenic route to Buenos Aires
Pandemic-Stranded, Part I: Hindsight is 2020.
Or, that one time I got stuck in Patagonia
A lungful of cloud
I stand at the edge of a blank canvas. Featureless mist swirls in its depths. My gaze hungrily scans the emptiness, but I find only ghosts and shadows. The light pulses: dark to light and back again; the sun is doing its level best to break through the veil. Functionally blind, I must rely on... Continue Reading →
Window Seat Odyssey 