Five years!  Five years ago, Patrick and I quit our jobs to travel around the world. 

Last year was the year of staying still.  But, this year, we've found our traveling feet again, learning --- albeit slowly --- how to travel with a baby/toddler. 

Highlights from our trip to Costa Rica

Costa Rica:  Our first international trip with Amara was to Costa Rica.  The people in that country embrace pura vida and were so welcoming and accommodating of us, as we learned how (not) to travel with a baby.  We didn't pack enough clothes for her so we were constantly doing laundry.  We didn't realize that the time change would affect her so significantly so that by 7:00 p.m., she couldn't stay awake another moment longer.  We didn't count on how heavy a 14 pound baby can get on a four hour hike. 

Despite the hiccups, we learned how to see the world through her eyes.  We spent leisurely afternoons, playing with plastic water bottles and meandering through butterfly gardens and jungles in Costa Rica.  We gorged on maduros and panela cheese.  We drank coconut water in the shade.  We pointed out sloths and monkeys to our baby. 

We traveled and loved it.  Yes, our baby was a traveler and we were going to love traveling with her.

Highlights from India

India:  Then, we headed to India for a month.  Chennai is not picturesque, charming, or particularly interesting.  Rather, its main attraction is the love that envelops us as soon as we enter that city.  I have over 150 relatives in Chennai, who, despite not seeing us for years or years, welcome us every time with open arms, gifts, and (what I appreciate the most) platters of food.

And, this time around, we brought Amara with us, who quickly endeared herself to everyone.  She was pampered in Chennai and so were we.  There were always ten other hands who wanted to hold, feed, rock, and carry her.  Amara woke us up at 5:00 in the morning when the sun rose and the temple bells started clanging, and we handed her over to my uncle, aunt, and grandmother, and she happily played with them until we arose.  My cousins bought toys and beautiful silk pavadais for her.  My great-aunt made her fresh homemade yogurt each day.  And, when we walked from temple to temple, someone was always ready to pray for her.

We left Chennai for a week and a half to explore other parts of Tamil Nadu.  We swam in the mostly empty pool at our (very reasonably priced) resort in Puducherry and walked the deserted beaches.  We drove to Tanjore and Kumbakonam to visit the stunning Chola Temples, which surprised me with their gorgeous carvings, rivaling those we saw in Angkor Wat.

And, did I mention that we ate?  Oh, yes, we ate so much that we all gained several pounds by our return.  Highlights included the banana flower curries prepared by my aunt, the stunning assortment of food at the Chennai fresh market, and the thin, crisp dosas filled with masala in Puducherry.

. . . keep reading five years! after the jump

Amara at Dunwoody library, Children's Museum of Atlanta, and posing at a garden

We've been doing a lot of local activities over the last few months, mainly because we've had a slew of events at home and Chewy hasn't been feeling all that well.  While we're trying to get a handle on Chewy's health, I've been exploring Atlanta with Amara. It's amazing to me how much this city offers and especially the number of free or very cheap things to do with toddlers or young kids.

So, you can imagine my surprise when two different newcomers to the city complained to me about how there's nothing free to do with toddlers here.  I started reeling off some of our favorite activities --- most things they had never heard about --- when it occurred to me that this should be a post on its own. 

Here you go, Atlanta parents.  21 Free or Cheap (Under $10) Things to Do in Atlanta With Toddlers or Young Kids:

Animals

1.  Watch the horses run at Chastain Horse Park.  Free

2.  Visit a mini aquarium at Chamblee's The Fish Store, the largest fish store in the Southeast.  Free (though you'll probably want to buy something here).

3.  Run with the dogs at Piedmont Park's Dog Park (though careful of the occasional aggressive dog).  Free.

4.  Feed the ducks at Lullwater Park at Emory University.  Free; stroller accessible.

5.  Cuddle the adorable miniature animals at Tanglewood Farms.  $10 per person and they have picnic tables where you can bring your lunch.

Splashpads and Playgrounds

6.  Splash in fountains and swing in the futuristic playground at Old Fourth Ward's park. Free

7.  Go all out on slides, splashpads, and tubes at Browns Mill Family Aquatic Center.  Rates vary depending on residency but are all under $12 per person.  You could easily spend the whole day here.

Click over here for more splashpads in the city.

8.  Roam around in Cozy Coupes and other riding toys at Decatur's Toy Park.  Free.

Hikes and Trails

9.  Get messy at Herbert Taylor Park's beach, which is one of our favorite spots for a family outing, with dogs and toddler in tow. Not stroller accessible.  Free.

10.  Go fishing or meander through a gorgeous pine grove at Henderson Park.  Not stroller accessible.  Free

11.  Get into the Atlanta spirit with a walk on the Beltline.  Free.

12.  Take a guided Tyke Hike at Red Top State Mountain Park on Lake Allatoona, about 1 1/2 hour's northwest of the city.  $5 parking. 

. . . keep reading 21 free toddler activities in atlanta after the jump

Vienna Historic District

Travel comes suddenly.  The city hustles us through each spot, each meal, each person.  Each moment changes and we are lost in the novelty and craziness infecting our lives in that out-of-the-ordinary spot.

Time brings stillness.  We have the luxury to reflect on the place we visited and what we did there.  We can erase the rough edges of a place with the lighter golden haze of our memories.  Sometimes, I like the after of traveling more than the during. 

It is that way with Vienna for me.  Neither Patrick nor I were particularly impressed with the city --- it was too old fashioned, too slow, too ancient.  It didn't have the energy or the vibe of Budapest or Prague.  It was more mundane.  We told friends that Vienna was for our parents; Prague was for the young.

But, now, I enjoy reminiscing about the quiet moments we spent walking through the lovely gardens at Schonbrunn Palace, drinking coffee at Viennese coffee houses (more coming on that soon), and admiring the city's 17th century glamour.  When we return (for we probably will someday), I'll leave my rose tinted glasses on.

. . . keep reading suddenness and stillness in viena after the jump 22 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/india/airavatesvara_temple Fri, 08 Aug 2014 13:50:56 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/india/airavatesvara_temple Kumbakonam Adi Kumbeswara and Upiliappan temple interior "What should we see in Kumbakonam?"  I asked my cousin, as we planned our family excursion through South India.  There would be 13 of us traveling, ranging in age from my 94-year-old grandfather to Amara, our not yet 1 year old, packed in a mini-bus to see the best of Puducherry, Kumbakonam, and Tanjore in one week.    "Temples, of course," he responded.  Kumbakonam is a town of temples so his answer was no surprise.  Almost 200 temples are packed into this 25 square mile town at the intersection of the Kaveri and Arasalar Rivers, deep in Tamil Nadu, the most southern portion of India.  Detailing on the gopuram of the Adi Kumbeswara Temple My cousin reeled off the names of temples, each with both historical and religious significance.  But, there was one I found in my Internet research that he never mentioned.  "What about Airavatesvara Temple?" I said, stumbling over the long word.  "I don't know it," he responded.  He paused for a second and said, "It must not be very important.  It is named for Indra's white elephant --- the steed that carried the Lord of the Devas."  My grandmother whose earliest childhood memories are swimming in the Kaveri River and going to school in Kumbakonam, didn't know the Airavatesvara Temple.  No one in my extended family --- most of whom visit South Indian temples on their holidays --- had heard of Airavatesvara, either. But, I insisted that we go and visit.  It was listed as an UNESCO World Heritage Site and the Wikipedia page made it sound interesting and, after all, it was only a few miles away from our hotel. Elephant blessing at the Adi Kumbeswara Temple We reached Airavatesvara after a long day visiting temples, temples, and more temples, each blending into the other.  Amara was tired and annoyed and both Patrick and I were pretty unimpressed by that point.  There's a difference, you see, between visiting temples for their religious value and visiting, as we did, for purely the aesthetic and archaeological interest.  Airavateswara Temple sunset My extended family is religious in a way that I will never be.  It's something that I think comes with growing up in India whereas growing up in the United States.  Religion in India is not optional.  There is no delineation between church (or temple) and state.  Religion is integral and integrated into every part of every day life in India. Tanjore Brihadisvara Temple In Chennai, we woke in the morning to the sound of bells clanging at the temple.  Our auto rickshaw drivers had small pictures of Vishnu, Lakshmi, or Shiva on their dashboards.  Every store has a small shrine in it, as does every home have a puja or prayer room set aside.  My extended family avoids garlic and onions on certain days of the week and avoids meat altogether.  Muslims are equally devout at their mosques as are the Christians at their churches.  It is a country where religion pervades every moment of every day. And, Indians are passionate about their temples.  At the busier and more important temples, such as the Tanjore Brihadisvara Temple, the packed crowds suffocate me.  One of my earliest memories of India is a frantic devotee pushing my seven year old self to the ground inside the Mysore Chamundi Temple so that she could get a closer glimpse of the Goddess.  Even now, as an adult, though I use my elbows to mark my own space, the press of unwashed, undeodoranted people in the stifling interiors nauseates me.  And for what?  The crowds come together for a momentary glimpse of a tiny statue or figure in semi-darkness. Patrick and Amara at the Tanjore Temple Devoutness to the point of fanaticism does not appeal to me, which is perhaps why I have never truly appreciated the large South Indian temples.  I can admire the gopuram, the intricately carved exterior pillar at the top of the temple, and the exterior painting.  But, in most temples, the interior has been built on the original structure, over and over again, so that the ancient beauty of the temple is lost in expansions of cement and ceramic tile.  Others are rarely cleaned, leaving grease marks at the bottom of my feet as I walk through their interiors. Airavatesvara Temple But, then, we arrived at the Airavatesvara Temple.  It flew in the face of everything I've ever known --- or thought I've known --- about South Indian temples.  It was built in the 12th century by the powerful Chola empire, who ruled much of present day India and many of the surrounding islands from their headquarters in present day Tamil Nadu.  The Chola empire might hold the record for the longest dynasty in history: this family ruled southern India for almost 1,500 years, beginning in the 3rd century BCE until the late 13th century AD. The Cholas believed in building, trading, and the proliferation of art and music.  Much of the Hindu art and belief in Southeast Asia, including the adoption of the Ramayana by the Thai, was due to the efforts of traders, artisans, and teachers during the Chola empire.  But, empires crumble and temples disappear. Airavatesvara gopuram There are three --- only three --- of the great Chola temples still standing and without remodel, reconstruction, or alteration since the days of the Chola kings.  The three temples have been listed together as the "Great Living Chola Temples" as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and include the Tanjore Brihadisvara Temple, the Airavatesvara Temple, and the temple at Gangaikondacholapuram (yes, that's a mouthful) near the Ganges River.  (This has a great list of the Chola temples found in Bangalore though all of these temples have been renovated, refurbished, or repainted, so it is difficult to differentiate what was original versus modern.)  . . . keep reading airavatesvara temple in kumbakonam after the jump 17 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/united_states/picnic_at_the_presidio Fri, 18 Jul 2014 16:18:50 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/united_states/picnic_at_the_presidio Picnic at the Presidio It sounded too good to be true: good food and drinks, stunning views overlookign the Golden Gate Bridge, baby friendly, and completely free.  But, Off the Grid's Picnic at the Presidio in San Francisco met all our expectations and more.  In fact, it was one of the best foodie events we have been to this year. Off the Grid ups the game for the food truck lover.  They organize and work with hundreds of food trucks and food vendors across San Francisco to organize and coordinate food trucks at different locations.  They've got a brilliant constantly updated map that shows the location of food truck vendors across the city.  And, they run special weekly events throughout the year, including a twilight event at the Presidio and a Friday weekly market at Fort Mason Center. Views of Picnic at the Presidio, including the bar and Bubbly Bar We headed to Picnic at the Presidio on a glorious Sunday afternoon, sun and warmth replacing San Francisco's usual buffeting wind and fog.  We flung aside our fleeces and meandered through the Presidio's Main Lawn, unsure of which of the thirty vendors we should visit.  People sipped on champagne and mimosas, purchased from the Bubbly Bar, and beer and wine from the main bar in the center of the lawn.  Picnic at the Presidio Behind me, a group of food lovers debated the respective merits of Napa Valley Merlots and Rieslings, while we tasted and judged our own food.  Funny thing is that we're definitely raising a foodie.  This kid will clamp her lips shut if you try to give her frozen fish nuggets but will happily devour an adult's portion of $12 per pound North Georgia smoked trout.  And, truth be told, most of her food choices are the exact ones that we would have picked. Her winners at the Picnic at the Presidio were our winners, as well.  Amara was so delighted with Patrick's pierogis from the Old World Food Truck --- creamy, soft, and delicately spiced potato dumplings --- that we barely got bites. She wasn't impressed with my lemongrass tofu on a vermicelli salad from the Little Green Cyclo Vietnamese truck and I agreed that the flavors were bland and uninspired, lacking in punch and spice.  We rounded out our meals with vanilla and nutella and strawberry creme brulees from the Creme Brulee Cart and all of us preferred the cleaner and lighter vanilla option.  The fresh strawberries in the nutella creme brulee muddied the texture and flavor of that creme brulee. But, honestly, those are just nitpicks.  I would suggest Picnic at the Presidio even if the food wasn't good, and, for the most part, it was good.  It was one of those lovely events --- full of good food, drinks, pups, babes, and happy people in the bright sunshine --- that I wish every city had. . . . keep reading picnic at the presidio in san francisco after the jump 141 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/united_states/the_atlanta_food_and_wine_festival Thu, 05 Jun 2014 20:50:50 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/united_states/the_atlanta_food_and_wine_festival Peach sliders from Revolution Donuts Recently, I was telling a friend about how I was at Ben & Jerry's on a press trip and heading to the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival for media coverage.  They laughed and said that it didn't sound like "work."  It is work.  It's just that I happen to have a great job. Every now and again, I pinch myself to make sure that this is real. Empire Breakfast at Atlanta Food & Wine Festival I landed head-first into this whole writing thing, because a passion for food, travel, and writing came together on this personal pet project, and people liked what I had to say. Passion rules the world, yes?  And, when, we are passionate, we produce great things.  It's the story of humanity.  And, it's the story I heard over and over again at the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival.                                                                                                                                  French Broad and Olive & Sinclair chocolates Dan and Jael Rattigan quit law school and business school to hit the road and head to Costa Rica where they started a small chocolate shop and bakery that quickly became popular with the expats.  After a few years, they moved to Asheville, North Carolina to open up the French Broad Chocolate Lounge, one of the best chocolate shops we've ever visited.  At the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival, they presented a talk on Sipping Chocolates, and we tasted a maple and smoked sea salt Liquid Truffle.  The silky smooth ganache floated on the tongue and the smoked sea salt contrasted beautifully with the velvety sweet maple syrup.  Olive & Sinclair chocolates Like French Broad Chocolate Lounge, Cacao Atlanta and Olive & Sinclair are bean-to-bar chocolate makers, starting with finding high quality cocoa beans across Central and South America, importing those beans, and producing their own beautiful chocolate.  They are working to change the way we look at chocolate, developing something purer and more complex than the typical Hershey bar.  I took a Raw Chocolate class with Kristen Hard of Cacao Atlanta and we learned how to taste chocolate as the master chocolate makers do; it's an intense process where we compared and contrasted quality, style, flavor, and texture.   . . . keep reading the atlanta food & wine festival 2014 recap after the jump 21 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/costa_rica/the_surprising_morpho_butterfly Fri, 09 May 2014 14:29:17 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/costa_rica/the_surprising_morpho_butterfly Morpho caterpillar This prickly, brown-hatched worm doesn't look very appealing.  If I saw it on our deck, I'd probably kick it out of the way.  Morpho butterfly Then, this caterpillar turns to this butterfly.  Which also doesn't look very appealing, if you ask me.  It looks almost the same as the common brown moths that we frequently swat away. Morpho butterfly opening its wings And, then it does this.  It opens its wings and reveals itself. Morpho butterfly Which just goes to show that nature is spectacular.  Curious, surprising, and always spectacular. --- . . . keep reading the surprising morpho butterfly after the jump 13 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/greece/acropolis_in_photos Mon, 14 Apr 2014 13:01:53 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/greece/acropolis_in_photos Acropolis (and partial view of the scaffolding) I mentioned a while back that Patrick and I weren't all that impressed with Greece.  A large part of that unenthusiasm related to Athens and the Acropolis.  If you'd asked me before I went to Greece what is the number-one-must-see attraction in the country, I would have said the Acropolis of Athens.  Right?  It's the one Greek monument that everyone knows.  It's the one attraction we were most excited to see.  Views from the Acropolis You have to understand that Patrick and I love, love, love ruined architecture.  I can see the place as it once was, so many years ago, with the walls standing, the floors in bright mosaics and tiles.  Amphitheatre outside the Acropolis At Pompeii, we walked amongst the ancient common man, so much like us though long since dead.  At Ephesus, we marvelled at the splendors of the ancients.  And, in the tiny town of Ivailovgrad, Bulgaria, we were amazed by intricate floor tiles created centuries ago.  We love ruins, even when nature takes over, destroying the artistry of man. Acropolis restoration (note the reconstructed Temple of Athena Nike, with the integration of the original stones) But, the Acropolis in Athens is no testament to ancient man's work.  Right now, it's very much a work in progress.  Cranes and scaffolding cover most of the buildings and tourists are prevented from entering the interior.  Several of the surrounding temples have been dismantled and are being reassembled.   Acropolis restoration and scaffolding and a restored temple There are a lot of issues surrounding the restoration project, not least of which whether or not the Greek government has the funds to finish the work.  So far, the UN has paid for 50% of the restoration project (currently running around $90 million.)  . . . keep reading standing at the acropolis after the jump 9 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/africa_in_focus_overland/lions_rest_in_video Fri, 07 Mar 2014 13:23:12 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/africa_in_focus_overland/lions_rest_in_video We spent four years in and out of the United States, eating from street food vendors who have probably never even heard of the word "sanitation inspection," ordering from menus in countries where we don't speak the language, and eating pretty much everything under the sun.  On top of that, Amara has been to India and Costa Rica.  We thought we had stomachs of steel.  Or, at least iron.  Or, some other strong metal. But, apparently four years of travel has nothing on two days at a local Atlanta daycare.  The last two weeks have primarily consisted of one of the three of us groaning and moaning and wondering why the heck I threw out all our Cipro when we returned to the United States.  Ugh. The only positive side to all this is that, last weekend, we thoroughly disinfected and cleaned our entire house, from top to bottom, because I don't want to see this virus ever again.  And, the thing about cleaning is that once I start cleaning, I keep cleaning.  Which is how I found this video.   . . . keep reading lions rest in video after the jump 5 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/costa_rica/gear_and_tips_for_traveling_with_baby_to_costa_rica Tue, 11 Feb 2014 19:38:28 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/costa_rica/gear_and_tips_for_traveling_with_baby_to_costa_rica Looking at the chickens at Villa Blanca Cloud Forest Last week, I told you about why we loved our Costa Rica trip with Amara.  I think it's a perfect first international destination for new parents because: most people speak English food and water are clean and safe for immediate consumption Costa Rican culture is very family-oriented and babies are everywhere most restaurants and hotels offers high chair and portable cribs/pack and plays distances are not too long so it is possible to see a few places without subjecting your baby to very long drives many of the popular attractions are outdoors and relatively low-key, involving hiking, walking, and beaches, all of which are perfect activities with baby All this being said, we found very few families traveling with babies and toddlers.  Several people stopped us on our flight back home and told us that they remembered us at the hotels because we were the only couple with a baby at two different hotels.  Perhaps because of that, we had a hard time finding detailed information about traveling to Costa Rica with a baby so the information provided below gets into the nitty gritty of travel, in the hopes that it will answer many of the common questions that travelers with babies/toddlers may have. Trying plantains for the first time What to Pack Patrick and I did a lousy job packing for our first international trip so this list is based on what we should have packed (and is close to what we ended up packing for our subsequent trip to India) rather than what we actually packed for Costa Rica.  We ended up needing to do laundry every two days because we did such a bad job with our packing!  Anyhow, for a one week trip, assuming that you will do laundry mid-way during the trip, you should pack: at least five pairs of shorts/pants: we found that we had to change her clothes at least once a day because of the high humidity and stickiness at least five shirts/tops/onesies two days worth of diapers and wipes: there is a HUGE Wal-mart right outside of San Jose which is a great place to stock up on diapers and wipes, but it's important to make sure you have enough for the plane and the first day or two food pouches: we find baby food squeezable pouches to be the most convenient for traveling and stocked up on these in the United States before we left; we found jars of baby food in Costa Rica but didn't see the pouches anywhere . . . keep reading gear and tips for traveling with a baby to costa rica after the jump 16 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/costa_rica/costa_rica_with_an_infant Wed, 29 Jan 2014 12:07:06 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/costa_rica/costa_rica_with_an_infant Amara and I at a pit stop on the way to Manuel Antonio  I was recently talking to a family travel blogger about how we've spent the last four years or so traveling all around the world and only returned to the United States a year ago because I was pregnant.  The blogger said to me, "Well, now that you have a baby, you won't be traveling to exotic places like that anymore.  You'll have to focus on writing about places within driving distances."  And, I said, "Oh, well, Amara has already been to Costa Rica and India.  And, we've got a trip planned to San Francisco and maybe Yosemite over the summer.  We're talking about somewhere in South America for the fall.  Maybe Peru.  We're not sure, yet."  The other travel blogger paused, stared at me, and gave me the deer-in-the-headlights look that could only mean that she thought I was crazy.  I get that.  I really do.  I used to think that traveling with a baby was about two steps removed from checking into an insane asylum. In October, the Costa Rican Tourism Board contacted me about traveling with them on a Gift of Happiness tour, a sponsored trip to some of the most beautiful spots in their country.  At first, I said no.  I couldn't imagine taking an eight month old baby all across and up and down Costa Rica at a hectic pace, all in one week.  Impossible.  Unthinkable.  Ridiculous. Us with Arenal Volcano in the background But, they talked me into it.  Though, to be honest, they didn't have to try too hard.  After all, it is Costa Rica.  I love this place.  When I was there three years ago, I swore that I'd return to meet more of their wonderful people and see more of their gorgeous scenery and wildlife.  I wanted to bring Patrick to Costa Rica.  And, I wanted the country of pura vida to be Amara's first international destination. So, we crossed our fingers and our toes and went for it.  And, it was marvelous.  Beyond our wildest dreams wonderful.  It was one of the best trips that we have ever taken.  Ever.  Getting ready to hike at Villa Blanca Cloud Forest I can't pretend that traveling with Amara is the same as traveling without her.  There's a lot more planning, organization, and way more laundry and gear involved when we travel with her.  We used to carry one small suitcase each and now we have to take a huge suitcase just for her.  We did laundry three times in the one week we were in Costa Rica because we clearly didn't bring enough clothes for her.  We spent most of our evenings in, relaxing in our hotel room, rather than eating out, because Amara goes to sleep at 7:00 (or, if we ate out at dinner, Amara slept in the carrier).  There wasn't any sleeping in, as we normally do on vacation, because she wakes up at 6:30 every morning Hiking in the coffee plantation    But, when we traveled with her, we were engaged with her in a deeper, closer way than at any other time in the previous eight months.  The truth is that, as new parents, we live scattered lives.  Or, maybe it's not being new parents.  Maybe this is just the way people live in the 21st century.  Little pieces of our lives rush around us --- we're talking while IMing, eating while watching, driving while texting --- and we're constantly grasping at stray moments.  In Costa Rica, we had the time to stop and enjoy each other.  We woke up in the morning to the sunshine streaming in through our windows.  We found free toys --- empty water bottles, used toilet paper rolls, keys, and cloth bags --- and played with her on the bed.  We walked with her, pointing out butterflies and sloths.  We swam in the pools, basking in the greens and blues.  We sat on the floor, listening to the heavy sounds of the drumming afternoon rain.  When she napped, rather than rushing to clean, cook, and organize, we napped with her.  Sometimes, she slept in the angles of my arms and I watched her tiny eyelashes flutter to the thrum of deepening sleep.  We marveled at her, this amazing little being who is part of each of us.  We reveled in the luxury of time, in places that felt timeless. . . . keep reading on traveling to costa rica with a baby after the jump 22 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/recipearchives/Balsamic_cipollinis Wed, 18 Dec 2013 19:34:17 CDT http://theroadforks.com/recipearchives/Balsamic_cipollinis Venice is still busy in November.  There are tourists everywhere in the bright and sunny days.  (Though, is there ever a time when the tourists leave Venice altogether?  Probably not.)  We like the November evenings better than the summer evenings.  There's less heat, humidity, and stench.  I pull my fleece jacket close around my shoulders and Patrick zips his up to his neck.  We walk away from the Grand Canal, into small narrow alleyways, away, away, away from the noise.  We see a small door against a wall, light shining out as the door opens and closes, and men with half-filled wine glasses and burning cigarettes standing right before the entry, ushering us in with wafts of noxious smoke.  The decor is minimal, with a few wooden benches and tables crammed against the corner of a wall and men and women standing shoulder to shoulder in front of the long bar.  We immediately see the attraction.  Cichetti are arrayed in platters and bowls across the bar.  There is a good variety at this one: peperoni grigliata --- grilled and peeled red bell peppers; baccala --- pureed salted dried cod; carciofi grigliata --- artichoke hearts, marinated and grillled; mozzarella e pomodoro --- fresh balls of mozzarella with sliced tomatoes; bruschetta with prosciutto; calamari; and more.  And, there are the cipollines al aceto balsamico, or balsamic glazed cipolline onions.  The first bite surprises us.  Our mouths pucker from the vinegar and then relax as we taste the underlying sweetness of the reduced balsamic vinegar.  We try another bite.  This time we are prepared for the sensations of vinegar and sweet and we feel the texture.  Soft, billowing layers of onions melt against our tongue and we catch hints of rosemary and butter.  We go back to the counter and order them all. And, we return the next night and order all the cipollines again. When we came back to the United States, I tried a whole host of balsamic glazed cipolline recipes including ones from Mario Batali, Deb from the Smitten Kitchen, and Bon Appetit magazine.  None of them had the puckering sweetness of the cipollines we tried in Venice and I realized that the problem is that every single one of these recipes relies on sugar to enhance the flavor of the balsamic vinegar.  I dropped the sugar and simplified the recipe.  The result has a less thick glaze than what you might get if you make Mario Batali's recipe but it is, I think, a purer and superior version of the dish.  It is a fundamentally Italian recipe --- very few ingredients of extremely high quality --- so that the cipollines take on the strong flavors of red wine and balsamic.  We serve it often in the winters, with rich casseroles and soups, as a small plate or side dish, sometimes for the holidays, to remind us of Venice's meandering canals.     . . . keep reading balsamic glazed cipollines after the jump 635 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/italy/views_of_siena Wed, 04 Dec 2013 10:00:28 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/italy/views_of_siena View of Siena rooftops Like pretty much every other person on the planet, we love Tuscany.  Tuscany has everything going for it: architecture, scenery, food, wine, markets, and art.  If you want to rave about narrow streets and yellowing buildings, you can do that.  If you want to talk about churches that dazzle, you can do that.  If you want to eat some of the best meals of your life ---- truffle flecked pasta, prosciutto with melon, pizza singed on coal burned ovens, fluorescent green olive oil and ciabatta --- you can do that.  And, if you want to drink red wines that are earthy, smooth, fruity, or nutty, you can do that.  Tuscany is amazing. The funny thing is that, though we love Tuscany, it took us a long, long time to visit Siena, the second most important city.  I think we expected it to be another Florence, another city overrun with tourists, where we wouldn't be able to see the charm through the throngs.  But, we did.  The charms of Siena were almost immediately apparent in dull brick red and cobblestone streets, through the meandering alleys, over and across hills and stairs, and under bridges.  The Duomo stunned in black and white.  It took us time to come to this city but, once we came, we came again and again. . . . keep reading views of siena after the jump 7 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/offtheroad/travel_blogging_ethics_sponsorships Tue, 29 Oct 2013 12:18:47 CDT http://theroadforks.com/offtheroad/travel_blogging_ethics_sponsorships *I don't talk about the business side of blogging much mainly because there are a lot of other folks doing a great job thinking about professional travel blogging, it's very inside baseball (and I don't even like baseball), and I don't want to bore you guys with the very unglamorous side of this travel lifestyle.  So, if you aren't a travel blogger and can't imagine why anybody would want to turn this into a business, I highly suggest that you check out our recent posts on gorgeous Prague and Pompeii.  But, if you're in the biz, or someone curious about what I’m doing when I go on “sponsored trips,” or a newbie travel blogger, maybe you'll find this ridiculously long-winded post interesting. There’s been a lot of noise in the last few months about travel blogging and ethics: namely, is it appropriate for travel bloggers to take sponsorships and paid press trips and write about these products and destinations?  Aren’t bloggers obviously biased if they receive a press trip in which they are wined and dined by a specific destination?  How can a blogger write objectively about such destination?  And, how can a reader/consumer of blogs know when a blog is “real”?  (See the following articles that generally discuss this topic: this article from BBC/Skift, a recent newsletter from Bootsnall (which I can't link to), this article from TNooz that describes the new FTC guidelines requires bloggers to disclose sponsorships in their tweets, and the recent FTC guidance itself that basically tells bloggers that we must plaster disclosures all over the place if we want to accept sponsorships. (Side note: I'm not even going to get into the discussion of whether or not the FTC Guidance is fair or unfair and how traditional print journalists may accept press trips and don't have to disclose that press trip in their magazine article.  The FTC Guidance is a post/vent for another day.  And, yes, I am a totally nerdy lawyer and have read the whole guidance multiple times, parsed through it, and am still thoroughly and completely irritated by it.)  The ethics of sponsorships is something that I’ve been wrestling with in my own blogging because I’ve been getting increasingly more sponsorship offers and more pressure from sponsors to portray them in a positive light.  And, I’ve been mulling --- a lot --- about what sponsorships and sponsored travel means for The Road Forks, me, and you. Why talk about travel blogging ethics now? Simply put, travel blogging has become huge.  I began blogging five years ago --- around the same time that a lot of the biggest players in travel blogging began their blogs, such as Adventurous Kate, The Planet D, and Twenty-Something Travel.  At that time, destinations and companies were just beginning to think about working with travel bloggers.  Blogging, itself, was a vague notion.  Patrick and I were in South Africa on one of our first sponsored trips --- which we had cultivated by directly communicating with the company --- and someone asked me to describe a “blog.”  Before I could answer, someone else responded, “Oh, basically, it’s an online diary.”  Why would a company or destination want to work with a bunch of people spilling their guts in online diaries?  At that time, we weren’t even on the map.  Heck, we couldn’t even see the map with the "real travel journalists" in the way. Now, there's no comparison.  When Travel Bloggers Exchange (TBEX) had its first conference in 2009, a modest 150 people showed up in Chicago at the end of the much bigger Blogher.  Last year, there were four different conferences aimed solely toward travel bloggers hosted by three different entities across Europe and the United States with between 300 to 1,200 people at each conference.  Gary Arndt started a small Facebook group of travel bloggers around 2009 --- there were about 200 or so of us who chatted about random blogging stats, SEO, and industry issues.  Now, I'm one of the administrators of that group and there are 3,000+ travel bloggers and more joining every day.  And, now, companies are falling hand over feet backwards to work with bloggers.  I get offers nearly every day asking me to check out the newest product, app, book, hotel, restaurant, or destination.  At ITB Berlin (a travel industry conference), travel bloggers became coveted and sought after, with specific events tailored to help destinations and areas meet travel bloggers.  (And, yes, I totally feel like the curmudgeonly old codger fondly recalling the good old days.  But, hey, that's what it's like in this business.  A year on the Internets is like ten years in the real world.) As our industry grew, so did the avenues for cash.  Bloggers became entrepreneurs --- because we had to --- because that's the way to make money.  (Go check out Kristin's amazing post on the need for entrepreneurism in travel writing/blogging.)  Blogging friends of mine are writing books, becoming brand ambassadors, developing conferences, and speaking at conferences.  And, we're getting respect.  We're no longer considered itinerant diarists (though, of course, sometimes we are) and amateurs.  There's a Professional Travel Bloggers Association, now, but the surest sign of the times: this year, three of the eleven National Geographic Travelers of the Year are travel bloggers and five of the winners of the Society of American Travel Writers' awards are bloggers. But, with great power comes great responsibility.  Or, something like that. Why do travel bloggers matter?  Why are destinations sending travel bloggers on press trips? The explosion of travel blogging as a serious respected avenue for travel writing is still very much a work in progress.  Take, for example, this article from Skift/BBC which says, "The problem [of bloggers getting free press trips] stems not from freebies, per se. It stems from the disconnect between how travel bloggers position themselves as influencers of consumers.  They are not.  Their audience is a fraction of a sliver of a minuscule, but they make lots of noise.  On a good day, travel bloggers are marketers, and their audience is an echo chamber of equal-minded travel bloggers." Here's what I know from my own work as a blogger: yes, there is a lot of this echo chamber issue in the travel blogging world, but I'd argue the same problem in any industry.  When I was a law student, I worked on a highly respected law journal: in it, academics talked to other academics.  When I was a lawyer, I went to numerous conferences where attorneys were talking to other attorneys and complaining about issues that, of course, no attorney could resolve because we were all part of the problem.  Judges mostly talk to other judges.  Doctors talk to doctors.  And, as we've recently discovered with the whole government shutdown, politicians seem to talk only to other politicians (and, they're not even doing a great job of that). It's what we as a society do.  We talk to those who understand our industry the best. Though bloggers do make a lot of noise, I'd argue that we are more influential than the Skift article posits.  No, we don't have the numbers of a Lonely Planet or a Frommers.  But, we have something that they don't: we have accessible personalities.  If people have questions, they can contact us.  If people have issues at a destination, they can talk directly to us to get our advice.  We are here.  We're available. For example, check out my article on how to decide whether or not a Japan Rail Pass is worth the expense.  I wrote up this post way back in 2010 because it was an issue that I had spent a lot of time thinking about and worrying about and I wanted to help out other travelers.  The post has over 175 comments on it and, even now, I get at least one email a week from someone looking for Japan Rail Pass help, not to mention that it's one of the lead search results that sends people to my site. Of course, the average non-blogging traveler could go to Lonely Planet or even to the JR Pass website and read up about the Japan Rail Pass system.  But, I can provide something that neither a guidebook nor a static website can provide: personalized help.  When people contact me, they don't address me as "Dear Sir/Madam" (well, unless they're a spammer, in which case they're equally likely to refer to me as Dear Mr. Patkila).  They address me as "Akila" because that's who I am.  The reason people ask me questions is because they know that I'll give them an answer to the best of my ability.  And, if I don't, they can hold me accountable (at least to a certain extent) because I am a real person and this is my blog. That's the value a destination gets from sending bloggers on press trips.  No, we don't have the numbers of Conde Nast or National Geographic.  But, we have directly accessible personalities.  If someone reads about Namibia on my blog and they think this sounds like a great destination, they can email me or leave a comment and I'll get back in touch with them and help them sort out a trip to the best of my abilities.  And, those directly accessible personalities result in a pretty good return on investment for the destination.  How do you define a sponsorship? A few years back, I would have told you that a sponsorship was a "free trip."  Or a free item.  In fact, Matt Kepnes of the huge Nomadic Matt wrote this great article on why he would keep taking free "press trips" and "free stuff" back in 2009.  But, if you ask us now, few bloggers will call a press trip "free."  Here's what we've learned in the intervening years: DMOs (direct marketing organizations) and destinations demand a lot when on a press trip.  The pace is hurried and we're often writing blog posts, tweeting, Facebooking, and Instagramming on mediocre internet on buses as we run from one destination to the next.  We work a lot on a press trip, in the same way that I used to work a lot on business trips as an attorney.  A press trip is a business trip, albeit a fun business trip in an exotic locale. Usually, we're not getting paid beyond the services provided by the DMO (i.e., lodging, food, etc.).  Now, this isn't always true.  There are some bloggers who make a salary from the organizations that they endorse, in effect acting as celebrity endorsers for a particular brand, in the same way that Lebron makes money from Nike (though, I can tell you that noone's getting super rich as a travel blogger).  But, that's the exception.  Most of us take press trips during our vacation time from our other paying gigs.  If we're professional bloggers or writers, the time that we are at a press trip is time spent not writing or pitching on other projects.  It's the loss of income and opportunity. DMOs and destinations are starting to wise up to the fact that press trips aren't free.  In the last two years, I've started getting W-2s from organizations from whom I've received a press trip, meaning that I'm making "income" from these companies that I need to report to the IRS, even though that "income" may be in the form of lodging, dining, and air tickets, rather than cold hard cash. All this goes back to the original question: how do you define a sponsorship?  I define a sponsorship as an arrangement in which I provide writing, photography, and linking services through my blog in exchange for a certain product or set of products.  A sponsorship is a bartering system.  Instead of providing cash for my services, the destination/product manufacturers are trading goods/products for my services. And, that raises lots of questions: how can I accept goods or services from a company and then be honest in my writing about that company?  Isn't there an inherent conflict of interest if I'm getting "income" from X destination? Why does honesty matter in travel blogging? Many non-travel bloggers have assumed that it's not possible to go on a press trip and still write honestly about the product/destination.  It's the reason that the FTC has come down so hard on bloggers, requiring in their most recent guidance, that bloggers directly state that a review, blog post, or tweet about a particular topic was sponsored. It's the reason that Sean Keener wrote in his recent Bootsnall newsletter (which is, in part, what prompted this whole blog post) that, "Many popular travel bloggers are given free trips (often called press trips) or in some cases are even paid to go to a destination, hotel, hostel, etc.  The blogger will often use this disclaimer: 'This trip/hotel/hostel/etc. was paid for by XXXXX, but the opinions are my own.'  Really? I call Bull-shitake.  Let's think about this for a minute. If that blogger paid for that exact same trip with their own coin, would the content be the same?  Quite simply - No...it wouldn't." Let me turn this around: why is it assumed that bloggers can't be honest about a press trip?  Why is it assumed that we will automatically give glowing reviews of a product because it was given to us to review? Personally, I didn't start getting sponsorships and offers for product reviews until I was already well-established as a blogger.  I'd been writing for a year or longer, had a decent sized social media presence, and was active in the travel blogging community.  I got sponsorships because I already had credibility with my readers. Credibility is critical in this industry.  In fact, I'd say that you can scrap everything else: the quality of writing, the quality of photography, the quality of your web design, and, if you can be seen as a credible authority, you will succeed as a blogger.  Though not a blogger, Paula Deen is a perfect example of this.  She was a respected and credible authority on Southern cuisine.  She reminded all of us of our fondly indulgent grandmothers, who lived in a time when butter was considered a health food.  I've made her recipes before and I've eaten at her restaurant: I'm telling you, people, that she wasn't that great of a Southern cook.  But, people loved her because she was so honest and cute and round and full of buttery fun!  Then, all of a sudden, people found out that she had used racist terms.  She stopped reminding of us of our kindly grandmothers and started reminding us of those bigoted Southerners that every other Southerner would rather not know.  She lost her credibility and, in doing so, lost her TV shows and endorsement deals. Now, there isn't a single travel blogger who is as famous as Paula Deen.  But, we, too, have reputations to uphold.  If you have been doing this travel blogging thing long enough to have developed a credible reputation that will earn you sponsorships, then you've probably worked pretty hard to develop such credibility.  And, it's that credibility that's getting you sponsorships and making you money. In fact, Technorati recently concluded in its Digital Marketing report this exact same point: blogs are the fourth most influential online source for people making consumer decisions, behind retail sites and brand sites and the fifth most trusted source of information on the Internet.  (Note that consumers prefer blogs as a source of information over news sites and online magazines.  The King is dead.  Long live the King.)  And smaller communities actually drive purchases over larger bloggers because people believe that smaller communities have greater influence. People trust bloggers because they think that we are credible sources of information. . . . keep reading on travel blogging, sponsorship, and ethics after the jump 143 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/austria/go_with_oh_to_vienna Wed, 23 Oct 2013 10:46:22 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/austria/go_with_oh_to_vienna Go With Oh Apartment in Vienna It's been a while since we've done a giveaway on our blog which makes me sad because I love giving you guys free stuff from great companies.  So, when Go With Oh contacted me to let me know about their new contests, I jumped at the chance to score you guys a free stay at one of their apartments.  People, I love this company and you should, too. I'll tell you more about why I think you should be using Go With Oh below but, if you're in a hurry, here's the scoop.  There are three ways that you can win money to stay at a Go With Oh apartment in any of their ten European locations: put in an entry on our site to win 200 Euros toward one of their apartments - the entry form is below and there are LOTS of ways that you can enter fill out the Go With Oh Facebook entry form to win 500 Euros to be a Guest Tester and, if you are a blogger, you can enter the blogger competition to be a Guest Tester, and win 1000 Euros toward a stay All of these contests end on October 31, 2013, so there are a lot of ways to win money in the next week. A quick look at our Go With Oh Vienna apartment Last year, we stayed with them for three days in Venice and for three days in Vienna.  After a brief perusal through their website, I knew that we were going to love working with them. You see, one of the strange things about traveling is that we never know exactly where we're going to live.  When you buy a house or rent an apartment, ordinarily, you tour the place, you look around for lots of options, and you think about whether this is the exact spot you want to live.  When we travel, on the other hand, we pick hotels or vacation homes based on often outdated pictures and web reviews.  Until we get there, we never know exactly what we're going to get.  Sometimes, the new apartments work out really well.  But, then again, there are the other times . . . .  There were the two weeks in Prague where the bathroom continually filled with water.  And the month in Istanbul with the kitchen that looked like it hadn't been cleaned in years: my mom and I got down onto our hands and knees to clean it to make it moderately liveable.  There was the hostel in Lampang, Thailand, where I was afraid to sleep in the bed because of the thick stains all across the sheets and the flock of spiders living in the ceiling fan above the bed. Go With Oh floorplan So, what I loved about the Go With Oh site is that every single one of their properties has professional pictures and a to scale floorplan included, plus places for people to write in reviews.  A floorplan!  Professional pictures!  I didn't have to pore through murky underexposed photos to figure out whether the kitchen had a microwave and an oven or run Google Map searches to determine whether there was a park nearby.  At last, I had found a vacation rental site that actually provided all of the information I needed to make a completely informed decision about their apartment in one place.  Revolutionary! And, in both Vienna and Venice, our apartments almost perfectly matched the website description.  (The only problem we had in Vienna was that the laundry machine did not work but there was a nearby laundromat with great facilities.) Standing outside the apartment We were very happy with our stays in both Vienna and Venice and I think you will be, too.  If you're still with me, here are the three ways that you can win a voucher to stay at one of the Oh properties: fill out the Go With Oh Facebook entry form to win 500 Euros to be a Guest Tester if you are a blogger, you can enter the blogger competition to be a Guest Tester, and win 1000 Euros toward a stay or, fill out the entry form below for a chance to win 200 Euros on our site.  You MUST comment on this post about which Go With Oh apartment you would like to stay in.  You can see their selection of apartments here.  You can earn additional entries by liking The Road Forks Facebook page, the Go With Oh Facebook page, or tweeting about this giveaway (and you can tweet about the giveaway once a day until the giveaway ends.) a Rafflecopter giveaway ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/italy/magnificent_pompeii Fri, 18 Oct 2013 11:47:15 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/italy/magnificent_pompeii View of Pompeii Amphitheatre I've never seen a picture of Pompeii that did it justice.  In fact, before going to Pompeii, I questioned whether it was worth the time and energy to go there.  The architecture looked less impressive than the ancient architecture in Rome at the Pantheon, the Roman Forum, and the Colosseum.  The scenery was less stunning than that of the gorgeous blue and yellow Amalfi Coast.  But, we went because we were staying in Sorrento, were only 45 minutes away from Pompeii, and it seemed foolish to miss one of Italy's most popular attractions.    Walking through the streets of Pompeii And, I'll be the first to admit that our pictures don't do this place justice.  What's missing from the photography is a sense of the vastness of this place.  Pompeii was a living, breathing city with a population of around 10,000 people in about five square miles before 769 AD.  To put that into perspective, that's about the population density of New Orleans, Sydney, or Montreal today, and more dense than Miami, Antwerp, and Las Vegas.  Of course, our cities today are much larger than five square miles but, when we went there, we could feel how the city once bustled. Cafe/restaurant; bakery and ovens We started at the less touristed side of the city, at the point where most of the populace lived, and walked all the way to the main public areas at the far side of the city.  Like New York or Sydney or any major city today, Pompeii had places for worship, markets, government buildings, and public arenas and amphitheatres.  It had more than 33 bakeries with huge lava mills, turned by donkeys to grind the wheat, and ovens in which the bakers brought out thick flat bread, cut into wedges and sold to the citizens.  It had over 200 cafes where Pompeii citizenry --- especially the poor --- sat at long bars to eat from food ladled out of large jars set into the marble counters (kind of like a buffet). Houses in Pompeii We walked for hours.  Hours and hours.  Into and out of houses.  Into and out of mansions.  Through gardens with fountains.  Through gardens with statues of gods and goddesses at the center.  Through places where there were vineyards.  Into mammoth buildings where judges and politicians discussed and determined the way in which the rest of the Pompeiians should live, while those ordinary citizens went about their business, raising families, improving their homes, and generally living the best lives they could. Marble and temples It wasn't long before we realized that these people --- these people who lived over 1,500 years ago --- weren't all that different from us.   . . . keep reading humbling pompeii after the jump 9 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/offtheroad/four_years Thu, 19 Sep 2013 12:16:33 CDT http://theroadforks.com/offtheroad/four_years What I've been doing for the last year Four years ago, on September 19, 2009, Patrick and I hopped on a plane to Australia.  For three years, we thought about now.  Where are we now?  What are we doing now?  What should we eat now? In year one, we traveled through Australia, New Zealand, and Asia.  In year two, we explored Africa, North America, and crossed over the Atlantic Ocean with the pups to explore England.  In  year three, we roadtripped from England to Turkey and back, with something like thirty border crossings with Chewy and Abby.  There is beauty --- often overlooked beauty, at that --- in the immediacy of now.  When we were traveling, we didn't have the time to think about where we would go next because we knew so little about the now.  Take, for example, the week that we arrived in Istanbul.  We arrived, put our stuff down, and immediately had to learn everything: where is the grocery store? where can we buy bottled water? what are the good restaurants? what is the easiest way to get to the European side versus the Asian side? what should we see?  And so on. Because we knew nothing of our surroundings and were constantly confronted by new places and new experiences, we lived in the now.  We didn't have to think too much about what was happening next.  We had blinders on to our future. And, then, in Greece, the future came roaring. I think I first suspected that I might be pregnant in Santorini, when on the boattrip there, I was so nauseous that I couldn't leave the cabin.  Our friend traveling with us said, "It must be tough for you to travel so much since you seem to be motion sick all the time."  And, I thought to myself, no, that's not right.  I'm not usually so nauseous.  Days later, I stood in the bathroom in Naxos, trying to decipher the Greek birth control test instructions, but a + is a + in all languages.  Patrick and I celebrated that night at a restaurant that faced the ocean, gorging on eggplant and feta, cucumber salad, and giant capers. We arrived in Athens a week later.  Graffiti streaked every single building, even the beautiful Hilton in which we stayed with the pups, and the sun forced itself upon us so that every movement we made, every second we walked, sent sweat streaming down our bodies.  It was a horrible, horrible week.  The worst week of my life. It was the week that I learned the word chemical pregnancy.  I was pregnant one day and not pregnant the next.  It wasn't even a real pregnancy, the Internet said: 70% of pregnancies end in an early miscarriage, before most people even know they're pregnant.  But, it felt real.  We had dreamt up a little baby who would live with us in the next.  And, so we traveled, living in the now, dreading the next.  In Venice, a doctor confirmed --- him in halting English and me in halting Italian --- that there was no baby.  I drank wine, we ate bruschetta, and roamed the canals.  We went to Vienna and explored music and architecture.  And, then, we were in Prague.  Worried about my health, I scheduled an appointment with a Czech ob/gyn who promised on her website that she was fluent in both English and Czech.  I told Patrick that I would go alone.  He didn't need to be there for an appointment with her.  But, Patrick insisted.  We sat in a waiting room full of women with round plump bellies, and Patrick held my hand, as he has held my hands so many times over our sixteen years together. We walked in and the doctor said, "We'll use a sonogram.  Yes, that will be best."  She led me over to the machine and let the wand linger over my stomach.  "Well," she said, "you're definitely pregnant." "No," Patrick said, both of us thinking we didn't understand her thick accent.  "You mean, she's not pregnant." "No, she's pregnant." "You mean not pregnant." "Pregnant," the doctor said, laughing at our shocked faces. "But, but . . . the doctor in Venice told us that there was no baby." "She's pregnant.  You want to hear?"  The doctor turned up the monitor and we heard a sound: thumpa-thump thumpa-thump thumpa-thump.  It was a beautiful, beautiful sound.  Thumpa-thump.  Thumpa-thump.  Thumpa-thump. "Do you hear that?"  Patrick asked me, his eyes glittering with happy tears. I nodded.  Coherent words weren't coming out of my mouth.  My brain couldn't process what my ears were hearing.  Finally, I stuttered, my hands gripping Patrick's.  "But, but, are you sure?" She pointed to the screen.  "What do you think that sound is?" It was the sound of next. On September 21, 2012, a year ago, Patrick and I returned back to the United States with Chewy, Abby, and our little stowaway.  Year four was the year of being still.    . . . keep reading four years! + what's next after the jump 138 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/czech_republic/prague_black_and_white Fri, 13 Sep 2013 13:27:23 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/czech_republic/prague_black_and_white Street in Prague We don't often do black and white photography largely because I love color.  I love the juxtaposition of bright against light, sky against tree, and strong against weak.  One of my all time favorite photo spreads on our site is this one with the children and balloons, done in black and white, with pops of color, because the color almost springs out of the computer.  And, our penchant for bright and vivid colors is the reason that we're constantly posting about flowers, trees, gardens, and flower festivals. But, one of the biggest benefits of black and white photography is its timelessness.  If you look at an old photo in color, you can easily determine the decade in which it was taken by the type of color and the use of the lens.  But, the pictures we took recently in Prague in black and white could have been taken a decade ago or longer.  In monochrome, our eyes aren't distracted by the newness or oldness of the camera technology or other camera distortions.  (It's only a small part of the reason why Ansel Adams' gorgeous scenery photographs looks like it was taken yesterday.) When I started going through our photography for Prague, I realized that I had to do a photo spread in black and white because Prague has this same sense of timelessness.  Buildings and cobblestone streets are perfectly preserved, down to the ruts used for horse-drawn carriage in the Stare Mestro (Old Town).  A little further away, the city becomes stark and square, with odd monuments built to celebrate Communism and the Communist regime.  There are very few buildings (other than the famous Tancici Dum or Dancing Building) that embrace modern steel and glass.  The city seems to have stood still, with parts of it squarely stuck in the 14th century and others in the pre-Cold War era.        . . . keep reading prague in black and white after the jump 32 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/greece/scenes_from_santorini Wed, 28 Aug 2013 20:59:20 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/greece/scenes_from_santorini Santorini sunset Can we all just agree on this one little thing?  Santorini is gorgeous.  The white buildings.  The blue sky.  The turquoise ocean.  The cliffs and stairs.  Yeah, it's gorgeous.  Without a doubt, Santorini was our favorite part of Greece.  But, this post isn't about the scenic shots.  I've got some of those coming.  Instead, I wanted to highlight one of my very favorite parts of Santorini: the doors.  Not Jim Morrison Doors but real actual entryways in worn splintered paint of varying shades of blue, green, red, and yellow.  . . . keep reading santorini doors after the jump 9 comments ]]> http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/greece/picking_that_perfect_greek_island Wed, 21 Aug 2013 14:54:58 CDT http://theroadforks.com/worldtrip/greece/picking_that_perfect_greek_island Views from Santorini I was reading CNN Travel yesterday on how to pick the perfect Greek island out of the 1,400 islands scattered along the Aegean.  Sure, there are the obvious choices:  Santorini and Mykonos, Crete and Rodos.  But, how do you pick a few spots to visit out of the thousands?  How do you know that these will be the perfect Greek islands for you? Peacocks in Kos (and Chewy and Abby completely oblivious to the peacocks) I get these questions all the time because I've kind of become an unofficial travel planner.  People --- friends, family, blog readers, and random strangers at the grocery store --- will ask me where I suggest they go, what they should do, and, most importantly, what they should be eating.  I send out epic emails that rival the Russian writers for length, depth, and excessive use of adjectives, with suggested itineraries and speculations on weather, the number of tourists, and the potential exchange rate.  These emails tend to be spattered with capital letters, enunciations, and exclamation marks when I get overly excited about Turkey!  Italy!  Japan!  and China!  Happily, people tell me they like my suggestions so I continue doling out the advice. Shopping street in Rodos But, my own travel planning is a bit more haphazard.  I have a master spreadsheet where I keep track of where we're going and what we'll be doing, but, for the most part, we go where we can find reasonable accommodations and transportation.  We're not particularly picky about finding that one perfect place to visit. Art in Rodos Archaeological Museum You see, anywhere could be perfect and anywhere could be a disaster.  We've gone to cities touted by everyone as the next best thing and we found it completely uninteresting or horrible.  We've gone to places that nobody else noticed and loved it.  We never know what we're going to like until we get there.  And, I posit that, no matter how much you research and plan, you cannot know what will be the perfect Greek island.  Vibrant colors in Kos and Rodos It's like this: you have a favorite Mexican restaurant that you've eaten at for years and years.  You go there all the time.  You think it's the best Tex-Mex you'll ever eat.  So, one day,  you take your best friend to that Mexican restaurant.  She sees the crowds of people lining up to eat that food and she's excited.  Enchiladas!  Tacos!  Guacamole!  But, it turns out that the head chef is sick that day, stuck in bed with the flu.  The second tier chef is nervous and everything comes out underseasoned and underspiced.  Your friend looks at you like you're crazy.  She asks you why you would think that this is the best Tex-Mex restaurant ever? Fishing boats in Santorini It's happened to all of us, right?  We rave about something and it turns out to have an off day.  It's the reason that most of us try restaurants at least twice before writing them off.  But, when we travel, we don't usually have the luxury of coming back over and over again.  Our visit to that spot might be our only visit there because it's too expensive or time-consuming to keep coming back to a place that we don't really like.  And, I think that's what happened to us in Greece. The truth is [just spit it out, Akila] . . . the truth is, we didn't really like Greece.  We spent a month hopping around the different islands and a week in Athens and, generally, we gave the country a "meh."  . . . keep reading on not really picking that perfect greek island after the jump 14 comments ]]>