Kinderdijk: Holland’s Most Beautiful Windmills!

Europe 2 kommenttia

A couple years ago while driving from Amsterdam to Luxembourg I did what I always do when driving long distances: figured out detours to stretch my legs. I collect UNESCO world heritage sites and noticed one that would be right on my way, a little East of Rotterdam, and soon I was driving along a small road to Kinderdijk, my chosen detour of the day.   Kinderdijk Windmills were built in the 18th century to pump water out of the polder, when Holland was in…

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Frozen Dead Guy Days – the weirdest winter festival in the US

Colorado, Norway Jätä kommentti

While we were approaching Nederland on a Saturday afternoon in mid-March, the shoulders were parked full of cars already a mile from town. We were in luck and found a spot at some auto repair shop’s yard, which was just a short walk from lakeside, where we could see people gathering. On the way there, we were passed by a pale posse carrying a metal coffin. A little further along we noticed spectators following a sport, where a colorful team was carrying a similar metal…

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Going to NYC this summer? Act now!

New York 1 kommentti

There’s a lot of things in New York that you don’t need to plan for days, weeks or even months beforehand. Statue of Liberty is not one of them. Two years ago on our visit to New York, we would have wanted to climb up to the crown of the Statue of Liberty. Unfortunately, while I was asking my husband which time he considered the best for the trip, the tickets were sold out. Then we thought we’d visit just the pedestal, but we thought…

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St. Kitts: Not a Stereotypical Caribbean Island

Caribbean 13 kommenttia

Imagine the stereotypical Caribbean island: palm trees swaying in the wind, long white beaches with gentle waves washing ashore, waiters carrying piña coladas… This is not Saint Kitts. Or, well, I’m sure all of these can be found at Saint Kitts too, but there’s so much more to this island. At first, we were reminded of a past trip to Gambia, and not just because of the ebony skin of locals. The goats that seem to be grazing on every field and inbetween houses, most…

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4 national parks in Colorado that are worth the trip!

Colorado 1 kommentti

National Park Service is by far the best government agency in the US – and possibly the whole world – and national parks are its crown jewels, the pride and joy of the system. Colorado is proud to have four of these gems, which are all worth a visit: Great Sand Dunes National Park When my family roadtripped around Colorado in the 90s, this place had yet to gain its park status, but that didn’t keep us from hiking up those hills, sledding down the…

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Breaking Bad in Albuquerque – this is what the sets really look like!

Yleinen 1 kommentti

On a roadtrip to New Mexico, I thought we’d spend our day in Santa Fe perhaps enjoying the museums or driving to Los Alamos to find out about the history of the bomb, but instead, Iiro insisted we drive to Albuquerque to setjet around Albuquerque’s Breaking Bad locations. Laundry with a handy on-site amfetamine lab …well, not really. The lab was of course in a studio, but the laundry itself was featured several times in the show. We found it in the middle of North…

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4 reasons to go on a Caribbean Cruise for your Honeymoon

Caribbean 1 kommentti

Midway through our honeymoon, I was already sure of it: this Caribbean cruise is best vacation I’ve ever taken. Of course it’s big thanks to the splendid company and romantic newlywed feeling, but since I’ve been traveling with my husband for already 10 years before we got married, there must be other reasons, too. Here they are: 1. Interesting and Unique Caribbean Culture Before this trip, I knew virtually nothing of the Caribbean islands, and in my mind they were all more or less the…

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10 Best North American Cities for a Holiday

California, New York, USA 2 kommenttia

Travel+Leisure published a while back their readers’ list of ten best domestic (incl. Canada) cities to travel to. I was delighted to notice I’ve visited six of them, and even more delighted when I realized the top destinations weren’t mega popular internationally well known cities but instead the smaller gems that I’ve only found out about after moving to the US. So if you’re planning on a North American roadtrip this coming year, take heed of this list: 10. Asheville, North Carolina  Asheville is one…

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What I learned of winter hiking at the Boulder Trifecta

Colorado 3 kommenttia

Hiking used to be a summer activity for me, but in the four seasons of Boulder, Colorado, with hiking clubs active year-round, I’ve slowly started to change my mind and gotten accustomed to winter hiking. Last Sunday I put my winter hiking skills to the ultimate test by attending the Boulder Hiker Chicks‘ Winter Trifecta, a tour of Boulder’s three local peaks. Rather opt for more clothes than less. It was around -12C when we started the hike, but the forecast said the temperature would…

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This is what our Honeymoon will look like!

Caribbean Jätä kommentti

I doubt anybody’s surprised when I reveal that we planned our honeymoon just as much if not more than our wedding. We got married last September and planned to go on our honeymoon straight after, but with so many plans and a hectic fall, we decided to postpone it for this year. Now it’s only two weeks before we leave on the trip of the year! Where, you ask? Well, here: For our honeymoon, we reserved a 10 night cruise on the Caribbean with Celebrity…

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