The Adventure List

And its Live!

2015-02-07T20:28:00.000-05:00

Head on over and check it out. My new site is live.

The Adventure List

Switching Sites

2015-02-07T18:41:00.001-05:00

After spending the last two weeks researching and reading and researching and pulling my hair out, I am a few hours away from launching a self-hosted site for The Adventure List. If you currently read or subscribe, you will need to switch to www.theadventurelist.co.

I've transferred all information to the new site but haven't cleaned up the links yet. Still getting used to the new platform, be patient.

I do like the many many options available on a self-hosted site. Wow! Who knew?

A follow up notice will be placed on this site as soon as I hit the Launch button. Goal by 8pm tonight.

Fingers crossed.

Pinots in Portland

2015-01-22T07:00:00.000-05:00

While in the Portland area, my plan is to try as many Pinot Noirs and Pinot Gris as my wallet will allow. While in town last week, I dropped by Thirst to try their Pinot wine flight. $17 for 4- 2 oz. pours.

Biggio Hamina '11 - meh. Light. Not so much flavor
David Hill Estate '10 - yummy. Heavy. Spice. Leather. Bold. Will try it again
Purple Hands '13- oh so good, completely opposite of the David Hill. Light, fruity, bright. A definite taste again
Hayden Road '09 - meh. Not bad. Not memorable though

My first visit to Portland in 2012 turned me onto Pinot Noirs. Burnside Brewery is where I fell in love with Amity Pinot. Oh man, is it good. A little pricey by the bottle for me but well worth it.

A coworker gave me a bottle of King Estate Pinot Noir 2012. It is one of the best I've tried. Very smooth. Full fruit flavor.

Planet Oregon Pinot Noir 2012 is one that is sold by the glass at my work. A mild wine that would be good for everyday drinking. Plus it has a cool label.

Viridian 2010 tastes low quality. Sharp alcohol start with a mellow finish.

Hopefully, there will be several more Pinot posts to come.

Donut Obsession

2015-01-19T07:00:00.000-05:00

I am a donut addict. Yeah, I said it. I'm obsessed with donuts. I don't need to eat them all the time but if I'm out walking around, it's hard to walk past a donut shop without getting one to-go at least. My craze for the last few years has been bacon donuts. Have you tried them? They are amazing at most places.

Portland, Oregon

Yesterday I stopped by Blue Star and got the beauties below: Maple Bacon raised donut and a Lemon Poppyseed buttermilk. They were both delicious. The sweet and salty of the Maple Bacon complimented each other perfectly. Blue Star is definitely worth another visit.

<----- After 6 donut-free months spent in Alaska, I got this heavenly Maple Bacon longjohn at Tonalli's Donuts & Cream in NE quarter. I will be hitting this place up again.

No first time visit to Portland is complete without a visit to iconic Voodoo Donuts. Again, a Bacon Maple Bar as well as an Old Dirty Bastard made their way into my belly. I loved the full strips of bacon but the frosting was too sweet. Recommendation: skip it except for the tourist factor---->

Joe's Donuts in little Sandy, Oregon has a version of Maple Bacon, too.

Not enough bacon! The slices were too thin. Their other donuts are delicious though.

Chicago, Illinois

2 Sparrows was my first ever try of a bacon donut. This one was quickly followed by many more: Do-Rite Donuts, Dinkel's Donuts, my favorite Glazed and Infused and several others. Glazed and Infused has THE best candied bacon on their donut.

Hostels of Talkeetna

2015-01-15T18:11:00.000-05:00

Talkeetna Trip #1

House of Seven Trees Hostel

North Main Street

Talkeetna, AK

(907) 733-7733

Trip #1 to Talkeetna involved the first time I didn't make reservations at a hotel or hostel. Going outside my comfort zone. Scary. I always worry I'll show up and not be able to find a place to stay. Then what do you do? I lucked out and did find a place to stay. The Hostel is located on the main drag of Talkeetna next to Mountain High Pizza. The main house (blue house) has the private rooms, bathrooms, common areas, and fully stocked kitchen. The dorm room is in the back called Ye Olde Bunque Haus. In between the two buildings is a bbq and outdoor sitting area. The main building is really clean and well maintained. The two bathrooms have fluffy white towels for guests use. I stayed in the Bunque Haus. Cost $25 per night, cash only.

Walking around the main building to find the Bunque Haus was eye opening. I had never stayed in a co-ed dorm-style room before. It was nothing like what I expected. I guess I should have expected it though. It was the middle of mountaineering Alaska. No locks on the door. Rustic looking. No bathroom. No heat. At least the beds were comfortable. When the door was shut, the room was warm enough. After my second stay in Talkeetna, I realized locks are not a necessity in this small town.

Best Features: location, clean main house, available amenities
Improvements: locking door or secured storage area
Would I stay here again: Yes as long as it is warm enough

Talkeetna Trip #2

Talkeetna Hostel International

www.TalkeetnaHostel.com

22159 S I St

Talkeetna, AK

(907) 733-4678

This hostel is by far the most interesting hostel I have stayed in. Don't be fooled by the photo on their website. The photo above is from September 2014. This is what the property really looks like. Even though the walk to the hostel and the outside of the property is scary and odd looking, the inside is cozy and relatively clean considering the majority of the long term guests are men. The inside is like any other typical ranch house. There are several bedrooms. I only saw the one I stayed in. I'm not sure if it was co-ed or not because I was the only guest in that room. The common area had a tv with cable and a woodburning fireplace. I didn't use the kitchen but it was large and appeared to have useful supplies. Outside the house are several different types of camping available. Vans, campers, outbuildings, and tent sites to rent.

The hostel is located on the far side of town. A little bit of a walk but not too far from the main section of Talkeetna with the restaurants and bars. Follow the signs. Keep going. You will eventually reach it. Walking down I Street, I thought for sure I missed it and was walking into something I would regret. I didn't. My imagination was running away with me. The place wasn't that bad. Be cautious if you need to shower and leave by a certain time. There is only one bathroom for all guests use. Luckily the hot water supply lasted for everyone in line and towels were free. This hostel didn't have locks on anything either. Common trend perhaps in rural Alaska? $25 per night, cash only.

Best Features: warm fireplace, wifi
Improvements: another bathroom, clean up the outside area, lockable private storage
Would I stay here again: Yes if other options are not available

2014 Year in Review

2015-01-01T06:00:00.000-05:00

In 2013, my Sketchbook Project revolved around my travels and ended with asking "2014 Where will you take me? What dreams will come true?" 2013 was amazing travel-wise coming in with 10 trips, including San Francisco, Portland, and Minneapolis. I wasn't sure if 2014 could top it. It did! Why? Because I got to live in the places I traveled to which meant I got to experience more of what the area offered. Plus one of the places was my #1 Bucket List place (Alaska) and I got my first stamp in my passport (Mexico).

Travels for 2014:
Finished a 2 year stint in Chicago
2 weeks at home with kids
6 months in Denali area Alaska with side trips to Anchorage, Talkeetna, Fairbanks and Barrow
2 weeks in Sayulita and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
2 months of a 5 month stay on Mt. Hood, Oregon in a little town called Zigzag

Dreams that Came True:
Visited/lived in Alaska
Visited the northern most part of US (Barrow)
Saw a polar bear in the wild
Traveled outside of US
Lived by myself for the first time in my life
Worked in a resort (two, in fact)
Started to seriously learn another language (Spanish)
Wrote a book

Now what will 2015 bring?

Trip Goals

2014-12-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

When you travel, do you have trip goals? Sometimes I consciously have a goal and other times it happens once I get to my destination.

Recent Travel Goals
Portland - try as many food carts and Pinot Noirs as possible

Napa - drink good wine and buy a really nice bottle out of my normal price range to drink at home

San Francisco - no goal oddly enough, not even once I got there

Minneapolis - happy hour, happy hour, happy hour. Actually, I wanted to go in the winter and see a bunch of snow but that didn't happen

Chicago - eat out as much as possible

Alaska - see snow covered mountains and polar bears

Mexico - lay on a beautiful beach and soak up the sun and warmth

Milwaukee - walk around downtown

11 Restaurants I Love in Chicago

2014-12-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Chicago is the foodiest (is that a word? I'm using it regardless) city I've ever visited. A person could write endlessly about Chicago restaurants. Since I tried to eat at a different one every time I went out, you will see periodic posts about the restaurants with a main page to tie them all together. My list does not include every place I visited as I lost track eventually. All of the restaurants below warranted multiple visits.

Below are my top 11 favorites (in no particular order):

1. Kuma's Corner

A very popular rocker burger bar with exceptional food - on my initial visit I tried the Mastodon burger and Build Your Own Mac n Cheese. This restaurant has two locations in the Chicago area. Both places have an interesting atmosphere with blaring rock music and tattooed and pierced servers and cooks. Expect to wait unless you hit the restaurant at a rare moment. It's that good. A must visit type of place.

2. Lady Gregory's Irish Bar & Restaurant
Located in the delightful neighborhood of Andersonville, Lady Gregory's features a mile long list of whiskeys. Try their Ultimate Grilled Cheese with candied bacon and their Mac and Cheese with bacon. Noticing a trend yet? The first time I ate here, the summer menu featured a Guinness cheesecake that was so delectably rich, I couldn't eat it all in one sitting. A rarity.

3. Smokin' Woody's

I probably ate at this restaurant the most during my time in the city. It was a top favorite for ordering-in. The pulled pork sandwich and cornbread are to die for. The rest of their sides offerings are so-so. After eating at multiple bbq restaurants, it is my top choice for pulled pork. Eating at the restaurant is ok but extremely small, only 4/5 tables, cash only. I recommend their delivery service.

4. Ann Sather
Best ever cinnamon rolls! Even if you don't eat at the restaurant, go get their cinnamon rolls. (in writing this post, I discovered they publish their recipe online) So delicious. If you decide to stay for breakfast, try the French Toast Fantasy. It is made with their signature cinnamon rolls and is recommended by Rachael Ray. Go hungry because it's huge.

5. Bat 17 (technically Evanston, IL)

I love bbq pulled pork. I could do a post just on pulled pork restaurants. Hmmm, that's a good idea. You'll be seeing that in the future. I happened upon Bat 17 while walking randomly around Evanston. I went to go to the movies (best theater in the area) and spent the day exploring. This plate of food is an appetizer portion of bbq pulled pork sliders. An appetizer portion! The photo is missing the fourth slider which was already in my belly. Fantastic dish. Comes with my favorite, onion straws and extra bbq sauce. Not the best service in the world but great food. Try their desserts as well. Homemade gigantic cookies and pies. If you are into the craft beer scene, they have over 50.

6. Homeslice Pizza

Forget the pizza (actually the pizza is amazing too). Go to Homeslice for this appetizer. Roasted garlic served with housemade Gorgonzola basil spread and crustinis. Oh man, so delicious. I've had to stop myself from digging the garlic cloves out and eating them whole. Ok I have. I did stop myself from licking the container the spread comes in. That is an achievement. This appetizer reheats well if you want to save some room for pizza. I've tried The Knife & Forkner pizza. It is so loaded with goodness you really should use a knife and fork to eat. When you are done eating, walk off some of the carbs and go to Sweet Mandy B's just down the road. Hopefully they will have some of their lemon cupcakes left.

7. Marmalade
Located in the North Center neighborhood, this cafe is very unassuming. In fact, my friend and I discovered it by accident. We were biking to another well known cafe and decided we were too hungry for the trip involved. We saw Marmalade and said what the heck we'll try it. Marmalade quickly became our go-to brunch spot. My favorite item is the multi grain hotcakes but if that is too basic for you, try any one of their numerous french toast or Eggs Benedict's choices.

8. The Bongo Room

The Bongo Room has several locations. If you go on the weekend, expect a good long wait at any of their locations. With the two choices pictured above, is it any wonder they don't have a wait every day. My favorite and must have is the White Chocolate and Caramel Pretzel Pancakes. If you like bananas, try the Chocolate Tower French Toast.

9. Yes Thai
Chicago has an abundance of Thai restaurants. The closest one to my apartment was Yes Thai on Damen. I already liked cashew chicken before eating at this restaurant but after eating here, I became addicted. I could drink their homemade special sauce. So good. Hint: if you like a lot of sauce like me, order it "wet". I have tried to duplicate this dish with no success.

10. Tango Sur
An Argentinian steakhouse located in the Southport corridor, this restaurant serves huge delicious portions. The dish I ordered with steak and sides was easily shareable. Tango Sur is a big hit with all my restaurant friends as well especially if you want steak.

11. Sweet Baby Ray's Smokehouse

Very disappointed to learn upon writing this post that the Chicago restaurant has closed. It was located in Wrigleyville and fairly busy during Cubs games. Maybe it'll open back up for summer. The platter of pulled pork easily feed two people. And they offered like 25 different types of bbq sauce. As a bbq sauce lover, I was in heaven. The mac n cheese was another of my favorites

In case it isn't obvious already, pulled pork, burgers and mac n cheese are my favorite out-to-eat foods. Yum.

Oregon Survival Kit

2014-12-19T16:21:00.000-05:00

This is my Oregon Survival Kit. I carry it where ever I go because I have needed one or more of the items every day.

Flashlight and umbrella are the number one priorities

Phone charger - cold and altitude sucks the life right out of a cell phone battery
Hat - random snow storms
Dry socks - cause it rains here
Flashlight - I live in the middle of the woods and walk everywhere. It gets freaking dark. I've been caught without a flashlight much to my vivid imagination. Try walking in the woods when it's so dark you can't see your hand in front of your face. It's scary.
Umbrella - most Oregonians think an umbrella is for sissies. Well, I'm a sissy. If I have my winter coat on, I don't want to swap out into my raincoat. I'll take my umbrella, thank you.
Raincoat - for the same reason as above. It rains every day. Sometimes a raincoat works better than an umbrella
Gloves - it's a damp cold here and I like my gloves
Reusable grocery bag - you never know when you are going to stop at store
Backpack - I've come to terms with the fact that I am a grown-ass adult who has to carry a backpack all the time regardless of where I live since I don't drive a car anymore.
Bus pass (not pictured) - obvious reasons

My Days in Minneapolis - Part I

2014-12-16T07:00:00.000-05:00

In 2013, I tried twice to travel to Minneapolis. Initially I really wanted to visit during the winter but a major March snow storm put an end to that trip. Always check with your bus system if expecting bad weather. Traveling from Chicago, you can get a Megabus ticket to Minneapolis very cheap. So third time's a charm. I finally made it to the Mall of America city in May 2013. I arrived on a beautiful spring day.

I have discovered that I tend to have a goal with each trip I take. For Mexico, it was lay on the beach and soak up sun. For Portland, check out why its considered quirky. Once I got to Minneapolis, I realized the goal for this trip was to visit as many restaurants as possible with happy hour specials. Why? Because Chicago doesn't have happy hour.

My first stop was Nicollet Mall. Actually, this boulevard area is where I spent a lot of my time while in the city. Lots of restaurants in the downtown area. First stop, a place with a patio please. The Local, an Irish pub, drew my eye since I was in the mood for a whiskey and ginger and they offered a huge patio area. (picture to the right shows part of it) Oh man, this place did not fail me. Their signature drink is The Big Ginger with 2 Gingers whiskey. Then I munched on Chicken Shots. Yuuuummmy. Breaded chicken bites with a 2 Gingers glaze. I'm getting hungry just thinking about them. The finale consisted of Guinness Mousse. Seriously, if you go to Minneapolis, you must try this place. It is so good.

Minneapolis is the first city I visited with bike rental stations. They had them throughout the city. After stuffing my face, I rented one and cruised around the river area. Like Chicago, it is a very bike friendly city. I wish I had a bike lock though cause there were times I wanted to lock up the bike so I could go inside somewhere and there wasn't a rental station to park bike.

By this time, I was tired and needed to find that hotel I booked on Priceline's Name Your Own Price deal. Luckily, the bus system is easy to navigate as is the light-rail system. A ticket has a 2 1/2 hour transfer time limit between bus, trolley and light-rail and is reasonably priced ($1.75).

The bus dropped me 'near' my hotel but I had to hoof it about 3/4 mile. Then I discovered the hotel offered a downtown shuttle service. Yeah, I utilized that convenience the next two days.

The Amazing Hostel Sayulita

2014-12-12T07:00:00.000-05:00

I love The Amazing Race show so when I discovered a hostel named The Amazing Hostel in Sayulita I knew I had to stay there. I booked my stay through HostelBookers (not intentional but my review is on the front page for the hostel at the time of writing this post). Although my hostel experience is limited, The Amazing Hostel is exactly that its amazing. Further hostels will be compared to this hostel. I loved it and the area so much I added an additional 2 nights to my week-long stay.

My pictures are horribly bad. Goal for 2015: get better at photography. The above pictures are from the girls 10 bed dorm. The beds were comfortable and linen is included with your fee. No blanket though but its beach town Mexico, blanket not needed. The lockers were big enough for my stuff. Bring your own lock. The dorm room itself was large, exceptionally clean and quiet. There is a bathroom as part of the dorm room but it is small (see shower photo below). I preferred the ones available outside the rooms. Shower is separate from toilet with a sink in the open. Very convenient.

The last photo is looking through the common sitting area through the open air kitchen out towards the pool area. The stairs will take you up to another sun area and the outdoor handwash laundry area with clothes lines. The very top photo shows the main sun deck with tiny pool and climbing wall. There is a bbq spot and outdoor pool shower behind the photo op fake van.

The kitchen is stocked with equipment if you choose to cook (microwave, toaster and stove top, no oven). Restaurant food is so reasonably priced that I found it difficult to homecook. I did buy a few snacks and drinks for when I didn't feel like leaving the hostel; otherwise, I went out to eat. I like how they kept the refrigerator. Each guest is assigned a small plastic box to store their food in refrigerator with one shelf reserved for large bottles and shared food. They have a filtered water machine to fill up your bottles so you can stay hydrated for free.

The hostel offers towel rental (20 pesos), Spanish lessons ($50US) and a friendly cat to pet (free).

Little did I know, since I'm not Canadian, among my fellow hostel guests were Mickey and Pete, winners of The Amazing Race Canada. You can read about their adventures at their aptly named website, Mickey and Pete. They really are just as nice in person as their print and video reviews say.

Best Features: clean, clean, clean! Spacious, close to center of town, friendly and helpful staff who speak English as well as other languages, plenty of outdoor relax chairs and lounges

Improvements: more hot water for showers, availability of blanket for chilly nights (not that those happened often)

Would I stay here again: ABSOLUTELY

8 Things I love about Chicago

2014-12-09T07:00:00.000-05:00

1. The Beach

The close proximity of the beach made me deliriously happy. The two beaches I frequented (Montrose Beach and Wilson Beach) have great sand with surprisingly clean water or at least it looks that way. I spent the first 5 months of living in Chicago not realizing how amazing the beach could be. Then I moved to an apartment only a few blocks away from the beach and AHHHHHH, heaven happened. I was hooked. It became very easy to spend a few early hours at the beach then head to work. Days like those were fantastic.

2. The flowers

Congratulations to the government agency in charge of the flowers. This picture does not do them justice but Chicago does a great job of decorating the downtown and Michigan Avenue area as well as several other parts of the city. There are seasonal flowers and current artwork.

3. Public Transportation

Chicago has fantastic public transportation. You have the option of the L trains/subways or buses. Taxis are plentiful too. Never a reason to drive drunk in Chicago. There are multiple ways to get home, trust me, I've used them.

4. Restaurants

You could easily eat out every day for a year or more and never eat at the same restaurant twice. Chicago is foodie heaven. The choices seem limitless. Italian, American, gourmet, casual, Thai, pizza, burgers, fusion, you name it, Chicago probably has it. I tried my first Thai food in Chicago as well as many other new foods. Look up, a partial list of the places I've tried is in top menu.

5. Biking

Bicycling is a very popular way to get around town. I bought a bike my first summer. Soooo came in handy. I learned quickly to get over my fear of biking on the street. Many major roads have bike lanes that look really small when you are in a car but are actually spacious (kinda) when on a bike. I loved riding my bike around on a sunny day especially to the beach then a visit to my favorite gelato shop, Paciugo.

6. Brunch

No city I've visited does brunch quite like Chicago. I never realized how big a deal brunch can be until I moved. Of course, I fell in love with the tradition. One of my favorite places serves tea in real tea cups with teapots. Isn't that the coolest? If you're in town, check out Tweet.

7. Variety

The variety of this town extends beyond the different cultures (which I loved!). There is variety in just about everything. You want a Korean grocery store? You will find it. A different activity or sport you've never tried? Chicago has it. Want to learn pole dancing or go on a hike around a new neighborhood with a guide? It's available. A different festival to go to every week? Yup, you can do it.

8. Bacon

This town loves bacon and so do I. They even have a festival dedicated to bacon called Baconfest. Chefs like to put bacon into everything. Personally, I'm fine with that concept. I've tried every bacon donut I could find. Fell in love with candied bacon and bacon flights at various brunch places. I've tried a bacon bourbon manhattan, bacon ice cream, bacon on cupcakes, bacon stuffed burgers, bacon pizza, you name it.

Bakin' & Eggs

The Southern

2 Sparrows

Brrrr...Visiting the Top of the World

2014-12-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

One of my main reasons for wanting to visit Alaska was to go to Barrow. Barrow is considered the top of the world or at least the top of United States. It is the farthest most point you can travel in the US unless you are Native Alaskan or are allowed access to tribal lands to travel to Barrow Point. Barrow is in the no-roads area which means you have to fly in or reach the town via the Arctic Ocean.

Who wouldn't want to visit a place like this?

Beginning of main street along Arctic Ocean

I did not get to spend much time there. In fact, I only gave myself a day. I flew in town in the morning and flew back out in the evening. Two reasons: one, the cost of a night's stay in one of the few hotels costs more than a plane ticket and two, there is not much to do in Barrow unless you have a tour scheduled or family/friends to visit. Since I did not go during prime visiting time (summer) or travel with someone, scheduling a tour was not possible. If you do happen to find yourself in Barrow, call Will at Top of the World hotel. He is one of the local Native Alaskan guides. In fact, I waited on guests in Denali who recommended him. When I talked to Will, two people were required to schedule a tour at a cost of $125 per person. He takes you in a special vehicle out to the point where you are practically guaranteed to see polar bears. My guests told me he is an excellent guide with thorough knowledge of the area. I was disappointed to miss this opportunity.

I went to Barrow at the beginning of November when the sun was coming up at 10:30am, the day after the US had daylight saving time change. Otherwise the sun would have come up at 11:30am. So odd. The sun was setting at 3:30pm. The area was rapidly loosing daylight.

So what did I do while in Barrow? I walked around and took turns freezing and thawing. I was deliriously happy to finally be in Barrow that I really didn't care what I did other than see the town and hopefully see a polar bear. I started by eating at Arctic Pizza. Surprisingly, the pizza was not as expensive as I thought it would be. $19.00 for a small cheese pizza, only $5 more than I paid in Denali. It was really good too. Super cheesy. I would recommend the restaurant. Although it overlooks the Arctic Ocean, don't expect anything fancy. It is a regular Joe place with slow paced, super friendly service.

This is where I saw a polar bear. He was way out on the ice. My phone camera would never be able to pick up the view, unfortunately. At first, I wasn't sure what I was seeing. It was walking back and forth. It must have been on a piece of ice. My number one Alaskan goal accomplished. I did overhear at the airport later that the bear had swum up on shore with it's kill. Luckily, I had stopped walking around about 10 minutes beforehand.

Looking out at the frozen ocean from the front of Arctic Pizza

After walking around some more, I thawed in a sundry store. It had a little bit of everything. Stuff was jam packed. Tourist stuff, tons of craft items like cloth and yarn, clothes, food, Western Union, similar to a really really small locally owned Walmart. More walking. Time to warm up with some hot tea. I stopped at Sam & Lee's Restaurant. Check out the prices. Whoa! Talk about expensive.

Look at this building. Notice the electrical hookups. I had to take a picture because this building reminded me of an oldtime Western horse rail only for modern day cars. Electrical hookups were everywhere. People tended to leave their cars running while popping into restaurants or stores. I mean where would a car jacker take the car anyways. There are only so many roads in town.

The main thing I noticed about the town, besides the cold (-16F, still early in winter), was the blandness of the buildings. Everything was pretty much void of color. Very weathered. It is a grey looking place. Considering the harshness of the weather, it is a wonder the buildings are even standing.

Check out the airport. That little building holds security, ticketing, waiting, cargo, you name it. I found it interesting that people come early, check in their luggage then leave until boarding time. Imagine being a teenager and having to take a plane to go to your wrestling meet or football game. That's what these kids here do. When I landed, there was a large group of teens headed somewhere. They travel with pillows. When I was leaving, the incoming plane had the large wrestling team and cheerleaders coming back from a tournament in Anchorage. Pretty cool!

And that was my visit to the Top of the World.

Why I Want to Return to Alaska

2014-12-01T07:00:00.000-05:00

I've only been away from Alaska for a month; however, I can't wait to return. I miss it already. Why you ask?

Healy, Alaska (October)

Alaska gets in your blood. I've been hooked since I started researching rural Alaska years ago. Now that I've been to part of the interior, I really want to go back. It is hard to describe the state to people who haven't visited. Pictures don't do it justice. Alaska is vast. That is the best word to describe it. It is freaking large and everything in it is large or appears so.

I did get to see the main reason why I wanted to go in the first place so if I don't get to go back, I'll be satisfied. However, I want to go back. There is much more to see. My main reason to go was to visit Barrow, Alaska and see polar bears in the wild. Mission accomplished.

Arctic Ocean, Barrow, Alaska (November)

Now I want to see the southern part of the state. I want to visit the Kenai Peninsula and see Seward, Homer, whales, and the fjords. Maybe head over to Haines and Skagway and Juneau. Or maybe the Aleutian Islands. Or head over to Nome. Too many places.

Sayulita Transportation

2014-11-24T07:00:00.000-05:00

Check out below the modes of transportation in Sayulita. It's kind of an anything goes beach town.

The typical resort town golf cart is very popular in Sayulita. There are rental places and some of the hotels rent their own as well as the resident owned golf carts. There are fancy decked out 4 seaters, 2 seater wagon-looking carts and stripped down "at least I have a cart" versions.

The four wheeler and motor bike are the most aggressively driven vehicles in town. They zoom around everywhere. Watch out. The drivers will get close to you; however, I was never run down. When you consider the town roads (cobblestone) and the side roads (shown below), four wheelers make perfect sense. The dirt road I had to traverse from hostel to town is pot-hole heaven, getting worse with every rainfall. It is a wonder cars did not break their axles. Luckily, drivers are cautious when driving down that road. They go slow and seriously attempt to not splash you. There is also a consideration given to right of way. I'm not sure who has the actual right of way but people are generous in waiting.

This picture shows a mild version of this road after it had started to dry up a little. Then we got another rainfall and that puddle went from side to side. You had to walk on the rock wall or around the other side of that big dirt pile. The day I was leaving town, workers were filling in the holes with that pile. Rain season was "officially" over. I wish I had taken more photos of this crazy road.

See the corner with the tangle of pickup trucks. It seemed to be the place to park however you felt like. Every day there was a different configuration of trucks and cars. Pickups were another popular mode of transportation. And of course, boats. Fresh fish and boat tours are commodities in this town as I'm sure they are in every oceanside town. Thank goodness, the boats were delegated to one end of the main beach.

My choice of transportation: walking. Sayulita is a very walkable town. You can get to everything by walking.

The Color of Beach Town Mexico

2014-11-22T10:05:00.001-05:00

As a newcomer to foreign travel, there are so many things to first notice when you arrive in Mexico. I'm going to start with my favorite thing - the beautiful color. In my world, Mexico has long been known for it's colorful clothes, blankets and decorations. To see it firsthand and the extent to which color is displayed is amazing. I fell in love and had to stop myself from photographing everything.

Color is not restricted to just formal artwork. It covers buildings, textiles, walkways, piers, furniture, you name it.

Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta artwork is fantastic. Restraint stopped me from buying multiple paintings from the street artists. How would I take it home? They offered several ways; however, I don't have a permanent home to display which would be sad.

Punta de Mita

A group of us took a day trip to Punta de Mita, a small beach town north of Puerto Vallarta. This mural is huge and jazzes up a crappy looking parking lot. I wish now that I had gotten more and better photos.

Sayulita

Sayulita is a small beach town about an hour's drive north of Puerto Vallarta. It is a beautiful sleepy town with a punch. It has a little bit of everything but with a slowness expected from a beach vacation spot. I spent 9 days lounging on it's beaches and enjoying every minute of it.

I was amazed at the elaborate cemetery. I don't think there was one grave that did not have colorful decorations and flowers.

Time for a New Place

2014-10-30T05:45:00.001-04:00

It has been forever since I wrote on this blog. Much to my shame as I like writing. I have so many posts to write: stuff about Portland, Minneapolis, Milwaukee and many many things about Chicago and Alaska.

But for now, I'm heading off on my next adventure. From this gorgeous place:

To this gorgeous place:

Hola Mexico! I will be spending the next 2 weeks at the sunny beach town of Sayulita and the city of Puerto Vallarta. I can't wait. I've never had a burning desire to go to Mexico until a coworker recommended the town she's been going to for years. I've held the stereotypical belief of "unsafe Mexico" in my head. She's convinced me she feels completely safe there. Plus numerous blogs I read love Mexico too (Globetrotter Girls, Hecktic Travels, Married with Luggage etc.) Bad things happen everywhere.

So...my first foreign solo trip in about to start. November 3. Mexico, here I come, after a brief stop in Barrow, Alaska. I have got to try and fulfill my Bucket List item of seeing polar bears in the wild. Going to Barrow is what drove me to Alaska. More on that later.

P.S I've been trying the language method invented by Benny at Fluent in 3 Months with some added advice from Mish at Making It Anywhere in order to learn some Spanish. I think its working. I've only been at it for three days. Already I understood some of the words on Jane the Virgin tv show and in the novel I'm reading. I'm also thinking in Spanish. When I look at something or say something that I know the word for in Spanish, my brain repeats it in Spanish. Woohoo.

Anchorage and a Hostel

2014-06-08T19:06:00.002-04:00

View of some gorgeous mountains as I flew towards Anchorage. I don't think I will ever get sick of seeing beautiful snow covered mountains.

First picture is a view from the Anchorage airport. Second one is walking down the street by my hostel. I'm sure I looked like a weirdo to the locals. I would walk, stop, stare, repeat.

Saturday, I walked around downtown Anchorage. Its a beautiful clean area. I lucked out with a bright sunny warm day. The photo below is the side of the mall. I love the whale mural. I decided to head to a grocery store to check out the availability and cost. I was surprised by the cost. Grocery prices are very similar to Chicago prices only without the sales tax. I expected much higher prices.

This area of Anchorage had several touristy shops, probably not what you would consider local town stuff. Skateboarders are very prevalent on the streets and parks. A gang of them skated down the middle of Main Street. While sitting on a park bench enjoying the view and reading, a Native Alaskan drunk guy decided he needed to talk to me. Eventually he wandered off to bother others. One thing I noticed is bike riders bike on the sidewalks, not on the road. I don't understand why because the roads are wide, pothole free and almost car free.

I want a shelf full of Alaskan mugs. Check out the fancy way to drink wine outside bugfree. I want one.

Alaskan Backpackers Inn

Anchorage, AK

After cabbing my way from the airport, I arrived at the hostel. This is my first stay in a hostel. I was excited and nervous. I've read enough online about hostels but wasn't completely sure what to expect. It was unique, that's for sure. Honestly, the Inn was exactly what I expected. Funky. I loved the hallways and stairwells with the random murals and sayings from former guests.
The front desk staff was helpful. The kitchen appeared to be stocked with useful appliances and kitchenware. Rooms were clean. My only complaint: different sheets on the lower bunk in my room. The upper bunk had great sheets but the bottom bed had rough prickly sheets. I wish I could have taken the blackout curtains to my room in Denali. The hostel was in walking distance to a grocery store and downtown.

Upstairs lounge with library

My room. A private single but this one was outfitted for a family.

Upstairs hallway
View from my room

Tomorrow's Dream

2014-05-01T10:22:00.000-04:00

Tomorrow I embark on my biggest solo adventure to date. Tomorrow at 1:47pm I fly off to Alaska. Alaska has been my dream state for about 10 years. Originally, I thought I would go there as a teacher for the school season and come home for the summers but that didn't work out. Then I hit upon resorts. Working in a resort is another one of my Bucket List items. This idea I could get behind. I knew eventually I would make it there but wasn't sure when that would happen.

May 2, 2014

That is when its happening. Woohoo!

Anchorage will be my first place to explore. I fly into there at about 7pm. I'll spend 2 days wandering around before heading north to Delani on a bus. I'll also get to experience my first stay in a hostel. Wish me luck. I'm a little nervous. Hopefully, my excitedness will overshadow my nervousness.

Time to repack my suitcase and see if I can make it less bulky. Till tomorrow.

And Its Official

2014-02-05T19:07:00.001-05:00

Right after I posted about the possibility of going to Alaska, I got the official word that I'm hired. I'm super excited and can not wait to head north. Between now and May, I feel like I have tons to do.

Do some new work stuff.
Buy plane ticket.
Make reservations.
Sublease apartment.
Pack.
Move.
Visit both kids.
Also want to make sure I have passport in hand before I leave just in case opportunity for foreign travel pops up

So many things.

Have any suggestions of what to take with me for a spring/summer/fall in Alaska?

Heading to Alaska

2014-02-04T14:53:00.000-05:00

Fingers crossed. If all goes well, I will be heading to Alaska in May. I'm currently in the running for a job at a resort in Delani. My excitement can hardly be contained. Hopefully, I will find out this week. More news on this adventure to come.

Sketchbook Project 2013

2014-01-12T15:46:00.002-05:00

I have wanted to participate in Sketchbook Project since I first heard about the project through Linda at Curious Notions. 2013 was my year. Below are photos of the book I mailed off. I had planned on drawing pictures but the book evolved to a travel scrapbook instead. I traveled quite a bit for me last year and it made logical sense to create a scrapbook. Enjoy.

Chicago Wine Bars

2013-12-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

I love wine. Can't deny it. In the slightest way. I love it.

I would rather have a glass of cheap wine than an expensive martini or craft beer any day.

So the thought of going to a place that labels itself "a wine bar" makes me swoon. Unfortunately, I have only made my way to two wine bars in Chicago: Bin 36 and Oenology.

First up: Bin 36
339 N. Dearborn Ave.

I've been here twice. Pictures are from my first experience. My friend Christy accompanied me both times. Our experiences are like night and day. First time, the service was horrible. The second time, it was fantastic. Both times the food and wine was excellent. During our second visit, we mentioned to the gentleman who brought us our wine flights that our service was going so much better this time. He continually checked on us and pried information out of us about prior visit. Little did we know he was the owner. I highly recommend a visit to Bin 36 if you are in the downtown Chicago area.

Next Up: Oenology

505 N. Michigan Ave.

This wine bar is tucked into a hotel building like Bin 36. I spent a few hours here killing time and enjoying a great flight of Pinot Gris and a cheese plate. I feel in love with Pinot Gris on my visit to Portland, Oregon. While the bartender and I both agreed that my wine flight and cheese plate did not compliment each other, both were fantastic. I picked them individually based on my taste buds at the moment. The red wine I ordered as a follow up went perfectly with the Hardliner cheese flight. Yum. Try this place.

Burgers in Chicago

2013-12-04T07:00:00.000-05:00

I have a thing for hamburgers, not traditional hamburgers which are plain with lettuce, tomato, and raw onion. I love ones with STUFF on them. If you know me, it is typically the same type of stuff over and over but I like to compare burgers. Burgers are something I get mad cravings for every couple of weeks. I wish I was more consistent with my food picture taking so I had pictures of each restaurants' burger for comparison.

The standard stuff I like on my burgers - cheese, bacon, fried or caramelized onions, bbq sauce. I do venture off my standard path occasionally but I'm fairly predictable.

DMK Burger Bar

DMK Burger Bar was recommended to me by several people as The Place to go for burgers. Well....that would not be my opinion. I had the Aged Cheddar burger with caramelized onions. The flavor didn't pop for me. The burger was small and the bun...not my favorite. However, the Amish Blue and Smoked Bacon fries and Chili Rubbed Onion Strings were amazing as well as the Not-So-Daiquiri Daiquiri. I would definitely go back just for the daiquiri. It is very rare to find a bar that can make a regular lime daiquiri or even know what I am referring to. It was delightful.

Kuma's Corner
A terrible picture. My phone, at the time, took awful pictures.

Kuma's Corner is by far my favorite Chicago place to get a burger. They also offer fantastic mac n cheese with a variety of add-ins. Yum yum. I've tried the Mastodon and Kaijo burgers. I love the pretzel buns. The burgers are huge and flavorful. The atmosphere is heavy metal (not my first choice) but I love the heavily tattooed and pierced staff. Kind of an anything-goes type of place. Kuma's is very popular and usually involves a long wait but it's well worth it.

Poag Mahone's

OMG! Try the Bacon, Beer and Shot burger at Poag Mahone's. Wonderful. Good bun, great flavor, nice size. Perfect. I went during traditional happy hour. The bar sported an afterwork white-collar crowd.

Another of my favorites is the Hillbilly Paradise burger at The Squared Circle with cheddar, pulled pork, and bourbon bbq sauce. This restaurant does an unique twist to burgers. They stuff them. My burger was stuffed with cheddar and topped with cheddar. Hell yes! Check out their menu with the different combination. Ahhhh, now I'm hungry.

Chicago offers so many places to get burgers that this will not be my last post on burgers.

Have any recommendations for me?

Operation Leave the Country

2013-12-02T14:15:00.002-05:00

This is the name of my master plan of traveling the world. Not original, I know. But...whatever. Below is the list of steps I need to complete. (not in order yet) (and not complete)

~~Take passport photo $12~~ DONE
~~Order passport $135~~ DONE
Apply to Trusted Housesitters
~~Make appointment with TEFL office~~ DONE
~~Take TEFL class $1350~~ TAKING
~~Move my stuff - sell, take to Toledo, store in Chicago, something~~ DONE
Check visa requirements for first destination
Ask work about transferring
Find a place to live
Save money - amount unknown
Buy plane ticket
Get bank account with low overseas atm fee
Find out if shots are needed
Set up separate email for bills
Learn some Spanish, Italian - helpful
Need decisions on cell phones, computer, e-reader
and on and on

If you have any suggestions or items I should add, please let me know.