When someone mentions Cusco do you think of an ancient Incan city nestled high in the mountains of Peru?
Or do you think of The Emperor's New...
Read MoreI remember clearly the first blog post Nicole and I created for this website.
Sitting in a J.F.K. Airport lounge, nearly a year ago, feverishly trying to recall all of the items we had in our luggage because our first blog post would be our packing list.
Just that morning, we had said goodbye to the Manhattan apartment where we lived for the past seven years. But not before I had made one last trip to our storage....
Read MoreEver since A Sense Of Where You Are by John McPhee (1965) showed up on Esquire Magazine's list of The 80 Best Books Every Man Should Read I've had it on my "to be read" list. Several reasons for this:
First, I love basketball. A fast moving combination of strategy, athleticism, and teamwork. It fascinated...
Read MoreNicole and I woke up last Thursday in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. We'd stayed four nights at the Sanderling Resort in the town of Duck. Great place, especially if you can get the shoulder season rate.
The day before....
Read MoreNicole and I get excited about seeing bookstores. It's been one of the constants of our cross country road trip.
Prior to arriving in each new city, Nicole does oodles of internet research to make sure we don't skip anything fun. FOMO! New York Times Travel Section articles, blogs like...
Read MoreNote: This review is written so as not to give away any important plot information so as not to ruin the read for others.
This young adult novel had been on my list for quite a while. Maybe ever since I fell asleep during the 2007 movie adaptation starring Nicole Kidman and thought afterwards, what is all the hype about?
I love a book that tackles big themes. Human nature, drive, religion, ego...
Read MoreFor regular readers, you've probably noticed a lot of Arizona hiking posts lately. I can't help it. I love hiking in the desert.
A I write this from a coffee shop in Austin, Texas, I'm still thinking back smiling at the myriad hikes I did recently while staying with family in North Scottsdale. The area is a local base for...
Read MoreWhen Nicole and I started planning our United States road trip, Carlsbad Caverns National Park loomed large in my mind. I have always admired people who are National Parks types of people, driving a van around and taking advantage of America's greatest outdoor assets...
Read MoreA full scale Prada store sits alone in the scrub land thirty-seven miles outside of Marfa, Texas. It's not a real store, it's an art installation. You can't go inside but you can look in the windows at the real products Prada donated. Stars like Beyonce post pictures on their Instagram...
Read MoreMy favorite lifestyle guru, Tim Ferriss, often asks his podcast guests to name their favorite recent purchase of less than $100.
A few weeks ago, Nicole and I purchased a National Parks annual pass. It cost us $80. If Tim...
Read MoreYes.
We were having dinner with our friends in Barcelona four months into our travels when Sarah asked me, "So did you grow a beard when you started travelling?"
"No, honestly, I've tried not to be a travel cliche...
Read MoreLots of miles. Lots and lots of miles. We started driving long distances in France approximately six months ago. Nicole and I together in our rented red little Fiat 500. We loved that car. Absorbed by the French countryside, we drove from Paris to...
Read MoreWhen hiking in northern Scottsdale, the Pinnacle Peak trail is unquestionably the place to see and be seen. Conveniently located just off of Alma School Road, the trail is usually crowded with tourists, outdoorsy locals clad in the latest hiking gear, and trail runners wearing next to nothing and hollering for others to step aside as they zoom by...
Read MoreHeading northeast from Phoenix to Santa Fe, the road signs to the Petrified Forest National Park are not promising. From the Interstate, it looks like scrub land. But a mere mile off the road, the land opens up into an otherworldly kaleidoscope landscape of desert reds, browns, and oranges.We figured the best way to express the Park's beauty was through the photos Nicole took along the way....
Read MoreRead any list of the best hiking trails near Phoenix, Arizona and Tom's Thumb, nestled within the McDowell Mountains of North Scottsdale, will be included.
Who is Tom? Why his thumb?
Finding the answer required more...
Read MoreRoad tripping in the U.S. of A.! After eight months overseas and one month in the United States visiting family over the holidays, we are fulfilling a life long wish of mine to road trip across my own country...
Read MoreSetting: Travis and Nicole arrive at an Arizona car dealership having already identified a used car online that they are interested in purchasing. They take a test drive and Travis is sitting in the dealer's office while Nicole is on the phone with car insurers.
Travis: The car drives great -- we'd like to buy it.
Dealer: That's great, so let's get some of your information down...
Read MoreHiking in Arizona is unlike any other. A brown and beige landscape dotted by green cactus below a soaring blue sky. I take a walk into the desert almost every chance I get.
Brown's Mountain is admittedly more of a plateau than a mountain, but is an excellent destination for hiking in northern Scottsdale. Nestled...
Read MoreFor anyone visiting Spokane, Washington, make sure to visit its newest attraction ... an ice skating ribbon in the downtown area. Unless you don't like fun, you won't be disappointed!
Spokane is a small city with....
Read MoreTen years ago, when Nicole and I started travelling on longer trips (i.e., more than a weekend), I read an article about two supposedly indispensable items for travelers -- super glue and duct tape.
Since that time, I've kept a tube of super glue and a hand wound bit....
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