Pickle Deli Square

Finding family roots in a beautiful little village between Meizhou and Chaozhou.

Oct 5

Oct 5 Meizhou (梅州) Impressions, and a visit to the China Hakka Museum

Getting a sense of everyday life.

Oct 3

Oct 3 Tulou Day 2 afternoon: Finishing up key sites in the Yongding 永定 tulou area

Wrapping up a big day, where I saw almost all of both Nanjing and Yongding tulou areas, stopping at the “King of Tulou” and the Chuxi village nestled in the green mountains.

Oct 2

Oct 2 Tulou Day 2 morning: visiting almost all of Nanjing 南靖 tulou area

From the iconic “four dishes one soup” to the un-touristed village of Hekeng.

Oct 1

Oct 1 Tulou Day 1 afternoon: Exploring my homebase, the Hongkeng 洪坑 tulou cluster

Getting settled in and exploring my inn’s surrounding village

Aug 7

Aug 7 Day trip to Gulangyu Island (鼓浪屿) from Xiamen

A nice outing to the (more or less) car-free island.

Jan 2

Jan 2 Chongqing Impressions

A vertiginous, overgrown, slightly faded vision of a future city.

Sep 12

Sep 12 How to get from Catania to Palermo via the Valley of the Temples (Agrigento) - in 1 day by bus, train, and foot!

Step by step guide to the (rather painful) DIY trip from one side of Sicily to the other, with seeing magnificent Greek temples in the middle.

Jan 7

Jan 7 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 5 End: Finally, Santiago de Compostela!

Spain, Travel, Food

Reaching the end of the Camino…

Jan 2

Jan 2 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 5 Walk: 16.1km (10 miles) from Sigüeiro to Santiago

Spain, Travel

The last day was the day I got lost for the first time on the Camino.

Dec 22

Dec 22 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 4 Walk: 24.2km (15 miles) from Hospital de Bruma to Sigüeiro

Spain, Travel

More than halfway through the Camino Inglés, this day was more easygoing due to having a reservation at a private lodge in Sigüeiro. I joined up with my Betanzos tortilla dining partners for part of the walk, and they shared some interesting gossip about cheating pilgrims!

Dec 12

Dec 12 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 3 Walk: 24.1km (15 miles) from Betanzos to Hospital de Bruma

Lots of highway walking yet few signs of people made for a relatively dull walk.

Dec 6

Dec 6 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 2 End: Tortilla de Betanzos, the Albergue, and a bakery from the 1600s

Travel, Spain, Food

After walking two days from Ferrol, how was the holy grail of the “best” tortilla de Betanzos?

Dec 5

Dec 5 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 2 Walk: 19.8km (12.3 miles) Pontedeume to Betanzos

Travel, Spain, Food

My favorite day on the Camino Inglés, this was a day where a rather frightful early morning start led to a pleasant walk mainly surrounded by nature.

Nov 19

Nov 19 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 1 End: Lunch and Dinner in Pontedeume

Travel, Spain, Food

Arriving in the town of Pontedeume, I had fish wrapped in a donut shape, and probably the best empanada of the trip.

Nov 7

Nov 7 Camino de Santiago (Inglés) Day 1 Walk: 28.3km (17.6 miles) from Ferrol to Pontedeume

Taking the long way around an inlet, spending the whole day only to reach a town which I passed by on the bus in 15 minutes the day before!

Oct 21

Oct 21 Packing for the Camino de Santiago (5-Day Camino Inglés)

How to fit life’s necessities in a single backpack (and fanny pack!)

Oct 3

Oct 3 Hiking the Ruta del Cantábrico along Galicia's Stunning North Coast

A short half-day hike along the Ruta del Cantábrico gave me a lasting impression of Galicia’s rocky northern coast.

Aug 24

Aug 24 Impressions: Oviedo

The city where Vicky and Cristina are flown to by Javier Bardem…

Dec 30

Dec 30 Naples Impressions