The Mist, the Cloud, the Tea, and the Sunset: The Trails of Shizhuo
The hardest part of any itinerary is usually not where to visit or when, but for how long. There are always disagreements online over how much time each place deserves, with some people claiming to have fully explored everything in one day, while others take a week. And when it’s […]
Spilling the Tea about Alishan
Victor loves coffee, and this blog is a clear testament to that. There are so many posts about coffee tours, coffee shops, coffee destinations, conversations about coffee over coffee, and even hiking through coffee plantations. Yet if you were to go through our kitchen, you’d find at most two bags […]
In the Sea of Clouds
When we travel, we usually try to avoid pre-planning everything. By rigidly scripting every activity down to the minute, you can easily deprive yourself of genuine travel experiences, instead just following the “script”. But that doesn’t work with sunrises and sunsets, especially if you want to catch them from a […]
Hugging Trees in Alishan
Alishan was giving me a headache. Trying to fit this mountainous forest into our itinerary was a challenging task. No direct trains from Taipei. No direct buses. Renting a car and driving up there? Maybe. But that wasn’t ideal. The most reasonable option was to get to the city of […]
Getting My Ears Picked in Taiwan
One of the pleasures of going to Asia, at least for me, is the massages. Everywhere from Thailand to Vietnam to Cambodia, the massages are excellent, cheap, and widely available. From restorative foot massages after a long day of hiking, to full body deep tissue rubdown that leaves me in […]
GOOOOOOOAL in Brazil
As I’ve mentioned, I love soccer and try to visit a stadium or catch a game whenever I travel. So, naturally, when we went to Brazil in December 2015, I was beyond excited about everything soccer-related in a country where my favorite sport is such a prominent part of the […]
Georgian Food on My Mind
“You must be happy when making dough,” said Levon. “That’s the most important part of Georgian cooking. Your happiness will seep into the dough and make it delicious. An unhappy person cannot make authentic khachapuri or khinkali.” We were in a small restaurant in Kakheti, the type of place where […]
Georgia the Country, Not the State
There are a lot of things in this world I do not understand and probably never will. One of the most confusing concepts for me is why, how, and what is going on with Georgia not being on every “You Need to Get Your Butt to This Country ASAP” list […]
I Fell in Love With a Dog in Tbilisi
Someone once asked me what was the most romantic, poignant, heartbreaking thing that happened in all my travels. I told them the truth – once upon a time, I fell in love with a dog in Tbilisi. I was sitting on a bench, and she walked up to me, large […]
Following the Musical Trail (U.S. South)
When we travel, we rarely have a “theme” for our trips. Usually, we simply show up in a country or region and explore everything it has to offer. But in summer 2008, we drove through three southern U.S. states (Tennessee, Mississippi, and Louisiana), exploring sites associated with rock-n-roll, blues, and […]
Wallonia: Discovering Undiscovered Belgium
We love Belgium! Despite its tiny size, the country packs a lot, and spending eight days there was barely enough to scratch the surface. Roughly the size of Maryland, Belgium has three very distinct regions: Dutch-speaking Flanders in the north, French-speaking Wallonia in the south, and the capital city of […]