Hindsight is always 20/20, right? The passage of time always seems to give you a new perspective and now that it has been more than two years since I first left to travel around the former Soviet Union, and a year since I returned, I feel like I can look back at my […]
After a dreary, cloudy, drizzle-filled first day in Cairo, I was not thrilled to wake up my third morning to the sound of pouring rain and crazy wind outside. I had heard Cairo typically only got four or five days of rain each year and somehow I had already been there for two of them.
Pyramids and Rain in Cairo Read More »
I was exhausted by the time I arrived in Cairo. First, an overnight flight from Chicago to Paris. Then, a long layover in Paris during which I spent most of the time snoozing on some uncomfortable chairs in the transit area, using my shoulder bag as a pillow. Finally, my bleary-eyed self walked off the
Do you believe in luck? I have heard some people say that they don’t – that everything they have, they earned themselves through hard work. If they are lucky, it’s because they made their own luck. I don’t dispute the claim that good things usually come to those who work hard and position themselves to
Realizing How Lucky I Am Read More »
As I stepped off the plane at LaGuardia, I had a sense of the familiar. Passing the Auntie Anne’s pretzel shop, I recalled the days of snacking on their buttery pretzels as I waited for a flight back home after a fun-filled weekend in the Big Apple. I hadn’t been to New York in five
New York, New York Read More »
I step off the 7 train just half an hour before noon and scurry past the crowds on the boardwalk leading to the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, home of the US Open tennis tournament. The gates had opened over an hour earlier, so the lines to get into the center are almost non-existent.
Back to the US Open Read More »
I turned 37 last Friday. When I turned 36 last year, I had a bit of a meltdown. Rather than celebrating with friends, I was all alone in a hotel room in Almaty, Kazakhstan, bawling my eyes out, freaked out about the future and the sudden idea that I was going to be 40 soon.
14 Things to Do Before 40 Read More »
Small racquetball racquet in one hand, fuzzy green tennis ball in the other, I faced my opponent: the ever imposing garage door. Standing in the driveway separating our townhome from the garage, I bounced ball after ball back at the garage door until one of the neighbors would complain about the noise and I would
My Love Affair with Tennis Read More »
Back when I was getting ready to embark on my 13-month career break trip through the former Soviet Union, I launched another blog, called Globally Gluten Free. My plan was to chronicle my experiences trying to eat gluten free while I traveled long-term. I found that most gluten free travel tips I encountered oversimplified the
The Realities of Traveling Long Term and Gluten Free Read More »
This time last year. It’s been a recurring thought in my head the last few months. This time last year I was arriving in Armenia. This time last year I was living in a small village in Tajikistan. This time last year I was watching the sunset over the Yangykala Canyon in Turkmenistan.
Thoughts on Life 2 Years After Quitting My Job to Travel Read More »
