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Authentic travel stories & cultural connection

Honest stories, hidden gems, and practical trip ideas, written from the road to help you explore more of the world, your way.

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New stories, hidden gems, and travel tips from the road.

A workspace featuring a laptop, a model airplane, a credit card, a globe, a camera, travel documents, and a clock with a sticky note reading Time to save money on flights! above the word TRAVEL spelled out in large letters.

How to Save Money on Flights When Travel Prices Are High

Gas prices are up, airfare is following, and it’s tempting to just stay home. I’m not ready to do that, and you don’t have to be either. I’ve picked up a few tricks over the years that have saved me real money, and I’ve used each of them more than once. In this post, I break down five of them, from letting Google Flights pick your next destination to flying into alternative airports and catching a train the rest of the way. I’ll share a real example from our upcoming December trip to Boston, where flying Breeze into Providence and home from New Haven costs less than half the price of a direct flight. I’ll also walk through Avelo’s routes out of Wilmington and the bigger trips you can build from each one. What’s your go-to trick for saving on travel? Let me know. I’m always looking to add to my list.

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An aerial view of the red-tiled roofs and historic church towers of Vilnius, Lithuania, under a cloudy sky, showcasing the city’s unique charm for travel.

It’s Where I’m Going: Lithuania

Lithuania has always been a country that has interested me. Part of that comes from my lineage, as I am 8% Lithuanian, and that 8% gave me my surname. My great-great paternal grandmother was born in Lithuania before immigrating to the US via Canada. Add in a 2024 World Happiness Report naming it the happiest place on earth for those under 30, and this Baltic country quickly moved up my list. In the first entry of It’s Where I’m Going, I break down why Lithuania is a priority, what draws me to a place that is old, unique, and welcoming, and what getting there from the US really looks like. There are no direct flights, but easy connections through London, Amsterdam, or Helsinki make it a natural stop on a bigger Baltic trip or paired with Poland. Have you been? Let me know if it deserves its spot on my list.

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A city skyline with tall buildings next to a waterfront, a pier extending into the water, and a partly cloudy sky at sunset.

Seattle Travel Guide: Beauty, Food & Culture

Seattle gets a reputation it doesn’t fully deserve. Rainy, dirty, cold, those are the words people throw around, but after several trips, my adjectives look different: beautiful, picturesque, delicious, accessible, and yes, expensive. Tucked between Puget Sound and Lake Washington, it’s a city where you stop every few feet for another photo because the next angle is somehow better. In this post, I break down what I mean by each of those adjectives, from the glacially carved hills to the seafood and coffee scene, the honest cost of a trip, and why Seattle’s “unfriendly” reputation just isn’t true in my experience.

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