If you’ve seen the videos spun off by the popular “Sh*t Girls Say” video (my favorites: Sh*t Boston Girls Say, Sh*t Asian Girls Say, Sh*t Southern Gay Guys Say), you probably knew that this one was coming!

To put the video together, we solicited for suggestions in travel blogger discussion groups and then did filming.  I filmed myself in Chester with my Flip Mino HD; Cailin and Corbin filmed in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Cailin put the final product together.

Oh, and hilarity ensued.

Enjoy!

When I first visited Paris in 2001, Montmartre was easily my favorite neighborhood.  The artists in Place du Tertre, the tiny cafes, the remnants of the bohemian life, the view of Paris from the top of the city — to me, it was pure magic.

Less than a month later, Moulin Rouge hit theaters — and like many other sixteen-year-old girls at that time, it became my obsession.  Later in the year, Amelie hit theaters.  With both of these Montmartre-centric movies, Montmartre

But this was the first time I came to Montmartre armed with my iPhone.  These pictures were taken with the Pro HDR app and were edited with the PictureShow app.  Each app will set you back $1.99, and they are two apps that I am LOVING lately!

Allow me to present Montmartre — As Seen By iPhoneography!

What I love about Montmartre is that it feels like a village.  Once you get away from the crowded tourist areas, you’ll have the steep, winding streets to yourselves.  This area is mostly residential, with an occasional boulangerie or fruit stand.

Get a shot at the right moment, like I did above, and it looks like it could have been taken 100 years ago.

The Art Deco Metro signs are all over Paris, but I think they look especially good in Montmartre — like this one at the Abbesses stop.

Anchoring Montmartre is the Sacre Coeur church on top of the hill that overlooks the whole city.  You can see it from all over Paris.  It was built so people would be able to look up and see it and know that the Lord would always be there looking after them.

And now for something more colorful and zany, something that could be a set from Moulin Rouge!  I loved the decor of this creperie near the base of the funiculaire.

I used the “zoom” filter for this one, which gives it that dizzying motion that you see throughout Moulin Rouge!

To this day, Montmartre’s Place du Tertre is filled with artists — though far fewer in January than during the summer.

My tip?  If you want your portrait done, walk around, observe the artists, and pay more for a GOOD artist to do it.  The bad artists outnumber the good ones, so if you shell out for a portrait, shell out for quality work.

And finally, the Moulin de la Gallette.  Remember how Amelie worked at the Cafe des Deux Moulins (also a real-life place in Montmartre)?  This is the other Moulin.  The first is the Moulin Rouge, of course!

Would I still name Montmartre as my favorite neighborhood?  I don’t think so.  I do enjoy it, and I think it’s a lovely escape within Paris, but I think I much prefer the Marais and St. Germain these days.

So for me, as well as Paris as a whole, Montmartre is a place for nostalgia — where my sixteen-year-old self ran around, took pictures with cute French waiters, couldn’t say no to a single street vendor, and dreamed of moving to Paris and falling in love.  Nostalgia is a great feeling.

Which picture is your favorite?

For my latest stay in Paris, I wanted to stay somewhere special — ideally, in a stylish boutique hotel.  When I found the Hotel 7, I not only got my wish — I got to see one of the most stylish hotels I’ve ever seen!

The Hotel 7′s rooms alone are works of art — but if you book one of the suites, you’re in for something really special.

I stayed in the On/Off Suite.

At first glance, it was a beautiful and luxurious suite.  (That bed!  That squishy rug!  Those PILLOWS!)

And then you realize just why it’s called the On/Off Suite — it has two styles!

It’s on!  It’s off!  With a flick of a switch, the frosted doors go clear, revealing the forest-like decoration inside.

It’s also hilarious if your travel companion decides to hide in one of the closets while the doors are frosted, then is foiled when you press a button.

The on/off trick wasn’t the only treat in the suite.  Check out the bathroom:

Turn off the lights, turn on the rainbow light, and the bathroom turns into a disco!

One thing that I do wish the suite had had was a stand for the shower head — not just a hand-held nozzle.  I know that the French prefer hand-held showers, but this seems like a small additions that could have made a big difference for customers who just want to stand underneath a hot shower after a long day of sightseeing.

The suite had some amenities that I did love:

• An espresso machine with unlimited servings
• An iHome dock for iPods and iPhones
• Free WiFi (while this should be required for all hotels, you’d be surprised how many still don’t!)

Click here to see more of the On/Off Suite on Hotel 7′s site.

Think my suite was crazy?  Check out the Marie Antoinette Suite, the 007 Suite and the Alice in Wonderland Suite!

The style extended to every inch in the hotel, including the downstairs bar.

As you can see, the hotel takes its decor very seriously.  I loved the unexpected touches of style — like the elevator, which was lined in denim!

Breakfast costs extra and can be served in the room, at the bar, or buffet-style in the dining room.  There wasn’t much in terms of hot items — think of it as an enhanced continental breakfast — but they had a great variety of baked goods, including macarons!

The Hotel 7 is located in the Latin Quarter — the 5eme arrondissement.  It’s a great, central location, and it won’t cost as much to get a cab from here to elsewhere.

But if you’re traveling solo, keep in mind that Boulevard Port-Royal gets deserted at night.  It’s around an 8-10 minute walk down Boulevard Port-Royal from either the Port-Royal or Les Gobelins stops.  The route from Luxembourg station is a bit longer but a bit more traversed.

I loved this hotel, and if you’re traveling to Paris for a special occasion, this is an excellent choice.  The design alone will blow you away, and the excellent, smiling service is a welcome arrival for Paris. I already want to return, and if the Hotel 7 is any indication, I’m sure that the rest of the Elegancia Hotels are just as stunning!

Many thanks to the Hotel 7 and Elegancia Hotels for hosting me in Paris.  All opinions, as always, are my own.

It all began with a pamphlet entitled WILD & SEXY SCOTLAND.

It was last fall and I was about to leave Edinburgh and jump on a train back to Chester.  On my way out of Haggis Hostel, I grabbed several pamphlets to plan my return trip to Scotland.  On the way out, the WILD & SEXY SCOTLAND caught my eye and I grabbed the pamphlet as well.

And that is how I discovered Haggis Adventures, a tour company based in Scotland.  Right away, I knew that anyone who labeled their brochure WILD & SEXY SCOTLAND had to have a great sense of humor and know how to have a good time!

While Haggis Adventures runs trips year-round, this pamphlet was filled with their special holiday trips.  Christmas at a castle in the highlands, complete with a traditional ceilidh, mulled wine, and a snowball fight on Christmas morning.  New Year’s at the Hogmanay in Edinburgh, one of the world’s best celebrations to bring in the new year.

And there was one more: The Up Helly Aa in the Shetland Islands.  The description:

Few have heard of it, let alone been. Our destination is the remote Shetland Islands in the far north of Scotland for one of the most incredible festivals in Europe. On the last Tuesday of January, the town of Lerwick goes more than a little mad. Up Helly Aa is a lot more than a sub-arctic bonfire and booze-up. It’s a superb spectacle, a celebration of Shetland history, and a triumphant demonstration of the islanders’ skills and spirit. Fifty horny-helmeted Vikings, a burning Norse galley and an all night party. Unmissable.

My initial thoughts:

I AM SO GOING TO THIS FESTIVAL.

Long story short: I got in touch with Haggis Adventures, we talked business, and I was immediately impressed by their company.  I love the Scots to begin with; they have such a fun, gregarious attitude, and this attitude shines through Haggis Adventures.  Their tours are aimed at young, fun-loving backpackers, featuring guides as wacky as they are knowledgeable.

Haggis Adventures emphasizes having fun on a budget.  Like me, they splurge on the unforgettable parts of the adventures and keep everything else cheap.  With a commitment to staying green and local, the tours use low-emission buses and work with local businesses.

After learning about Haggis Adventures, I was sold.  They offered me a spot on the tour and I readily accepted.

Here is the itinerary:

Day One (Sunday): Leave Edinburgh and drive through Scotland, visiting Royal Braemar, Crathie Kirk, John Brown’s resting place, and Aberdeen.  Get on an overnight ferry to Lerwick, Shetland, via the Orkney Islands.

Day Two (Monday): Arrive in Shetland and explore the islands.  Visit the settlement of Scalloway, the Scalloway Islands, the Nature Reserve of Sumbugh Head, and Jarlshof, plus time in the main town of Lerwick.

Day Three (Tuesday): Up Helly Aa night!  Get started in the morning with festivities in town, including parades, folk music, and dancing.  Later, the Up Helly Aa begins, with torches and fire and a giant burning Viking boat!  Plus much more music, dancing, drinking, and celebrating.

Day Four (Wednesday): Sing away the hangovers with the locals.  Visit Tynwald Parliament and the northern part of the island before getting on an overnight ferry back to Scotland.

Day Five (Thursday): Drive through the Scottish countryside, visiting St. Andrews and some other sights on the way back to Edinburgh.

I am SO excited for this trip!

You’ll be seeing my posts after the event, and more posts from Paris while I’m away.  For now, I’d love if you could follow me on Twitter or become a Facebook fan to stay up-to-date on the Shetland posts.  Not sure how the internet situation will be up there, but I’ll try my best.

Before and after the trip, I’ll be spending a bit of time in Edinburgh, hanging out with my Edinburgh friends, meeting new ones, staying at the awesome Haggis Hostel again, and getting to know this great city a little bit better.

Next time you see me, I’ll be carrying a flaming torch and wearing a helmet with my arm around a giant Viking, bellowing out a traditional song.  This is going to be AMAZING!

Images: Haggis Adventures, Vincenzo_1949, reynard

This time last year, I was in Hanoi, Vietnam, and celebrated Australia Day for the first time…in a truly unique fashion.

I was staying at the excellent Hanoi Backpackers, home to one of the best hostel happy hours in the world.  At 5:00 PM every night, it feels like every backpacker in the city comes up to the Hanoi Backpackers bar.  In this city, where you can find bia hoi (cheap Vietnamese beer) for 12 cents a glass, Hanoi Backpackers actually gives out beer for free on Sundays!

A few days after arriving in Hanoi, I got very sick.  After four days of staying in bed and eating nothing but baguettes and bananas from the hostel kitchen, I decided it was time to be a human again.  I dragged myself upstairs to the bar, determined to socialize.  It was Australia Day, and I heard there would be a celebration.

I got to the top and saw this:

Have I mentioned that Hanoi Backpackers is owned by Australians?

Hoo boy.

Everyone, no matter what nationality they were, was covered in Australian flag tattoos.  The barbecue was fired up, serving burgers that should have been far too delicious for being made in Vietnam, and the beer was flowing!

And I got into the spirit!  I love Australians.  All the Australians I’ve met have been incredibly welcoming and friendly, so hilarious, and always up for a beer.  They also love to travel, and you’ll probably find at least one Australian on any cheap holidays you go on around the globe.

Most of the people up there that day were Australian.  I was wrapped up in the Australian flag and cheering the country’s existence in no time.

And then it became time for frog racing.  Yes, the official event of Australia Day at Hanoi Backpackers was racing frogs.

The frogs were put in a circle and the first one to jump out would be the winner.

The frogs had numbers on them, but that wasn’t enough — we had to name them as well.  Most of the Australian guys had named the frogs after themselves, but they came up with a few unique ones…

Yep.  We had a frog named Lady Gaga.

With that, I immediately knew who I was rooting for.

And they were off!

“JUMP, LADY GAGA!” I yelled.  ”YOU CAN DO IT!  JUST DANCE!  LET THE MUSIC PLAY!”

Lady Gaga stayed still, as did most of the frogs.

“COME ON, LADY GAGA!”

Lady Gaga didn’t even come close.

But she was still my froggie.

Out of all the country celebrations I’ve seen around the world, my bizarre Australia Day in Hanoi remains one that I’ll always remember.  Tattoos, beer, frogs, and all.

I just spent the past weekend in Paris, my favorite city in the world.  I adore Paris, and though I wasn’t solo on this particular trip, I think it’s one of the best cities in the world for solo female travelers to visit.  This was my fifth visit to Paris, and though I’ve spent so much time in the city, I’ve never been during the winter before.

It was a revelation.  I’ve never been able to stand winter, my New England upbringing notwithstanding, and I try to avoid it when I can.  But Paris was absolutely lovely in winter — as beautiful as always, a bit quieter, and still dazzling in its grandeur.

Here are some things I loved about visiting Paris in winter:

First thing you’ll notice if you come to Paris in January?  All the SOLDES signs.  There are HUGE monthlong sales in the months of January and July each year.  If you want to shop, this is the time to come to Paris!

Another treat you get from visiting Paris in the winter?  Ice skating at the Hotel de Ville.  It’s a lovely backdrop — and if you want to skate with just adults, it’s open until midnight on the weekends.

After you’ve had enough of the cold, head inside to a Museum — Paris has PLENTY of them.  On this trip to Paris, I made my first visit ever to the modern art museum at the Centre Pompidou — also known as Beaubourg.  It’s a fantastic collection with an almost obscene number of Picassos, and well worth visiting for the views from the top alone.

Throughout the cold, you’ll want some hearty meals to keep you warm.  Whenever I go to France, I try to have magret de canard — roasted duck breast — at least once.  This one was served in a buttery fig sauce.  Just heavenly.

No matter what the weather’s like, you’ll get a panorama of the city from the top of Montmartre.

Think the quintessentially Parisian activity of sitting outside at a cafe and drinking wine (not to mention chain-smoking and scribbling in a notebook) is limited to the warmer months?  Think again.  It’s even nicer in the winter because they put out the massive heat lamps.

And this last one may have nothing to do with winter, but I had to include it — we went to see the corner from Midnight in Paris!  I swear I could see an old-fashioned taxi coming up around the bend…

I will say one disadvantage of traveling in Paris in winter — you don’t receive the reprieve from tourist crowds that you would in other cities.  Paris is filled with tourists — always.  January may not be the sweaty mess that August is, but you’ll still be waiting in long lines and struggling to see paintings through crowds.

Don’t let that stop you, though.  Paris is like nowhere else in the world — and seeing it during the winter is a very special experience.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard someone say in passing, “Everyone loves Chiang Mai.”  Each time, it makes me wince — because it’s not true.

Not everyone loves Chiang Mai.

YIKES!  Someone finally said it.

I can understand why people would think that everyone loves it.  Chiang Mai is home to a sizable travel blogger community, and as a result, receives almost universal praise.  Those who love it are very vocal about loving it.

Do you think many bloggers, especially new bloggers, want to challenge that?  I didn’t.  Last year, I wrote truthfully about my experience in Chiang Mai, but steered clear of critical commentary.  I still felt like a newbie blogger and I didn’t want to lose the support of more established, Chiang Mai-loving bloggers.

Time has passed.  Now that this site drives most of my income, I should be more worried about what I say here; ironically, having so much more at stake has given me the greater confidence to speak candidly.

To start, let me tell you all the wonderful things about Chiang Mai.

Good Reasons to Live in Chiang Mai

It’s cheap.  While Thailand is cheap to begin with, northern Thailand is the cheapest part.  You can live in a great, modern apartment with internet and cable TV for less than $200 USD per month.

There are lots of Western amenities.  The internet is excellent, the hospitals are quite good, you can find many Western products, and there are many Western and ethnic food options, including the elusive Mexican food.

There is so much culture.  If you love festivals, this is a great city.  Songkran is reportedly better here than anywhere else in the country (though I can’t imagine anything better than Songkran in Bangkok!), and the Yee Ping lantern festival is beautiful.  Plus, there are tons of cooking classes and treks you can join.

The weather is cooler.  If the Bangkok heat is too much for you, Chiang Mai is in the mountains, where the weather is much more bearable.

The street food is amazing.  Chiang Mai is my favorite city in the world for street food, and the street stalls at Chiang Mai gate every night are amazing.

There are tons of expats.  You won’t have to look far for an expat community, and the travel bloggers in town have a special community.

And still…I didn’t quite get it.

On paper, Chiang Mai looks pretty damn perfect.  But paper wasn’t enough — I wasn’t feeling the magnetic pull that so many travel bloggers before me had felt.

Every now and then I see a traveler about to leave on a trip and say, “I might stay in Chiang Mai, Thailand, for a while.”  For no reason other than the fact that lots of travel bloggers stop there.

So many bloggers have waxed poetic about Chiang Mai that I think it’s time to get some alternate views out there.  Here are the things not to love about Chiang Mai.

Chiang Mai is isolated.

Want to go somewhere different?  You’ll have to fly via Bangkok.  It’s either that or spending twelve hours on a bus or train to get to Bangkok.  You can fly to some international cities, like Kuala Lumpur and Kunming, but these are quite limited.

There are some nice northern towns, like Pai and Chiang Rai, as well as the undervisited ruins of Sukhothai, but to go elsewhere overland, you’ll be traveling for several hours.  Overland visa runs more or less demand Laos visits, and it takes just as long to get to Vientiane as it does to get to Bangkok.

Chiang Mai is far from beaches.

If you moved to Thailand because you love beaches, Chiang Mai is one of the worst places you can be.  If you want to get from Chiang Mai to a beach, you can fly to Phuket or to a few other beach towns.

If you’re going by bus or train, it will take you one 12-hour bus or train to Bangkok, followed by another 12-hour bus or train to the Andaman Coast or the Southern Gulf Coast.  The beaches on the Eastern Gulf Coast are slightly closer — 18 hours or so by bus as opposed to 24.

Chiang Mai is FILLED with creepy old men.

All over Chiang Mai — from visiting the temples to strolling the markets to sitting in restaurants — you see older Western men with young Thai women.  While I don’t mind these relationships in general, I DO mind them when the girls are young enough to be their grandchildren and the men speak to them like they’re babies.

Is seeing these relationships just a part of visiting Thailand?  Absolutely.  You see this throughout the country — but after traveling extensively through Thailand, I can say without a doubt that it’s more prevalent in Chiang Mai than anywhere else I’ve been, including Bangkok.

At least in Bangkok it’s mostly confined to certain neighborhoods.  In Chiang Mai, it’s everywhere — not just its designated neighborhood — and the girls seem to be far younger.  It was Chiang Mai that inspired me to write my post, Young Thai Women and the Western Men Who Love Them.

The strange thing?  Though I’ve talked about this with some of my Chiang Mai friends (some of these men are their neighbors), I haven’t read one blog post that references this facet of the city.

Chiang Mai has no edge.

This last part is the most significant factor to me, yet the most difficult one to articulate.

When I visited, I kept thinking to myself that Chiang Mai was nice, Chiang Mai was pleasant, Chiang Mai was peaceful.  And it bored me out of my mind.

I tried to see more of Chiang Mai.  I explored different neighborhoods.  I tried all the markets.  I had a memorable night out at some wacky bars.

Could I have done a better job of filling my time in Chiang Mai?  Could I have scheduled more activities and spent less time working?  Of course.  But I don’t think my opinion is irrelevant.

The thing is that the extreme nice-ness of Chiang Mai made me realize that I need to live in a place with an edge — somewhere a bit more difficult, somewhere a bit less forgiving.  Somewhere with a bit of drama, somewhere that pulsates.

I started to explain to one like-minded travel blogger. “I think I’d be happier complaining about the traffic in Bangkok–” “YES!” he cut me off.  He knew exactly what I meant before I even said it.  (That’s yet another secret — some of the travel bloggers who have lived in Chiang Mai feel the same way I do!)

Some — though not all — of the people I know who live in Chiang Mai like to put down Bangkok on a regular basis, citing its pollution, traffic, and heat.  Sure, Bangkok is a big city, and God knows Bangkok has its problems.

But Bangkok is one of the most fascinating, electrifying cities I’ve ever visited.  Every day is starkly different than the one before.  There’s something charging through the air that you would never be able to find in Chiang Mai.

Living in Thailand

If I were to settle in Thailand for a while, it wouldn’t be Chiang Mai.  I would probably choose Bangkok, one of my favorite cities in the world, or a beach community — likely either Ao Nang or Koh Lanta.

The difference is that Ao Nang, Koh Lanta, and especially Bangkok have an edge to them.  They have a dark side.  Hell, even on peaceful Lanta, I ended up spending the night with the Thai Mafia!

My advice to those of you considering visiting or living in Chiang Mai:

Keep an open mind.  Don’t think that because so many travel bloggers love Chiang Mai, you need to love it as well.  It wasn’t for me and it’s not for everyone.

Listen to your heart and not just your mind.  Sure, Chiang Mai is cheap, and easy, and home to tons of expats.  But does it make your pulse race?

Think about it.

Thailand is a fantastic country, and there are so many great places to live.  Explore enough and you’ll find the place that’s right for you.

It’s easy to assume that all of American pop culture translates across the pond. After all, we share a common language, for starters.  Most of the films playing at the cinema are American, Comedy Central UK plays Friends and South Park all day long, and clubs play Lady Gaga and LMFAO all night long.

But despite all that, there’s a gap — a comedy gap. 

I first noticed it with Saturday Night Live.  The only SNL sketches that make it across the pond are the occasional Lonely Island song.  I mentioned “More Cowbell” in passing, and Dave didn’t have a clue what I was talking about.

“We are watching More Cowbell RIGHT NOW!” I cried.  I sat down Dave and his brothers and after some avid Googling, pulled up More Cowbell on Funny or Die.

This 12-year-old SNL sketch has been done to death in America.  You can buy More Cowbell t-shirts, More Cowbell mugs, even More Cowbell socks.  Every year at Halloween, some guy is dressed up as the More Cowbell guy.  Even Will Ferrell did it again, bringing a cowbell to Conan’s final episode of The Tonight Show.

BUT — to the Brits, this is completely new.  I played the sketch for the three guys and watched them nearly fall over in heaving, gasping laughter.  Watching them laugh until they were red-faced and teary-eyed was its own reward.

That’s how it was when WE saw it for the first time.

Since then, I’ve made it my mission to share as many funny videos from America as possible to my British friends.

Here it is:

Adventurous Kate’s Guide to Contemporary American Culture and Humor

More Cowbell — The original and best.

Pants on the Ground — One of the best — and most surprising — American Idol auditions of all time.

Antoine Dodson — Hide yo kids, hide yo wife.  Is there a better rags to riches story than Antoine Dodson? After this video went viral, it turned into a remix that became a bestselling iTunes song. Then, later, he appeared at the BET Hip-Hop Awards — with the audience singing along with him.

Two Worlds Collide — Of all the Lonely Island digital shorts on SNL, this is the weirdest, and I think my favorite. This is one that didn’t cross the pond.

The Interrupter — One of Conan’s best recurring bits on Late Night. I LOVE THE INTERRUPTER!!

The Leprechaun of Mobile, Alabama — Required viewing on St. Patrick’s Day each year, and one of the most random news reports of all time.

What is a…? — Even Alex Trebek can’t keep his composure on this one.

Hamm and Buble — Another SNL sketch, Jon Hamm and Michael Buble have opened a restaurant with an unusual theme.

Well, this page is an excellent way to waste a lot of time, but I do hope you pass it on to your non-American friends. You’ll love watching them laugh!

Well, this weekend, I went to see one of its filming locations: Lyme Park in Cheshire, England.

Here is the scene when Colin Firth strips down (though not nearly enough for my liking) and jumps into the lake:

Lyme Park is an estate in Cheshire, northwest England, just on the edge of the Peak District.  It’s an easy day trip from Manchester, Liverpool, or anywhere in the northwest, including Chester.

I know that northern England isn’t on many people’s itineraries — but if you come, you’ll be rewarded with some beautiful scenery.

If you’re the type who would book London flights just to see the country estates of your favorite Jane Austin novel-turned-film, Lyme Park is definitely one you shouldn’t miss.  Strolling along the paths, you’ll feel like you’re back in the nineteenth century.

And Lyme Park was the perfect place to try out iPhone HDR photography with my new iPhone 4S.  Yes, you heard me correctly: you can do HDR photography with the iPhone!

HDR photography takes several images at different exposures, then fuses them together into one image where all the exposures are optimal.  With most cameras, you often end up with a washed out sky or dark trees or buildings that blend into a mass of black.

For regular HDR photography, you need a DSLR, a tripod, and HDR software.  On the iPhone, all you need is the Pro HDR app.  It costs $1.99, and while I don’t like spending money on apps, this one is worth it several times over.

And with it, I was able to get pictures like this:

Isn’t that amazing?  It gets every detail of the trees.  It gets a bright blue sky.  Nothing is bleached or darkened.

iPhones are the cameras of the future.

Visiting an English country estate in the winter might not sound like a good idea, but it was actually a really nice time to visit.  The gardens are closed for the month of January, but everything else is open.  As long as you don’t mind a little bit of mud on your shoes, you’ll be fine.

This winter, there is a really lovely Beatrix Potter exhibition at Lyme Park.  The exhibition features several of her original drawings and letters, as well as play areas for the kids.  There’s also a trail through the gardens with special touches from her books — like Peter Rabbit’s little blue jacket and boots hanging off a scarecrow in the garden!

I loved seeing how excited the kids got to hug Peter Rabbit.  I remember reading Beatrix’s Potters books when I was little, and it’s so nice to know that her characters are still delighting kids in Britain and America today.

Beatrix Potter was a huge proponent of conservation in northern England, and later in life, after moving to the Lake District, she donated her time and money to make sure the idyllic countryside remained preserved.

If you want to visit Lyme Park, expect to pay £6 per adult and £5 per car.  The estate is huge and you could easily spend a full day here — though if you’re going to be spending more than a few hours, I recommend waiting until the weather is warmer!

Even without a rogue Colin Firth sighting, I still had a great day in the Cheshire countryside.

After waiting far too long, I am finally, FINALLY, starting the Adventurous Kate Newsletter, a fantastic extension to this site.

And because I want people to sign up, I’m making a special offer to entice you to subscribe.

I’m giving away $100!

If I get 100 people to sign up by February 5, 2012, I will be giving away $100 to a randomly selected subscriber.  

I will either send you $100 USD cash via PayPal or send you a gift card to Amazon, Best Buy, or any other store you like.

Think of what you could do with all that money…

Why sign up?

You’ll be getting many more exclusive pieces that will never make it onto the web site.

Here’s what it will contain:

• New, exclusive travel content.  The newsletter will feature travel content that will never be seen on the site, on the Facebook page, or anywhere else — it’s just for subscribers.
• Personal updates from Kate.  Find out where I’ve been, where I’m going, cool things I’ve eaten lately — the works!
• Destination spotlights.  Each month, I’ll write an in-depth profile on a destination I love, including some of my favorite places to visit there.
• Notable posts from the travel blogosphere.  I’d like to highlight interesting posts from my fellow travel bloggers that I think you’d enjoy.
• Travel deals.  I’d like my advertisers to extend their offers to YOU, my newsletter subscribers, directly.  This is something that will probably begin with the March newsletter, once I have solid numbers to offer my advertisers.

I’m sure that the newsletter will evolve over time, but it will always include special, exclusive content for subscribers only.

How to sign up:

Click here and enter your email address.  If you’re reading this on the site (click here if you’re reading this via email or RSS), you can see that there is a form in the right sidebar, as well.

Once you sign up, you will be sent a confirmation email — be sure to confirm that email as well!

When is the newsletter coming out?

The first newsletter will be coming out in early February, right after I return from my trip to Shetland.

I plan on them being monthly for now, but depending how the first few months go, perhaps I’ll increase them to twice per month.

And that’s not all!

If I get 200 subscribers, another one of you will win $50.

300 subscribers?  Yet ANOTHER one of you will win $50.

So be sure to spread the word to your friends to maximize your chances!

Note: if you try to cheat and enter multiple times on the same address, i.e. john.smith@gmail.com, j.ohnsmith@gmail.com, jo.hnsmith@gmail.com, you’re not going to win anything.  I WILL notice.

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