Compared to just about any moment in the past, modern travel is incredibly easy, especially for someone with an ultra-privileged passport like the US or UK. However, it’s still necessary to do your homework and get your ducks in a row to have a smooth trip. Below are a few of the categories of paperwork…
View MoreStrategic booking of layovers can be a great way to add an additional destination to a trip, and can sometimes even save serious money. Layovers can also be a great way to break up a grueling travel day into more manageable chunks. However, they can be tricky to book and the logistics can be intimidating….
View MoreOne of the best ways to feel less like a tourist is to build some local connections while traveling. A local connection helps you understand the pulse of a destination, learn about the hidden gems, and have a deeper experience. This doesn’t always come naturally to many of us though – even if you’re not…
View MoreI’ve mentioned travel insurance in previous tips, but it seems worth diving in a little further. I don’t buy travel insurance for every trip, and the utility of it has potentially decreased a bit over the past few years, but there are times when it’s still worth considering. What does travel insurance cover? Travel insurance…
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This post is part of a series called Sri Lanka 2023 Today was my chance to get out of Kandy and see some of the sights that we’d been discussing at our workshop. It was also a nice low intensity day after yesterday’s adventure. I’d prearranged a guide/driver via Airbnb Experiences, and Janaka showed up…
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This post is part of a series called Sri Lanka 2023 We had a couple great days of workshop activities, including lots of opportunities to just make connections with new friends around the world. I especially loved getting a chance to talk politics with Indians. Today and tomorrow are my free days before I start…
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This post is part of a series called Sri Lanka 2023 Oh hello! I’m in Sri Lanka! This is a work trip that came together relatively last minute, but I thought I’d put up a couple posts along the way. I’m primarily here to participate in a workshop on the preservation of South Asian art…
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We did it! Between COVID and cancer, I wasn’t sure we’d ever successfully pull off our European family trip. We did it though, and we’re now somewhere over the Atlantic on our way home. Everyone is still on speaking terms, which seems like about the best possible outcome. No play-by-play entries for this trip, but…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 Wrapping up this blog series from somewhere over the pacific on the last leg of our trip home. We left Penang on Saturday morning, around 6am. After a quick stopover in Kuala Lumpur, we spent most of Saturday in the Hanoi airport. The original…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 Our last day in Penang – sad to be heading back, but glad we had such a relaxing visit. We got up early again to have breakfast, because Kat had an Important Business Meeting at 8am (Dungeons and Dragons). I popped over to a…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 We’re winding down our time in Penang, and we’ve ticked most of the items on our abbreviated todo list. We had to be up early so Kat could be on a zoom board meeting, so we got roti and kaya toast before the sunrise….
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 After a slow day yesterday, we needed to “get our sweat on” today. (Ok technically we sweat just existing here.) We decided to go for a hike around Penang Hill. First off, we had breakfast at the local hawker center, ticking some delicious nasi…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 After a busy few days, we turned it down a notch today. We kicked things off with some nasi kandar and a trip to the laundromat. Nasi kandar is a “mix everything together and somehow it works” buffet and it didn’t disappoint – fried…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 Somehow I never quite learn the lesson that “walking six miles to grab some tacos in St. Paul” is not the same as “hiking six miles with 2000 feet of elevation change in a jungle on the equator.” Should take about an hour and…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 Two-for-one blog day, as Saturday was mostly a transit day for us. The hotel packed us to-go breakfast bags for our 5am trip to the airport, which was pretty nice. Everything went smooth at the airport, so we had time for a bowl of…
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This post is part of a series called Southeast Asia 2023 For the past few years, I’ve maintained that Hanoi is my favorite city in the world. With that in mind, I’ll admit I had a bit of trepidation returning for the third time. What if things had changed? After all, Vietnam is a rising…
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This post is part of a series called Spain 2022 Due to train, plane and meeting schedules, it made the most sense for us to spend a day in Madrid on the way home from Seville. We actually ended up with a bit over a full day – we got to Madrid mid-afternoon on Wednesday…
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This post is part of a series called Spain 2022 While I was at my conference, Kat got out for some adventures of her own. Follow along! Day One There is a small bar on the corner of our street where we decided to have our daily tostada and coffee. The local bread is like…
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