Category Archives: Travel

ENJOYING WINE IN THE HEART OF SAN FRANCISCO

ENJOYING WINE IN THE HEART OF SAN FRANCISCO

When most people think of California wine, they think of Napa and Sonoma Valley. Just 100 years ago however, San Francisco was wine country. With over 100 wine cellars and production facilities throughout the city, the winemaking industry in California was born in San Francisco. Unfortunately, the 1906 earthquake struck shortly followed by Prohibition, and the winemaking […]

INSIDE YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK

INSIDE YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK

Unlike Illinois, which is pretty flat and boring, California is filled with diverse landscapes and national parks. As soon as we decided we’d be heading to San Francisco, I knew this would be my chance to finally see some of my country’s natural beauty. I began researching Yosemite National Park, but then felt hopeless when […]

WEAR YOUR TRAVELS IN STYLE WITH EL CAMINO BRACELETS

WEAR YOUR TRAVELS IN STYLE WITH EL CAMINO BRACELETS

Since traveling, I’ve developed a bit of an obsession with jewelry. It’s weird because growing up, I couldn’t care less about jewelry and I actually found wearing it a hassle. Even when I first started traveling, I would typically buy souvenirs that I could someday fill a house with, but as my priorities shifted, so did […]

TOP 10 MUST-HAVE SAN FRANCISCO EXPERIENCES

TOP 10 MUST-HAVE SAN FRANCISCO EXPERIENCES

San Francisco is one of those eclectic cities that people just can’t seem to get enough of. With literally something for everyone, people go to San Francisco to reinvent themselves and to show off who they really are. I had been wanting to visit for what seems like forever, and finally jumped on my chance to do […]

SEEKING SERENITY IN TULUM

SEEKING SERENITY IN TULUM

To be honest, until Kristin of Souvenir Finder suggested that we head to Tulum, I didn’t know much about the place. Luckily, we were easy to convince. Googling Tulum from my windowless, dingy hostel room, seeing a few photos of the palapas-lined beaches was all it took. Now it’s a place ever lingering on my mind. Sure, Tulum may seem […]

MY NEWEST FAVORITE TRAVEL COMPANION: EAGLE CREEK’S SWITCHBACK 22

MY NEWEST FAVORITE TRAVEL COMPANION: EAGLE CREEK’S SWITCHBACK 22

I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but I am not a light packer. Although I’ve certainly improved my packing skills over the past 3 years of traveling, I’ve still got a long way to go. It doesn’t help that there’s this on going debate between what’s better to travel with, a suitcase or a backpack. I personally think […]

FOTO FRIDAY: GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE IN SAN FRANCISCO

FOTO FRIDAY: GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE IN SAN FRANCISCO

Every Friday I’ll be sharing a photo from someplace in my travels. This week’s photo is of the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. The Golden Gate Bridge is the icon of the city and no trip is complete without seeing it. That being said, we almost didn’t get to see it because it was so […]

EXPERIENCING ELEMENTS OF AN ANCIENT CULTURE

EXPERIENCING ELEMENTS OF AN ANCIENT CULTURE

Spanning over 3,000 years, the Mayan civilization is amongst one of the original cultures of the world. As one of the most sophisticated ancient civilizations, I would argue them to even be one of the most important. I remember learning bits and pieces about the Mayans throughout grade school, but some education that was because I didn’t even know […]

FOTO FRIDAY: THE YAMANOTE LINE IN TOKYO, JAPAN

FOTO FRIDAY: THE YAMANOTE LINE IN TOKYO

Every Friday I’ll be sharing a photo from someplace in my travels. This week’s photo is of the busy Yamanote Line in Tokyo, Japan. People often joke about the crowdedness of Tokyo trains. There are all these visions of people being pushed on by conductors and the so-called “train pushers”. While that does still happen on […]