United States – Archived Travels

New Orleans, Louisiana

“Don’t you just love those long afternoons in New Orleans when an hour isn’t just an hour–but a little piece of eternity dropped into your hands–and who knows what to do with it?”
Tennessee Williams

Where do I start with New Orleans? The jazz? The ghosts? The gators? On my first trip to this southern city, my travel buddy and I did it all!

In this blog post, I will share with you some of the best places for local dishes and experiences.

Food

Red Fish Grill

We set out to have our first experience with the local cuisine the night we arrived to New Orleans and mozied on down Bourbon Street to find this seafood spot. The atmosphere is family friendly, kitschy, and cozy with the occasional bachelorette parties rambling through for some classic New Orleanian food. What a spot to knock first impressions out of the park!

Wood Grilled Bay Snapper & Louisiana Shrimp

Brennan’s

This beautiful brunch spot is nestled on the edge of the French Quarter and is a cannot miss if you love a boozy morning and some good french toast.

The food was so good, I forgot to snap a picture! The atmosphere is bright, eclectic, and dreamy (in complete NOLA fashion) and there is a relaxing courtyard for outside dining.

Restaurants : Ralph Brennan Restaurant Group — One of the many colorful rooms to dine in

Sucré

This gorgeous gelato spot can be found along Magazine Street, where you can sample some delicious flavors and snap a few cute pics in this pretty in pink store.

Dian Xin

This spot was hailed as the best Chinese restaurant by locals and tourists alike and I am here to uphold that reputation. The music and crowd was young, fresh, and diverse. The food was traditional but had some touches of New Orleans like the crawfish bao which was amazing and a must for any new customers!

Cafe Beignet

What is a visit to New Orleans without trying a beignet? There are plenty of Cafe Beignet’s scattered throughout the area so you’ll always have sufficient access to this classic pasty!

The Gumbo Shop

My friend and I indulged ourselves in a full four course meal at this cozy, candle-lit spot. For everything traditional and New Orleans, The Gumbo Shop is an absolute must for anyone who wants to knock a ton of local cuisine off their bucket list in one go.

Court of Two Sisters

For anyone looking for a brunch spot that is lush with greenery and airy with live jazz music, look no further than Court of Two Sisters. While they serve meals on a buffet line, the quality is up to New Orleans standards and is friendly to your wallet while giving you a high quality foodie experience.

Experiences

Bourbon Street

What can I say about Bourbon Street – mayhem, dancing, tacky shirts and plastic souvenirs, tons of alcohol, and pythons?

Make sure to hit the tacky stores in between bar stops

Bourbon Street must definitely be experienced at least once, but we ended up hitting the street twice. Prepare for a wild night and don’t forget to drink water before bed…if you remember.

Magazine Street

For a shopping day, I recommend hitting Magazine Street. It is filled with so much local business and eclectic finds. From antiquing to thrifting to trendy you can find it all here with some food and drink spots to hit in between.

Mississippi River

The Mississippi River runs through New Orleans so there are many opportunities to stumble across this famous river. We took an evening stroll during golden hour right off Jackson Square.

In the early fall, the weather is absolutely gorgeous to enjoy the view in. Mind you, it’s a little littered, but nonetheless scenic.

Ghost Tour in French Quarter

What’s a New Orleans trip without a ghost tour? Right beside our hotel (Hotel St. Marie) was a little spot called Unique NOLA Tours. There are a variety of tours to choose from, but we went with the “Our Favorite Ghosts” ghost tour and were able to visit haunted places from the house of Delphine LaLaurie to landmarks where Marie Laveau practiced her voodoo.

Ogden Museum

For a museum day, we headed outside of the French Quarter and stopped by the Ogden Museum to check out the local art scene.

Their permanent exhibitions houses some traditional and contemporary work, but unfortunately we missed the temporary exhibitions as they were being changed out. The Ogden Museum was a great change of pace to relax, but not needed as a must on the itinerary.

National WWII Museum

Right across from the Ogden Museum was the National WWII Museum. We didn’t initially plan to visit, but we had some time to kill. Although it was spontaneous, we were so happy we went because it became one of our favorite history museums. The work is thorough and has some of the most immersive exhibits I’ve ever walked through. This museum easily became a must-see for us and I must recommend it to anyone who visits.

Swamp Tour

We booked our swamp tour through our hotel services. The package included two hours on the water and a bus service to get us to the water and back.

The bayou must’ve become an easy favorite as we got to head out to nature and witness alligators in their natural habitat up close. The one grim thing we learned though on our tour was that loads of land was permanently lost to Hurricane Ida as climate change affects coastlines and wildlife.

Google still detects all of this as land

This has got to be on the top of your bucket list besides all the food to eat in the city.

Portland, Maine

Maine is a joy in the summer. But the soul of Maine is more apparent in the winter.
Paul Theroux

In the fresh spring of May, some pals and I drove up the east coast into New England and spent a weekend in Portland, Maine.

For three lovely days, we enjoyed blue skies and blue waters. From Old Port to Peaks Island, we munched on local delicacies and explored the coast. This entry will cover the neighborhoods and food spots we adored on this mini trip.

Old Port

We spent a lot of time eating here since there was just SO MUCH GOOD FOOD, but we did some shopping along the beautiful cobble streets. There were some moments we really felt like we were in Europe between the brick buildings and old streets.

One store to note before we dig into the food is Pinecone and Chickadee. There are so many local artists featured in this store (a lot of stores around here support local artists) and stock so many fun gadgets and knick knacks.

Kings Head

If you’re looking for some good pickle chips or fish n’ chips with your beer, this is the place to go. We stumbled into this wonderful recommendation after our long drive and came back to life after inhaling some bar food.

Flatbread Company

We squeezed in a late dinner at the popular local spot for a good slice of flatbread pizza. This spot is perfect for a good crunchy crust and red sauce pizzas. Our favorite was the Casco Bay Community flatbread.

Lincoln’s

Tucked in the streets of Old Port, you’ll find a secret entrance to a sauna, but you’ll quickly learn everything is not as it seems when you hear music thrumming the walls. Tucked behind the towel rack is the entrance to a speakeasy where everything is $5!

Honey Paw

This lovely spot has a delicious collection of Asian cuisines from all over – from Thai to Chinese. The fried wings were some of the best wings I’ve ever had – they had a perfect crunch and sweetness to them. For my main, I tried the Mee Goreng and fell even more in love with Indonesian food.

Duckfat

We grabbed some pick-me-up fries and poutine from Duckfat and INHALED them. These have got to be some of the best french fries on this side of the country and I highly recommend you grab a bag to inhale.

Eventide

For an early lunch, we shared a delicious bowl of clam chowder (because how could we not in New England!) and then tried signature meal of Maine – lobster rolls! I hundred percent recommend trying your first lobster roll here. The bread was sweet, soft, saturated in butter, and topped with a generous helping of lobster meat.

Peaks Island

We kicked off a morning by hopping on the Casco Bay Ferry to go island hopping. We visited Peaks Island and upon our arrival, we learned that many locals and tourists use golf carting as their main mode of transportation. So, of course we had to participate in the culture.

We drove around the island, stopping for scenic views and peaceful walks along the pebble beaches. Maine beaches have the absolute best rocks for skipping across the water. Besides some cute shops, most of the island is residential with some food trucks and delicious ice cream.

Munjoy Hill

In this mostly residential area, we ambled around streets, enjoying the colorful houses and swelling skylines.

We stumbled upon the Portland observatory before discovering the East Promenade where sailboats laze in the calm waters and picnickers wade in the dandelion fields. Come here for some good views and golden hours shots.

Overall, this visit was so refreshing despite the brevity of it and I was lucky to have such good company and weather to enjoy it with! Here’s one last picture to savor ❤

Arizona

“When your spirit cries for peace, come to a world of canyons deep in the old land”

2020 has been quite the difficult year – from pandemics to politics, a safe getaway was much needed.

Although traveling was nearly impossible this year, my friends and I managed a long weekend away in Arizona, a state filled with deep canyons, massive plateaus, and lush deserts.

Praying Hands (The two pillar landforms)

I have never been to the desert before – as an east coaster where humidity and water is ample, I certainly underestimated how arid it could get. Tip #1: hydrate as much you can at all times, especially during hiking!

With that said, I’m excited to share all that an autumn Arizona has to offer.

Since this was my first visit and because I love hiking over most things, I wanted to cover the most popular natural attractions. Our itinerary included – the Grand Canyon, the Devil’s Bridge and Kitchen Sinkhole, the Seven Sacred Pools, the vortexes at Cathedral Rock, and Slide Rock State Park.

There were certainly more places my friends and I wanted to visit, but because of the time of year (November days have a lot less sunlight) and the difficulty of some of these hikes, it wasn’t possible.

For our first full day, we drove two hours north of Sedona – briefly along the famous Route 66 – to the Grand Canyon. As one of the seven natural wonders of the world, it was a bucket list item that needed to be checked off.

And we didn’t just see the Grand Canyon, we hiked nearly 4000 feet down on the Bright Angel Trail. The grueling yet unbelievably scenic trip took six hours total to complete.

Tip #2: Do not underestimate the Grand Canyon. The hike has steep switch paths and icy trails that litter the top of the canyon. I highly recommend good traction shoes and supporting accessories if you are visiting in the fall. Since the Bright Angel Trail is nearly completely shaded, make sure to wear layers and bundle up!

Regardless of how far you choose to go on the Bright Angel Trail, walking this trail will leave you with beautiful views and a full body workout – seriously, you’ll be sore for the rest of your trip

The next day, we drove out to see the red rocks of Sedona. There were a few geological sights we wanted to see here, starting with the Devil’s Bridge.

We parked our car at the the Soldier’s Pass Trail and hiked our way to the Devil’s Bridge Trail. The path weaves through nice shaded areas and is relatively easy. Once you get to the steep part of the path, you’ll find yourself on the equivalent of a Disney park line.

Everybody is on this trail for one reason and one reason only – to see the Devil’s Bridge and take a good ass photo on it.

Because of this, every group went on one by one which generated hour long waits. I personally didn’t mind it. The views from the line were great company.

After successfully posing and not dying on the bridge, we sought out the Devil’s Kitchen Sinkhole and Seven Sacred Pools. I don’t think these stops are a must visit, but it certainly offers a chance to stroll through the more lush parts of Arizona.

Unfortunately, due to extreme drought, the Seven Sacred Pools were dried up. It was underwhelming to say the least.

We concluded the evening at the base of Cathedral Rock, where we sought out an “energy vortex”, or a place where spiritual energy is most potent. With an open mind, you can tap into some enlightenment. For me, $5 happy hour margaritas did the trick.

If you come to Cathedral Rock earlier in the day, you can hike all the way to the top, but be prepared! We heard from those coming down that the hike eventually turns into a climb.

For our final day, we spent the morning brunching and shopping in downtown Cottonwood, the town where our Airbnb was.

Since we were heading back into Sedona, we made a pit stop to see the Church of the Holy Cross. This chapel was built into the stone of the landscape and offers beautiful views of the surrounding area.

After two days of intense hiking, we found some relief at Slide Rock State Park, where we lounged under the sun beside mossy pools and slick natural slides.

It was too cold to swim, but we did dip our sore feet in. The spring and summer are better times to visit if you plan on hopping in, but you’ll have to deal with the crowds that come with it. Lucky for us, we found a nice private slab of rock to snack, nap, and play cards on.

We concluded that evening with the shopping area in Sedona and some drinks to celebrate the success of our trip.

If you love nature in its largest and grandest forms, I highly recommend Arizona, and if you like adventure, hike the Grand Canyon and try some local cuisine – I promise prickly pears and rattlesnakes taste amazing!

San Francisco

When you get tired of walking around in San Francisco, you can always lean against it.

I was fortunate enough to visit San Francisco for Labor Day Weekend. My goals were summarized in one short and sweet sentence – I traveled across the country to see a bridge, a tree, and a friend. I saw quite a lot more than that, and I want to share what I experienced through the images below.

I started my San Francisco adventure at Philz Coffee. My friend who served as my lovely tour guide told me that this Philz was special in particular because its the very first of its kind. I was very adventurous and tried the mojito iced coffee and w h o a. I highly recommend if it’s in season during your visit.

Philz Coffee as well as the place I stayed at was located in the vibrant Mission District, which is the home to one of the largest Latinx communities in the country. You could see the district bursting with color from the street murals to the interiors of the stores.

I spent the evening with two good friends, wine, and the best Mexican food in the country in the beautiful Dolores Park. The view captures the San Francisco skyline and the golden hour there is breathtaking. You could also get a good view of Karl from here if he’s out and about – apparently they call their fog Karl and he has an instagram too.

I hundred thousand percent recommend eating at La Taqueria (or as the locals say “La Taq”) Anything there is fantastic, and I was told it’s a local secret to ask your soft shell to be “dorado” when ordering – makes it golden brown and crispy!

The next morning, my friend took me to another hopping eatery – Tartine. When it’s 8 am and there’s a line this long out the door on a Saturday, you know it’s gonna be delicious. I enjoyed a yummy quiche and my friend ate some berry banana bread pudding – Y U M.

As I’ve said before, it was my goal to see a “tree” but not just any tree, a Redwood Tree. My friend and I travelled to the South Bay area via train to visit Big Basin Redwoods State Park where I was not disappointed.

The trail we took led us to this beautiful waterfall – Sempervirens Falls. My only complaint with this easy four mile hike was that it was along the road. Besides that, the scenery was still absolutely breathtaking.

Enjoy this gorgeously composed spread that we lunched on. It was super yummy and a beautiful view accompanied it.

The next morning, we hunted down yet another place that had a big line. For brunch, we ate at Zazie, a French restaurant, which is located in Cole Valley. We were hopeful that the food was going to be as good as the wait, and we were not disappointed at all. If you are feeling boozy, order the blackcurrant sorbet Mimosa.

After filling up our stomachs, we headed over to Alamo Square to see the Painted Ladies, a famous row of houses that I swear is featured in the opening of Full House.

Our next stop was Baker Beach where I’d achieve my next goal – seeing a bridge – the Golden Gate Bridge. The air was warm and the water was chilly yet refreshing. My friend and I set down a blanket and enjoyed the sunset.

The final activity for my San Francisco trip took me through the Napa Valley/Sonoma and to Russian River where I joined a large group to float down the Russian River in a funny version of a “booze cruise”. I definitely don’t recommend drinking while floating down a river, but also you only live once? Haha, just be careful … also it was illegal to drink on the beach. So, keep it in the water, kids.

That’s about it for my first San Francisco experience. It was quite lovely and I saw all that I needed to see. I’m excited to return and add more important spots to my checklist – that including more museums and food spots.

Southern California

One of my good college friends, Ava, is from Long Beach, California, so of course flying out to hang with her was inevitable! Below is a recount of my first visit to Southern California back in 2015.

Day 01 –

We started the day by exploring Ava’s hometown, Long Beach. We walked to and around Second Street in Long Beach.

We enjoyed a yummy breakfast at Pandor to get some energy for our drive to Los Angeles.

Ava’s amazing mother, Bev, gave me a tour around Los Angeles. We shopped on Melrose Avenue and had some lunch at Cafe Midi.

We ended our day with Afters Ice Cream.

Day 02 –

This morning, we ate at Portfolio in Long Beach (I miss their almond croissant to this day). We enjoyed a scenic beach walk to the Aquarium of the Pacific and then hung out by the lighthouse at the Pike.

We ended our day with In n Out for dinner, which obviously is a big deal for me, an East Coaster.

Day 03 –

I got behind the wheel on this day and took the challenge/privilege of driving on the 405. We drove to Little Tokyo in Los Angeles and had lunch at Marugame Monzo. Upon our exit, we watched old guy kill it on his piano in the center of the patio. Next, we ate Mochilato (mochi and gelato). We did a littleshopping and got presents as well as Japanese grocery food.

After Little Tokyo, we went to LACMA and saw tons of amazing art!

It was a long day, and adding a museum trip to it made us super tired. We rested by La Brea Tar Pits before going out to eat in warehouse district. I accidentally drove through Skid Row, which was slightly terrifying, but we made it to our destination, the Factory Kitchen.

Day 04 –

Today was a beach hopping day! We ate breakfast for lunch at Seal Beach, then we went shopping. We leisured at the beach for about two hours before heading to Huntington.

We enjoyed some gelato on the pier. I crossed off swimming in the Pacific Ocean and watching the sun set over it off my bucket list! We had the fanciest dinner at the Port in Newport (some couple skrrted up to the function in their boat – that’s how fancy it was!)

With our tummies full, we headed home for sleep.

Day 05 –

I returned to Portfolio for their amazing almond croissant (still thinking about you, almond croissant). Then, we went to the Hills to visit the Getty, which was otherworldly…and HUGE. So tiring! You definitely need to make a day of that museum. We reenergized with some pastry snacks in the gardens.

After the Getty, we headed over to Santa Monica and rode the Ferris wheel – wasn’t worth it to be honest.

We were on our way home but got caught in traffic. I was slaughtered by the 405. Half dead, we went to Snow Monster for ice cream and hung out with some of Ava’s friends. We then stayed in, ate food, and watched Netflix

Day 06 –

After such a long week, we decided to sleep in. We had brunch at the Attic before heading over to the Griffith observatory. We did some hiking near the observatory, not to mention TO the observatory – the parking was atrocious.