4 Amazing Day Trips in Bulgaria

While I love Sofia, Bulgaria’s capital, you’d miss out on so much of the country by only sticking to the city. Instead, you can use Sofia as your base to go on a day trip or two (or four). Use this guide to choose your ideal excursion based on your interests: 1. Nature and adventure:…

Visiting Cuba as an American

If you’re from the United States, you’re probably somewhat fascinated by Cuba. After 55 years of the embargo making travel to the island nearly impossible, Cuba has developed an enigmatic, forbidden-fruit quality. That element of mystery and uncertainty made visiting Cuba in March a bit nervewracking for me. How will Cubans treat us? Will I be…

Why Walking Tours Are a Traveler’s Best Friend

For me, no trip is complete without a walking tour. Here’s why: It orients you. Especially if you do the tour early in your trip, it establishes some sense of direction in an unfamiliar place, which will be immensely helpful when you inevitably take a wrong turn later. It introduces you to people. Tours are made up…

How To: Be a Tourist In Europe

So you’ve decided you are going to travel to Europe this summer. Congrats! Maybe you’re not the 1%, but you’re at least part of the wealthiest 5% of Americans. You deserve to celebrate that. Here’s how. First, fly to one of Europe’s capital cities. It doesn’t really matter which one, everything in Europe is just old churches anyway.…

Cats and La Catedral: Toledo, Spain

I’m a cat person. I’m now getting over vestiges of my childhood fear of dogs, but I’ll always be more comfortable around cats. Except for a two month stint between the death of our beloved Blackie and the adoption of playful Naomi, I’ve had cats continuously since I was four years old. The last place…

My Spanish Namesake

There I was, minding my own business (and by that I mean blatantly staring at every person walking by) while having a late lunch in Sevilla. The sun had finally descended behind the restaurant, and for the first time that day the plaza was comfortably warm instead of exhaustingly sweltering. I took a sip of…

Function + Beauty = Casa Batlló

The Sagrada Familia is Antoni Gaudí’s most famous work of architecture, but it definitely isn’t his only design that attracts tourists to Barcelona. Casa Batlló is sometimes called the “House of Bones” because of its facade, which has skeletal pillars and balconies. The green and blue tiles that cover the facade also give it an…