Searching for Fish and Bread in Istanbul

Two years ago, when we did a road trip through southwest Türkiye, I kept looking for balık ekmek.  If you don’t know what that is, don’t worry.  Neither did I.  But Victor kept mentioning how he and his parents enjoyed a delicious balık ekmek in a restaurant by the Bosphorus […]

Our Travel Wishlist: Yemen

This will be a different kind of post. Normally, we describe places we’ve been to, but today we want to tell you about a country we want to visit. Recently, the area where we live saw a boom of Yemeni coffeehouses popping up here and there. These spacious, lavishly decorated […]

Against All Advice: Finding The Perfect Beach Near Istanbul

Planning a trip for just the two of us is now easy, as we know what we like and what kinds of trips bring us joy. But earlier this year, planning a family reunion trip to Istanbul with Victor’s father, brother, sister-in-law, and niece was a whole different story. Victor’s […]

Is Istanbul Now More Expensive Than Dubai for Tourists?

In August, we spent a week in Istanbul meeting with my family, and the city once again left us speechless.  But this time, it was not for the reason you might expect.  I could write about incredible sites or delicious food (of which Istanbul has plenty), but, as a travel […]

What Else Is on the Menu?  Bosnian Edition

Where in the world could you walk into a sweet shop and find a blonde, blue-eyed girl selling Turkish delights to a family from Istanbul? Where could you see Omani tourists admiring “oriental rugs” while a Slavic shopkeeper explains their designs and the centuries-old story of his family business? And […]

Murder on the Dragon Pearl

By Julia / March 12, 2020

Part II of Adventures on the Anti-Love Boat in Halong Bay Our first lunch on the boat was served on the lower deck, on dark red tables covered by crispy white linens.  Victor and I picked the table closest to the railing, so we could enjoy the unobstructed view of […]

Out of Our Comfort Zone – Backpackers on a Luxury Cruise

By Julia / March 5, 2020

Part I of Adventures in Halong Bay Through the years of traveling, we have slept in cars, vans, buses, trains, airplanes, a garden shed, a hut, bungalows, a remodeled horse barn, hostels, motels, guesthouses, strangers’ houses, hotels, and once on a lawn in a park (well, that was a nap […]

Part II: Welcome to the Jungle … on Motorbikes!

By Victor / February 28, 2020

Start with “Part I: Asia, Motorbikes and Us” here. Our evening in Hue we spent rearranging our next day’s schedule and our understanding of who we are as people. “I moved our Airbnb stay in Hoi An by one day and rescheduled the tailor appointment,” Julia said, “We are all […]

Part I: Asia, Motorbikes, and Us

By Victor / February 20, 2020

A year ago in Cambodia, we had the misfortune of spending a night in a rat-infested, side-way leaning, bamboo bungalow which simultaneously happened to be 50 feet from a busy road full of thundering trucks, while also tilting into a muddy river where local fishermen started their morning calls to […]

Hand of God and Goal of the Century: Azteca Stadium

By Victor / February 13, 2020

-Arbitro corrupto! Arbitro corrupto! We are sitting in the nosebleed section of Azteca Stadium on the outskirts of Mexico City, listening to hilarious chants of local boisterous soccer fans.  We are sitting so high that I feel a little dizzy and a bit worried that my nose may actually bleed. […]

Accidental Medical Tourism or When Will This Stop Hurting?

By Julia / February 6, 2020

Four days before we flew out to Vietnam, when the backpacks were already laid out on the floor in preparation for packing and to warn the cats of the upcoming vacation, I woke up with a sore throat.  I spent the previous evening hanging out with my toddler niece, who […]

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