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Travel Stories

That Time I Stayed in a Czech Castle in the Middle of Nowhere

Updated on November 3, 2021

exterior view of castle

Castles that you can overnight in are not hard to find in Europe. But what if you were the only guests? And the owner sang you happy birthday over a homemade, double-decker strawberry cake on a long candlelit table under Renaissance arches and dorms? My 2007 visit to a privately owned castle in the Bohemian […]

Filed Under: Travel Stories, Uncategorized

Memory is a Funny Thing…My Journey Back to Poitiers 32 Years Later

Updated on March 4, 2021

Loire Valley garden on a misty morning

Memory is a funny thing…Sometimes triggers are predictable—any Talking Heads tune transports me instantly back to my college dorm—while other times, memories can hijack your reality out of the blue. When I stepped into the square in front of the Hôtel de Ville in Poiters, France 22 days ago, I wondered which memories might wash […]

Filed Under: Europe, France, Travel Stories, Uncategorized

Native Son of Algodonales

Updated on March 9, 2021

Algdonales village

“You should have contacted the church,” Santiago suggested. “There was a great fire around the turn of the century which wiped out all of the local government records…for better or for worse.” “Sometimes it’s good to have a fresh start, you know?” he glanced at us sideways. “All of the bad things wiped clean.” We […]

Filed Under: Travel Stories Tagged With: Europe, Spain

On Sunday There Is No Menu

Updated on October 18, 2018

“On Sunday, there is no menu,” the waitress informed us with her eyes downcast and her hands in the air. “We serve family style.” We smiled. And our bellies rumbled. We’d just arrived from a whirlwind drive—on an inspired route courtesy of the “local roads only” setting on our car’s nav—through a shimmering Aspen forest […]

Filed Under: Destinations, Europe, Italy, Travel Stories, Uncategorized

Riomaggiore or Bust!

Updated on September 21, 2021

pink building in Vernazza, Cinque Terre with colorful beach umbrellas

A bit of backstory… Steve and I first met back in 1985 when he was my teaching assistant for a biology class I was taking at UC Santa Barbara. I was a lowly undergrad and he was working on his PhD in molecular biology. (What a catch, huh?) We connected over travel. I’d just returned […]

Filed Under: Italy, Travel Stories

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Hi! I’m Chris. Full-time San Diego-based freelance writer and fifty-something mom on a Mission Possible: to see the world in spite of time, money, and other life limitations. I’m about smart planning to stretch your travel dollar without sacrificing comfort…connecting with locals through immersive travel…and enriching my life through delicious foods, new experiences, and deep appreciation for the beauty in our world today. Are you in?

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