Day 3: Saqsaywaman, Q’enco, Temple of the Moon

I woke up at 6 today in order to make it to Saqsaywaman when it opened at 7. It was supposedly a 40-minute walk, but it felt like forever, and it probably took me closer to an hour, hehe. I began my journey and quickly realized I had my work cut out for me. Cusco sits at 11,152 feet/3,399 meters, and where I was headed was 12,139 feet/3,700 meters! Almost 1,000 feet in elevation gain. It was a gorgeous walk, and it was so early that there was no traffic, and only a few people walking dogs and running. 

The walking directions led you to the back entrance of the archaeological site, and those were the toughest stairs to conquer, lol. But I was wonderfully rewarded when I finally made it. I had my tourist ticket stamped, and the guard, Alex, noticed how much I was sweating..haha, thanks! 😅. We chatted for a minute, and he recommended muña (a Peruvian mint) for the altitude sickness. Which, I’m happy to say I am not feeling hardly at all now. I started with a pretty noticeable headache, but it never reached the painful throbbing level. The worst for me has just been getting winded really quickly, haha. Anyways, he spots a muña bush right next to one fo the Inca walls, and he walks me over there, and we go under the rope meant to keep people out, and he plucks a handful for me to have. I was so touched at his kindness, and this is a great example of why I love to travel. You just never know what you might experience or who you might meet. 

I continued on my way and realized just how large this place is! I couldn’t believe it! I walked this way and that way, trying to absorb it all, but I was clearly unable. It was really foggy, and the clouds gave the site a mystical feeling. Oh, and I was pretty much the only one there! Hehe. Go early and beat the crowds! 

I loved walking through these giant doorways, wondering what it was like in its heyday. 😍🤩

After spending longer than I anticipated here, I exited by the main entrance and soon realized the error of my ways. I had intended to walk from Saqsaywaman to Q’enco, and possibly visit a huge statue of Jesus, hoping for some great views. Well, the short way would’ve been to exit where I entered and cut across to the Jesus statue, then meander up the road to Q’enco. What did I do? Haha, oh, so much more…

I start by walking down the road to the point where I started the steep stairs into Saqsaywaman. I could’ve climbed again and done what I had intended….but…..because I’m me, I knew if I went into the San Blas neighbhood, I could see a colonial aqueduct that was built on a previous Inca version. So, off I go! Haha. It’s all part of the adventure! Hehe.

I saw the aqueduct and a famous street in the neighbhood, where the houses covered in hanging flower pots and the street with potted plants on both sides, Calle Siete Borreguitos. I’d say it was worth it…. always is! Hehe. But soon, I had to climb again…up to the road. So. Many. Stairs. I kind of wished I had counted, lol. I had one major mishap where I followed my google map directions up an enormous stair case, and nearly made it to the top, only to find out the rest of the way was closed off due to construction. Ugh. Back down I go! Only to walk a few staircases over and climb up all over again, haha. I was exhausted, to say the least, haha. 

And once I did make it to the top, my directions told me to go right. If I had gone left, I would’ve just followed the main road up to Q’enco. But I follow my directions and it leads me again, the back way, haha. And it was a VERY long and steep road. I actually walked half of it backwards, as it was easier on my body, lol. The locals must’ve really wondered what I was doing, haha. 🤪

Alas, I make it to Q’enco, an Inca religious/ceremonial site. One of the main attractions here is the Sacrifice Chamber, where it’s surmised the Inca used to make mummies and sacrifice some animals. It was pretty cool to walk in there, but after visiting the expansive Saqsaywaman, it paled in comparison.

After a short visit, I decided to walk about 15 minutes to a free site, the Temple of the Moon, which I had heard about from a man I ran into when leaving Saqsaywaman. He was very friendly and told me that he was a guide for Saqsaywaman, and as amazing as it is, there are other sites around Cusco that most tourists don’t know about. The Temple of the Moon was one of them, and he told me there was a stone with a relief image of decapitated monkeys. One idea as to the significance of this imagery was that perhaps the Inca knew humans descended from monkeys. I didn’t see these stones, but I did look it up on google afterward, and it looks like they are really there! I also saw photos of the inside as well, but it was roped off when I went, and as much as I would’ve liked to explore inside, I respect the preservation efforts. 

Much like Q’enco, I felt like there wasn’t much to see after Saqsaywaman, but I’m glad I went. 

That is, until I had to walk alllll the way back down to Cusco, haha. I kept telling myself I’d just grab a taxi, but it was all downhill, and I had already done the hard part, haha. So I kept on, but this time, I followed the main road, and actually was right near the entrance to the big white Jesus, so I figured I might as well go up and check it out, too, lol 😅.  The views were pretty spectacular, but there wasn’t much else to see besides the giant white Jesus, hehe.

When it came time to choose a staircase to climb down, I had some doubts, and I was worried I’d find the same one with construction. I finally decided on one, and as far as I could see, it was fine. Well. It wasn’t. 😆 Haha. Really?! I found the stupid construction again! Dang it! I was immediately filled with a sense of dread and regret for not taking a taxi, lol. Only one thing to do, though. Start climbing. *winces* 🥲.

I only climbed a few stairs and noticed a detour…it was less than safe looking, but I took my chances and went. There was a thin rail to keep us from falling of the quite high ledge this path was on, but I kept to the inside and made it to secure ground in just a few minutes. Thank GOD! Now I knew where I was and actually enjoyed the descent towards the main square, Plaza de Armas. 

I decided I would eat at Paddy’s Irish Pub, the highest Irish-owned pub in the world! A recommendation from a friend, and it did not disappoint! Thanks, Josie!! I was the only person there and got the only table right in front of the window that overlooked the main square. Yay! I ordered a burger and a beer and was planning on going through photos and catching up on text messages. But then, I notice a woman looking over, and I invite her to come and take a picture. She was grateful and asked if I minded if she and her boyfriend joined me, to which I said, of course! These are the kinds of encounters that make traveling so fun and interesting. You never know what the day has in store for you. They were Kathryn and Entienne, from Canada, and we shared some time together, talking about our Peru experiences, and then a guy walks over and asks us if we are willing to help with some promotional videos for the pub. Okay, sure! Haha. So he took a couple videos of us saying cheers, and now we might be viral on their Facebook page! Haha. Didn’t know I’d be an actress today. Lol 😆.

Soon, they went their own way, and a couple who had sat down next to us started talking to me, and they were visiting from London to see their daughter, who has been traveling since January. I just LOVE these random meetings and finding out about what other people are doing. And as if that wasn’t enough fun, I leave the English couple, and a woman grabs my attention, and says she’s a solo traveler and overhead some of my recommendations to the couple. I told her about the Sacred Valley Tour from yesterday and told her to book it, hehe. If only I could earn a commission! Lol! And shout out to another solo female traveler! Heck, yes! 

After all this excitement, it was time to slowly make my way back to the hostel. I wanted to look for the infamous, tacky, and touristy alpaca sweater. Sorry, Dana! 😅🤣.  I quickly realized the cheap ones are clearly NOT real, but I don’t care. For $10 or less, it’s a fun thing to have, lol. I did find one I LOVED, but it was also way too big. Dang it! Haha. So I went to every other store along the way to the hostel, looking for it, but to no avail. Maybe I’ll find it somewhere…or I may have to settle for something else, hehe. 

I run to the Salkantay pre-trip meeting at 7, have a quick dinner, and grab my clean laundry so I can properly pack for the big 5-day hike! I have to be at the meeting place at 4:45am, so I hope to sleep the best I can to be prepared! Let’s DO this! 😁

6:00 AM wake-up time for the all-day tour into the Sacred Valley! There are 5 major points of interest we’re about to tackle in a day’s work. Herrrrrreeee we go! Haha

Stop 1: Chinchero

Inhabited since before the Inca, but made famous by the Inca king Túpac Yupanqui, who decided to construct his home in this location. With the Spanish invasion, the most impressive Inca buildings were replaced with colonial churches. Many of the Inca temples were deconstructed, and their materials used to build churches or were built right on top of the foundations of the Inca temples themselves.

We were the first group to enter this beautiful space, and when we thought we had seen the most beautiful view, our guide encouraged us to keep going, and it got even better! If this is just the first stop, I’m positive this will be an incredible tour!

Stop 2: Moray

As we descend from Chinchero, I gaze out my window, watching the clouds hug the mountains, protecting their peaks from the reach of our cameras. There were a few times we were lucky enough to see a glacier peeping through the clouds! I can not imagine how drastic and rugged these mountains must look with no cloud coverage at all….absolutely breathtaking! 

Moray was an agricultural monument that was built into an already existing depression in the landscape. Made of concentric circular terraces, it burrows deep into the mountain, creating a series of microclimates along the way. The very bottom, the deepest terrace, could reach temperatures of 32 degrees Celsius, or 89 Fahrenheit! Amazing! This allowed the Inca to produce mountain, coastal, and tropical crops all in one place!

These terraces also had their very own irrigation system, most likely fed in the dry season by the glacial and snow runoff from the surrounding mountains. There is a smaller circular terraced site just off to the side of the larger Moray. The Inca made a practice model before committing to the larger and more extraordinarily impressive finale. 

Stop 3: Maras Salt Mines

This place was really impressive! We drove along the side of it and got incredible aerial views…it’s massive! The salt pools are only 12 cm deep, and there is a hot spring directly under it, which is necessary for the process of saturating the rock and evaporating the water, leaving behind the salt. The Inca used salt to preserve meat, to make mummies, and it was also used as a bank; salt could be traded for other commodities.

Before we actually arrived to the mine, we stopped by a store and sampled chocolate with the salt extracted from the mine. It was so good! I definitely caved and bought some chocolate and salt. Let me tell you, the smoked salt smells amazing! Maybe it’ll help deodorize my backpack, haha 🤣😅.

Stop 4: Ollyantaytambo

Now this, THIS, was my favorite of the day. We learned that the suffix, “tambo,” means “resting place.” Along the Incan Trail, there are many tambos made for the messengers who would run around 15 km a day, the “chasquis.” The chasquis would run relay-style with messages to different Inca cities. In this way, they were able to cover an unbelievable amount of land in a quick amount of time. According to an online source, “25 runners could cover 240 kilometers in one day.” (HTTPS://historia.National Geographic.com.es/a/chasquis-mensajeros-inca_15459). That’s approximately 150 miles! Wow! I just LOVE this! Just that alone has re-ignited my desire to be a strong runner and to one day conquer the marathon! Hehe 🏃‍♀️😁.

Back to Ollyantaytambo, this fortress was the last stop before beginning the road to Machu Picchu, and was constructed to protect the infamous site. This impressive site was still being built when the Spanish came, with evidence on some of the large stones with their hoisting points still intact. 

At the very top was going to be the Temple of the Sun, created with MASSIVE stones. Many of the Inca sites have these superhuman sized stones, and thinking about how many people it would take to move said stones (500!), let alone chisel them to perfection, is utterly mind-boggling. Absolutely incredible ingenuity!

Across the way from the fortress, there were visible structures on the opposite hill, very high up. Those were used as natural refrigerators! Ha! I love the Inca! They took advantage of the cool glacial breeze to keep their food storage cold…amazing!

Stop 5: Pisac

Phew! Finally, at the last stop of the day. This was a city for the average person and can be distinguished from the Inca Imperial buildings by the construction style. The Inca elite used the large boulders, perfectly cut and placed on top of one another without any kind of mortar, for temples and palaces. The average people used smaller stones and mud. The most impressive part of this site was the 150 terraces! Similar to Moray, they were able to create micro climates by changing the height of each terrace, allowing more or less cool air to reach each terrace.

Behind the terraces were moutains that were used as a cemetary. Mummies were placed in the fetal position and into circular holes in the mountain. In this way, the deceased were given back to “Pachamama,” or “Mother Earth,” and the cycle of life continued to rebirth and reincarnation. In Quechua, there isn’t a way to say goodbye, as the cosmology and philosophy suggest that life never ends, and instead a heartfelt “See you again” was said in place of “goodbye.”

This day tour was jam-packed, and it was all worth it! I only wish we could’ve seen more! Haha. Below is the tour I did, and I would highly recommend it. I looked around for other tours, but I couldn’t find one that included all of these places.

From Cusco: Sacred Valley & Maras Salt Mines Tour with Lunch

I am so excited to be back traveling, and this time, the chosen place is Peru 🇵🇪! I’ll be doing the typical attractions, and my highlight will be the Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu! I’ve given myself 3 days in Cusco to acclimate to the altitude, so hopefully I’ll be ready to face the challenges of hiking at elevation. 😅

I flew into Lima, and everything was going smoothly until I made a mistake that nobody ever wants to, and it’s quite an embarrassing one for a seasoned traveler 😅😂. After getting to my accommodations for the night, I spoke with the owner to arrange my transportation back to the airport the following morning for my flight to Cusco. Well, even after LOOKING at the flight, I confirmed with him that my flight was at 8:15am. The next morning, about 10 minutes before we were supposed to head to the airport, I realize this grave mistake, and know there will be no way I’m making the 6:45am flight I actually had. It was 6 when we left the guest house, and boarding had already started by the time I showed up at check-in, and I couldn’t get through. Womp womp. *Hangs head in shame* Lol. 😅🤣🙈

I was so shocked and embarrassed at myself, the only thing I could do was laugh it off. Like, who does that? Haha. If you know me, you know I double and triple check just about everything I do! Hehe. But I suppose I DID check. It was just that my brain somehow misread the information ever so confidently, lol. Oh well, what’s done is done, and now it’s time to problem solve and move on.

I was prepared to purchase another $100 ticket because I wanted to be sure I’d make the next flight to Cusco at 8:45am. I went through the process of buying a ticket, but it didn’t show any seats available, and I was slightly concerned it was full. So, I decided to wait until I was told to seek help, around 6:50am, when I officially would’ve missed the flight. The help desk was so speedy, and they just asked for my passport and 5 minutes later, I had a new boarding pass. No fees, no questions, no problems. Lol. Great! Thanks, LATAM! Off to security I go, with about half an hour to spare before I need to be at the gate.

I make use of that time by swinging into one of the lounges for a quick bathroom break and some breakfast snacks. Once it’s time to be in the gatehouse, I check with the gate agent that I hold a confirmed ticket and don’t need to do anything else. All set! Hooray! And before long, we boarded buses and were driven to our remote plane. I stow my big bag, and I see someone in my seat. I politely ask him what seat he has, as I think I have 10D. He looks at me and says, “Yeah, that seat over there. This one is F.” And he proceeded to explain the alphabet to me, as I sometimes do when working. OMG. Haha. Again! 😂🙈. Another dumb travel faux paux! I really must be tired, or maybe the hidden stress of missing the first flight is catching up to me, lol. So, I again laugh it off and take my aisle seat.

The flight is quick, about an hour, and when we get to Cusco, I have a taxi driver reserved through the hostel. It’s probably unnecessary, and I’ve yet to check to see how much I overpaid by…but, there is some peace of mind, especially when traveling solo, that I’ve got a recommended service waiting for me.

I had several hours before I could officially check in to the hostel, so I stow my luggage, and hit the town! I’m only a few blocks away from the main center, Plaza de Armas. I take a good loop around, and find a restaurant recommended to me by my backpacking buddies, Dana and Hayden. So I decided to have a good, healthy meal and orient myself a bit. The resturant was utterly spectacular! Hanz Craft Beer and Restaurant. It’s on the second floor of a building along the main square. The views were unbeatable, and the service was top notch! I felt like I was flying in Delta One….I was even give a hot towel! Hehe. I ordered the Salmon Ceviche and tried the cutest tasting flight I’ve ever seen of their beers. Of course I had to have one! Hehe. But, my focus is pure water while I try to acclimate as quick as I can for the Salkantay Trek. I was also served some hand crafted bread—cinnamon and quinoa flavored, paired with a quince jam, and when the check came, I was brought a tiny little mango dessert! Hehe. Amazing!

After lunch I walked to a look out point, and it did not disappoint! But, I’ll tell ya, the walk up was no picnic, lol. I know its just my first day here, but I’m still surprised how winded I get so quickly, hehe. Salkantay is going to be a beast! I walk around the San Blas neighborhood, and based on some google research, its sort of the hipster place to be. I wouldn’t mind walking around there again; lots of tiny streets with little cafes and such.

Next up was to officially check-in at the hostel and move my stuff from storage to my home for the next 3 nights. The room is cute! And there is only one other person in the room, score! I had about 45 minutes to spare before embarking on a free walking tour, so I decided to relax and write! Hehe. Gotta keep up with the writing or it gets overwhelming!

The free walking tour was easily one of the best I’ve been on, all thanks to our guide, Paul. He was enthusiastic, knowledgeable, and included some fun stops to try the traditional Incan beer, chicha, and we tried very hard to eat roasted fava beans…we nearly cracked our teeth on them, lol. But we learned they have a high amount of calcium, and they were actually quite tasty and a fun little snack…so long as you let it soften in your mouth first, haha. We also stopped by a chocolate shop and tried all sorts of varieties of chocolate…so yummy! Hard to pass that up, hehe. Earlier we passed by an Incan wall that had a puma and serpent, and at one time, a condor, designed right into the placement of the gigantic stones. So cool! Near there we were given a small llama keychain, and as tacky and silly as it is, it was a really nice touch, as were the other freebies.

Some things I learned on the tour:

• There are 3,000 species of potato in Peru
• Some theories state the Inca reached as far as Polynesia
• Inca built with anti-seismic construction techniques
• Green stones were brought 64 km (40 miles) to build a temple in Cusco
• The original design of Cusco was in the shape of a puma
• The original Inca city lay 4 meters below the modern surface
• It took the Inca 8 days to reach Machu Picchu from Cusco
• The clocks have a mistake in Roman numerals, IIII instead of IV

There were only four women on the walking tour, and we all are traveling solo! The very last part of the tour concluded in the Pariwana Hostel, with a pisco sour mixing class, hehe. We all decided to join for that, and once everything was ready, we went behind the bar and were instructed step by step how to make the popular Peruvian drink. Well worth the 15 soles! Once we polished our off drinks, 3 of us decided to grab dinner together. We got a recommendation from the front desk, Sumaqcha Restaurant, and went on our way.

We all had alpaca meat! I love to try new things, and all I can say is that it was similar to a steak/red meat. Possibly a tad more “game-y” than beef, but honestly, it was hard for me to tell, lol. While we were enjoying our dinner and our conversation, we witnessed two tables order cuy, or guinea pig. It came out on a giant plate, all sprawled out as if it were alive and laying down, haha. Complete with a traditional Incan hat! Hahaha. I HAVE to go back there to try it and get my picture, lol. I wish I had ordered that to begin with. Next time.

Day 7: 

Today we’d be embracing yet another difficult hike…much less than Haleakalā, but a challenging, steep, 2-mile uphill incline. Hehe. But, before we do much, we stop by Maui Coffee Roasters for some coffee and some breakfast. We’ll need our energy for the Waihe’e Ridge hike. This hike boasts magical views of the ’Īao Valley, and the north shore coastline, and of course, the lovely volcano.

This trail has two parking lots, a higher and a lower overflow lot. We rolled the dice and went up to the top, only to see that it was to capacity. BUT! We noticed some people walking down, and we asked them if they were headed out, and they were! Wooohooo! So we waited a minute or two and quickly took over their parking spot. This saved us close to an extra mile of uphill walking! Thank you, gods! Haha.

The first part of the trail was not very cute, hehe. A super inclined cement walkway. Absolutely trash for already sore and tired legs, haha. But it was short, and once we got to the top of that mess, it was a natural trail for the rest of the hike. We started through a little pine forest that reminded us of any woody area in New England. And not for nothing, the shade was life-giving, hehe. 

We climb our way to the top of the 2-mile trail, taking many much needed breaks, often with a beautiful scenic overlook. 360 degree views from up here…we could see Haleakalā looming in the distance, with the low laying lands near the airport, we could see the cliffs and the ocean of the West Maui Mountains, and the absolutely magical ‘Īao Valley….looking like it was straight out of Jurassic Park. I think I had a silly grin on my face for the entirety of the hike, taking in all the amazing sights I was experiencing.

Once on top of the ridge, we had the picnic area to ourselves for a minute, and we rested our exhausted legs and took in the beauty. We were soon joined by a group of older women from Canada. They looked like they were having the time of their lives! Hehe. We exchanged pictures and got some insider tips from them, as one of them has a house on the island. They quickly headed back down the trail, mentioning how good an ice-cold Corona sounded, and Tony and I couldn’t help but agree, hehe. We would come across these women again, but they were hoofing it down the trail, much faster and nimbler than we were. I hope that I am able to do all those things at the age!

We finally make it to the end and back to our steaming hot car, lol. We decide we’re going to visit the ‘Īao Valley again and sit in the icy cool, healing waters of the river. Something like an ice-bath for our tired legs. Before we get there, we notice a cute roadside cafe on the edge of a coconut tree farm. We stopped in for some refreshments. 

Soon, we were in the river, holding our breath just to dip our feet and legs in….Brrrrrr that water was cold! Hehe. But it felt so good! The clouds were thick and rolling in, and without the heat of the sun, it was quite chilly all around. We didn’t stay too long. 

We went back to our little oasis to shower and relax for a bit before going out to karaoke with Christian and Paige. 

The karaoke spot was a fun little bar in Kihei called “Life’s A Beach.” Little did we know this would be a momentous night for Tony, as he was finally introduced to a Bloody Maria (Bloody Mary, but with tequila), and a Michelada (beer with something like a Bloody Mary mix in it). We had fun singing and cheering other people on, and soon, it was time to call it a night. 

Day 8:

Today was a lazy morning start…sleeping in felt amazing after our big hikes and a night out, hehe. We woke up, and our wonderful host had prepared us fresh squeezed orange juice, lattes, and a little toast breakfast: a hole in the wall. The middle of the toast was carved out and a fried egg in the middle, and the cutout was the shape of a dolphin, which was placed on top! What a cute idea! Hehe. We are so lucky 🙂

The first stop is always a coffee stop, hehe. I asked my friend, Jaimee, what her favorite coffee spot on the island was, and she recommended Akamai Coffee. I’d like to try as many different coffee places I can, and I hadn’t tried this one yet, so that was the plan. We found a cute little trailer cafe with no line, so we drove up, and I indulged in a honey lavender latte that was so tasty! Very different, but worth the try. Felt just right for a cloudy, slightly rainy day. 

Today we decided to go back to the Kihei area, since we really hadn’t explored that part of the island yet. We started off on Glass Beach, where it seemed like there would be tons of sea glass laying on the beach, but we didn’t find as much as we’d hoped. We did see a huge seal sunning herself…it was quite overcast, but I’m sure she felt warmer than in the water, hehe. 

After Glass Beach, we worked our way to the aquarium. Tony was really interested in going, and we were told that the whale 360 movie experience was worth it. Upon entering the aquarium, we realize it’s all outdoors! How cool is that? The larger exhibits with the biggest tanks were inside, but to get to one place to the next, we had to walk around outside, and I have to say, that was quite nifty. 

We make it to the whale show and are given 3D glasses, and it’s EPIC. The sound is loud enough to shake the seats we were sitting in. I had been wanting to do a whale cruise, but it didn’t work out, so this was a pretty cool alternative. I probably wouldn’t see the whales this close on the whale watch anyway. Hehe.

After the aquarium, we plugged in the address for the Maui Brewery….so excited! We have already sampled some of the beers at local restaurants, but there’s nothing like checking it out straight from the source, hehe. 

The brewery was large and open, a beautiful breeze blowing in, and we arrived just in time for happy hour! Wooohoo! Tony and I each ordered a flight and some snacks :). The food was delicious and the beer was tasty! Between the two of us, we almost sampled all the beers they had on tap, haha. Flights are the way to go! Tony finished up with a rootbeer float that looked yummy, well, if you like root beer (not me!), hehe.

After our yummy dinner, we decided to check out the sunset on a beach recommended to us by our server. The waves here were pretty big, but not as chaotic as Secret Beach. We took the boogie board out and had so much fun riding the waves back to shore. I’ve never done this, besides the more standard and less efficient body surfing, lol. It was quite the thrill, speeding along with the wave. I had a couple of really good runs and plenty of not so great ones, haha. As the sun was setting, I was constantly on the lookout for a whale sighting. I was in the water, trying to catch my last good wave, and just along the horizon, I spotted a whale breach! It was picture-perfect with the golden light of the sunset reflecting on the water. How lucky am I?

What a beautiful end to another lovely day in Maui. Before driving back to our little oasis, we decided to have a drink at the Mexican restaurant across the street to wait out the traffic. The bartender here made one mean and spicy michelada! So yummy!

Day 9:

Today we would be tackling the infamous Road to Hana. The whole road is about 64 miles long, has 59 bridges, the majority are single lane, and over 600 curves! It’s quite the adventure just to drive it, but the beauty of the road is found in all the places to stop along the way to checkout waterfalls and beaches! There are some sites that require an entry fee, but I’m proud to say that we managed to avoid those and still saw everything we wanted! Hehe.

We passed so many waterfalls along the road, but many were dry! Or, at least, it looked like it would’ve been a rushing river or waterfall, had there been any water, hehe. We didn’t get out of the car, but did the best we could with drive-by photos. Many of the waterfalls that did have water required parking along the narrow road, and honestly, after our bamboo hike, none of these waterfalls compared, hehe. So we were just as happy seeing them and continuing on our way. 

One really cool spot we found had several lava tubes along the side of the road. There is one big one right before you enter Hana, but you have to pay to go in. I did some research and found a GPS coordinate for a free lava tube! Hooorah! We stopped, and the first one we identified, we were able to walk into, but there wasn’t much there; just a little cave. Then, as we were headed back to the car, Tony spotted another opening that looked like a lava tube entrance. We check that one out too, and before I know it, Tony is out of sight in the back of this amazing tunnel. He continues to explore and sees light! I follow behind him as quickly as I can without tripping over the coarse lava rock, ducking to avoid hitting my head. I was successful for a little bit, but then *bump.* Ouch! Haha, I knocked the top of my head on the same spot Tony did, just seconds earlier, lol. Thanks for the warning, babe! 🤪

Inside a freaking lava tube! 😍🤩🌋

Minor injury was worth it, as we saw a huge opening in the tube with long tree roots covering the entry. It was magical and otherworldly and every bit free! Hehe. I highly recommend the stops off the beaten path to see something a bit more unique, and for staying more budget friendly. 

We stopped by Aunt Sandy’s Banana Bread, almost at the halfway point. Banana bread is quite popular, and quite the delicious snack on Maui. The little peninsula where this place is located is quite beautiful and worth stopping for some pictures.

Our favorite stop of the day was easily the Red Sand Beach, in Hana. We had some trouble finding the right trail, or at least, I did 😅, haha. But once we found it, it was a quick walk through a fairly treacherous path along a cliff of crumbling lava rock. But soon enough, the mystical red sand beach lay before our eyes. It was stunning, to say the very least. If you come for nothing else, this beach is worth the long drive…I’ve never seen anything like it! We explored the secluded beach and marveled at the color of the sand, the natural wall protecting the little inlet, and some wonderfully turquoise water off to the side. The best part was there were only 3 or 4 groups of people here! Nice! 🙂

Once we reached Hana, we realized there really wasn’t much to do; I thought there’d be a little downtown shopping area, or some restaurants, but there was hardly anything! Hehe. One little market and several food truck options for food, but no big restaurants that I could see. I was interested in going a bit further past Hana to see a few more points of interest, but honestly, after the Red Sand Beach, I felt so fulfilled and convinced we wouldn’t see anything better, so we began driving back.

On the way back to the busier area of the island, we stopped at a free black sand beach. The popular one to visit along the road is in the Wai’ānapanapa State Park, which requires an entry and parking fee, and it’s a timed slot. By the looks of the pictures online, I’m sure its worth it, but it seems to be a top spot, and easily busy and crowded. We found another black sand beach that we could drive down to, in the Honomanu Bay Area. We started by walking down the road, thinking the quality of the road may be less than we were willing to risk in the car we were borrowing, hehe. But, not even 3 minutes into the walk down, a couple of locals stopped us and advised us to drive, since it was quite the walk down. They assured us the car would make it just fine, and we trusted them, said our Mahalos, and walked back up to our car.

A short drive down, and the beach was right in front of us. It wasn’t as black as we were hoping, but it was certainly dark sand, especially where the water was reaching. It did remind me of the black sand beaches in El Salvador, and my memory doesn’t do me justice, as I can’t recall if the sands were darker or not there. Hehe, guess I’ll have to plan a trip back there ASAP. After a few minutes enjoying the sand and skipping some rocks, we jumped back in the car and continued our return journey.

As we got closer to familiar territory, we passed by the entrance to the bamboo waterfall hike we did earlier in the week, and it was all closed off, and there were people sitting under a big tent to send people away who may have planned on going. Weird! We slowed down, and Tony asked why it was closed, and the response we got was simply because it was on private land and there were too many incidents. Huh! Later on we asked his friends their thoughts on the situation, and they filled us in on a little tradition some locals take upon themselves to thwart tourists from visiting certain places. Whether or not this was what was taking place (the set up looked pretty professional and legit, and was spotted twice along the road), it was still a bummer to see such a beautiful trail blocked off. Glad we did it when we did! 

We passed through Paia and Tony committed to purchasing a beautiful Maui hook he had his eyes on since we first walked by it at the beginning of the week. So beautiful! I picked up a lovely ring I saw and couldn’t resist…I’ll think of Maui every time I wear it! We snagged some gelato for a quick afternoon pick-me-up, and headed back to the car.  

We ventured to Secret Beach, where Tony once again tried to boogie board….except this time, he wasn’t as successful as the first, hehe. These waves were more wild and breaking closer to shore, making it much more difficult to secure a good ride. Womp Womp. A for effort, though!

After tiring out from the beach, we snagged some late lunch/early dinner at Tobi’s Poke….one of our best decisions yet! It was so tasty! After dinner we popped over for a couple of drinks at one of our favorite spots to finish out a most glorious day. 

Day 10:

Good morning, Maui! Today we’re set to hang with Christian and Paige again, doing one of Tony’s favorite things: disc golfing! Woohoo! Annnnnnd, the course is on the side of the volcano! How cool is that? Makes me wonder how many disc golf courses exist on the slopes of dormant or otherwise volcanoes. 

First stop was a cute little farmers market, where we’d be meeting up with Tony’s friends. We beat them there, and I got a coffee… are we surprised? Lol. I also ventured around the different vendors and bought myself a coconut to sip on, and later snack on :D. I LOVE some fresh coconut water! We did another lap around the market when Christian and Paige got there, and soon we were caravanning towards the disc golf course. Apparently there aren’t really directions on google maps, and its a tricky spot to find, nestled among the trees and trails. Fun!

We arrive and it’s COLD! Hehe. I knew I’d get hot from disc golfing, and being in the sun, but starting off was quite frigid. I risked not taking a jacket, and I was happy with that decision just a few moments later when we emerged from the shaded practice basket and into the blazing sun. Aaron, a friend of Christian and Paige had a bag full of discs, and let us choose our weapons for the afternoon. He misheard my name, and called me “Yellow,” so naturally, I chose a yellow disk, lol. It was meant to be! 

Right off the bat, the course is difficult, with us hurdling our discs across the road, and up an open field with the basket out of site. Okkkay, guess we’ll just send it as far as we can and hope for the best! Haha. We all threw and took multiple attempts and eventually found the basket. Almost lost a disc or two in the trees…hehe. That’s how you know its gonna be a great run. 

We meander through the course, easily the most difficult course I’ve ever been to, and tons of fun! We took a snack break with a view to die for: We could see the West Maui Mountains straight ahead of us, and both the North and the South Shores. So neat! Soon enough we were ready for more and continued on. The course was a ful 18 holes, but we opted to cut it short as the hunger pains kept growing in our empty stomachs. 

We head to a little resturant called the Kula Bistro, and the food was AMAZING! And they had some killer deserts all lined up and tempting us from the display cases. One for frozen options, and the other for your standard refrigerated ones. We eagerly await our meals and as soon as the sustenance hits our lips, we are satisfied happy campers. After our lunch, we said goodbye to our new friend Aaron, and thanked him for letting us use his discs. Thankfully, none were lost! Woohoo! And we all parted ways. 

Tony and I had grand plans of going back to the Maui Brewery, so we also said goodbye to Paige and Christian for the night, as they had some things to take care of at home. We decided to go to our little home first, to freshen up before going out again, and we got a little too comfy resting on the bed. We pushed ourselves to get up and out, but opted for trying someplace closer than the 40 minute drive to the brewery. I was on the hunt for a more local, unique bar we could grab a celebratory drink for the end of our trip. 

I found one, and when we arrived, we noticed a sign on the door announcing it was closed to the public for a private event. Bummer! Right next door was a place called BB’s. We tried our luck there and went in. Looked pretty shady from the outside, and inside was equally, if not more so, hehe. We take a seat at the bar, the place was empty with the exception of one table of people. We asked for cocktails, and the bartender said he doens’t do that….with a bar full of alochol behind him. Hmmm…okay….I guess we’ll leave, then! Lol. The bartender suggested another place next door, Ray’s Deli. Deli? Ummm…okay, I mean we’re here, so lets give it a go, haha. The door says its karaoke, and we walk in, and are again greeted with a divey bar, but this place at least had a few more people around. We sit at the bar and this time we don’t chance a cocktail and instead opt for a beer. Meanwhile, Tony is looking up other places, since, clearly, my research has not led us anywhere intersting. Or maybe more intersting that we were hoping for? Haha. 

Tony finds a Mexican place along the way back to where we were staying. You can never go wrong with Mexican, right? On our way, we see some sirens and some traffic forming ahead of us. What’s going on? We begin staring ahead, and we notice fire! From where we were, I thought it was a flame thrower, lol. Big streaks of fire shooting up towards the sky. Tony thought maybe a car had run off the road and caught on fire. As we get closer, we realize its a brush fire! Oh no! After the devastation of Lahaina, we were concerned and sad to see that. Thankfully, though, we could see the fire trucks already on their way.

We make it to Fernando’s, the Mexican resturant, and walk in, and again. Dead as can be. Lol. What the heck?! Haha, destined to have a rather lame last night, but thats okay, we had quite an amazing trip overall. We had some fun drinks, a margarita and a Bloody Mary and feeling just slightly defeated for the evening, headed back to our little room.

Day 11:

Our last day on the island! Wahhhh! Haha. We woke up to tangerine juice and lattes. One last morning pampering before leaving the island. How perfect! Hehe. Today would be a pretty relaxed day; we were headed to the Ka’anapali Coast to watch Paige climb a coconut tree. She was doing this as a part of a small demonstration day for the children living on the resort who were displaced by the Lahaina fires. I didn’t catch his name or what he does, but some guy pays to have ponies brought once a month, and tries to get another “act” to give the kids something to do, take their minds off everything they’ve been through, and hopefully to inspire them in ways they can make a living in the future. I was really impressed, and thought it was a really cool idea.

So, we make the hour drive over there, and we do pass by Lahaina. They’ve blocked off the entry roads to drive through the town, but even along the bypass road, you could see the scorched land and melted elevator shafts remaining. We found it odd that in some places, there was clear and utter devastation, but there would be one apparently perfectly fine house. Seems like the fire jumped around a bit. 

We learned that the fire was likely started because of power lines, and based on what Tony had seen, they are quite dated, and it makes sense. Then of course, the hurricane force winds blew that fire all over the place, destroying homes and taking lives in an instant. Now Lahaina is in the process of a long and tense clean up. I saw a news article just recently saying they’ve found a permanent site for debris removal, but while we were in Maui, it seemed like a heated debate among the island. Everything is shipped in and out, and the same could be the case for the debris, but then, who will pay for it? So many questions and logistics…it’ll be a years long process before anything rebuilds again. Lahaina Strong!

Onto a lighter topic, back on the resort, the scenery and views reminded me of my layovers to the island. What I was seeing now were the images I had in my head of Maui. A mixture of turquoise and deeper blue waters, a fairly large beach area, and beautifully landscaped trees dotting the resort boundaries. It was beautiful, for sure. While we were hanging out, Paige told us to keep our eye out towards the water, as there had been some whale sightings! Yay! Hehe. 

After hearing that, my eyes were glued to the water, in the hopes of catching a whale breaching, or even a tail coming down into the water. At first, my chances seemed bleak, but then I began noticing splashes that couldn’t possible be the waves breaking, and I knew it was from the whales! Hehe. Now if only they were closer. Oh wait! My camera has a mega zoom, maybe I can use that like binoculars! Bingo! Haha. 

With my zoom turned up, we could easily make out the whale tails and see through the splashes. And we ended up seeing so many! We saw the spray from their blowholes as well! It was amazing! By the end of the day morning, we had seen 2 or 3 breaches as well! We weren’t lucky enough to snag those on camera, but it was remarkable to see with our own eyes. 

Soon we headed to a restaurant called Castaway Cafe for lunch. Tony and I ordered drinks and food right away as we were quite hungry, lol. Paige and Christian would be joining us, but they had some things to take care of before. We had a nice view of the water again, and were sneaking peaks to catch some whales, hehe. We had completely finished our meals by the time Paige and Christian came, and they brought a friend! The more the merrier! We enjoyed the company, the food, the drinks, and soon it was time to part ways. 

But not before Tony caught a fabulous breach as he was walking back from the bathroom. I turned and caught a bit of it, but everyone in the restuarant was ooohing and aahhhing, hehe. So cool! And what a way to wrap up our trip in Maui. 

Tony and took the car and did a car wash and a quick wipe down, and met up with Paige and Christian at their house. We had talked about going into the ‘Īao Valley for a dip in the river, but it was quite clouded over, and we opted not to go. We hung out at their house for a while, and we were serenaded by Christian, who can play the harp! No way! That was pretty neat! I learned a bit about how the harp works, and my nerdy self was super interested in that. 

As our departure time came closer and closer, we decided to go out for one last drink. We found a place on the way to the airport, and Christian came with us, to drive the car back. So we had our final mai-tais and some snacks, and took the dreaded ride to the airport. We said our goodbyes and see you soons, and we headed towards check-in and security. Byyeee Maui! Until next time! Many Mahalos!

Day 4:

Slow morning for Amelia today…I think I’m still on East Coast time, waking up pretty early, hehe. I played around on my phone for a while, read a little in a book I bought about Hawaii, and was about to start catching up on Netflix shows when Tony began to stir. 

We had plans again with Paige and Christian, but they weren’t quite ready yet, so Tony and I got dressed and headed to Baby Beach. Not a terrible place to wait, hehe. On the way we stopped by our favorite, Paia Bay Coffee and Bar for some breakfast. Delicious! I got the Local Moco again, and Tony got Katsu Chicken and Waffles. We shared the dishes and fueled ourselves for the day. 

Next up: the beach! The water was absolutely stunning, and I can’t believe how good the photos came out! Looking back at them, I could hardly believe they weren’t edited at all….but they weren’t! The turquoise colors came through amazingly, and the red rocks seemed to glow! 

As if that wasn’t cool enough, we saw 5 more seat turtles on the beach! WOW! Hehe. They look like a part of the scenery, just a stray rock here and there, but the closer you get, you begin to make out the shape of the turtle. It was so cool to see so many! That brings our trip total up to 7! It was so hard not to want to lay down next to one and cuddle it, haha. It was really nice to watch people keeping their distance, and knowing that one reason the turtles feel safe is that they are left alone to do their thing. We hung out here for a while, enjoying the magnitude of the ocean just in front of us and the quintessential view of the green sea turtles on either side of us. 

Soon it was time to meet up with Christian and Paige, and they took us to a little paved hiking trail in ‘Īao Valley to see “The Needle,” a needle-like rock outcropping in the valley. These mountains looked like something out of Jurassic Park, and Paige told me that when it rains, there are little waterfalls that pop up all around and make it even more impressive. 🤩

After the needle, we moved on to a local swimming hole in the river. We parked the car on the side of the road, crossed the street, and went under the road by way of a little tunnel, made for the flood waters to pass through. What a cool experience! We followed the path, and eventually, we made it to “the spot.” But, as soon as we got there, Paige realized how much it had changed over a short period of time. Having been there recently, she said all the rocks had shifted, and the swimming hole they frequented had been rearranged and wasn’t quite the same. Bummer! Apparently, it had rained a lot the past week, and the power of Mother Nature herself moved the large boulders and rocks out of place. So neat!

We learned that it’s a tradition in the ‘Īao to move the rocks around to create nice swimming hole areas, so Tony and Christian attempted to do just that, moving huge rocks from the riverbed It was fun to watch, and they accomplished a great deal, but it wasn’t quite enough to create a quiet swimming pool. Still fun and entertaining, nonetheless. 

Paige offered me a spiked kombucha, which I had never tried before, and it was quite tasty! Mahalo! Cheers! Hehe. I may be looking for those in the future. Some alcohol with probiotics, okay :D. 

After our river fun, we headed to Costco so Tony and I could supply up for the rest of the week. Costco is apparently the cheapest place on the island to get anything. Even the local grocery stores are quite pricey. Not a terrible idea when vactioning in the states to stop by the local Costco to stock up, hehe.  Will keep that tip in my back pocket for future adventures. While at the beheamouth warehouse store, we indulged in the cheapest feast we could’ve found on the island. Delicious, yet heavy. Haha. 

We headed home and were greeted by a live band playing in the garage! How coool! They were really good and playing some easy listening/psychedelic rock. We just hoped they’d finish sooner than later because tomorrow we plan to hike to the crater! 😅🤣 Wooohooo! 

Day 5:

Hello Haleakalā!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

We woke up around 5:30 to finish prepping for our biggest adventure yet on Maui….a 13 mile volcano crater hike! Yipppeeeeeee! I’ve been so excited about this, I was awake and ready to go far before the alarm clock went off. Hehe. 

Tony and I sleepily packed our backpacks and got ourselves as ready as one can at that time of day. We hopped in the car, plugged in the address to the crater, and we were on our way. Still overcome with sleepiness, we barely spoke a word as we drove in the dark, our epic adventure minutes within reach. 

As the sun was rising, we were driving around delicious curves of farmland in upcountry, slowly making our way up towards the incredible Haleaklalā (House of the Sun) summit. The road up is not unlike other mountain roads; skinny roads, steep cliffs, and terrifying turns. We entered the clouds, and almost as soon as we were admiring the cloudy, spooky environment, we just as quickly exited to find blue skies and a beautiful, bold, rising sun. There is something special about being above the clouds…. If that’s something you’ve yet to experience, send that to the top of your bucket list! You’re welcome! 🤗

We park in where the Switchback Trail begins…easily one of the most difficult parts of the journey. Tony, an experienced Haleakalā hiker, knew that the recommended route is to park here, and hitchhike to the summit, where we would then hike down into the crater, across, and up switchback, to get back to our car. 

We opt for the hitchhiking route…technically my first time ever hitchhiking, although, there was that one time in México I almost got stranded at Uxmal and hopped into a truck after an offer to bring me as far as Mérida, where I could get a taxi back to Valladolid…..hehe….😅.

Anyways…..determined to get a ride to the top, we follow the signs for the hitchhiker pickup pull off. Apparently, this is a well-known and warranted thing to do. We see many cars pass us by, almost all of them single drivers with plenty of room for us, but we’re passed by regardless. We start to debate how long we’re willing to stay here, wasting time, when we could be headed out on the trail. Our best estimate is that it’ll take us until sunset to finish what we have in mind. 13 miles is no joke. Hehe. It’s about 8:00 AM, and I’m wondering…..holy moly, what have I gotten myself into, lol. 

Just when we were about to give up hope, an old trusty rusty Toyota Camry slows down and agrees to take us to the top! Amazing! James is our driver and host, and it turns out he works at the observatories on top of the volcano! How freakin’ cool is that? We hitchiked, AND we got to meet someone who mans some of the most incredible telescopes out there??!?! No way! Hehe. So, on our way to the summit, we learned what each of the telescopes did, and just how important they are. Oh, and this amazing human also drove a stick, much to Tony and I’s approval. He handled the hairpin-death-defying turns as if he did this twice a day every day. Oh wait. He does! Haha. 

Once at the visitors center, we parted ways with our gracious host, James, and began our ultimate adventure: Hiking and surviving the one, the only, Haleakalā. We decide to check out the visitors center and grab a pamphlet and a map, just to be sure we know where we are gong. We couldnt’ help but buy a magnet and a couple of stickers for our water bottles, or maybe our special keepsake box. After all, the waterbottles don’t last forever. Haha.

We begin our long jounrey with Sliding Sands Trail, around 10,000 feet in elevation. Let’s just say, its COLD up there….lol. I only had a sweater I brought because Boston was below freezing when we left, and a puffer jacket, also mostly due to the cold in New England. Thank GOD, or Pele (the goddess of volcanoes), that I had these extra layers, hehe. 

Right from the start, the sights that lay before us were unlike anything I have ever seen! I’ve been up and around a few volcanoes, but this beautiful bit of Pachamama was different. It was as if we had been transported to Mars, or some otherworldly galaxy. The colors and peaks that lay before us were breathtaking! Just about 4 miles down into the actual crater, then we crossed the middle for about 6 miles, passing up close and personal with some of the cinder cones until we met the dreaded Switchback trailhead. We hiked up and up for about a mile or so, to then hike one more mile to the parking lot. EPIC.

We find one of the cabins that you’re able to rent in the national park….How amazing would that be???? Can you picture the night sky with zero light pollution at 10,000 feet?! It’s also said that the crater of Haleakalā is the quiest place on Earth…how cool! 🤩 That will have to be a MUST on the next trip out here, hehe. We make good use of the picnic table just out front and have a quick wrap and some snacks, fuel for the most difficult part of the hike yet: Swithcback. While we’re enjoying our brief respite, Tony spots a non-potable water spigot and ventures over and samples some. Cold and tasty, but not to be trusted, just in case. However, as soon as the water rushed out of the spout, two local Nēnē, the national bird of Hawaii, came rushing towards the spigot. Tony returned and let the water flow for our feathered friends, who seemed much obliged to slurp up the chilled water. There was a sign warning us not to feed them, but it said nothing about giving them some water! Hehe.

We finally make it to the notorious switchback. Approximately 2 miles left, and a big chunk of it is a treacherous, uphill, rocky footpath with an imminent death cliff on the one side of the narrow trail. Here we go! After hiking almost 11 miles so far, our already tired legs and lungs should have no problem doing this, right? Right??!! Haha. 

Slow and steady wins the race, and we bit by bit, rock by rock, make our way towards the heavenly parking lot where we left our car. At one point, we realize we’re running low on water. Uh-oh. I KNEW we should’ve brought more! Haha. Oh well, we’re here now, and we live with our mistakes, lol. Time to ration what we have left. We made it ¾ of the way up, and we turned on a particularly narrow hairpin turn in the trail, when a gust of wind came from nowhere and blow Tony’s hat off. Nooooooooo! Hehe. I caught up to assess the damage, and the hat lay just beyond our reach, about 10 feet down a very steep cliff. It was absolutely not worth it to try and fetch said hat, but it was such a bummer that it was in sight and retrieveable, that is, if we had the right equipment. Womp Womp. We considered it a sacrifice to the volcano goddess, Pele. 

We sip slowly on our half liter of remaining water, and encourage each other to finish this beast of a trail. We do finally make it, out of the switchback realm, only to realize there is another mile of trail, mostly uphill, to our car. We got this! Ughhh….it’s so worth it! Lol. #Dana&Hayden, hehe. Hope you’re reading this 😜.

Dehydrated, cranky, and exhausted, we make it back to the parking lot. Woooohoo! Mission complete! What an extravagant and wild and awe-inspiring hike! I LOVE the power of volcanoes…. Destructive, brutal, fiery, dangerous, yet, life-giving, passionate, flowing, and elusive. Such a paradox of a living being, and I will forever be amazed at Mother Nature and her tenacity to create and destroy at will. I am forever grateful for Pele and the multitude of other earth gods and goddesses who make our world what it is. Gorgeous! Mahalo!

After reaching the car and sitting down for the first time in a while, we decided it would be an excellent idea if we drove to the top again, just to fill all our water bottles from the potable water tap. We were parched! Lol.

Once that mission was complete, I persuaded Tony to drive to the very top summit to take a few more pictures. I mean, we’re already here, right? Hehe. We could easily see the outline of Big Island, and when I zoomed in with my phone, we could JUST make out the observatories on Mauna Kea. That’s been a big goal of mine, to hike Mauna Kea from the ground up. And also to star gaze at the summit. One of my favorite bands, Nakho and Medicine for the People have a song, “I Mua,” which heavily influenced my dream, along with an exploration of the volcanoes in El Salvador and Guatemala, and now, Maui. There is just something inspirational and gritty about a volcano, and I adore them! 🌋🌋🌋🌋.

Finally, we begin to make our way down the dormant volcano, the largest in the world. Tony is driving like an expert, but as the passenger, on the cliff side of the road, I had to close my eyes a few times for fear of what awaited us, if there were to be an accident and we should slide down the side of the steep cliffs to our demise, I didnt want to watch it happen, haha. Tony is an excellent driver and handled the downward road like a champ, but it’s always a tad unnerving being the passenger and glimpsing death so nearby, hehe. 

Once we were almost back to a normal route, off the volcano, we passed thorugh a eucalyptus tree zone, and with the windows down, it really smelled like pushing your cart through the local Home Goods and the dried flowers section with the eucalyptus bunches, ready to be purchased. Invasive, yet beautiful. 

We came back to our little oasis in Haiku, changed, tried to gather ourselves a bit, and ventured back out for a much deserved dinner. We ended up back at one of our favorites, the Paia Bay Coffee and Bar restuarant. We tried some new dishes, which were equally as satisfying as the last, and a few celebratory cocktails on our massive achievement for the day. 

Back home again, we emptied the car, showered, and passed out. 

Day 6: 

Today was an obvious sleep in kind of day; we needed to recover from our massive hike yesterday, hehe. 

So we slowly woke up, and we made a few wraps from our haul at Costco to bring with us on our beach relaxation day, packed what we needed, and we were off! Of course, we had to get coffee for Amelia, so we went to Baked on Maui, again….sooo good! 

We decided to hit up a target to find a replacement hat for the one that was sacrificed to Pele on Haleakalā, and along the way we passed a fresh fruit stand. I had been craving some fresh tropical fruit: papaya, coconut, mango, pineapple. So we stop by, and I score some fun bananas; they’re a slightly different species than the typical banana back home, and some papaya, which I scarfed down in the car, hehe. Sooo good! It kills me that you can’t buy ripe tropical fruit where we live. But, it makes it all that more special when in a place that has it :). 

Back on the road again, coffee and fruit in hand, we wind our way along the coast to Target. There wasn’t much in Target in the way of men’s hats, but we did manage to find a couple of things to walk away with, as always. Haha. We decided to try the Walmart that was across the street, since we were so close. 

We walked in and there was a whole section of souvenir tsatskis, and reasonably priced! Couldn’t believe it, lol. It was fun to walk thorugh those aisles and see what they had to offer. We both ended up finding a new hat; I had realize I forgot to pack mine for the day, and really didn’t want to be without one, sitting on the beach for the rest of the day. Satisfied with our purchases, we exit Wally World and finally begin our journey to relax on the beach. 

Baby Beach was calling our name again, as we didn’t have the muscle strength or energy to fight off the bigger waves elsewhere, so that’s where we headed next. One of the lucky purchases of the day was a little red shovel, which Tony used to expertly build us a superior sand lounge chair. Such a genius idea! No need to spend money on an overpriced beach chair; just shovel some sand around and create your own! Hehe. 

We relaxed in our sand lounger, having a snack, and admiring the different shades of blue that glistened before us. We took cat naps, played around on our phones, I did some blog work, and soon we were hot enough for a dip in the cool Maui waters. The area we were was so shallow and relatively calm, with the exception of the water pouring in over the rock jetty, and pushing in from the side where the jetty ended. This caused a unique effect where the little “pool” area would fill rapidly, and then just as quickly, if not faster, the water would empty out, creating a strong current that was fun to float down. 

We stayed at the beach for several hours, simply relaxing and enjoying the views. Are we really here?! As we start to get hungry, we get in touch with Tony’s friends, and we decide to go out to a ramen place we had seen earlier in our shopping adventures. Tony has been to ramen spots all over the country, his favorite being right near our hometown in Lowell, MA: 1981. So, it was only inevitable that we’d have to check out Ramen Bones on Maui. 

Overall, pretty good, but 1981 is still the forerunner for best ramen in the country. Kudos to you guys!

After 6 long years, I am finally back on my way to Hawaii with Tony. I can’t believe it’s been so long since leaving LA and, in consequence, leaving the beautiful 24-hour layovers in Hawaii. My favorite then was Lihue (Kauai), but Maui is Tony’s favorite, as well as another dear friend of mine. I’m excited to explore more for the next 10 days!

We woke up bright and early in Boston at 3AM to make a 6:50 flight to Seattle. We got upgraded to Comfort+ and took advantage of a free mimosa to celebrate the beginning of our trip. We passed the nearly 6 hour flight by watching the first two John Wick movies. Neither of us had seen any of them, so we figured now would be the perfect time for a movie marathon.

Before we knew it, we were landing in a cloudy Seattle, with no views of Mt. Rainier. Bummer! If you’ve flown into SeaTac, then you know the view I’m talking about, hehe. I could take hundreds of photos of it, and it would still not be enough. We found a lounge we could get into with Priority Pass, and we had a few drinks and some snacks while we waited for the flight to Maui. When I tell you this was the best Bloody Mary I’ve ever had, it’s the truth! It was spicy and so flavorful! My goal now is to concoct my own BM recipe and perfect it! Hehe

We didn’t get upgraded for the flight to Maui, but we did get a row to ourselves! Love when that happens! We finished up the third John Wick movie and then watched Sherlock Holmes. The closer we got, the more excitement permeated the entire airplane. JUST before landing, we could finally see some of the island, and it was tantalizing. We’re so close!

Once we arrived, Tony texted his friend Christian, and we worked our way to baggage claim. The long-awaited reunion between these two was almost as if it was out of a movie, nearly running towards each other, both with beards they didn’t have the last time, embracing each other in a heartfelt hug.

We grabbed our luggage and quickly made our way to a food truck plaza for some much needed dinner. We hadn’t really eaten much besides snacks and leftover pizza the entire day.. nearly 20 hours total of travel time. Tony and I shared a Poke bowl, and I ordered pulled pork sliders, and he ordered buffalo chicken sliders.

After polishing off our delcious meals, we made our way to Christian’s parents’ house, who were kind enough to allow us to stay with them on our trip. The house is amazing! Really unique octagonal architecture and a huge porch in the back, with a view of the town lights and chickens in the yard. We finished the tour and decided to call it a night. We were exhausted after all, and the shower was calling our name.

Day 2:

Holy Moly, did we sleep like rocks! The room we’re staying in has a couple of fans, and it was the perfect temperature. Warm enough to almost not need a blanket, but cool enough to wrap up and cuddle with it. Glorious.

We awoke early to the sound of roosters and to the needs of our bladders. We slept in for another several hours, truly recovering from our long travel day. And when we finally got up to get ready for our first day, we noticed fresh squeezed orange juice in the bathroom for us. How sweet! And how yummy it was! Tart and fresh and the perfect way to start off the morning. As we were getting ready, we wanted to pass off a small gift we had brought for our kind hosts, some coffee from New England, and a Boston mug. Christian’s mom, Susan, then offered to make us lattes. How could we say no? Hehe. After humbly denying the fact she wasn’t a barista, Susan brought us the most delicious and frothy lattes…..again, what better way to start the day! Hehe, mahalo! We chatted with Susan and Gerry, getting to know them a little better.

Soon though, we parted ways, and Tony and I began packing a day pack for the beach. Today was all about relaxation and a slow introduction to the island. But first, a stop at Baked on Maui, a delicious coffee spot Tony came to every day when he last stayed in this area, and highly recommended by my friend, Jaimee. I got more coffee and a skillet breakfast that was to die for, and Tony got a chai latte and a BLT. We’ll definitely be stopping by here again, if not every day, hehe.

Once we finished our breakfast/lunch, we meandered our way through sleepy Paia and towards the beach. We ended up at the Secret Beach, not so secret, but also not very busy at all. The waves here were quite large and intimidating. I may have mentioned before that I have a healthy respect for the power of the ocean. She is not to be messed with, hehe. I never got in further than my knees, but Tony bravely went further, and I watched as he got knocked around, confirming my decision to stay at the edge of the surf, hehe.

There were plenty of boogie boarders and a couple of surfers out, but the most inestering one was a man with a remote controlled surfboard toy. We couldn’t wait to see him put that baby in action, lol. It was so cool! And we had never seen nor heard of anything like it. You just never know what you’ll stumble across.

We walked down towards the end of the beach where the ruins of an old bunker stood, holding on for dear life. As we approached the dilapidated structure, we saw a sea turtle on the beach. He didn’t look so hot, and we wondered if it was even alive. It had a big tumor-like mass next to its head, and one of its eyes looked worse for wear. As we’re trying to decide if it’s alive or not, a big wave came up and submerged the little guy, and it was enough to disturb his deep sleep. He moved his head around a bit and eventually put it back down and returned to a deathly still sleep. We hope he was healthy enough to eventually get back into the water.

After several hours, we packed our things and decided to try another beach, one that I had found, called Baby Beach. Named because the beach was protected by a rock reef/sand bar, and the waves were not as strong; perfect for small children and, Amelia, lol. There were two sides to this beach, and on the left, we could see the ‘Īao Valley Mountains, and there were a ton of big volcanic boulders we could walk across, with small tide pools in between. Lots of little fishes and crabs.

The Baby Beach side was really cute and lived up to its name…A bunch of families with small kids, hehe. Perhaps because of the rock outcropping, this beach also had a lot of shells and rocks to look at while walking along.

We saw another sea turtle here, too! She was HUGE! Way bigger than the last one we had seen. And it even took us a minute to see her. We probably would’ve tripped over her if we were paying any less attention, hehe. It was so cool to see these two sea turtles just lounging on the sand, and nobody was bothering them. I hope we get to see more!

After waking around here a bit, we decided to head back to town for some dinner. The traffic was horrendous. But, it didn’t take long before we reached a public parking lot and were lucky enough to find a spot! We strolled around and window shopped for a bit before deciding on eating at the Paia Coffee and Bar Company. They had live music and a very open space.

We enjoyed a couple of cocktails here, a Bloody Mary that paled in comparison to that of the airport lounge, hehe, and a coconut espresso martini….yum! Hehe. We shared a dish called the local moco….absolutely phenomenal; wagyu beef with rice, carmelized onions, pickled cabbage, and a very tasty sauce.

After dinner we went for some gelato! I got POG (passionfruit, orange, guava) and haipu (a creamy coconut flavor). The person who served us said he used to work for Delta in Venezuela! How funny that I’d run into another Delta employee.

Once we had our fill, we drove back to our lovely accommodations to call it a night.

Day 3:

Started the day off right at Baked on Maui for some breakfast and some coffee. Love this place!

We met up with Christian and Paige, and they drove us up on the road to Hana a little bit to a bamboo forest that was off the side of the road. Literally, we parked the car and then tried to find an opening in the bamboo to get in. If it looks like the trail, it is the trail, haha. It was surreal being in the midst of so much bamboo…looking left, and looking right through all the plants almost made you feel dizzy.

We meandered our way down to a beautiful river and began following a trail alongside the river and hopping across rocks to make progress closer and closer to some waterfalls. We saw 3 medium-sized waterfalls, all absolutely beautiful! Next to one of them, in order to continue on the trail, we had to climb a ladder and use a knotted rope to hoist ourselves up to the next level. Talk about some adventure! Haha.

But we weren’t done there….we kept going until we came to what looked like the last of the waterfalls, and we noticed a bunch of belongings scattered along a rock ledge. Paige and Christian began to unload their shoes and clothes, preparing to jump off the rock into the river, where we would then swim to get up close and personal with this “last” waterfall.

We jump in tentatively, knowing the water is going to be chilly. What an understatement that was! Haha, the water felt frigid! But off we go! Haha. We were told earlier about a waterfall scramble, and I sort of just went along with it, not really knowing what that meant. Maybe the ladder and rope we climbed? Nope!

Literally, we would be scrambling up the waterfall to the next level of the river. Ummm……okay? Is this really safe? Lol. Paige goes first and monkeys herself up in no time, followed by Tony, who gets up pretty quickly, and then it’s my turn. I watched how they got up, but there was a point where I didn’t feel secure enough to hoist myself up with the handholds I had found. Tony grabbed my hand and helped pull me up. Not sure I could’ve done it without him! Hehe, thank you! Mahalo!

As soon as we had achieved what felt impossible, we were hugely rewarded with the most magnificent waterfall of all! It was easily 5 times taller than all the others we had seen and was just gorgeous! The death-defying waterfall scramble was worth it! We sat on some dry rocks to try and warm up, but it didn’t help much, hehe. The sun didn’t reach this low in the valley, and we were just gonna have to suck it up and let the beauty of the view warm us from the inside out.

After basking in our achievements and the view, we made our way back. Thankfully, we had the option to jump back in by the waterfall we scrambled up. I wouldn’t want to do that in reverse, lol. We did our best to dry out a little bit before gathering our things and making our way back towards the car.

I had decided on the way in to go barefoot, as my trail sneakers were no match for the slippery mud and rocks, which worked for me for quite a while, but then, I leaped from on rock to another to cross the river, and I came down hard on my right heel. Ouch! I felt the shockwave go through my body. Well, that sucks. Nothing was broken, and all in all, a minor injury, but not very comfortable! Haha. I hobbled around on the rocks until we got to a place I could put on my shoes. At least my poor heel had some cushion, even if I was slipping and sliding, lol.

We drove back to Haiku and stopped to grab some post-hike grub at a food truck area. I had one of the best Mediterranean plates I’ve ever had! Would love to go back before we leave the island.

After our lunch/dinner, we walked over to the local market and picked up some beer to enjoy while we sat out by the pool at the house. This pool was beautiful! It had a grotto with a waterfall when turned on. Hehe. The pool looked like it hadn’t been used for a while, so we opted not to get in. It was also pretty cold, and we were still warming up from the cold river water. Hehe. But, the four of us hung out and enjoyed our beers for a while until it was dark, and then we called it a night.

Stay tuned for more Maui adventures! 😉

Our next adventure takes us to Dublin! I can’t wait for a fresh Guinness! Haha

As we’re getting ready to leave the hotel, the elevator doors open, and we see my friend, Josie, getting ready to head up the elevator we were getting out of! We had no idea the other would be in Dublin today, so it was quite the fun shock, and she nearly knocked me off my feet with a running hug, and I can’t think of a better way to start the day, hehe. We made brief plans to meet up later, but first, she needed a nap. Fair enough, hehe. We’ll be in touch! 😁

We begin our day with a tour of St. Patrick’s Cathedral. I have been by here in past travels, but have never taken the time to do the tour. Heather had come here many years ago with her Mom, so we decided to pay homage and did the tour. It was beautiful! The stained glass windows are stunning, and of course, all the history surrounding the church was hard to surpass. It was a great way to start a long day of walking around yet another city!

Next stop was the Dublin Castle, which, if you’ve been, you’ll know that there really isn’t much left. There is one big castle-like tower and an old chapel, but the rest was destroyed long ago, and now there are colonial style municipal buildings in the area where the castle once loomed over the city. We did a walk by and snapped a few photos and continued on our way to something we both were looking forward to very much: The Book of Kells. 😁

We had plenty of time, so we found the entrance to Trinity College and then decided it may be a great time for some caffeine to boost our sleepy slow morning. Right across the street from the college was Butlers Chocolate Cafe. Ummm..yes please! Heather got a chai latte, and I got a mocha. I think mine had more chocolate to coffee, which was delicious, just a tad sweet, and I really needed the caffeine boost, lol. Our drinks came with a little chocolate truffle, and those were killer! So tasty! I’m so glad we had a pitstop, because for whatever reason, I was feeeling it this morning, lol. 😅🤣

The actual book of Kells was inside a giant glass box and open to one page. I can’t imagine how else it could be displayed, but it honestly wasn’t much to look at. It was amazing to be there and to see such an old book, but anyone is probably better off looking at the images of all the pages online. 😅.

The second half of the Book of Kells tour was the library! This was right up my alley. 😍 Absolutely stunning! It immediately reminded of Harry Potter, with floor to ceiling book shelves lining the narrow hall, completely with ancient looking books, and tall and skinny ladders on wheels to move about and select your book of choice. I loved being in this space and can only imagine what kinds of texts are there, and for how long they have adorned the shelves here at Trinity College.

After our jaunt through the college campus, we headed to a bar called Doyle’s, where our friend, Dana, recommended we go. Dana used to live in Dublin, and this was one of her go-to spots, so we had to swing by and check it out! It’s always time for a Guinness, right? Hehe.

We each grab a pint and take a nice long swig of the black gold that is Guinness. It tastes so much better here in Ireland than it does back in the States. I even brought some home and did a side by side taste test with my boyfriend, Tony, and it was night a day! I wasn’t convinced, thinking it could be a placebo effect of some kind…once you hear the rumor enough, you begin to believe it, but it’s factual! Guinness bought in the States is more watered down and lacks a certain nutty deliciousness that is very forward in Guinness straight from the source. It’ll be difficult to ever drink Guinness in the States again….😅😂

As we enjoy our Guinness, we plan our next steps. We want to go check out the store that our friend Dana opened. It’s across the river and not a very long walk from Doyles, so we decided to swing by there and then double back across the river on the Ha’ Penny Bridge. This drops us right in the Temple Bar area, so of course, we had to take a few pictures of the infamous and iconic Temple Bar. Little did we know, we’d be ending our night in there as well. Hehe 😅🤣. More on that later 🤣.

From here, we snagged an Uber and went straight to the Guinness Brewery. We wanted to make sure we got to do this before they closed. With some trouble securing tickets online, we head inside to buy them the old-fashioned way, but the line was long, and we had other things to do. So we try again on my phone to buy tickets, and success! So we exit the manual line and head back in with our electronic tickets displayed proudly on my phone, haha. 

This is now my 3rd time in the Guinness Brewery, and I still think it’s just as cool as the first time. We meander our way through the maze that is the brewery, learning about how Guinness is made, taking an expertly led tasting experience, seeing how the ads have changed over the years, and taking a quick snack break. We shared a giant grilled cheese, but it was a deluxe bougie grilled cheese, hehe. It was so amazing, and so needed at that moment in time. We knew we’d be having dinner soon, so we were trying to wait, but we were slowing down big time 😂. After our snack, we continued onwards and eventually ended up at the 360 view bar at the top. We exchange our drink coupons and get a pint of Guinness. 

It was crowded and hot up there, so we quickly drank our Guinness, but we were sure to savor every sip. Once we were done, we climbed back down allllllll the stairs to the first level where the gift shop was. We spent some time there, picked out a few goodies to bring home, and were outta there. 

We opt to walk to our next destination, which is to meet up with my friend Josie. Heather and I want to go to another restaurant Dana recommended to us, O’Neil’s, for dinner. But first, Josie wants us to meet for a drink at a bar one of her friend’s owns. Twist my arm! Hehe. So we head over, and eventually Josie’s friend, the owner, comes to find us, as we’re having trouble locating the right spot. Josie had already moved to a second bar, one that had just opened a week ago, owned by the same friend. We got to see a bit of the first place, which looked amazing, the Market Bar, and the next one was Ciss Maddens Public House. 😊

Josie is in the front of the bar in a tiny little out cropping, which is a super cute private little area. I’ve never seen anything like it before. So Heather and I grab some drinks and visit with Josie. It was soooooo good to see her! It’s been wildly busy lately, so we haven’t planned a girls’ trip we try to do every year with another one of our friends. So this impromptu meetup was perfect! 

At one point, mid conversation, Josie dashes out of the bar like a bat out of hell, and Heather and I are laughing hysterically, but what we didn’t see, at least initially, was that Josie spotted an empty table outside! So she ran straight to it and saved it for us, hehe. We had been keeping our eye out the entire time. 😂 Nice work, Josie! Thank you! So we each grab one more drink while enjoying the outdoor setting, and plan to head for dinner afterward. 

Dinner at O’Neil’s was yummy, but I’ve had better meals in Dublin. Sorry, Dana! Hehe. I got a traditional Irish Stew, but my favorite is always the Guinness and Beef stew. I shouldn’t have strayed, lol. Lesson learned, though! 

After dinner, Josie takes on a little mini-pub crawl, and we’re in search of some live music that has more traditional Irish instruments: a violin and a flute/piccolo of some kind, hehe. 

One of the bars she took us to used to be an old Bank, and the interior was absolutely stunning! We had a good time in there enjoying our fancy drinks and the gorgeous atmosphere. I would definitely come back here! 😁

Next up was Temple Bar for…….3 shots of whiskey! Lol When in Dublin! 😅😂We stay in there a hot minute…literally…..its packed full of drunk tourists, and we get out as quick as we can, haha. Onto the next! We stop in a few places, and Josie reached out to her friend to ask for recommendations on where we might find some live Irish music, and we must have gone to 3 or 4 places, and nothing. It was kind of a bummer, but it was fun to see all these different places. By the last place, we had nearly completely lost steam and decided we’d better head back to the hotel. 

Josie guides us and takes us to the train, and we wait around a bit before the train comes and whisks us off towards the hotel. A short walk from the train station, and we’re back where we started about 12 hours earlier. It’s definitely time for a shower and a bed 😂. 

Another successful layover trip for Amelia and Heather! Hooray! No matter how tiring they may be, they’re always worth it, and I can’t wait for the next one! 😁

Heather and I are back it! And this time we’re set to explore Lisbon! 🤗

The timing of this trip was a bit different, and we were slotted to arrive around 11am. We had a nice bit of a delay on deplaning, so we got to the hotel around noon or just after. And of course, we had to take a few minutes to refresh and shower, so we didn’t leave the hotel until 1:30. With less time than Amsterdam, we would have to hustle to see all the things. Good thing Heather is a super planner! 🤗😁

One of the first most striking things we saw were the vibrant purple Jacaranda trees! I just love these! I’ve seen the spring blooms while living in LA, but Lisbon was chock full of them on every street, and they were all in their purple glory! Hehe. Love at first sight 😍🤩🤗.

Our first order of business was to enjoy a relaxing and informative hop on hop off bus. We rationalized it would be a nice change of pace to enjoy some of the views and orient ourselves while realxing and not adding insane miles to our daily total, as we did in Amsterdam. 😅🤣

We ultimately decided the hop on hop off wasn’t worth the money. We paid about 22 euro each, and we only rode it twice. So it was just over $10/ride when the uber/bolts we took were around $3-$4/each, hehe. But, we expected to listen to a little history and get the lay of the land. Well, we neglected to bring headphones, and we didn’t notice any available on the bus, so we weren’t really sure what we were near, besides my limited memory of the city layout, hehe. Lesson learned here! Haha. Never take the lazy route 😅🤣.

We finally decide to get off at the top of a big hill, where the National Palace is. We figured we could walk downhill towards the Monestary and then the Belem Tower. We stroll around the Palace, which has a couple of different museums, and neither of us is super interested in being indoors, but we do go into one to use their bathroom. We’re learning, Dana! Haha 😄

Turns out, the National Palace is beautiful! Our interest is peaked in a tour, but we choose to enjoy what architecture we can see on the way to the bathroom and to continue our city tour outside.

With that, we were off on our downhill walk towards the Monestary. We didn’t make it far before Heather realizes the sandals she’s wearing are not well suited for the hilly terrain that is Lisbon. 😅 She did her due diligence and tested them at home, but not to the lengths that would become the norm in this Portuguese city. So, we find a pharmacy just a block or two ahead, and we go in looking for some band-aids.

The pharmacy employee was extremely helpful and assisted Heather in picking out the perfect pack that wouldn’t cost her an arm and a leg. Heather ended up with a small box of Compeed bandaids….my absolute favorite! They’re designed to heal blisters and cushion them during the process. They are waterproof and will stay on for days while they work their healing magic. They’ve become a staple for me when I know I’ll be doing some serious hiking or running. 😁🥰

We were given a small exam room to mend the injured patient, and with the new blister bandaids securely attached, we were off once more on our tour around Lisbon. 🤗

We happily and lazily stroll down the quaint streets in search of the imposing monestary. We pass by a botanical garden, one of many we’d stumble upon. As we round the corner, we get our first glimpses of the monestary. We hurry across the street and make it to the front where we are delighted by its majesty. We both agreed it would be amazing to check out the interior, but 1) we wanted to stay outside in the perfect 75-degree weather, and 2) the line was insanely long. So, perhaps next time we’ll venture to do the inside activities. 😊

We walk through a little park towards the main road, where, just in front of it, stands a large monument: The Discovery Monument, which celebrates the age of discovery in Portugal, when ships would leave a nearby port to explore the West Indies and the East. It was quite impressive and worth a visit. 🙂

We also got incredible views of a bridge very similar to the Golden Gate Bridge. We followed a path along the water towards the Belem Tower, an iconic and picturesque fortification dating to the 16th century. The sun was starting to hang lower in the sky, and the golden light was beginning to hit this beautiful tower as we walked the perimeter :). We did a small photoshoot and decided it was time for food.

We look for the hop on hop off pickup spot, and we see a bus that looks like it could be ours pulling up. Let’s gooooo! We scurry over, and when we confirm it’s the bus we want, we turn it up a notch and break out into a run, only to be nearly thwarted by a metal railing….but nothing will stop us from getting our nourishment, so we both gingerly but expertly launch over the railings and flag down the bus driver as she closes the door and is about to drive away. We made it! A bit ruffled, but we made it! Haha 🤪

We decided to get off the bus near the popular Time Out Market, but due to the route of the bus, we had to go past the market and get out at a lovely Cathedral. It’s so fun to see the spontaneous little things you come across while traveling. Even with a set plan, it doesn’t always go perfectly, and I’d say more often than not, there are interruptions or distractions, hehe. Anyways, we call for an Uber since Heather is nursing her blistered toes, and we just want to get there and put food in our bellies ASAP.

First up on our food tour/tapas snack at the market was the infamous pastel de nata; a delicious egg custard that is difficult to pass up. Next up was a traditional sour cherry liquor served in a chocolate shot glass! Tasty, but also a fun way to do a shot, hehe. 🤗 Heather tried a regular chocolate and a white chocolate shot glass. Get it! Haha. I’m a purist and don’t consider white chocolate chocolate, so I went with the OG stuff 🤪. We sat for a minute, enjoying some short-lived but much needed downtime. We soon stumbled upon a stall selling bacalao; a fried Salty Cod pastry. When I say salty….I mean Salty, lol. Not my favorite, but it’s worth trying 😊. Next up: Croquettes! Fried balls of delicious goodness, hehe. I got a traditional one with meat, and one with goat cheese and caramelized onions. Both were soooo amazing, I wanted more! Hehe. But we were filling up, and we still wanted to have a sit-down dinner later. So onwards we went! 🙂

We make our way back to what I call the central area, where all the restaurants and pedestrian streets are. I take Heather past the “pink street” because it’s just too cute not to see. 🤗 The road is painted pink, and there are tons of umbrellas up above, and the street is lined with little bars and cafes.

We continue towards Commerce Square, another iconic site in Lisbon. Set right along the water, it is a huge square lined with beautiful colonial buildings. They must’ve been setting up for an event or graduation of some sort, as they were setting up big lighting rigs and a stage, so some of the charm was obstructed, but it was beautiful anyways.:)

We cross the busy street that separates Commerce Square from the water and slip and slide our way down the wet and slimy stone blocks that make up a little pier. We were rewarded with a beautiful view of the 25 de Abril bridge and a nearly setting sun.

I’m always trying to get my feet in the water, so I decide I must head over to the small beach area, kick off my sandals, and enjoy the feeling of the cool lapping waves around my ankles. It was so refreshing! And I always get such a calming sensation when near or in the water. I feel grounded and at peace, and 100% in the moment. Ahhhh :). I spent a few minutes here in my glory and decided to hunt for some sea glass, a favorite beach activity of mine :). I was very successful and found all different colors! Hooray! 😁

As we were leaving the beach area, we saw some crazy sand sculptures, so that was quite a fun surprise, hehe. Next we were headed to the Elevador de Santa Justa, an old elevator built in the 1800s to bring people up to the higher level of streets (45m), without needing to walk the whole way. It’s a beautiful sight and is extremely intricately designed. We take our pictures and take it in before heading to Rossio Square. The square is large and wide open with a beautiful design in the small tiles adorning the center.

At this point, we’re starting to slow down significantly, hehe, and begin to look for a place to eat. But, that’s when I see on the map that the infamous tram 28 is just a bit further. I convinced Heather to go. Hehe. 😅 On our way over there, Heather’s feet nearly get run over by a huge double-deckerer bus, taking a corner very tightly, lol. Thank God it was a near miss! 😅🤣

We arrive at the tram stop in hopes of catching number 28, just to see it. As we are walking around the corner, it begins to pull away! Noooo! Haha. But hey! That’s when we notice outdoor escalators! 🤣🤔 Wow! How cool is that?! I thought the only place that had those was in Medellin, Colombia! Maybe they were the first to implement that in a city? But here before us was a long stretch of up escalators, headed towards the castle. So, naturally, we have to take a joy ride, haha. It was so fun! We made it to the top, and I was pushing to go to the castle since we were closer now….hehe….I was shot down 😅. We’ll save that for another day…we are getting dangerously close to a hanger situation 🤪.

Back down the stairs we go….they only put in up escatlors, none to go down. 🤣 Womp womp. As we step off the last of the endlessly long stairs, we notice a yellow tram at the stop! Could it be?! We walk a bit closer….and…….it IS! It’s THE Tram 28! Haha, awesome! 😄 We snag a few pictures and finally agree that dinner is next….or is it? 🤪

We pass a grocery store and decide we must investigate. And boy, oh boy, were we glad we did! We were absolutely stunned to see chilled wine selling for 1 euro! What?!?!?! 🤯 Are we reading the prices wrong? So we talk ourselves down and find the larger wine section, and again, we are seeing most bottles priced under 5 euro! Even a small cardboard adult juice box of wine for 75 cents! Ahhhhh-freaking-mazing! Haha. I had to know for sure, so I pick out the top shelf 5 euro bottle of green wine, a Portugal specialty, and headed to the checkout. It rings up for the price it was listed for…no wayyyy! Haha I’m just simply blown away, and find it hard to believe I could’ve bought a bottle of wine for 1 euro, but am happy to have spent an extra 4 for a “top shelf” wine, lol. Two Buck Chuck, you got another thing coming! 🤪🤣

After our incredulous and amazing find, we actually do start walking towards dinner, lol. After walking what seemed like forever and doing a few laps to read and re-read menus, we eventually pick a place and get a table. We ordered a yummy brie like cheese for an appetizer, and we quickly demolished it, lol. Heather had a nice order of garlic prawns, and I had a paella. Yum! Just what we needed to replenish all the energy spent traipsing around Lisbon. 🥰

And just like that, our second layover adventure is wrapped up! Can’t wait for the next one! 🤗

It’s here! The first work trip that I have brought somebody with me! Hehe. Heather is super excited to join me, and I can’t wait to see all that we accomplish together! Heather is a super planner and has a mental map of Amsterdam already, and basically has our entire day planned for sightseeing. Perfect! 

We get to the hotel and try to get to our rooms, and if you know this hotel, then you know just how hard it can be to find your room. I try to explain this to people, but it’s not easy to portray the oddness and frustrations, but today, Heather was in for a treat. We go up the normal elevators and start looking for our room number. As soon as we see the first signage, I knew we were in for it, haha. Our number was much higher than the ones we were seeing in the hall. And as I was describing how sometimes you have to go through a fire door, and it feels like you shouldn’t because they’re closed, but that’s the route to the other side of the building. So today, that was exactly our fate, and we open said fire door, and what awaits us on the other side is not a mirror image of the hall of we’re about to leave, but rather a downhill ramp floating above a large sitting area. Hahah, what?! So we both have a laugh at this, and we decide to have Heather hold the one door, juuuusssst in case the door at the other end doesn’t open, and the one we’re going through locks itself. Doubtful, but why risk it when there are two of us? So I roll myself and my suitcase down the ramp and open the door successfully. Great! Now, back to the normal hallways of this hotel. We’re getting closer to our room, right? HA! We see all the numbers except for ours and theb a small range of other rooms on a sign, and it says 3B with a down arrow. Ummm…what? We’re on floor 3, presumably where our room is, but now this sign is telling us to take the elevator down to floor 3B? Hahah….welll, alrighty……here we go! Haha. Turns out, this section of the hotel has an extra floor squeezed in somewhere when compared to the other half’s 3 floors. Okay, totally bizarre, but this side tends to have the larger rooms, and ours doesn’t disappoint! Sweeeet!

We take about an hour and a half to regroup from the sleepless night and start organizing ourselves for the long day ahead. We wanted to try and get tickets to the Anne Frank house, which is notoriously difficult, but we learned that more tickets are released at 9 am the day of. So we logged on and attempted to snag any tickets but were unsuccessful. At least we tried! Hehe.

We decided to take a trip to the grocery store to grab a light breakfast and to stock pile some goodies. Mostly for me, haha. I love to get a sea-salt chunk butter, which is also readily available in Paris, some cheese, and sometimes frozen bitterballen and croquettes. Of course, the chocolate stroopwafels, but I’ve been having a hard time finding those in the grocery stores and having better luck in the airport. 

Our little breakfast was a ham and cheese croissant, and we added more cheese…mustard flavor! It was delicious! We scarfed these down and washed it down with some extremely hot coffee…. Caffeinating to the best of our abilities, hehe.

First up: the Brouwersgracht canal, and a walk past the Anne Frank House. There were tons of people already there, and there was a small line of folks waiting for a picture with the small plaque. We smiled on autopilot for our picture, but afterward realized that in a place like this, with such a sinister history, maybe it’s not always appropriate to smile. I think I’d like to re-read her story. 

We continue our morning, strolling around the canals, chasing amazing views, and discovering fun shops in the Jordaan area. We eventually realize we’re getting hungry and are in need of a bathroom, hehe. So, as we were walking, we kept an eye out for an appropriate establishment to suit our needs. For a good while now, we have been seeing tons of restaurants with pancakes, and Heather read how that is a must do in Amsterdam. So, we narrowed our search to some sort of pancake-ery. We found one in no time and settled in for a small snack and a coffee. 

Refreshed a second time, we make our way to the floating flower market! I was hunting for tulip bulbs that were USDA approved but couldn’t find any. Someday, I’d like to bring some back, but today wouldn’t be the day, lol. Instead, we enjoyed looking at all the displays and seeing buckets upon buckets of a variety of bulbs. 

We were distracted by a cheese shop across the way and had to go in. We wanted to sample all the different flavors. Heather ended up buying a truffle cheese, and I was left undecided, wishing I could have tasted the coconut cheese. I love coconut, and I love cheese….though that combination had me wondering, haha. It’ll now be my mission to try it! 😁

We left the flower market area and headed towards the infamous Dam Square. A bustling city square surrounded by beautiful buildings, including the national palace. Heather and I did a few 360s in awe of our surroundings, and we decided to test out my new selfie stick. Success! It’s never glamorous to pull out a retractable selfie stick, but hey, it makes for a great picture without depending on others to do it for you. 🙂

From here, we walked all the way back towards the Museumplein, where all the museums are located. We decided we didn’t want to try and visit any museums, not that we’d be able to get entry tickets on a Sunday anyways, but we wanted to go see the area, and a special feature that is 100% instagramable. The “IAMSTERDAM” sign. If you’ve been, you know what I’m talking about, and they have one at the airport as you exit. We wanted to get our picture by the sign, and rather than have the crew wait for us while we did it at the airport, we decided to do it at this other location. Welp. Let this be a lesson to take advantage of things in the moment, because that sign is no longer at the museums! It’s gone. We missed our opportunity. Hehe. Heather snagged a shot of the sign as we were leaving Amsterdam, but still…would’ve been neat, and probably THE most touristy thing we could’ve done. Hehe. 

Next up, one of my personal faves, the Albert Cuyp Market. I was taken here by another flight attendant a while back, and it was here, in this bustling pedestrian street lined with vendors of all kinds, that I sampled my first taste of heaven, a freshly made stroopwafel the size of a personal pizza, complete with dripping caramel. Now, I had obviously tried the delectable stroopwafel before, but never hot off the press, and let me be the first to tell you, the packaged ones do not hold a candle to the fresh ones. Not by a long shot. But by the time I had finished eating said stroopwafel, I had caramel running down my chin, both hands, and all over my toes and Birkenstocks, haha. The messier, the better, right?

It was also here that I was introduced to a Birkenstock store, and my heart was never so full. 🙂 If you know me well, you know that I live in my birks almost year round. I had heard tell of this Birkenstock store and having different inventory that in the US. I was pleasantly surprised by the validity of this statement and found myself a pair of silvery birks that are very different from my go-to hippie brown-leather ones. They had a red leather pair that I still regret not buying to this day. Haha. I will be back, and I hope they have something like that because I will buy them up in a heartbeat. 

I digress…. Hehe. Heather and I show up, and I cannot wait to be reacquainted with the drippingly sweet caramel stroopwafel of my dreams, and to maybe treat myself to new birks, but as we rounded the corner, my heart dropped and my head fell to my chest in one of the greatest disappointments of my life. There were zero vendor stalls, zero food carts, nothing! It was deserted! And on a Sunday, nonetheless!! I never thought to check how often it was open, I just assumed it was a permanent fixture. HUGE fail. We were super bummed, but I guess not everything can go according to plan, hehe. So, we pivoted, said adieu to the sometimes glorious Albert Cuyp Market, and worked our way for a drive-by sighting of the Heineken Brewery. We snapped our pictures and continued on our way. 

By this point, with no stroopwafel to fuel the next segment of our arduous yet beautiful tour of the city, I was in need of sustenance. We looked at the menu of a cute outdoor patio place, and it was essentially just pancakes. Ummm… been there, done that, and I need something a bit more substantial. The search continues! 

The next stop was a cute little bar/cafe with sidewalk seating. We snagged a tiny table and looked at the menu. Not much here, but they do have bitterballen! A Dutch classic and a necessity to try when visiting Amsterdam. Heather and I shared an order of these, and I also grabbed a fancy grilled cheese, essentially, oh, and how could I forget! A pint of Heineken. I need carbs for the walk, hehe. Also, I can’t help but indulge when taking advantage of my ridiculously amazing job, especially with a new travel companion like Heather. 🙂 She ordered an Aperol Spritz, and we happily took a few minutes to sit and relax our tired legs. The sun was beating down on us, but it also felt so lovely. Sun kissed with a drink in our hands, eating bitterballen. Yum! Can life get any better than this? Hehe

Once we had our fill, we quickly decided it’s the perfect time for our canal cruise. We saw some different companies while walking around all day, and we picked our favorite, based on the small boats they had, well, and the wine and cheese we could see the passengers enjoying, hehe. 

We buy our tickets and have to hoof it back towards the Anne Frank House, about a 20-minute walk. We had trouble finding the spot to pick up the boat, as the company was set up on either side of the Anne Frank House, so the first stop was incorrect, but we were graciously guided to the other side, where our VERY fancy boat awaited us. Now, we did pay for the “luxury” cruise, as it included wine and cheese. Well, we were expecting an open-air little boat with a 15-person capacity, 20 max. What we got was the “Titanic,” literally, that was the boat’s name. Haha. Or Uh-oh? 😅😂It was a long covered wooden boat, with seating around the edge, complete with cushions, and down the middle were tables covered in little cheese boats, hehe. Plus, the wine bar 🙂 As we get settled in, the guides come around offering us our wine choices…fill ‘er up! Haha. The cheese was to die for and served with mustard, and I had to control myself and not eat it all in one go, hehe. 

We learned so much on our cruise! I had taken one before and heard different facts and tidbits, but this was far more detailed. I even took notes on my phone! Hehe. And now, as if this blog post wasn’t long enough already, you’ll get to learn some of what we did! 🙂

• Canals and bridges built in 16th/17th centuries
• Dutch East India Company is still considered one of the richest, most successful in history
• Stole spices from Asia, black pepper was SUPER important
• Could purchase a house for a cup of black pepper (wish that were the case now, hehe)
• Canals dug for transport of said plunder from the Trading company
• 1.5 million for a one floor apartment on the canal 
• Canals are 10 feet deep
• Houses tilted forward so when hauling things up by rope/pulley, the goods wouldn’t smack into the house. That’s how people get furniture in to this day because all homes have tiny and steep “Dutch staircases,” and no furniture will fit up those
• Black houses are a remnant from the days of the black plague where giant black “X’s” were painted on to alert others of a black plague case, now the houses are a UNESCO heritage deal and cannot be repainted
• There is a city job thats only purpose is to dig out bikes that have fallen in the canals, 12,000-15,000 bikes/year are pulled out! 

Overall, our wine and cheese canal cruise was totally worth it, and we did our best to get our money’s worth of wine, hehe. And cheese. Not a single cube of cheese was left by the time I was done, lol. As we were getting ready to get off the boat, we noticed a bunch of people using the bathroom on board. Heather and I look at each other and, without saying a word, somehow go against the sage advice of a long-term traveler friend, Dana…..to never miss the chance to use a bathroom, hehe. We figured we could wait until the next stop, which would be a food festival! The guides on the boat told us about it, and we both love trying new foods, so that became our next mission. 

My dear friend, Josie, a fellow flight attendant, had already suggested we go there, but I had forgotten about the tip, and was gonna check in on that if we ran out of things to do. Well, it just so happens, it was the same food festival! Score! 

On our way over to the park, Heather starts mentioning how she needs to pee. Grrrreat. Why didn’t we just pee on the boat?! Idiots. Amateurs. Lol. 😂We’re having a grand time walking the streets, happily buzzed on our canal wine, and the joke arises to pee in an abandoned looking park over yonder. I draw the line here, as there is no way I’m getting arrested for peeing in public while on a layover, lol. So we soldier on, keeping a keen eye for a little coffee shop, or anything. And then, in the distance, the neon orange glow of a row of port-a-potties glistened and beckoned us closer. I’m super doubtful that they’ll be open, as in my running experience, when nature calls, these portable toilets are typically padlocked for use only by the construction workers, or whoever they’re meant for, and that’s definitely not tourists who didn’t take advantage of a paid-for bathroom. 😂 But, I’ve learned to never leave a stone unturned, so towards the toilets we go! And what luck! At least one of them is open and padlock free! OMG! AND! It’s impeccably clean! What?! Haha. What is this? Dropped down from heaven itself? Lol. So we take care of business and are quite tickled  with our fortune and continue on to the food festival. 

Holy food festival! Haha. We get close and witness the sea of bicycles that sums up Amsterdam in a nutshell. Then we could hear music, and we let our legs lead the way, winding through a short path in the woods, and then our noses picked up the lovely scent of BBQ, and we drifted forwards, in search of the holy land that was the food festival. We see a barrier and inside all kinds of tents and music, and it’s a big ole tease…there doesn’t appear to be an entrance this way! Haha. We love to explore and see where things lead us, so onwards we go, circling the food festival and enjoying the golden light of the setting sun.

Eventually, we make our way back to the front area and find the entry point. In we go! We made it! We did a lap to get the lay of the land and to check out what options we might have for dinner. Honestly, at this point in our day, we’re feeling exhausted, and it’s almost too overwhelming to decide on a place. I was sort of hankering for Asian food, but the lines! Oh, the lines were so long! Haha. So we agreed to find the place with the shortest lines and grab food there. Empanadas, it is! Now, with the shortest line, my expectations on the quality of the food were quite low…but I was pleasantly surprised! The empanadas were freaking delicious! Hehe. After we finish our light dinner, we peel ourselves off the bench we found, and start to head back towards downtown. But not before using the bathrooms, haha.. We won’t be making that mistake again! 😂

We still have one more site to check off the list, and we’d been waiting for nightfall to do it. Something to note here is that the sun doesn’t set until 10 PM! Haha, and we’d been going since 9 AM, and I didn’t sleep all night on the flight….so….we were pretty tuckered out at this point, lol. 

We use what little calories the empanadas filled us with to slowly walk towards the red light district because, when in Rome, *ahem,* Amsterdam, lol. The Red Light District is just something that you gotta see. Whether you choose to indulge in any of it or not, it’s a sight to behold. Scantily clad women in full-length glass doors, advertising the goods and beckoning you in for a closer look, sex shops and shows galore. While potentially uncomfortable for some to walk through this area, I truly appreciate its existence. It seems anything and everything in regards to intimacy is taboo to talk about, to see, etc. Although, listening to some popular songs, lyrics can be quite sultry and forward. 🤔 It’s interesting to me that something that is so fundamentally human could have become so taboo. Maybe it’s the anthropologist in me speaking, but I wonder how we became socialized into hiding this side of our human nature?

After perusing what was to offer the passerby on the streets, we began making a weary attempt to head back towards the hotel. But not without first sampling some frites! Basically, they’re the best French fries ever, with a wide range of dipping sauces! We tried curry, sweet chili, and mayo. Soooooo delicious, fresh, hot fries with a fairly good-sized container of sauce. I’d say a Nana-approved amount of condiments, but honestly, there are not enough condiments on this beautiful green and blue marble to satiate her needs, hehe. Love you! ❤️🤪

After pausing for a moment and snacking, we looked up an Uber back to the hotel, but eventually found some energy hidden amongst the sauces and potatoes, and agreed to take the 35-minute walk back. Here we go….haha. It was nice to finish our walking tour the way we started it, but let me just say. We were BEAT. We clocked in about 17 miles on our watches, and that is a record for me. Haha. 10 miles is a fairly average amount for walking around and sightseeing, but 17 is just plain reckless, haha. I mean, that’s longer than a half-marathon! 

Back at the hotel, Heather jumped in the shower, and I was lights out before she was done, hehe. I slept solid and awoke, ready to tackle the day….though admittedly, quite sore. 😂

Heather got a seat in Delta One, our lay-flat seat cabin….and how fitting it was! It was her first time getting those seats, and it was her birthday! 😁 Happy Birthday! I’m so happy she made it there, and what a fabulous end to our first layover together! The first of many! 😁🤗 

Where to next? 😁🤔

Friday:

1:30 AM wake-up call. Yep. The story of the “non-rev” life: aiming for the first flight of the day, and if not, having all day to make hopeful attempts for any and all subsequent flights. This would be my friend Heather’s first time traveling standby, and first time to New Orleans! So, not even the dreadfully early hour could get us down :).

Well, we knew well enough not to bank on making it to the Big Easy, and we were happy to know that if we ended up somewhere completely different, we would be just as happy and make the most of it. Our other options ranged from Nassau, Bahamas to Austin, Texas, to Phoenix, Arizona. As a standby passenger, you hope to make it to your first choice destination, but you have to be flexible to go where the seats allow you to. Hehe.

So, in typical non-rev fashion, we missed the first two flights to Atlanta and decided to test our luck on the direct flight from Boston to New Orleans, which was only looking slightly better. Score! We made it on and got a row to ourselves! Nice! 

3 hours later, we were landing in New Orleans, and we were ready to hit the ground running, despite operating on just a couple hours of sleep. We grabbed a cab and got dropped off on the outskirts of the French Quarter, as many of the streets were closed to traffic due to the French Quarter Festival that was happening that weekend. We walked several blocks to our beautiful little hotel, the French Market Inn on Decatur Street. We were so extremely pleased with this place; a beautiful historic building, perfect location, and very friendly staff. My favorite part was how slanted everything was, from the floors to the window sills, and yes, even the toilet, it seemed. Haha. It was almost like an attraction at a carnival or fun house, hehe. No room for OCD when hanging the curtains over a crooked window frame here, hehe. After exploring our new home, we quickly changed our clothes, regrouped, and began our NOLA adventures. 

First up: food! I knew a great spot for a local sandwich called a Muffaleta. Essentially, it is an Italian sandwich, but with a delicious olive spread. The sandwiches are huge, so Heather and I shared a half, and we walked across the street to the river walk to enjoy our lunch with a view. As we devoured the Muffaletas, we listened to the rushing muddy brown waters of the Mississippi and observed the festival crowds, complete with wild festival clothing, strutting their stuff on the catwalk-like sidewalk in front of us. 

Feeling rejuvenated, we decided to tackle tourist destination #1: Bourbon Street. What insanity! If you’ve been, you know, haha. It’s bar after bar, and each has loud booming music, whether it’s a DJ, live music, or just thumping music coming from the speakers. It’s almost hard to walk and talk because of how loud it is. Almost every locale is serving some sort of adult beverage to-go, the infamous slushies, in a multitude of flavors, or the iconic “hand grenade.” I opted for a mango slushee, as I had never tried one of these “staples” before. I can say it was tasty and boozy, but not worth the $15 I paid for it, haha. 

We strolled around a bit more through the delightful streeets of the French Quarter, oogling at the iron filigree balconies on nearly every building. We eventually make our way past a restaurant that literally stopped us in our tracks with how good it smelled. We immediately did a double take to make sure we knew where that delicious and inviting scent was coming from. We didn’t even need to check with each other before we decided to eat there for the evening. This would turn out to be our favorite restaurant and favorite food from our weekend in New Orleans. 

We ordered charbroiled oysters, my aboslute favorite! I couldn’t wait to get my hands on those babies, haha. I’ve never had raw oysters, and honestly, after experiencing the delectable charred flavors embedded in the herb and Parmesan cheese aioli that graced the tops of these oysters, I’m not sure I need to, haha. We also ordered the “Swamp Platter,” and let’s just take a quick moment to appreciate the name. :). This came with three different dishes: shrimp creole, which was my favorite of the three, and will be trying to make it at home, blackened alligator, which I never had before, and despite sounding cliche, it did taste like chicken, hehe, and maque choux, the least favorite of the three. But overall, we were so completely enamored by this meal and the delicious smells permeating the restaurant. A perfect end to a long day! 🙂

Saturday:

The next morning, we woke up and had a quick snack for breakfast in our hotel room before heading to a cemetery tour. Most of the cemeteries require a guide to get in, so this was definitely the right choice. We walked a ways to the meeting point and met our guide across the street from the St. Louis Cemetary #1.

We learned how the above ground burials were a Spanish influence, when the city was under Spanish colonial rule, and NOT because the bodies buried in the ground would float up to the top due to such low elevation. The French worked around this by burying people and placing bricks on top of the graves. The rich were buried in the cemetery proper, and there could be one family mausoleum with up to 3 different tombs, or more, but that didn’t mean only 3 family members could be buried there. In the heat of the summer, the remains would essentially break down to nothing inside the cement tombs, making room for more family bodies to be added. One 3-tomb site could hold up to 80 family members’ remains! Wow! If there wasn’t enough space yet for a new body to be added, you could be buried in a tomb in the wall of the cemetery, as a holding position, before you could be placed in your familial tomb.

The richest of the rich would have marble tombs or name plates. At the time the cemetery was constructed, there were no marble mines in the US, so the marble would’ve been imported from Europe, so you can imagine just how expensive that might’ve been. The poorest of the poor were buried in the largest tombs in the cemetery; communal tombs paid for by societies. These organizations did charity work for the communities and gave the poor a place to be buried.

Some families pay for perpetual care, and the hefty sum allows caretakers to expertly maintain the tombs; some we saw were in nearly immaculate condition. The others were left to the owners to upkeep, and were little more than a pile of bricks. 

Two notable tombs found in this cemetary were the Madam Laveau tomb and a pyramid tomb belonging to none other than Nicholas Cage. Yup, you read that correctly, haha. Before I get to good ‘ole Cage, lets chat about Madam Laveau. She was one of the most infamous voodoo queens of New Orleans. She played a vital role in treating people naturally during a yellow fever epidemic, and dedicated her life to helping anyone who walked thorugh her doors. Hollywood has made quite a spectacle of Voodoo, but all is not as it seems. Later that day we visited the Voodoo Museum and learned much more than either of us knew about it. More on this later, and back to a quick Nicholas Cage fun fact. He is from New Orleans and wanted to purchase a slot in this cemetary and what better shape to build than that of the iconic pyramid? And apparently at one point or another he got involved with the Madoff Ponzi schemes, and the IRS took the two mansions Cage owned in New Orleans as a result of the failed scheme…which are also known as…….. can you name it? Yep, pyramid schemes, haha. And guess what asset the IRS let Cage keep? Right again! The pyramid tomb. Haha. I hope this was one IRS agent’s idea of the ultimate play on words. 

I never expected to a) see a pyramid tomb in the historic cemetaries of New Orleans, and b) never imagined it would belong to Nicholas Cage. Makes me think immediately of National Treasure…hehe. 

After our trivia packed cemetary tour, we made our way to a highly recommended brunch spot called Toast. They are known for their delicious and specialty french toast. On our way, we stumbled across this amazing jazz group. Check out the video below! For brunch, Heather and I opted to share meals, so we ordered a coconut cream filled French toast and a savory crepe, along with some perfectly made grits. Of course, we had to treat ourselves to a Bloody Mary and a Mimosa, because why not! Hehe. We were delighted with the food and savored every last morsel. As we were finishing up, we realized how dark it was becoming. Uh-oh. The rain is moving in. Hehe. We knew it would rain in the afternoon, and now it was almost upon us. 

We were right across the street from the French Market, so we decided to walk through. There were so many food stalls! Too bad we just ate, because we really could’ve done some damage trying all the different dishes, but we were very satisfied with our brunch, and just enjoyed reading all the menus. There were artisan vendor stalls as well, and we enjoyed exploring all that was for sale. All of a sudden, a huge burst of wind blew in some of the siding of the market, and we poked our heads out, and instantly, the rain began pouring down. Some people were stuck out in it, and once they found shelter in the market, they were 100% drenched! Heather and I were lucky to have found ourselves inside at the onset of the storm. 

Once we walked through as much as we could, we decided it was time to brave the wild rain, thunder, and lightning and cross over to the other side of the market. We put on our raincoats, tried to get our backpacks inside the coats, and we made a run for it. What we didn’t expect was the street to be flooded! We not only were concerned about the sideways rain pelting us, now we were wondering how to wade across the pond that sat between us and our destination, hehe. Heather had on plastic sandals and just walked through. I brought my waterproof sneakers and thought I was a genius for doing so, but I quickly realized they are no match for a New Orleans storm, haha. The puddles were well above the top of the sneaker, so once the water gets in, their lovely waterproof quality becomes just a tad less functional, hehe. We were all laughs, enjoying the raging storm, and we witnessed just how quickly the streets could flood. We imagined for a moment what it looked like when Katrina barreled through. It is impossible to imagine, especially being from a place that doesn’t get hit by hurricanes. This particular storm was a simple thunderstorm, nothing more, and water was rushing down the steps in the park, and the puddles were deeper than the tops of my sneakers! Wild! 

So what better way to wait out a storm than to buy a drink? So we did just that and walked around this section of the market, sipping our fruity cocktails in plastic cups and listening to some music playing. We continued walking a bit and found a street band performing awesome jazz music. Everyone was gathered around, sheltering from the storm in the best possible way. All huddled around the band, rocking out some upbeat and catchy jazz tunes. I’m always amazed at the musicians who can play so freely and easily, with no music in front of them, everything memorized or improvised. Such a beautiful gift, and such a wonderful one to share with others. Thank you! 

Once they finished playing and the rain calmed down, we walked over to the Voodoo Museum. It was quite a small space, and there were quite a few people trying to get in. No surprise, given the weather conditions outside….it was the perfect time to go inside and warm up while learning something new. 

We learned that Voodoo was brought to New Orleans by West African Slaves, and was hybridized with the most popular religion at the time, Catholicism. Loas are spirits in inanimate things that practitioners would pray to for favors of good fortune or protection. Voodoo dolls were mainly used for inflicting positive things on the person in question; improved health, success, etc. We also learned about Gris-gris bags and how they can be created specially for your personal needs and what you are trying to bring into your life. 

We learned a bit more about Madam Laveau, who helped a lot of people during a yellow fever epidemic, adopted kids, and did a lot of charity work for the community. She was born a free person and helped anyone who came to her, despite social differences outside of her home. Voodoo Queens were the top dog in voodoo, followed by male priests. I love how the women are the powerful here. 🙂

After the museum visit, we rushed back to the hotel because we had to pee so badly, hehe. We spent some time regrouping there and, once again, headed back out to walk around and enjoy the scenery of the French Quarter. We stopped in a voodoo shop, as Heather was after a personalized Gris-Gris bag. She ended up not getting one but bought me a beautiful little voodoo doll that is for safe travels. My heart was so warmed with this thoughtful gift. I will be finding a home for it in my suitcase, and will take it with me wherever I go. 🙂 Thank you, Heather! We walked past the location where Marie Laveau’s house once stood and to Congo Park, where the slaves would gather on the weekends for a market and to play music and dance. The music was a huge influence on the birth of New Orleans Jazz. We continued our self-guided tour with a trip to Canal Street, which is a big contrast to the French Quarter. Lined with modern high rises, filled with traffic, and the best part: a cute street car that goes right down the middle. 

We attempted to get beignets, but the store was closing. Bummer! We continued walking towards the Sazerac Distillery. We had briefly discovered Sazerac when looking at the cocktail menu for the carousel bar…a whopping $90 for the cocktail! Haha. Naturally, we had to know why this was such a delicacy. As it turns out, Sazerac is a rye whiskey with a nearly 400-year history in New Orleans. The original Sazerac was made with a cognac, and this $90 cocktail is made with just that. Okay, okay, I guesssss that makes sense. But I won’t be trying this anytime soon, hehe. Back to the distillery, it’s free to take the tour, and we decided to go for it since we were there. During the tour, we got to sample 4 tiny cocktails, and by the time we walked out of there, we felt it, haha. We are not whiskey/bourbon people, that’s for sure. Haha.

On our way back towards the French Quarter, Heather spots a funky clothing store with the style of dress I’ve been looking at, and I realize this shop is one I’ve been wanting to go to, since I first walked past it on a layover a while back. Naturally, we had to go in, and long story short, I walked out with a gorgeous flapper dress! I’m so excited, and I don’t really have a place to wear it, but I’m gonna wear it whenever I want, because it’s beautiful and I love it! Hehe. After our fast-paced city tour and shopping spree, we decided it was time for dinner. We wanted to go back to the same place as last night, but agreed we should try something new.

We stumbled upon Mr. Ed’s Oyster Bar and Fish House, which had rave reviews, and we made our way there. We had to wait outside quite a while before securing a seat inside….it has to be good with people waiting to get in, right? Wrong. We were so disappointed by the food here. I guess nothing compares to the meal we had last night. Not one of the dishes we tried even came close to the flavors and quality of the French Market Restuarant. Dissapointed, but happy we tried something new, we walked back to the hotel. We have another long day tomorrow! 🙂

Sunday:

Sunday is Swamp Day! Woohoo! Heather and I both really wanted to do this, and we couldn’t wait to get started! It would be a long tour, so we decided to fuel up with a good breakfast at Fleur de Lis. We ordered salmon Benedict, an avocado, goat cheese crepe, and indulged in a Bloody Mary and a Bellini. Yum! We were seated on the second floor, and this cute place had an adorable balcony seating area. I went outside to check that out, of course! Of all the times I’ve been to NOLA, I’ve never sat on a balcony…guess I’ll just have to keep coming back, hehe! 

After breakfast, we strolled over to the pickup point for the tour, where we would meet a large group of swamp goers, excited and hopeful to spot some alligators. We hopped on a big tour bus, and we drove 40 minutes to a town called Slidel, where the Honey Island Swamp is located. 

Before we knew it, we were being called to a small boat that fits about 20 people and meeting our boat captain and guide, Zander. He grew up in that area and kept us entertained for the 2 hour boat tour. The Pearl River was a muddy and, at times, brackish water. It seems all the bodies of water we’ve seen are muddy and brown. 

Zander took us around to several spots, and by the end of the tour we had seen a total of 7 gators, one named Elvis, and he was the largest we saw; about 12 feet in length! We were hoping to see AN alligator, I didn’t expect to see 7! Hehe It was awesome! We also were lucky enough to see a ton of turtles, drying themselves on floating logs, 1 snake hiding in the branches of a bush, an owl that flew right across he river, a heron, a nutria rat, and about 6 raccoons! The raccoons were quite feisty and territorial over some food Zander gave them. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a raccoon up close and personal. On our way back to the starting point, we passed by some local fisherman, and they showed us a catfish and another fish that people eat. That was a fun show and tell, and those fish did not like being on display, and caused some splashing that reached the edges of our boat, hehe. I have to say, I don’t think I’d appreciate that either, and would probably put up a fuss. 

We learned that Tupelo Honey comes from this swamp, and it is the only honey that doesn’t crystallize. I had no idea! There was a restuarant in Asheville, near where I went to college with that name, and I knew it was a southern honey, but I never knew where it came from. I love learning new trivia facts and piecing different experiences together. 🙂

We also learned the difference between a swamp and a bayou: A swamp has flowing, moving water, and a bayou has stagnant water. When the river water encroaches the swamp area, that is called backwater, and that is where most of the crawfish are caught. We learned that Spanish moss was named for the long grey beards the Spanish colonizers had, as the native populations didn’t have much facial hair. 

One we were back at the Cajun Encounters headquarters, we were given the opportunity to hold a baby gator! This little guy’s name was Mojo-Jojo or Jojo-Mojo…I can’t remember exactly, hehe. 

We made our way back to town and strolled down Bourbon Street again, hoping to grab some Beigneits at Cafe Beinget, which apparently always has live jazz music! Along the way, we saw a Darth Vader lip syncing and doing the most dramatic interpretive dance to “My Heart Will Go On,” haha. The things you see….. 

We successfully got our beignets after several previous failed attempts, and we did our best to eat them without the powdered sugar blowing around on our black clothes…..but it was no to avail, haha. The table had small holes in it, and the sugar redesigned our pants to have cute white polka dot patterns, hehe.

Next up, we had to try a hurricane from Pat O’Briens, as I guess that’s the number one place to try the drink. We didn’t know it then, but the hurricane drink originated in New Orleans. It was yummy! We walked up to the bar, and they already had about 10 made, so we quickly paid and took our giant to go cups and continued our wandering. We found ourselves right in the heart of the French Quarter Festival, listening to some live jazz music, and we went inside a park area where there was a big stage set up. I love how you can take your drink and go wherever…such a fun and novel experience, lol.

We strolled past some local artists and their treasures, and Heather and I were almost convinced to purchase something, but there wasn’t a single item that truly called to us; we just LOVED the styles of the artists, so we decided to hold off until we found something we knew we had to have (like my flapper dress, hehe).

We found ourselves back at the hotel for a refresh, including the debut of my new, incredible flapper dress! Seemed almost silly to wear it, but I LOVE the dress, and I wanted to wear it. So on it went, uniquely paired with my Birkenstocks, haha. Fancy up top, hippie on the bottom? Party in the back, business in the front? Am I a fashion mullet?? Hahah, #fashionmullet. Hey, at least I was comfortable! Haha

Our cemetary guide from yesterday told us he was bartending at a super dive bar and that he brings fresh mint from his garden to make mojitos. Ummmm… we’re in! We thought the name of this place was something like “Antiquities,” which seemed weird, but we confirmed the name with our guide, Carlos, and he said yes! Haha.. okay, well, now it’s time to figure out just exactly where it’s located, and we can’t find it for nothing! So I just look at google maps for bars on the street we know it’s on, and I see one called “Aunt Tiki’s,” and the light bulb goes off. Haha. Apparently, we couldn’t decipher the NOLA accent and have been dead wrong about what this bar is called. Hahah. 

We eventually made it to the bar, but our guide, Carlos, was no longer working. Bummer! His shift ended an hour earlier, but he was still there hanging out, so we went inside and were served by Corinne, who made a mean mojito. Fashion designer, and super fun. We scrolled through her instagram, admiring her work. And we met an interesting couple, Clara and Eric, who we talked to for a while. Clara is a pinup girl, and her photos were amazing and ignited an interest in retro outfits…must be partly to blame on my newly acquired 1920’s flapper dress, hehe. Eric grew up in NOLA and was displaced by Katrina, living in Michigan for several years. While at Aunt Tiki’s, we learned why there are no locks on the bathroom doors and no mirrors in the bathrooms….drugs! Haha. We were too naive to put 2 and 2 together, but this bar is known as one of the “diviest” dive bars, and well, I guess now we know why, lol.

After two mojitos, Heather and I decide to continue our night elsewhere, and it turns out, Clara and Eric had given us some places to check out near Frenchman Street, where I really wanted to go. As we were leaving, they said they were headed that way and would walk us over. How cool! Well, it was until we talked enough to learn that one of them was a coke dealer! Haha. We think they were just trying to make a sale or possibly get us to go home with them….the more they talked, the weirder things got. We very clearly said “no thanks,” to all the above, and soon they both walked out, as if they were going to smoke outside… but we figured they were ditching us, after realizing we weren’t what they were looking for, haha. Okay…..byyyyyeee! Hehe

We continued on to Frenchmen Street…amazing!! It was almost like the difference between the Las Vegas strip and old Vegas. I loved it here! Jazz clubs and bars lined the street, and there were two small, quaint street markets going on. We tried to get into one club, but it was a $10 cover, and the jazz was a slow and calm jazz…easy listening. I wanted a boisterous, loud, horns galore, dancing jazz. So we popped into a place for some late night nourishment and enjoyed some tacos and Jamaican beef patties while listening to jazz playing in what seemed like the next room over. So naturally, after eating, we meandered in and were rewarded with 2 songs before the band was finished for the evening. I had a delicious caipirinha, essentially a Brazilian margarita, and we waited a while for the next band to start, but were too impatient, so we decided to head back to Pat O’Briens for the dueling pianos… which were amazing! With a name like “dueling pianos,” I expected there to be some competition and fighting over the songs being played, but it was much more relaxed, and the two pianists took turns playing requests from the rather large audience. There was standing room only by the time we showed up. And we kept saying we’d just stay for one more, one more, one more…..until we closed the place down around midnight, hehe. My favorite by far was Paradise By The Dashboard Lights. Gotta be one of my favorite songs of all times…I just love it! Haha. A tad risqué, but I appreciate a good word play, and the story telling is wonderful and cheeky. I’d say that was a fantastic end to the night! 🙂

Go-home Day:

We decided to try for the direct flight back to Boston, which left around 2pm, I believe? This way we’d have time to go back and have one last meal at our favorite restaurant. And a meal we had both been craving to try, although I think Heather was MUCH more inspired than I was. Any guesses? Maybe the number one thing to order in New Orleans? Yep! Crawfish! Neither of had ever had them, and now that was about to change in a matter of hours, lol. 

We packed up and got organized for our journey home, and had the hotel keep our bags for us while we went down to the French Market Restaurant, and we ordered all our favorites: charbroiled oysters, the Swamp Platter, with a portion of Jambalaya instead of the other dish we didn’t like, and a half boat of crawfish. OMG. They were SO FREAKING DELCIOUS! Probably has a bit to do with the seasoning on them, which was just the Zattarans Creole Seasoning….who knew? Haha. But, DANG! Seriously, delicious. And I was pleased we weren’t expected to try and suck out what minuscule amount of meat was in the claws, haha. Our waiter gave us a great demonstration right at our table. You just pull apart the body, suck out the juices from the head, and then peel off the shell on the tail and savor it all. Yummmm! Sorry for any vegetarians or non-seafood eaters…hehe. 

Feelings oh so satisfied with our decisions in life, we head to the airport to see what’s good with our flight back to Boston. It’s rare to have a non-rev trip be hassle free, so I guess we were due when we realized we didn’t make the flight. Okay, so what are our options? We can try a million times for Atlanta, where non-revs go to die, OR, we could attempt going through Detroit or Minneapolis. The Minneapolis flight left first, so we tried it! Got on, okay, awesome! But…that meant we’d be spending the night there since there were no other flights out to Boston that night. 😂 Alright, so Heather was getting the FULL non-rev experience, hehe. And she was a champ! Even after a flight in the friendship seat with less-than-kind neighbors….we rallied and found our way out of the maze that the MSP airport is, and got our hotel shuttle to a rinky-dink podunk airport hotel. We were cracking up at the difference between this hotel and our lovely historic hotel in New Orleans. We had a late night dinner at Culver’s, a new fast food restaurant for each of us. Not ideal, but honestly, the food was great! They had warm sandwiches, so we each got a pastrami, and they had CHEESE CURDS. So I couldn’t resist, hehe. 

We didn’t get much sleep, and we were back at the airport, and we made the flight back to Boston without any hassles. Overall, it was a wonderful trip to kickstart our travels together! Can’t wait to see where we go! Cheers, Heather!