Back to Asia: Discovering Taiwan
The last time we were in Southeast Asia was in 2019, which now seems like a lifetime ago. Our first trip to that region was Thailand in 2013, followed by India in 2014, Japan in 2016, China in 2017, Cambodia in 2018, and finally Vietnam in 2019. On our first […]
France Flashback: Châteaux of the Loire Valley
If you’ve ever skimmed our blog, you already know our usual pattern: go to a country, spend two weeks there, enjoy the hell out of it, swear we’ll return, and then never set foot there again. It happens every single time, no matter how earnestly we insist that this time […]
A Year in the Windy City: Unique Things to Do in Chicago
With 2026 underway, we’re excited for all our upcoming trips this year. But globetrotting aside, our own city of Chicago offers enough adventures to fill a whole calendar. We love being tourists in our own backyard, exploring it even after decades of living there. And because we are always obsessed […]
The U.S. Virgin Islands: Unlikely, but Possible
After getting back from the U.S. Virgin Islands, we calculated our total expenses for two people for six days, one week before high season, and it came out to $1,875 for everything, including flights, accommodations, a rental car, food, and all entrance fees. Nowadays, whenever you don’t know how to […]
The U.S. Virgin Islands: America, But Not Quite the America You Know
“So, did we travel internationally or not?” We asked ourselves this question recently after returning from the U.S. Virgin Islands. Before the trip, we felt we weren’t traveling outside of the United States. The USVI is not a country. It’s a territory and part of the United States. The “U.S.” […]
Albania: Buzzed in Berat
Our guidebook passionately warned that Albanian red wine was utterly terrible and recommended sticking with white wines only. We are not big wine drinkers at all, but what we did want to see were the Albanian wineries. Of course, the best part of any distillery or winery tour is the […]
Where To Next?
“Next week is going to be our 100th blog post!” announced Victor, who likes to keep track of useless statistics such as his billable hours, NFL scores, and how many times each cat throws up a hairball. I was planning to post about that time Victor, his mother, his aunt, and […]
Raki-n-Roll or Getting Drunk in Albania
We’ve mentioned in this blog that we don’t drink alcohol unless we travel. No, this is not a complicated loophole in a mostly sober lifestyle; we are simply submerging ourselves in cultural explorations. We firmly believe that learning about the drinking culture of a country can help us get a […]
Impossible to Ignore All the Red Flags: A Dive into Albanian Past
If you look at the map of Europe with no political borders, you may not even find Albania. Where exactly does Greece end and Albania begin? If you remember that just a thin strip of the Ionic/Adriatic Sea separates it from the heel of Italy, your task finally becomes achievable. […]
We Ate and Paid for It: The Best Restaurant in Albania
We were driving down from the mountains, returning from spending three days in Valbona National Park. The narrow mountain road curved and zigzagged between steep ridges and precipitous cliffs, occasionally revealing breathtaking views of lush valleys and a fast-flowing river. We were heading towards the port city of Durres and […]
Albania: When The Price Is Right
I never planned on going to Albania. Albania was never on my “Top Ten Places to Visit List” or even on “If I Live to be a 100 Travel Bucket List”. Albania was not even on the radar. Until one evening when Victor and I were both on our computers, […]