Articles from this Category
January 20, 2019
Careening through the backstreets of Warsaw in a minibus that bumped and jostled us through a former Communist neighborhood, I immediately regretted that extra pierogi I’d had for lunch that now threatened to expel itself. As if clairvoyant, Tomas, our guide, stopped and guided us into an area where partially destroyed, bullet-ridden brick structures were oddly […]
January 15, 2019
The wind whipped my ponytail across my new Polish sunglasses and into my mouth – which was open because I was laughing. In spite of the brooding sky and rapidly approaching cloud formations, I was at one of the Gdansk beaches. The beach. My happy place. Poland has something that most of the other land-locked […]
January 4, 2019
The 7th-floor terrace of House of Legends restaurant was small and cramped, just two tables taking up any excess space. I squeezed past the diners, made my way over to the railing, and whipped out my smartphone to snap a photo of the stunning sunset over Lviv, one of Eastern Europe’s most beautiful cities. Recalling […]
November 27, 2018
Broken glass crackled and crunched beneath my feet. Sun streamed through the remains of a once-magnificent stained glass window. Broken dolls and filthy baby shoes littered the floor. A child’s storybook stood open as if waiting for its reader to continue. Never would I have imagined that Ukraine‘s Chernobyl tours, the site of the worst […]
November 19, 2018
Kiev is the lively capital and largest city in Ukraine, greedily taking up both banks of the Dnieper River. Three million people call this fusion of ancient and modern architecture home. Kiev’s beautiful cathedrals and monasteries spill out onto cobblestone streets and abundant green spaces and parks. Although many buildings were destroyed during the Communist […]
November 17, 2018
Once a mecca for backpackers and budget travelers, Budapest, the shining gem on Hungary’s Danube River, is enjoying an explosion of the luxury market and a well-deserved reputation as one of the most beautiful cities and the second fastest-developing urban economy in Europe. As a female solo traveler, I found Budapest to be among the […]
October 15, 2018
Lviv is Eastern Europe’s undiscovered gem, at least to Americans. This utterly gorgeous city, just 40 miles from the border of Poland, is not only home to stunning Austro-Hungarian architecture and colorful town squares, but the restaurants in Lviv are unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in all of Europe. They’re called “Emotional Restaurants,” and they […]
October 1, 2018
I’ve been a fan of fairy-tales since I was a little girl. As an adult, when I heard that the medieval town and castle Cesky Krumlov would bring to life all the scenes of my childhood dreams, I determined I would get there someday. After years of eager anticipation, that “someday” recently came to fruition. […]
September 26, 2018
Ukraine is one of the largest countries in Europe, second only to Russia in size, and shares borders with Russia, Belarus, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Moldova, and Transnistria (the nation that doesn’t exist). It’s a country with a long, complex, and turbulent history. The Eastern European nation is home to a plethora of beautiful places […]
September 21, 2018
Who could have guessed that there are so many things to do in Terceira? Our overnight flight landed us on this tiny island in the Azores just after sunrise. Expecting to be driven to our hotel for a short nap, we were surprised when Paulo, our guide suggested that we take advantage of the clear spring […]