July felt like a long one and I’m thankful because it’s my birthday month and it’s truly summer. I was fortunate enough to take a birthday road trip up to San Luis Obispo & Paso Robles and up further to Carmel, Monterey, Santa Cruz, & Half Moon Bay. The theme of [the rest of] July was this: This all started with a dream where an … Continue reading July Recap: Who Matters
Last year, a couple of friends and I took a late summer trip to Temecula wine country. We decided to go again this year and maybe annually. Our first stop was Miramonte Winery for their VIP tour and tasting, which we bought off Groupon. Afterwards, we went to our favorite Peltzer Winery for a tasting. They had $15 (instead of $20) tastings for teachers. We … Continue reading Sunday Bests: Wine & Whiny
In my last post, I recapped the first half of Liz & Julie’s Annual Birthday Trip. We met up in Seattle and hung around for 3 days before taking a train to Vancouver, BC. Where We Stayed Like Seattle, Vancouver was expensive. We ended up staying in an AirBnb outside of downtown. We had our own large suite and light use of the kitchen. The … Continue reading 3rd Annual BFF Birthday Trip: Vancouver
I met Liz my first year in college and we were inseparable. She was my first female BFF and continues to be one of my BFFs. We’ve celebrated 13 birthdays together and for our 14th birthday together, Liz picked Seattle and I tacked on Vancouver. Our annual birthday trip (my birthday is in July and hers is in August) began in 2017. We flew in … Continue reading 3rd Annual BFF Birthday Trip: Seattle
The last stop on my road trip: Flagstaff. A few years ago, I embarked on a road trip from Tucson -> Phoenix -> Sedona but it was too cold/icy to drive up the Flagstaff in January. As I was planning my trip, I wanted to spend my birthday in a small city rather than on the trails and my friends have raved about Flagstaff… I’m … Continue reading 32 in Flagstaff
The Rhine We chose the Rhine Getaway this year with my aunt and cousin. We started in Amsterdam (extended our trip 2 days), Kinderdijk & Cologne, Marksburg, Rüdesheim, & Heidelberg, Strasbourg, the Black Forest, and Basel… but only for the morning. This was a big bummer for us as we hoped to see more of Switzerland; however, I expect it would’ve been expensive. Last year’s … Continue reading Rhine Getaway: Black Forest & Trip Recap
After leaving the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary and saying goodbye to Hercules, I was solo again. It was time to head into Northern Arizona for the second leg of the trip. Lower Antelope Canyon I booked a tour of Lower Antelope Canyon through Ken’s Tours. As the site sits on Navajo land, you must take a tour to enter. Surprisingly, the stairs down were scary … Continue reading Lower Antelope Canyon & Grand Canyon
Coral Pink Sand Dunes When I saw a Girls Who Hike event to the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, I was in! I bought a spot from someone who dropped out and after hiking Bryce Canyon in the morning, I met up with Kristen and Tatiana at the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. After setting up camp, we went sandboarding! I was hesitant but loved it! We … Continue reading Sandboarding & Best Friends Animal Sanctuary
Stop in Las Vegas I made a quick stop at the Seven Magic Mountains, an art installation on the way to Vegas. For lunch, I popped into Toast Society Cafe, co-owned by Rachael’s Good Eats. It was a gorgeous space with good service. The avocado toast was beautiful but tasted okay. I’ve eaten a lot of avo toast. St. George It got hotter and hotter … Continue reading St. George & Bryce Canyon
We arrived in France after Amsterdam, Cologne, and a slew of German cities. Actually France was on one side of the river and Germany on the other. We drove into Strasbourg for our tour, which began with views of storks and their nests atop every tree by Parc de l’Orangerie. Then, we made it into the city proper. Strasbourg Cathedral Another day, another cathedral. Like … Continue reading Rhine Getaway: Strasbourg, France
Julie in the World 