A Weekend in Victoria BC
We spent just over a day in Victoria, BC, walked everywhere, and saw nearly everything. This is a wonderful weekend trip! We took the ferry from Seattle and walked from the port to our hotel, the Helm’s Inn. Our stroll around the Inner Harbour Walk took us by Parliament, the Empress Hotel, and Christ Church…
Scenes from Paris
Summer strolls on quiet side streets abounded for our family this past summer, when we spent the month of August exploring one of our most loved cities – Paris. Grateful for a time to recharge and be inspired, we spent 30 glorious days drinking in the language, sites, and wine that the city had to…
Sailing the British Virgin Islands
As a photographer, every working day is a hustle, and I work nearly 7 days a week, every week. During the season, it gets especially crazy and I’m thankful for the little family time I can squirrel away. I’m eternally grateful for time with my family, especially when we vacation together. Like vacations prior, we…
Adventures in Chiang Mai
Our time in Thailand can really be broken into three phases – city living, relaxing (and eating) in the sand, and adventures (and more eating) in Chiang Mai. We put a respectable number of miles in during our first few days in Bangkok, wandering until our feet hurt and we needed to fill our bodies…
Milan & Lake Como
I had the unique opportunity to return to Italy with my husband; I had once studied in Florence as a painting major, and to be able to go back to Italy and visit Milan was unexpected and truly a dream come true. Since this was a work trip for my husband and I was his…
World’s Most Beautiful Thermal Baths
There may be absolutely nothing better than soaking in one of these incredible natural thermal baths or hot springs. Winter, spring, summer, or fall, the warm waters soothe your body and your soul. From the remote locale of southwest Bolivia to the famous (and worth the hype!) Blue Lagoon, here are 10 of the world’s…
The Heart of Provence
This summer we traveled through the breathtaking countryside of the South of France and deep into the heart of Provence. After landing in Marseille we decided to make the short drive to Aix-en-Provence to stay the night before starting our journey. We chose to stay at the Provencal Bastide Le Clos des Frères Gris run…
Australia & New Zealand
It is a 30 hour trip from NYC to Perth, Australia—probably the farthest that you could go from one place to another and one of the most difficult places to reach. Once you set foot in Perth, you’ll feel like you’re in California but the air, breeze, sky is somehow different, and wonderfully so. Olive…
Cape Town
I traveled to South Africa in late February to celebrate my birthday with my mother. We began our visit in Cape Town, and spent several days taking in all the beautiful differences around us at one of the most southern tips of the world. We loved our stay at the Ambassador Hotel, which is built…
Tuscan Cooking Class
Since Under the Tuscan Sun was released in 2003, my Aunt has wanted to rent a house in Tuscany. She wanted the whole family to come along so that we could reconvene as a family, eat food, drink some amazing local wine and experience everything that Tuscany had to offer. And as the loving niece…
Historic Charleston
From the quaint historic district to the booming foodie scene to the beaches of Isle of Palms, Charleston is a city like none other. To walk through downtown Charleston is to take a step back in time—down cobblestone streets with horse-drawn carriages, past lovely gated courtyards and centuries-old mansions. The lovely historic district and Mount…
A Local’s Guide to Portland
I’m a rare native Portlander. I lived here before The New York Times ever wrote a travel story about us, and way before the days of Portlandia. The cool part about living here for 30 years is that I’ve been able to watch as the city’s districts have grown and evolved. In the small town…