a travel and style blog
There are very few truly public gathering places left. Sure, there are ever-shrinking public parks, gardens, and libraries, but beyond that? There’s little else. In Charlotte, breweries step in to fill the void; despite being private businesses, they act as a meeting place for people from all walks of life. Even though there are waves …
Happy October! We’re still a few weeks away from peak fall foliage, but there are signs of autumn’s arrival everywhere. Apple farms are open for picking, boots and wool capes abound, and there’s something distinctly different in the air (is that cinnamon?). Last year Michael and I did All The Fall Things and I think …
It’s no secret that our quality of sleep declines when we travel, and while we may not be able to rewire our brains to combat the “first-night effect” (let alone sleep well in an airplane’s ever-diminishing coach seat), there are a few products currently available on the market whose sole purpose is to help us …
It’s that time again! (well, perhaps it’s past time, but who’s checking, really?) This year instead of sharing a different gift guide each day, I wanted to share them all at once: a selection of travel gifts for everyone on your list. Though I’ll always advocate for taking a trip over giving tangible items, I …
Have you heard? It’s Black Friday today (just in case you haven’t been bombarded with advertisements for the past week or two). Today I’m sharing a curated roundup of travel deals and travel-friendly items on sale this weekend from retailers all over the web. When possible, I try to link to products that are responsibly …
It’s true that overtourism has taken hold of Barcelona. When you combine a dense, walkable city with a multitude of sights and rich culture, there can be no other result. Even during my visit in October, which is shoulder season, the crowds in parts of the city were unbearable. But sometimes you simply have to …
When I shared with friends and family that Michael and I were traveling to Spain, many people excitedly asked, “Oh, are you going to Barcelona?!” Not a single person asked if we were going to Madrid. That seems absurd, doesn’t it? It is the capital of the country after all, and that should count for …
Though I once sang their praises for their return shipping refund (which ended in November 2022), I learned the hard way not to use the PayPal platform for any foreign transactions. You see, last month Michael and I booked several Airbnbs for our trip to Spain and Italy, and to avoid Airbnb’s conversion fees, I …
If you follow me on Instagram, you might have seen that my three-day weekend getaway unexpectedly turned into a six-day stay in Raleigh thanks to Hurricane Dorian. Due to the unfortunate combination of non-existent federal regulations requiring airlines to support passengers in the event of a cancelation and my decision to fly a budget airline, …
(is this what Autumn looks like?)