Sardinia and Italy call, and yet I’m still stuck in two-feet of snow with work and other responsibilities keeping me from dreaming Italian dreams. I’ve been silent for a few weeks and to stick a toe back in the water (heh), here’s a rock and the turquoise sea off of Sardinia and the brushy, shrubby land.… Read More Dreaming of Sardinia; will Winter ever End?!?
Luckily when you go west you usually have to go back east again. So that means we went through the Badlands a second time on the road back home. Enjoy these parting shots of ridiculous colors and the brightest, bleakest earth. Because the Badlands are truly beautiful.
National Parks are great, State Parks are great and herds of bison are INCREDIBLE. Custer State Park is one of the prettiest areas of the Black Hills in South Dakota and we were lucky enough–moments after entering the park–to see the bison herd. Really, watching a huge male buffalo wallowing in the dirt is crazy.
My appreciation for caves has been documented here before. And, as you might recall, I prefer my nature with a side of clean bathrooms and a cafe. Luckily in western South Dakota there is lots of nature, most of which has decent bathrooms. One such place is Wind Cave, a deep, dark, cave that has… Read More Wind Cave: or why I learned to stop worrying and love the bomb.
The Badlands are like the moon, they’re like mars, they’re like nothing you’ve ever seen. That’s what you hear about the Badlands before going. Turns out, it’s true. All of a sudden you’re driving through high prairie and then there’s this: and your mind is totally blown. Because it’s quiet and windy and the colors are so… Read More The Badlands are Breathtaking, with 100% more Snakes!
While Europe (and a foot into Asia!!) have been grand, let’s revisit the good ol’ U S of A for a bit! There are lovely natural monuments, national parks, and iconic American wildlife in your future! This country is astounding for it’s unexpected (and expected) glories. So stay tuned…
I love the silly details that you notice while traveling. It’s in those details (is that you god?) that you really find a place. Istanbul was full of all the usual silliness. Enjoy the photos!
While walking down İstiklâl Caddesi and seeing all its crowds and street art was definitely one of the highest highlights of my time in Istanbul, another hugely great part was taking the ferry over to the Asian side of the city. We wandered around, got coffee (twice, obviously), and had some food. We even sent our postcards (because… Read More Ferrying to another Continent: the Asian side of Istanbul!
Although Hagia Sophia made me cry the first time I saw it in person from the outside, we didn’t actually go inside the structure for a couple days. Pretty unusually for us, we had actually booked a tour to see the interior. When living in Rome in the past my dear companion worked for Context Tours, a… Read More Theodora is my Idol (I suppose Justinian was ok too): Hagia Sophia!
In Istanbul I wasn’t sure what to expect in regards to my ongoing global hunt for street art. But I found some! Perhaps not at all surprisingly, it wasn’t in Sultanhamet, but across the Golden Horn in Galata and Beyoğlu. We took more totally reasonable public transit up to Taksim Square, walked down İstiklal Caddesi, I bought… Read More The Unexpected Street Art in Istanbul
Ruins + Relics 