This was it. We had one shot, one opportunity; we couldn’t miss our chance to blow, to seize everything we ever wanted. So we asked ourselves: would we capture it, or just let it slip? Despite our palms being sweaty, knees weak, arms heavy — maybe even a smidge of evidence of mom’s spaghetti — on the surface we were calm and ready to take on our final full day in France. Yep, that just happened.
Read MoreThat’s right. As the title of this post(card) hints at, we elected to check out the church that sits atop the highest hill in Paris, as well as the area surrounding it, which is known as Montmartre (“Mountain of the Martyr”). The Basilica of the Sacred Heart is considered a “minor basilica” — whatever that means — but try telling that to all of the people that journey there annually, making it one of the city’s most popular tourist destinations.
Read MoreIt may have been Sunday morning, but we had no plans to take it easy. In fact, we instead made our way downtown, walking fast, faces pass(ing) — we were museum-bound. Staring blankly ahead, just making our way, making any way, through the crowd …to get to Musee d’Orsay, another one of Paris’ fine art institutions.
Read MoreOur third day in France was extremely top heavy, which is to say our two big to-do’s were in the morning and early afternoon. We’re talking about some heavy hitters here, too, as you may have deduced from the title of this post(card). Knowing what lie ahead, it was important to get the day started on the right foot.
Read MoreAfter giving ourselves time to settle in on Thursday, Friday came in like a lion, and not necessarily the cute and cuddly kind. While you process that visual, allow me to paint another one: the two of us, my traveling companion and me, walking through the streets of Paris before the sun had even risen, racing across town to meet our tour bus.
Read MoreIt was a random Sunday in July when my traveling companion and I decided to write down a number of countries we might want to visit in the next year or so on little scraps of paper. We proceeded to toss said scraps of paper, maybe a couple dozen, into a Red Wings beanie. We then shook them all up and fished out three just to see what we’d get. We told ourselves beforehand that none of this was binding, but then gave each other simultaneous side-eye glances after saying so, as if to indicate that maybe we kinda wanted it to be, that perhaps maybe it was.
Read MoreThere they went, walking down the street in a straight line, looking like a high school football team warming up before practice with some high knees. There was Andrew, James, Michael, Patrick, Lucy, Bernadette, and, oh my goodness, don’t look now, but it’s Francis of Assisi himself. That’s right: it was Thursday in New Orleans and the saints were marching in. Or was I just hallucinating?
Read MoreAs with almost everything in the history of ever, travel tips and tricks come in all shapes and sizes. Some bits of advice prove useful; others you might swat away like a mildly-pesky fly. Right here, right now, we’re trying to steer clear of the fly swatters and break down some of the best travel hacks out there, depending on the type of traveler you are.
Read MoreWhether you’ve crisscrossed the globe five times over or simply scrolled through Instagram on a lazy afternoon, you’ve undoubtedly learned by now that some destinations are just more photogenic than others. That’s not to say that “ugly” cities and towns aren’t worth visiting; places that impress with personality alone are certainly bucket list-worthy. It’s more about this plain statement of fact: not all destinations are equal in the eyes of the camera’s lens.
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