If there’s one travel rule I have, it’s to only use a carry-on—yep, even for international travel. Whether I’m going to Colorado or Canada, I’ll reach for a carry-on to avoid checked bag fees, lost time at luggage claim, and lost baggage (which, in cas…
If there’s one travel rule I have, it’s to only use a carry-on—yep, even for international travel. Whether I’m going to Colorado or Canada, I’ll reach for a carry-on to avoid checked bag fees, lost time at luggage claim, and lost baggage (which, in case you were wondering, is at an all-time high) this year).
Now that we’re starting to travel more regularly again, I’m spending every minute that I can anywhere but where I actually live. And just in time too, as testing carry-on luggage comes with the job.
Since I’m not traveling much these days, I’ve started thinking of my summer weekends as staycations.
My usual routine when the weekend rolls in is to laze around on my couch until guilt kicks in, then scramble to fit in a workout, run errands, and heav…
Since I'm not traveling much these days, I've started thinking of my summer weekends as staycations.
My usual routine when the weekend rolls in is to laze around on my couch until guilt kicks in, then scramble to fit in a workout, run errands, and heave my many loads of laundry to the laundromat down the street. All good and worthwhile things to do, of course.
But when I think of Friday evening as the kick-off to a mini two-day vacation rather than as a weekend that’s always too short, the next 48 hours feel more relaxing and longer. I'll check out a new restaurant one night, dip into a bookstore the next morning, and even bring coffee and breakfast to the park on Sunday. I'll also stock the fridge and freezer with summertime treats like watermelon, berries, and ice cream, and when I’m ready for a break, I'll take an afternoon siesta. Suddenly, my weekend feels like a real vacation without the hassle of booking flights, renting cars, or—my least favorite—packing.
Anna Maria Island is known for its beautiful beach coastline along Florida’s Gulf coast. Anna Maria Island, Florida A girl’s weekend is good for the soul. Sometimes there is nothing better than surrounding yourself with longtime friends, laughter, good food and of course, the beach! And Anna Maria Island is an ideal place to get […]
Anna Maria Island is known for its beautiful beach coastline along Florida’s Gulf coast.
Anna Maria Island, Florida
A girl’s weekend is good for the soul. Sometimes there is nothing better than surrounding yourself with longtime friends, laughter, good food and of course, the beach! And Anna Maria Island is an ideal place to get away from it all. It’s a piece of paradise where you can enjoy hanging out in your flip flops, dining out on local seafood, seeing the perfect Florida sunset over the Gulf of Mexico and to watch the dolphins play. It’s been a while since I’ve written a travel post about Florida, so I thought I would share some highlights of out weekend.
Hello, Emily here, sharing my top tips for a visit to the Provençal village of Cassis, whose motto is “Qu a vist Paris, se noun a vist Cassis, n’a rèn vist” (“Who has seen Paris and not Cassis, has not seen anything”). I definitely recommend adding it to your list of places to visit in France. It’s hard to overstate how seriously the French take…
Hello, Emily here, sharing my top tips for a visit to the Provençal village of Cassis, whose motto is “Qu a vist Paris, se noun a vist Cassis, n’a rèn vist” (“Who has seen Paris and not Cassis, has not seen anything”).
I definitely recommend adding it to your list of places to visit in France.
It’s hard to overstate how seriously the French take their holidays. Parents stay up until midnight to book ski-train tickets the moment they go on sale, summer houses are booked a year in advance and competition for days off in August, peak summer season, is fierce. There’s even a specific French expression faire le pont which means “to make the bridge”, and refers to booking a day or two off when a public holiday falls on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, to take advantage of an extra long weekend.
Being a last-minute person myself I struggled to picture what I would be doing in a few weeks, let alone a few months, until someone explained the secret to me: they book ahead not only to beat everyone else to the best deal, but to have something to look forward to. Planning a summer holiday provides a glimpse of what lies ahead, to help get through the gray repetition of winter, and planning to relax takes the edge off the inevitable stress of everyday life.
And they were right. Last year, for the first time, I booked our summer break months in advance and I relished the fact that as 2021 began to strongly resemble 2020, and work stress built up (but not with you David!), I had my own little daydream, ready to lift my spirits whenever I needed. As I dashed to pick up the kids, and the perpetual feeling of always rushing and still being late seeped into every day, I knew that at some point in the future we would have time together with nothing to do and nowhere to be, free to count endless pebbles on a quiet beach.
If you’ve ever had the urge to hide out in the woods for a weekend to get away from it all, you’ve come to the right place. Airbnb is a go-to when you’re looking for a place to stay on vacation and a business trip, but it’s also home to an impressive c…
If you’ve ever had the urge to hide out in the woods for a weekend to get away from it all, you’ve come to the right place. Airbnb is a go-to when you’re looking for a place to stay on vacation and a business trip, but it’s also home to an impressive collection of more eclectic rentals that let you live out your childhood dreams. Of course, we’re talking about tree houses, and you might be surprised at just how many the site has to offer!
Whether you’re hoping to hang out in an off-the-grid rental for a few days or pamper yourself at a luxury home in the sky, Airbnb has a tree house you’re sure to love. Here are 13 of our favorite picks to bookmark—for the next time you’re in the mood for a whimsical, magical, one-of-a-kind vacation.
Traveling is my thing. As a travel writer, I spend most of my day writing about previous trips (I’ve been to 65 countries and counting), researching places to take someday (I’m looking at you, Uzbekistan), or scheming up ways to spend more time doing w…
Traveling is my thing. As a travel writer, I spend most of my day writing about previous trips (I’ve been to 65 countries and counting), researching places to take someday (I’m looking at you, Uzbekistan), or scheming up ways to spend more time doing what I love.
However, like most people, I’ve spent a large portion of the last year and a half grounded and it’s made me a bit of a homebody. While I’m still excited about the prospect of traveling, for the first time ever, I’m content staying in one place for more than a few days at a time. Part of that comes from having curated a home that shows the memories from life on the road, inspires future travel, and helps make adventures—big and small—much easier.
The deepest breaths I take are not in barre class or during a cliffhanger episode of This Is Us. No, it’s when I place my checked bag on the scale at TSA, waiting to see if my suitcase is over or under 50 pounds. I always come close. I mean, don’t you …
The deepest breaths I take are not in barre class or during a cliffhanger episode of This Is Us. No, it’s when I place my checked bag on the scale at TSA, waiting to see if my suitcase is over or under 50 pounds. I always come close. I mean, don’t you also pack eight pairs of shoes, five books, two laptops, a sun hat, multiple pairs of sweatpants, and ankle weights for a three-day beach vacation? Well, leave it to TikTok to come up with a genius way to stash all of your excess belongings without the fear of a last-minute overweight suitcase. The secret? A pillowcase.
Ask anyone who visits Mexico City, and they’ll tell you that they’re there for the food. The dishes that circulate the bucket lists for tourists visiting the federal district—the bi-colored pescado a la talla at Contramar, Pujol’s toddler-aged mole, an…
Ask anyone who visits Mexico City, and they’ll tell you that they’re there for the food. The dishes that circulate the bucket lists for tourists visiting the federal district—the bi-colored pescado a la talla at Contramar, Pujol’s toddler-aged mole, and late-night tacos at Los Cocuyos—are destination dishes in their own right. But I tend to direct inquirers, friends visiting the city, and customers at my restaurant, Cicatriz, in a decidedly different direction: towards an unremarkable, un-Instagrammable plate of rice.
Rice is second in the three-course parade that is comida corrida, a pedestrian set meal offered at thousands of inexpensive restaurants throughout the city. Comida corrida or comida economica, literally “fast food” or “affordable food," preserves the ceremony of the modern midday break from work while reflecting the popular flavors that reverberate through Mexico City and the country at large.
Tenth Helpings is a humor column from our culture critic, Ella Quittner, illustrated by Olivia de Recat.
I know a place where you can go to be alone. It’s got a roof over it, with a door that locks. There’s a bed and a sink and a kettle for coffee, …
Tenth Helpings is a humor column from our culture critic, Ella Quittner, illustrated by Olivia de Recat.
I know a place where you can go to be alone. It’s got a roof over it, with a door that locks. There’s a bed and a sink and a kettle for coffee, and from most angles, the land on which it sits is stunningly green, and stunningly flat. The packaged snacks are free and abundant, and there is a rabbit who hops around the property as if he hadn’t yet decided what he’d get up to that day. There is a cow named Dolly who will wander by, shooting you reproachful glances until you acquiesce and stick your hand beneath the dispenser that overflows with edible pellets. Her gratitude will make you blush. It is the place where I began and ended one of the weirdest nights of my life, and it is a six-ton potato, thirty minutes southeast of Boise, Idaho.
Whether you’re camping, road-tripping, picnicking, or spending time at the beach, a cheese plate by your side is always a welcome snack. I might be biased, but I love enjoying a plethora of great cheese and cured meat in any scenery, all year round. Ho…
Whether you’re camping, road-tripping, picnicking, or spending time at the beach, a cheese plate by your side is always a welcome snack. I might be biased, but I love enjoying a plethora of great cheese and cured meat in any scenery, all year round. However, my typical, carefully designed plates aren’t exactly simple to transport, especially when planning to enjoy them on the go. To keep your beautiful, cheesy creations intact outside the confines of your home, here are six tips.
When you’re out and about, forget about fancy platters or boards. I like to build my cheese plate directly in a wide reusable container or to-go box (you can even find boxes made specifically for this use). This way, everything is packed in and ready to eat once you arrive at your destination. It takes some extra work to bring all of the items separately to build on the spot, so arranging the plate beforehand saves a lot of time and eliminates the need for excess supplies, like a cutting board, sharp knife, and extra food packaging.
