About a month ago, Nicole and I tackled one of our travel dreams ... seeing Machu Picchu! It didn't disappoint and we couldn't have been luckier to make the journey on a day when both the weather was mostly clear and the crowds were thin...
Read MoreDecember in the Northwest, a landscape palette of grays, blues, browns ... and green -- Washington State is the Evergreen State after all!
While staying with family in the Seattle area, I got to hike and bicycle a section of the John Wayne Pioneer Trail, also known locally as the Iron Horse Trail, on consecutive....
Read MoreNicole and I both love to read. Happily, in the eight months we've been travelling thus far, we've had plenty of time tackle numerous great books. Inasmuch as I love browsing book recommendations from others, we thought it would be fun to put together the following list of our favorite books we've read during our travels....
Read MoreAfter driving nine hours from Pucon, Chile to Santiago, Nicole and I were ready to drop off our rented white Volkswagen Gol hatchback at the airport Hertz.
But first we needed to fill the tank with gasoline.
After finding....
Read MoreAfter our grueling experience climbing Volcan Villarrica a week prior, Nicole and I were gun shy to set off on further trekking expeditions during our two week stay in Pucon, Chile. Nonetheless, since Pucon is an outdoor paradise, we didn't want to waste time there not taking advantage. And if...
Read MoreFor the past week, the volcano loomed above us. Viewed out the front windows of our Airbnb, it soared above the treeline and surrounding hills, snow capped with sulfur rising continuously from its crater. We looked out both excited and nervous to climb....
Read MoreThe holidays are just around the corner. But what to get a loved one who plans to do any traveling during 2018? Worry not, dear reader. The Meserve Reserve is here for you! Part of having a blog is getting to create a holiday gift guide!
Nicole and I each put together a list of the best items we've been using on our eight month and counting, round-the-world trip that would make excellent gifts....
Read MoreThis week we celebrated our first Spring-time Thanksgiving. Turkey Day in the Southern Hemisphere!
From our remote Airbnb off a dirt road between the towns of Villarrica and Pucon, Nicole and I did our best to celebrate this American holiday despite being the only ones nearby we knew of doing so. I had to remind myself...
Read MoreThere's lots to do in Pichilemu, Chile ... if you surf. Nicole and I don't. But maybe we could learn?! Then on on our arrival we realized the weather consistently hovers in the 50's and 60's and every surfer in the water wears a wetsuit...
Read MoreLast month, Nicole and I spent two weeks in Cancale, France. After leaving, we immediately embarked on some crazy travel weeks so it's only now that I'm having a chance to write about our time there. It's such a great place to visit, we didn't want to give it short shrift. Cancale is a tiny seaside town...
Read More"To me, wine is about people. When I go to buy wine in a wine shop, I ask the guy, 'Which wine do I buy? Tell me the story of that wine.' I buy wines with a story on the back as often as I can..."
Read More"Gangs of ownerless dogs roam the cities and towns of my country, not in the form of the hungry, miserable packs you see in other parts of the world but, rather, as organized communities. They are mild-mannered animals, satisfied with their social lot, a little lackadaisical." --My Invented Country: A Nostalgic Journey Through Chile by Isabel Allende. The above quote from one of Chile's best known...
Read MoreWith the luxury of no time restrictions, Nicole and I have been taking advantage of layovers to see places we might not otherwise explore. Earlier, I wrote about seeing Helsinki, Finland this way. A few weeks back we utilized a layover to investigate Lima, Peru. Because of a scheduling snafu, after...
Read MoreThe colors in Monet's Gardens are ever changing, but due to Monet's careful planning, something beautiful is always making an appearance. Everything from pansies and crocus, to violets and forget-me-nots, daisies and anemones, to tulips, poppies, peonies, gladioli and snapdragons, any could be sprouting up...
Read MoreThe streets of Valparaiso! Nicole and I have been transfixed. Few places we have visited provide so much entertainment just walking around. Rainbow alleyways, roaming dogs, steep winding roads, and spiderwebs of power lines overhead. Color pops everywhere we look....
Read MoreAfter months of touring the various wine regions of France, Nicole and I spent last week attending a wedding in the countryside of our adopted home state of New York. We also used this as an opportunity to mix up our activities. So instead of wine tours, we visited...
Read MoreA tip for anyone visiting wineries in France or anywhere else: The people in the tasting rooms, whether the winemaker or anyone else, don't want to talk exclusively about their wines.
One potential topic of conversation is other wineries you have visited or are planning to visit. People in the wine trade, like anyone else, love to talk about their neighbors!...
Read MoreMost wineries are boring places. Especially if you aren't super into wine. There's large steel tanks, little oak barrels, and a fancy tasting room to try a few wines. Then you awkwardly whisper about which wines you might purchase while the winery host looks on. Because Nicole and I are cork dorks, we actually get excited about these visits and seeing the variations between wineries. But we've seen over...
Read MoreEasy Street Records. Seattle's legendary independent music store. And the launch point of my Day of Awesomeness yesterday.
Nicole and I spent the past week in Washington State, God's Country. I had a free day in Seattle with my brother so we headed to...
Read MoreWine rule of thumb: When wine drinkers are unaware of or overlook a particular type of wine, the possibility for values abound! This fits France's Cahors wine region, where Nicole and I recently spent three days, precisely.
First, most wine drinkers are unaware of what wine from...
Read MorePowered by Squarespace. All photography shown on this site is copyright protected. Please contact for permissions. © Nicole Meserve Photography.
