City Guides, Travel Planning and Dream Vacations
From magnificent mountains to rugged coastlines to volcanic hillsides to black sandy beaches, it’s no surprise Bali is known as the ‘Island of the Gods’. The Balinese architecture is no less prominent with the island housing thousands of Hindu temples in every nook and cranny.
The wonders of Southeast Asia continue to amaze and delight us. Our trip to Bali was part one of a long-awaited trip to see our daughter, who now lives and works in Singapore (which will be part two of our journey). For us, the total trip took over 26 hours of flight time from New Jersey, from Monday evening to Wednesday afternoon, and we made it there without a hitch (but pretty wiped out) despite a very recent earthquake and continuing volcanic activity (which totally stressed me out). Here are our memorable moments and a few ideas on how to spend yours.
Another daunting task, to offer some new perspective on a destination written about in countless blogs, travel guides, magazines…everywhere!
Well, what we offer you here is quite simply what we learned and experienced, and what made it magical for us. We hope you’ll enjoy reading our story, seeing the beautiful images, and find it useful if you or someone you know is going…or if you’ve been, rekindle the memories you cherish…and of course, when you’re ready to plan your trip, call Carla!
We found a magic unlike any other city in the world. And with that here is our list of Magical Moments.
Our trip to Thailand was very special and personal for us. Our daughter went there to teach English, and we hadn’t seen her in seven months. We’re so proud of her courage and determination to set off on such an adventure. She had her ups and downs for sure, but as usual, proved to everyone that whatever you set your mind to can be accomplished.
So, this post will have several chapters, since we did and saw so much on this trip of a lifetime…let’s start with where to stay in Phuket.
We’re thrilled to feature our first guest blogger, our dear friend Jean Devlin…sharing her travel adventures and stunning photography.
When it comes to foreign travel, I try to familiarize myself with basic words and phrases of the native language. My language acquisition hit some serious roadblocks when it came to Czech and the only word I could remember was pivo, which means beer. Fortunately, that really came in handy and better yet, most merchants and waitstaff speak decent English in the city.
Prague is a beautiful city that deserves a visit. Most of the main attractions are within walking distance of each other, which is good because though the metro system is simple to navigate, trying to figure out how to pay for a ticket is extremely difficult. Personally, I’d rather be above ground, soaking in the sites instead of riding on a subway anyway. The Vlatva River divides Prague, with the Little Quarter and the Prague castle on one side of the river and the Old Town and New Town on the other.
The Charles Bridge is a beauty and not to be missed and we crossed over it many, many times during our visit. I’ll get into my observations on that later.
OK, so its pretty daunting to even try to write something unique about Rome. What hasn’t already been said about the eternal city? So, I’m just going to write about a few things that simply made me so happy I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else in the world at that moment. And I can close my eyes and remember what it was that made the moments so special. Hopefully, you’ll find some some inspiration here if you’re going, plan to go, or can relate to if you’ve been. And you’ll close your eyes and relive some very special moments.
Our favorite Piazzas in Rome.
There is no debate: Instagram is having a profound affect on the travel industry. Now six years old, Instagram has more than 500 million active users sharing an average of 80 million photos a day. Influencers with large followings are being tapped by destinations worldwide to inspire those followers to visit. Some say it’s causing overcrowding of once undiscovered places, while other feel that tourism brings the awareness needed to protect those places.
In my humble opinion, the beautiful places of the world are meant to be shared and experienced. The special places we all dream about are not ours to own, though we need to find a way to responsibly share them with each other. Travel mindfully, respect the environment, and respect one another’s space, and keep seeking out those unexpected adventures that happen when we wander off the beaten path.
Now that that is said…here are a few of my favorite Instagramers that are inspiring me to grab my camera (or my phone) and get out there.
Ahhh, Nawlins niightlife…if you’ve been, you know what we’re talking about. From the elegant historic restaurants, Preservation Hall Jazz, to over-the-top, anything goes, party-all-night Bourbon Street, it’s all there. And everyone’s invited…
But during those sultry days of exploring the alleys and architecture in the French Quarter, there’s nothing quite like enjoying the classic watering holes, offering cool, refreshing, specialty cocktails and local delicacies in one-of-a-kind gathering places where you’ll share your adventures with new friends on both sides of the bar. Here are our top five:
