As you know, I love spending long weekends in different US cities–and those trips can be surprisingly affordable too! In January this year, we spent a fantastic long weekend in New Orleans, Louisiana. While we enjoyed the architecture, friendly people, warm (to us!) weather, music, and museums (I can see why the WW2 Museum was ranked as the #3 museum in the US on TripAdvisor!), … Continue reading 20 Must-Try New Orleans Foods & Drinks
Over Memorial Day weekend this year, we visited Asheville, North Carolina. We’d heard good things about its natural areas and outdoor activities, proximity to Great Smoky Mountains National Park (not to mention the Blue Ridge Parkway!), the Biltmore Estate, and its breweries and restaurants. It also happened to be over our eighth wedding anniversary, so we had fun celebrating that on this trip as well! … Continue reading 12 Reasons to Visit Asheville, North Carolina
This month we took an excellent trip to Florida. We flew to Tampa and drove all around southern Florida, hanging out at beaches, looking for wildlife, eating great food, watching sunsets, and taking a nice warm break from the harsh Minnesota winter! I wanted to share our itinerary so you can plan your own trip to Florida, so here’s a brief look at what we … Continue reading Florida Road Trip: 10 Days in Tampa, Miami, the Everglades & the Keys
I didn’t set out to spend time exploring Long Beach, California. In fact, we only ended up there at all because I accidentally booked the wrong flight to Los Angeles. It was a day earlier than our LA to Fiji flight, so we ended up needing to spend about 24 hours in the Los Angeles region. LA and the cities around it are a pretty … Continue reading 24 Hours in Long Beach, California
This year I was lucky enough to visit three different US cities – Washington, D.C. over Easter weekend, Boston over the Fourth of July, and Seattle over a different weekend in July. Two of these trips (Washington, DC and Seattle) were done very cheaply and the other (Boston) was a bit more of a “treat yo self”, so I can definitely share some ways that … Continue reading How to Plan a Cheap Long Weekend to Any US City
There are many reasons you may want to get off the beaten path in Seattle. Maybe you’re on a tight budget and some of the more iconic Seattle spots (ahem, Space Needle) are too pricey. Maybe, like me, you get anxiety from crowds and would like to avoid the crush of people at well-known spots like Pike Place Market. Or maybe this isn’t your first … Continue reading 10 Ways to Get Off the Beaten Path in Seattle
Currently I’m sitting in MIA waiting for my flight to Havana, Cuba, which takes off in a little over an hour. Before I head to the land of cigars, salsa music, classic American cars and uncertain internet, I thought I’d quickly write about my time in Miami before I forget the details in the undoubtedly fun and colorful blur that my month in Cuba will … Continue reading 24 Hours in Miami
I went to Washington, D.C. in June 2009 with two of my best friends from high school. We were all about 16 at the time and very excited to be taking this trip across the country on our own! We managed to navigate the Chicago O’Hare airport by ourselves and arrive in D.C., where we were met by the Close Up Program Coordinators. The Close … Continue reading Washington, D.C.