Should we still travel during Covid? How?

One can’t help but wonder if the age of big bus tours is over. Fifty eight people packed into a coach, going together to the postcard sites and commission-paying shops for two weeks?… Continue reading

The Legacy of Romanian Orphanages

My eyes read headlines through layers of experiences not my own. Other places can teach us crucial lessons, and then travel there can make those lessons all the more accessible and compelling. So… Continue reading

Mexican Memories on the Wind

Mornings on the Campeche coast were a space of growing golden light and sea breezes in from the Gulf of Mexico. Both would drift through the wide open windows, which reached nearly from… Continue reading

Nourishment

Thank goodness for the dog. My couchsurfing host in Vitoria, in the Spanish Basque country, was taking a class on medieval iconography whose final field trip was the next day, and she wanted… Continue reading

A Castle Worthy of Legend

If the walls of your average hotel room could talk…I don’t think I’d ask. But the walls of Suceava Citadel, on the other hand? They would have some stories to tell. Also called… Continue reading

A Tale of Two Citadels

He was the best of figures, he was the worst of figures. Vlad Dracul the Impaler, illustrative figure from Romanian history, and Hollywood cliche. The man himself deserves another post, but where do… Continue reading

Dinnertime in Cluj-Napoca

Do you know that feeling, at the end of a great, but exhausting day abroad, when you’re deeply excited to be in a new place…but in your heart of hearts, what you want… Continue reading

Centuries in the Square, Sibiu

The sun was shining and the ice cream in my hand was melting at just the right rate when I settled onto a bench in Sibiu’s central square, the Piata Mare. Following typical… Continue reading

13 Day Tour of Romania, Europe’s Best Kept Secret

I see a fair amount of “Romania? I’ve never really considered Romania before” in people’s eyes when I mention the country. Posts illuminating my love for this underestimated land can be found here,… Continue reading

Unexpected Neighbors, in Brasov

An essential part of travel is the potential for the unexpected. Obviously I love a good itinerary, stocked with well-researched information and deservedly famous locations, but there’s something magic and alive about finding… Continue reading