Kaohsiung 高雄市: My kind of town

“Please just point to it on the map. Don’t try to pronounce it!” Julia pleaded with me as we approached a ticket counter at the Tainan train station to buy tickets to our next destination. The day before, she was chatting with her massage therapist and tried to tell him […]

Introductory Course: Taipei 101

All of a sudden, everyone knows what Taipei 101 is, after Alex Honnold scaled Taiwan’s tallest building with no ropes and no fear, live on Netflix. We were in Taipei a month before this death-defying stunt, and when Victor mentioned that we would visit Taipei 101, I had no idea […]

Hail Mary at Taoist Temple

“You enter on the right through the dragon door and exit on the left through the tiger door. And you never enter or exit through the middle door. That door is for gods.” We sat on a bench in front of a brightly colored Taoist temple with a rooftop looking […]

Taiwan: The First 24 Hours

The first 24 hours in Asia are crucial. This isn’t an easy 4-hour flight to Mexico City, where we get out of the airplane and hit the ground running, only occasionally stopping to marvel that just a few hours ago we were at home. It doesn’t have a mere 6-8 […]

When the Night Falls: Night Markets in Taiwan

A few days before our trip, I was talking to someone who had previously visited Taiwan and their only piece of advice was straightforward and without mincing words: “Do not eat street food there.” This was completely unexpected. If they’d said, “Don’t go there under any circumstances,” that would have […]

Exploring Herzegovina Beyond Mostar. Part I.

By Victor / August 14, 2025

Earlier this year, we (almost) visited seven countries in five days. Wait … we did what? Because we constantly preach against hopping from one country to another and usually prefer a slow, immersive way of travel, I think we owe you an explanation. No, we didn’t drastically change the way […]

War in Sarajevo: Tunnel of Hope and Roses

By Julia / August 8, 2025

The first thing I noticed after getting off the plane in Sarajevo was the mountains. Towering on all sides, they dominate the horizon, their steep slopes cloaked in lush alpine forest. These mountains have shaped Sarajevo for centuries, restricting its growth to the narrow valley, while positioning it along key […]

War. What is it good for. Mostar Edition.

By Julia / August 1, 2025

Any time we mentioned we were traveling to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the first question was always the same: “Isn’t that the place with the war?” Yes. But the war ended 30 years ago. It’s safe. Don’t worry! That answer was usually met with a head shake and a muttered comment […]

Bosnia and Herzegovina: One Country, Two Regions, Three Nations

By Julia / July 24, 2025

What is a country? It’s a strange question, especially from someone who has traveled extensively.  But the answer is not quite as simple as a glance at a political map might suggest.  We have been to countries that no longer exist (Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, USSR), regions that used to be countries […]

Smuggling Molcajete

By Julia / July 16, 2025

One of my most impractical dreams, born from years of travel, is this: I want to decorate each room in my house in the style of a different country.  The bedroom would be designed like a chamber in an Indian palace with ornate fabrics, carved wood, and a hint of […]

Dancing with Chinelos

By Victor / July 2, 2025

The old, battered bus bounced along the road with dusty Mexican countryside rolling past the window. Google Maps on my phone showed we were approaching our destination: Yautepec de Zaragoza. Before the trip, I never imagined going to this small town in the middle of nowhere. And here we were, […]

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