Croatia – Part 1/2 (Dubrovnik, Hvar)

I have to say, I don't think I have ever used as wide a variety of adjectives to describe a place I've visited as I did about the 2 week trip Matt and I recently took to Croatia! We started in the south, where words like "island-life", "beaches", and "all-the-fresh-seafood" jumped to mind. As we … Continue reading Croatia – Part 1/2 (Dubrovnik, Hvar) →

Viva España! (Part 2/2) – Seville

Continuing the story of my visit to Spain, here is part 2! Day 7 - Travel Barcelona --> SevilleI took the high-speed train from Barcelona to Seville, about five and a half hours. I had considered flying, but given the convenience of going directly from city-center to city-center I was happy with my decision to … Continue reading Viva España! (Part 2/2) – Seville →

Viva España! (Part 1/2) – Barcelona

Knowing that we will only be living here in The Hague for one more year before moving back to the USA (yes, Matt officially extended his contract through June 2022!), I wrestled with some pretty major FOMO through the long winter and spring months when travel outside of the Netherlands was not possible. But, as … Continue reading Viva España! (Part 1/2) – Barcelona →

The Bicycle Capital of the World

Yes, it's true, there are in fact more bicycles than humans in the Netherlands. According to the Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure, the country is home to 17 million people and no fewer than 23 million bicycles.One of my first posts for this blog was about my initial observations of cyclists in the Netherlands. Well, two … Continue reading The Bicycle Capital of the World →

Magical Madeira

This is a #laterblog from fall 2020 when my friend Michelle and I had an incredible 2-week trip to the island of Madeira, Portugal - I already can't wait to go back! The story of Michelle's and my connection starts back in fall 2006 when we were both freshmen at Grove City College, both on … Continue reading Magical Madeira →

A Dutch Winter Wonderland

Winter storm Darcy hit the Netherlands a week and a half ago, the biggest snow in the country since 2010! It did not snow even a single flake when we were here last winter, but this made up for it. Matt and I are used to snow having both grown up in Ohio, but it … Continue reading A Dutch Winter Wonderland →

Porto, Portugal

Here is another #laterblog from our trip to northern Portugal back in the fall! Our options of places that were still on the Dutch government's list of "okay to visit during the pandemic" was quickly dwindling, but for the week of vacation Matt had off work in late September we made last-minute plans to visit … Continue reading Porto, Portugal →

“I’ll be home for Christmas…”

Matt and I were so grateful to be able to go back to the USA to visit family over this recent Christmas/New Years holiday. We gave much careful thought and consideration to the decision to go, given the risks associated with COVID-19, extra challenges associated with the logistics of travel right now, etc. But, after … Continue reading “I’ll be home for Christmas…” →

Verona, Milan, and Lake Como (Northern Italy trip, Part 2/2)

Wednesday, 16 SeptemberAs described in my last post, Matt and I got to spend several wonderful days exploring Venice together, then he headed back to the Netherlands (for work) while I continued to the north-central area of Italy. When planning my route from Venice to Milan, I noticed that I would change trains in the … Continue reading Verona, Milan, and Lake Como (Northern Italy trip, Part 2/2) →

Venice (Northern Italy trip, Part 1/2)

Among the places that was high on our list to see while crowds are much lower than usual was the island city of Venice. We had heard that, in recent years, it is almost not worth visiting as the excessive tourism has led to inflated prices, environmental degradation, and a lack of local residential life. … Continue reading Venice (Northern Italy trip, Part 1/2) →