Go For Gözleme
The previous post about fish, bread, and never giving up on food dreams reminded me of something that happened two years ago, during a road trip from Izmir to Antalya in Türkiye. We left our Airbnb early in the morning, eager to start a long day of sightseeing, and skipped […]
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 […]
Cool Cats of Türkiye
It is time to acknowledge that a great injustice has been done in this blog. While the name of the blog is “Two Cats Backpack” referring to the never-ending struggle between staying home and spending time with our two cats or packing the backpack and heading out to explore the […]
Raiding and Pillaging through Norway
I am looking at the fjord There is salmon in the sea My baby says she’s bored She is not in love with me Before visiting Norway, we watched Conan O’Brien’s new travel show, Conan Must Go, where Conan travels the world to meet his fans. In the first episode […]
Poutine Must Go!
After living and working in Wisconsin for over a decade, it’s tough for me to say what I am about to say. Here we go… Canada has the best cheese curds. Yes, I said it. Please don’t cancel me, Wisconsinites! One of the categories on this blog is devoted to […]
The Very Berry Norway
As we traveled through the countryside, we were constantly distracted by the gorgeous views of mountains, herds of peacefully grazing animals, and fields of vibrantly blooming… potatoes. “Look! Potatoes! That’s all potatoes!” Victor would exclaim, pointing out of the car window, “So many potatoes…” I nodded along as he kept […]
Taxco: The Silver Capital of the World
It’s Thursday evening, and I’m in a conference room of a Chicago office building, waiting patiently for opposing counsel to finish the deposition that’s gone on for too long. And then, in what feels like the blink of an eye, it is Friday morning, and Julia and I are sitting […]
It Takes a Norwegian Village
It was late evening by the time we arrived at our Airbnb in a tiny hamlet by Galdhøpiggen, the tallest mountain in Norway. We were tired from the long day and were relieved to finally reach the isolated farm that we would call our home for the next few days. […]