I first visited Andalucía in September of 2024.

I already knew from hiking the Camino that I love Spain.

Whenever I arrive in Spain, I immediately want to pull up a chair and stay a while.

If I am on a walk in Spain, I can’t pass a vende sign without stopping to look up the property to see how much it would be to buy a small house that I could turn into a pilgrims’ albergue, (my life plan for when my legs stop wanting to carry me so far down the road).

Because I keep returning to the Camino in northern Spain, it took me a while to get to Andalucía in the south, but now that I have been, I cannot seem to get enough of southern Spain.

Just over two years ago I signed up to lead a trip in what is known as the Sherry Triangle, just south of Seville near the coast.

Fast forward two years and I have led four trips in the region and have plans to lead three more in 2026.

So what is it about Andalucía that has swept me right off my hiking boots?

It’s actually hard to say. I feel like I am still at the beginning stages of a love affair with Andalucía that I hope will continue for many years.

What I have to share about Andalucía is not a wealth of knowledge, but more like fragmentary impressions of a place I am still getting to know.

I’m still learning what it means that the cities and villages in southern Spain have “Moorish influence.” Between the 700s and 1400s, the Moors (a word that included Arabs, Berbers, Syrians, Persians and eventually Spaniards) ruled over much of Spain. Seville, Granada and Cordoba were all developed during this time period, which is what makes them and their surrounding smaller towns and villages so architecturally unique from the rest of Europe.

Los Pueblos Blancos (white villages) were built by the Moors and they were what first drew my attention to the area. I kept seeing photographs of these whitewashed hilltop towns. The first tour I led in Andalucia was actually called Los Pueblos Blancos.

There are so many pueblos blancos that it will take me many more trips to visit them all! From their perches on high, these villages invite you from afar to come wander their tiny, winding roads.

It’s difficult to choose a favorite, but I love how in Vejer de la Frontera, the locals decorate their courtyards with plants.

And everyone has outdoor seating with a view.

The ancient practice of whitewashing these towns kept the houses cooler in the summer heat, and it served to keep the walls sterile and clean, repelling both disease and bugs.

But mostly I think the whitewashing creates an inviting feel to these towns.

Different towns add their own local flare to the decor. Locally-crocheted canopies decorate Vélez de Benaudalla and in Trevelez, the highest village in Spain, all the flowerpots have their own handmade covers.

Flowers are definitely a theme. When I come home from Spain, I want to plant pots and pots of flowers everywhere, and in all the colors of the rainbow.

Artisan tile and creative cobblestone patterns are more ways the locals differentiate their white villages.

Around every corner is another tiny surprise.

It’s easy to get lost, but also easy to find your way. You just head uphill until you can see where you are again.

Another delight of being in Andalucia is that you are never too far away from the sea.

There are over 600 miles of coastline to enjoy and everyone you meet has their favorite beach.

Because I usually fly in and out of Malaga to get to Andalucia from Bristol, I like to bookend trips with days along the Costa del Sol. The C-1 train from Malaga Airport makes the beach way too easy to access.

As soon as I arrive, I walk along the seafront and smell the charcoals burning outside every restaurant where cooks are putting fresh fish on the spit.

Patatas bravas and boquerones are the perfect seaside treat. After several visits, I finally convinced Taido to meet me here for a weekend at the end of a trip, and I think I have won him over to the delights of being in the Spanish sun so hopefully more of these views are in our future together.

I also love the province of Cadiz and some of the beaches on the western side of Andalucia, where the surfers hang out for the winds.

It’s quieter than the Costa del Sol, but not as easy to get to with public transportation. I rented a car to explore this stretch of El Palmar de Vejer for a few days after a tour.

On my first trip to Andalucia in province of Cadiz, we spent time in Jerez and El Puerto de Santa Maria, both famous for sherry.

I didn’t think I liked sherry but I had no idea that there were so many kinds. After much sherry tasting with tapas, I found a dry sherry that I enjoy: Oloroso.

We did some coastal walks and wandered through several different nature reserves.

Our walks on this trip weren’t too long. Four or five miles tops. And we almost always followed our walks with a long lunch in some beautiful place.

After lunch, if there was time, we might head to a town square for a quick sherry before a bus ride back to our hotel.

After that first trip to the Cadiz province, I signed up to go right back and lead another Andalucían adventure, but this time I would stay in one of those small hilltop white villages.

I arrived in Tolox in the Sierra de las Nieves Mountains in March of 2023 after weeks and weeks of rain, both in Britain and in Spain.

The landscape that had been brown and dusty in the previous autumn had all turned green.

Instead of sherry tasting and city visits, this time I was there for a week of local walks in the Spanish National Park: Sierra de las Nieves.

I emerged from the winter glum of the UK into the Andalucían sunshine and it was delightful.

I walked new trails and made lists of places I wanted to come back to with friends.

Every afternoon we would return to Tolox from a different direction.

The welcoming sight of the village quickly became my favorite view of the week.

We ate simple, but beautiful meals at our hotel and in local restaurants in and around the village.

One day we took buses to the nearby village of Yunquera and then made our way back to Tolox across a valley and hills in between the two villages.

We had a local guide on this trip and we learned so much about the countryside plants and trees, including what was planted in the terraced hills around the towns: mostly olives, oranges, lemons, almonds and avocados.

I don’t know when I’ve seen so many olive trees!

Our walks were closer to eight miles each day, so we carried picnic lunches and spent the whole day outside.

I had such a hearty group of walkers from the UK. I had one couple from the Isle of Wight in their 70s who walk 20 miles every Saturday.

I am reminded on these trips that a body in motion stays in motion.

If we got back early in the afternoon to Tolox, sometimes we would stop in the main town square for a drink.

But most days we were back in time for a shower, a quick rest and then a walk to dinner.

I do love a week in the hills, and the hills in the Sierra Nieves were just about as lovely as my local hills, but with less rain.

We traveled through several forests, some of which are recently planted. The entire region is a biosphere reserve, where local plants are being protected and preserved.

We enjoyed hunting for wildflowers, especially orchids and tiny little wild daffodils, just about the size of a thumb.

And in the hills, there are still remnants of where farmers packed ice down in the winter to save for when the snow melted. The Sierra de las Nieves don’t see nearly as much snow as they used to, but at one time, the snow from these hills was the main source of ice in a time before refrigeration.

The ice was cut into blocks and loaded onto donkeys to sell, a luxury for those who could afford it.

It’s wild to think about life before refrigeration or electricity, especially since in the history of the world, both are relatively recent. I’m fairly sure I would not thrive without either.

Of all the places to sit and ponder these and many other life mysteries with a sandwich, the hillsides of the Sierra de las Nieves are pretty not too bad.

From Tolox, I took several buses to reach Granada to meet up with my friends for a week of hiking on the GR7, a hike from village to village for seven days. It was so delightful that I am saving it for its own post.

But as a teaser, here is a photo of us at our highest point of the hike with the Mulhacén in the background. (At 11,414 feet, the Mulhacén is the highest mountain in Spain.)

For now, I will skip ahead to my most recent trip to Andalucía and another week spent staying in one of the lovely pueblos blancos, but this time in the Sierra Nevadas.

Lanjarón is the town of water.

The name is derived from the Arabic words that mean “land of springs.”

True to its name, there are water fountains all over the town of Lanjaron, and people fill up their giant jugs to take home because the pure spring water is delicious.

Maybe it’s the water that makes everything else in Lanjaron shine so bright, but even the produce outside the markets caught my attention.

At every meal, I tried to order something that included slices of the gorgeous local tomatoes.

We stayed in the lovely Hotel Alcadima where we could eat breakfast outside and have dinner with a view of the surrounding hillsides.

On one of our first days we visited nearby Niguelas to go to an olive oil museum where the ancient modes of making olive oil with giant stones are preserved for history. Olives were loaded onto baskets and carried by donkeys up to Niguelas to be pressed into oil. The guide at the museum brought the entire process to life for us and I’ll never pour out olive oil without thinking about her careful instructions for buying and tasting the best olive oil.

A couple of days before the guests arrived, I went to Niguelas to make sure I knew where we were going and to do the walk we planned to do.

Then I walked back to Lanjaron on the GR7 which took me a little longer than I planned.

But I got high above both towns and ended up getting a good picture of the region that could only be traversed by donkeys until not so long ago. Lanjaron is the gateway to the Alpujarras, this region of the Sierra Nevadas. It was an important outpost in medieval times and as the Nasrid (the last Moorish) Kingdoms fell in the 15th century, the Alpujarras were the final stronghold.

In fact, we learned that after the Catholic church officially expelled Muslims from Spain, these villages kept at least one family behind to teach the conquistadors how to maintain the complex water system (or acequias) that the Moors built in these towns.

We walked along many of these ancient irrigation canals during our week together in the area.

Even the streets are designed to move water through the hilltop villages so that they don’t flood in the rain.

Of course the flowers and plants are beautiful in the town of water.

It was very dry and hot during our week there in September, but you would never have known it from the lush plants and gardens.

However, the hills were super dry and I had a fine layer of dust all over me at the end of every day’s wanderings.

One day I got high enough to enjoy a mountain spring that was running above ground, but mostly the water comes from deep within the mountains.

There are lots of hiking routes that follow the acequias (irrigation canals) so that you can see how high up they were built.

When my group arrived, we had mostly shorter hiking days followed by lunches in small villages.

But just in case we had a picnic or if we needed a snack, I kept my two favorite treats from the region in my backpack.

Toasted Spanish almonds and a fig log, which is dried fig mixed with chopped almonds and shaped into a loaf. These two items will forever be the treats I bring home from Andalucía. (Along with a bottle of Oloroso.)

Prickly pears, which were growing everywhere, are another local treat. They are so bright and inviting, but you only make the mistake of reaching out to touch the pink fruit with your bare hands one time. (Don’t ask me how I know.)

It would be hard to choose a favorite day out from our week in and around Lanjaron, as every day in the sunshine is a good day to me.

Our itinerary included several walks along local water routes, the favorite of which was probably the one that runs into Niguelas from the mountains above it.

We also visited a cave in Nerja where people lived over 25,000 years ago but was only discovered in the 1950s. Stretching over three miles with cave paintings that are more than 40,000 years old, the preservation of this site is impressive.

Another highlight of the week was a day in Granada. We had a tour of the old town and then spent the afternoon in the Alhambra.

The Alhambra is a palace and massive fortress complex built in the 1200s by the first Nasrid emir, who established Granada as a state in Andalucía, then called Al-Andalus.

As one of the best-preserved palaces of the historic Islamic world, the Alhambra is the most visited monument in Spain, to and it’s not hard to see why.

The detail in the architecture is just stunning. I spent a long time staring at the walls and ceilings of the Nasrid palaces taking in the exquisite ornate carving everywhere.

I can’t fathom how you make everything so symmetrically perfect in a time before modern tools. I would love to have watched some of these walls being created by artisans of the Nasrid Kingdoms. Many of the carvings are actually inscriptions with phrases from the Koran or other ancient writings.

The Alhambra also has beautiful gardens that you could spend days and days exploring. I have so many photos of the Alhambra that I will probably need to do another whole post just about this incredible place. But you can only take in so much in one afternoon before your legs are tired, and my group was wilting a bit in the sun by the end of our visit.

The day after we went to Granada and the Alhambra, we did a short coastal walk by the sea and walked to the top of  Salobreña.

From the top of the 10th century Moorish castle we could see for miles across the sea.

After exploring, we wandered down through the village and out to the beach.

We found a seaside cafe where we had a very long lunch, followed by a quick paddle in the sea before we went back to Lanjaron. (A “paddle” is what British people call wading barefoot in the surf of the sea.) In Lanjaron, we had time to sit by the pool before I had to go get ready for dinner. It was the perfect laid-back day to follow the busy visit to Granada.

On our final day of this trip, we drove up into the Alpujarras, the hills above Lanjaron, where the villages are high and remote. We visited a few of them, and walked from one to another along the GR7 before having our last outdoor lunch on a terrace looking out at the mountains.

Between trips to southern Spain, I had started reading Chris Stewart’s books about buying a farm in these mountains, which I found laugh-out-loud funny. (The first book is called Driving Over Lemons.) So it was fun to get walk the hills that he describes in those books.

I have also been reading Washington Irving’s Tales of The Alhambra. Irving wrote the book after his visit to The Alhambra in 1828 and it’s become a classic about Granada. He actually walked from Seville to Granada and after walking some of the GR7, I can better picture his journey. I love these words that he writes about it, and Spain in general:

Such were our minor preparations for the journey, but above all we laid in an ample stock of good humour, and a genuine disposition to be pleased; determining to travel in true contrabandista style; taking things as we found them, rough or smooth, and mingling with all classes and conditions in a kind of vagabond companionship. It is the true way to travel in Spain. With such disposition and determination, what a country it is for a traveller, where the most miserable inn is as full of adventure as an enchanted castle, and every meal is in itself an achievement! Let others repine at the lack of turnpike roads and sumptuous hotels, and all the elaborate comforts of a country cultivated and civilised into tameness and commonplace;

but give me the rude mountain scramble;

the roving, hap-hazard, wayfaring;

the half wild, yet frank and hospitable manners,

which impart a true-game flavour to dear old romantic Spain!

I join with Irving in many of his sentiments, perhaps especially packing “a genuine disposition to be pleased” for a journey and “what a country it is for a traveller!”

I’m excited to be heading back soon to continue my ongoing love affair with “dear old romantic Spain.”

The post Snapshots of Andalucia appeared first on Alison Chino.

A Crash Course in Dealing With the Unknown

The willingness to relinquish control and open ourselves to the mysterious unknown is at the heart of every great spiritual tradition.

         -Douglas Christie

Imagine you and I were having chats together over pints and the conversation turned to travel. I might lean in close and tell you that I think I was born to be a wanderer. I have been marking the dates of trips in bright bold lettering on the calendar for as long as I can remember. I spent much of my adolescence counting how many days I had left of school before I could leave for church camp. I was constantly longing for that moment that I would walk out the door with my green canvas duffel bag slung over my shoulder and a brown paper sack full of corn nuts, Skittles and Reese’s Pieces to get me through the van ride.

I left home for the great unknown for the first time when I was 18 to study abroad in Prague. That first time out in the big wide world alone taught me everything I still love about travel. Big lessons like how leaving home complicates returning home and smaller (but not less important) ones like how to find a last minute all night train ticket to Krakow.

But if I had to sum up what I love about travel in one sentence I think it would be this:

Travel is a crash course in living with uncertainty.

Even if you never leave home, life will eventually find a way to show you how much you do not know. Sooner or later, you will have to come to grips with not being able to predict every step of your life. Learning that we are not in control tends to be the making of us. Either we are undone and made bitter by life’s curve balls or we learn how to accept that our carefully laid plans were only ever illusions. When we find ourselves holding tight to the reins, we can either release them gracefully or have them wrenched from our hands, leaving burn marks across our palms. Most of us do a bit of both – going back and forth between riding the waves of change and having them crashing down on top of us.

When we are traveling, usually we have paused everything else in our lives, so we have the space and bandwidth to actually enjoy the way that travel accelerates being present with the unknown. We can even have fun with uncertainty, because we embrace a posture of openness to it.

What will I eat today? What will I see, taste or experience that surprises me? Am I lost? I wonder where my hotel is.

But then there are lots of moments in travel when an unanticipated event presents more of a challenge. Here are just a few that I’ve experienced:

• Cancelled flights.
• Finding myself on the wrong train platform. Or on the wrong train.
• Having my passport stolen.
• Having a crying baby on an airplane. Having a crying baby on a bus. Having a crying baby anywhere that is not my own home.
• Spraining an ankle.
• Getting sick.
• Being lost. Being lost with children in tow.
• Having my laptop stolen.
• Having a flat tire.
• Not being able to find groceries when I have arrived in a city on a (previously unknown to me) public holiday and everything is closed.

I’m sure you have experienced some of these challenges while traveling, as well as others I haven’t named. When I am preparing to travel, I make a lot of plans. I research beyond what is maybe even considered normal. I make back up plans to my plans and then back ups to my back ups. But copious planning can not eliminate every possible problem I might face on a trip. This might even be more true now that so many parts of travel have been wildly affected by the pandemic. Flight cancellations have become as commonplace as getting the wrong drink at Starbucks. Regulations surrounding COVID are complicated and ever-changing. And those regulations can’t stop you from actually getting COVID while traveling, or for that matter, any other illness.

There is just so much about traveling that you can’t predict or know.

You can plan to be sightseeing in Rome, but then find yourself quarantining in a rather uninspiring hotel for a week, ordering the same food every day from one of the two places nearby that will deliver.

Or maybe a much anticipated post-hiking pub meal wakes you up clutching your stomach in the middle of the night. You can barely crawl to the bathroom and you are wondering how you will hike 14 miles the next day.

You might find yourself sharing your breakfast table with an older gentleman who, at first glance, seems quirky and interesting, but then turns out to be a raging racist.

Or equally he could be an open-hearted hillwalker eager to share a lifetime of knowledge about the very stretch of the trail you’re about to walk.

You just never know.

I’ve never been to Portugal before, but I’m headed there soon. For a while now, I ‘ve been in that delightful stage of anticipating a new place, wondering what it will be like. I think I will walk on narrow cobbled streets and past brightly colored buildings. I plan to taste Porto’s port wine and I wonder if I will like codfish casserole and custard tarts. What will I taste, see and experience?

When I leave Porto, I will be on foot, walking to back to Santiago from a direction that is wholly unfamiliar to me. With both old and new friends.

I’ve been planning this trip for over a year and still I am sure that every day things will happen that I have not anticipated. I am grateful for another opportunity to trust my inner wisdom to know that whatever happens, I will rise to meet it, maybe even with grace. Like many times before, I will experience firsthand how the universe provides when challenges present themselves. I believe that there is an immense generosity in the world that I get to tap into when I walk into the unfamiliar with an open heart.

I picture myself joining with the great tradition of famous wanderers (both real and fictional). Dante, Bilbo, Frodo and Sam, Cheryl Strayed and Sarah Marquis.

Of course Frodo never had to face airport security lines, but I’m happy to trade that wearisome inconvenience for not having to battle an army of orcs. Usually, the only monster I have to make peace with on a trip is the one that arises from within myself when things don’t go my way.

Even after years of practice, I have not mastered the art of facing uncertainty.

So I keep traveling. I hope that every time I leave home with my backpack slung on my shoulder and an Rx bar in my pocket that I am getting a little better at facing whatever happens with grace and love.

Setting out is always a leap of faith,

a risk, in the deepest sense of the term, 

and yet, an adventure too.

The familiar and the habitual are so falsely reassuring,

and most of us make our homes there permanently.

The new is always by definition, unfamiliar and untested,

so God, life, destiny, suffering, 

have to give us a push, usually a big one,

or we will not go.

Someone has to make clear to us that

homes are not meant to be lived in,

but only to be moved out from.

-A quote from one of my favorite Richard Rohr books (Falling Upward)

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Potsdam is a thirty minute drive from where we were staying in Berlin and boasts a garden that seems like a smaller and much less crowded version of Versailles. (Also it is free to visit!) So we decided to spend a day there.

We had gorgeous weather for our trip to Berlin, so we all agreed that a trip to the Sansoucci Gardens and palaces would be a great way to be outside and enjoy the sunshine!

Also, after being on city streets for a few days, it was wonderful to run free through the park.

There are over 200,000 plants in Sansoucci. The gardens run over 2 kilometers in both directions and on each side are ornate palaces and buildings. In addition to the palaces, there is a university, an orangery, a vineyard, and Roman baths. There’s even an old windmill.

A huge fountain in the center of the gardens is surrounded by Greek statues. Simon took photos of every single one, walking around and letting us know who was who.

We were there at a great time (July). Loads of flowers in bloom.

Plus there were grapes on the vines.

Besides the walking paths, there were also lots of fields to play or picnic in.

This is one of the university buildings. So lovely. While we stood in front of these beautiful old university buildings, I told the boys to add it to their list of possible schools. Because I like to remind them often that university is free in Germany.

This column connected two university buildings. It’s being restored as it was damaged during WWII and since Potsdam was previously part of East Germany, post-war restoration has come a bit more slowly.

This smaller palace is called the Belvedere. It was up on a hill, and a nearby another old building had been turned into a darling restaurant.

Tree-lined paths make me smile.

It took us over two hours to tour the gardens, so when we finished we made our way over to the town of Potsdam to find a bite to eat.

We went to the Dutch Quarter of Potsdam for lunch. There are 169 red brick buildings that make you think you’re in Amsterdam for the afternoon.

The vibe is super fun. Outdoor tables and markets everywhere.

We found a perfect spot where we ordered up drinks and little flatbread pizzas.

Then we walked a bit more around the Dutch Quarter before heading back to Berlin. We all agreed that Potsdam was well worth our time and to us it felt like sort of a hidden jewel of Germany. It was fun to find a German town that also had a little bit of the Netherlands, France and Italy in it.

One more detail.

We drove to Potsdam, but you can also take a direct train from Berlin. Charlotten Hof is the stop for the gardens and it’s a ten minute walk to the palace.

The post Snapshots of Potsdam: Day Trip from Berlin appeared first on Alison Chino.

It’s no secret that I love traveling. In the last few years, I have really been digging the kind of travel where you get to soak up time, culture and life in one single setting, like The Cinque Terre or The Northwest Highlands of Scotland.

But also, I think it’s super fun to add an activity to traveling that I already love or that stretches a creative part of my brain. A few examples: Travel + Yoga, Travel + Cooking Classes, Travel + Hiking, or Travel + Art Classes!

If that sounds delightful to you too, you might be interested in these yoga retreats that have come across my radar lately. They are all being offered by folks I know and love, and for that reason I can say with a good degree of certainty that they will be fabulous! So if you’re looking for a new way to travel to a new place to do new things in the near future, here are my recommendations:

Dreamy Trip #1: A Yogi’s Journey to Peru

When: October 6-13, 2018

Where: The Sacred Valley of Peru

Who: Adriana Robertson is a phenomenal yoga teacher and a delight to be with. I met her in Guatemala last year and am grateful to now consider her a friend for life. She is part-Peruvian so I know that her guidance in the Sacred Valley will be a rich and mind-blowing experience!

Dreamy Trip #2: Yoga Retreat in Tuscany

When: May 27 – June 2 OR September 9-15, 2018

Where: Italy!

Who: Jane Reeves has led over 50 yoga retreats and she specializes in helping you tap into Loving Kindness, which we definitely need more of the world! She has been taking yogis and yoga newbies to Italy for five years now. Also, she has scoured Italy to find the very best spots to call home for a week. Anna and I joined her last year in Tuscany and we had a spectacular week of soaking up the Italian countryside and living La Dolce Vita!

Dreamy Trip #3: Yoga and Dance Retreat in Costa Rica

When: March 9-16, 2019

Where: Blue Osa, Costa Rica

Who: Jurian Hughes teaches yoga, voice and dance. I met her in Guatemala last year and we did just a couple of sessions of a kind of yoga called Let Your Yoga Dance. It is one of the most beautiful ways I have experienced of being both present and free within my body. I would yoga dance again with Jurian in a heartbeat!

Dreamy Trip #4: Writing, Fitness and Yoga Retreat in Hawaii

When: July 15-22, 2018

Where: The Big Island of Hawaii

Who: Alexandra Franzen has been leading writing retreats and workshops for a long time. She is, in my humble opinion, one of the best writers on the internet. (Her newsletter is a delight to receive!) Over the last couple of years, she has developed this luxurious experience in Hawaii that seems to me like the ultimate dreamy trip for a writer/yogi!

Dreamy Trip #5: Sketching and Yoga Retreat in New England

When: Aug 16-19, 2018

Where: Leyton, Massachussets

Who: Candace Rose Rardon is a watercolor sketch artist who I first came in contact with at a travel conference in 2013. She has started an international project called Moment Sketchers to encourage people to take up sketching wherever they are on the first weekend of every month. She has teamed up with a yoga teacher to create some amazing-looking retreats this year. She’s hosting a second one in September in Portugal.

Cheers to traveling somewhere fabulous and doing things you love while you’re there!! 

The post 5 Yoga Retreats You Should Probably Go On This Year appeared first on Alison Chino.

Aberdeen, the third largest city in Scotland, is often overlooked by guidebooks and tourists, and there are good reasons for preferring Edinburgh and Glasgow to Aberdeen.

However, now that I’ve lived here for a season and shown the area to countless friends, I would vouch for Aberdeen as a decent weekend getaway.

Last month I went on a little Staycation to the city center of Aberdeen with a friend, to try out a hotel and the enjoy waking up in the middle of town. It’s always a treat to spend a night away with a girlfriend, even if you are only a few miles from your house!

So here are my suggestions for what to do if you find yourself in Aberdeen, either for a weekend or like me, for a longer season.

Aberdeen Beach

Just a short distance from the city centre, the sandy Aberdeen Beach stretches for two miles between the Dee and the Don rivers.  A boardwalk runs just above the beach as well, so you can enjoy the sound of the waves as you linger on the sand, or while you’re pounding the pavement for an evening run.  Either way, you’ll love taking in expansive views of the sea, listening to the seagulls and watching the occasional surfer when the winds are high.

If you have a car, you should also visit the quieter Balmedie Beach, just a short drive north of the city. Big sand dunes and beautiful waves.

Visit Aberdeen Maritime Museum and Harbor

This museum traces the history of Aberdeen’s harbor, one of the oldest in the world.  The city’s journey from being a medieval fishing village to a powerhouse of industry when oil was discovered in the North Sea is told through multiple exhibits.  In the modern day exhibits, you can enjoy seeing what daily life is like for offshore workers.

According to the Guinness Book of Records, the harbour boasts being Britain’s oldest business (est. 1136).  For certain it is one of Europe’s busiest ports with the constant coming and going of offshore supply boats, ferries and fishing boats.  You can stand in the harbour and watch the boats, or walk to the harbour’s edge and try to catch sight of seals and dolphins that often play near the entrance.

Visit the fishing village of Footdee

Footdee (pronounced Fittie) is a small fishing village located south of the city centre by the Aberdeen harbour.  The village dates back to medieval times but people still live in the little cluster of cottages that are huddled together with their backs to the sea, as protection from the rising tide and winter gales.  The village forms two squares, one around an old church, which also serves as meeting house.  Wandering the village is a fun way to step back in time to the days when Aberdeen’s primary source of income was found through fishing the North Sea instead of mining its oil.

Walk through Old Aberdeen

A visit to Aberdeen would not be complete without taking a stroll through Old Aberdeen.  Located just north of the city center, Old Aberdeen has some of the most exquisite architecture in the city.  Don’t miss King’s College, the third university founded in Scotland in 1495 or the beautiful St. Machars Cathedral, which dates from the 19th century.  Both are free to tour.

Have a pint

Our go to meeting spot for drinks in Aberdeen is a place called Six Degrees North, named such because it is six degrees north of Belgium. Clever, eh? As you might expect, they brew Belgian style beers and always have loads on tap to choose from. They also do a lovely cheese, olive and meat board to share with your friends.

Grab a bite to eat

We have a few favorite spots to eat in Aberdeen, but we don’t go out to eat that often so I’m sure there are many places I’ve overlooked.

For a fancy dinner, we love Cafe Boheme (French) or Rustico (Italian).

For a quick bite at lunch or a great coffee, I would go to The Coffee House just off of Belmont or Kilau Coffee at The University of Aberdeen.

See a show

You can choose from all kinds of different live shows in Aberdeen. Music, theater or intimate comedy setting. There’s one booking spot for all four main venues which makes it simple to browse what’s on. The smaller venues mean you’ll be closer to the stage and the prices tend to be less expensive than big city theaters.

Hillwalking

Some might argue that Aberdeen’s greatest offering is its proximity to the Highlands.  You do not have to go but ten or twenty minutes outside of the city before you are surrounded by the views of Scotland that you always see in pictures.  The breath-taking hills of Aberdeenshire are a wonderful place to get lost for a day. A few lovely walking spots that make great day trips from Aberdeen: Bennachie, Stonehaven, or Crathes Castle and Garden. 

When you’re ready to turn in after a day of wandering the city, I can recommend the comfy beds at Aberdeen’s Hilton Garden Inn.

My friend and I stayed in a King Suite, courtesy of Aberdeen Hilton Garden Inn, which meant we each had our own room.

This suite would be perfect for a family, as there was a tub and shower, plus the breakfast is super fancy. SOOOO many choices! We had Belgian waffles + some extras.

Waking up to the Aberdeen skyline is not too shabby!

Disclosure: My hotel suite at Hilton Garden was complementary as part of my Aberdeen Staycation. Big thanks to the folks at Hilton for making our stay oh-so-lovely. You can also see video of our room and breakfast on Vine. 

PS! Hey Aberdonians! Please weigh in and tell me the restaurants and things I’ve missed in Aberdeen!!

The post Out and About in Aberdeen appeared first on Alison Chino.

Ten Days in the UK by Car

This is a whirlwind tour of the UK in a rental car, and if you have more time, I would recommend doing a full week in England and a full week in Scotland, but like I said in my itinerary by train, 10 days seems to be about how long folks come to stay, so here are my suggestions for Ten Days in the UK by Car:

This trip is for if you’ve already seen London and Edinburgh and you want to see a bit more of the countryside. For this tour, you’ll want to pack your waterproof trousers (rain pants, in American parlance) so you can break up all that time in the car with some wanders in the hills.

This itinerary would also be lovely for families. Sometimes, I find that dragging small children through large cities is not nearly as fun as you might think. So to the countryside we go!

Road Trip Itinerary:

Day 1: Fly into Manchester. Hire a car and drive to the Lake District.

I would recommend stopping in Windermere, Ambleside or Grasmere for the night.

Wander a Lake District village on foot before having a hearty meal in a cozy spot before bed. Take it easy if you still have jet lag and go in for an early night.

Day 2. Lake District

Start the day with a morning walk around a lake, followed by a cream tea of course.

Walk through more of this gorgeous country in the afternoon or go and visit Wordsworth’s grave in Grasmere.

Drive on to Keswick in the evening or even as far as Buttermere if you’re loving these scenic routes.

Day 3. Morning in the Lakes, Onward to Scotland

Have one more morning wander on a fell before packing up and driving on today.

Consider stopping at the Castlerigg stone circle as you leave the Lake District.

Drive north to Scotland. Enjoy the afternoon sun if you’re lucky enough to have it.

Enjoy the views of the Highlands as you make your way to (or almost to) Fort William.

Stop anywhere on the road to Fort William in any number of small B&Bs before it gets dark. You don’t want to miss any of the scenery along this road.

Day 4. Glencoe and Loch Ness

Spend today around Glencoe and Loch Ness. Get a local to tell you about the massacre in the glen or the story of Old Nessie. Maybe stop in Fort Augustus. See Urqhuart Castle and Eilean Donan Castle.

Stay somewhere on the road along Loch Ness or if it’s summer, the light is long and you want to push on, drive on to Ullapool.

Day 5. Ullapool and the Northwest Highlands

Very few folks get this far north in Scotland. Single lane roads will take you to some of the most remote villages and beaches in the world. Drive to Lochinver (and eat at the pie shop there) and then choose an easy loop wander through this area. Drive to the beach and lighthouse in Stoer, and walk on to the Point of Stoer if you want a little longer hike.

Drive back south to stay in Ullapool for the night, and enjoy a classic west coast sunset.

Day 6. From Northwest Scotland to Cairngorm National Park

Drive to Inverness by way of the mountains. Maybe stop there for lunch before heading on to Aviemore for the night.

Stop for a whisky tour or a hillwalk as you drive southward.

Day 7. Aviemore to the English sea side.

Have breakfast at the Mountain Cafe in Aviemore before you push on. And if you need to stretch your legs, walk through the National Reserve that’s just south of Aviemore or ask your host for a recommendation for a walk. This area is full of great trails!

Drive south all the way to the Border town of Berwick-upon-Tweed.

Day 8. Beach towns by the North Sea.

Be sure and walk the old city walls around Berwick-upon-Tweed and the path that goes by all three bridges.  Then drive south to Lindisfarne, the Holy Island that you can drive to only at low tide. Watch the tide schedules or you’ll be stuck on the island for the night. There are several lovely B&Bs there, so if you have to spend the night, no worry.

Push on to Whitby and sleep in or near this seaside getaway. Go to the ancient abbey.

Walk on the beach by the colored huts and have ice cream and fish and chips here where the salt air makes everything taste yummier.

If you tire of Whitby, drive down to Robin Hood’s Bay and have a pint at the famous pub where daily those who’ve walked all the way across England end their journey.

Day 9. York

Drive to York first thing so you have the day to spend in Yorkshire’s capital. You can wander the ancient city walls, visit the Railroad museum, eat chocolate, attend Evensong at York Minster and celebrate your road trip with a yummy pub dinner.

Sleep in York tonight and drive on to Manchester the next day. Or if your flight is early, drive on to return your car and sleep at an airport hotel.

Day 10. Fly home via Manchester.

A few more planning details:

Flights. I use several different websites/apps to search for flights: Kayak, Momondo and Skyscanner. I chose Manchester because there are lots of international flights that land here, but this circle road trip could also start and end in Glasgow or Edinburgh. I have not actually visited the city of Manchester, but you could easily add on a day to do that if you wanted.

Packing. Your time in the UK will be so much more pleasant if you are not weighed down with lots of luggage. When you are renting a car, you have a little bit more room for things, but when you’re moving hotels every day or every couple of days, it’s still a great idea to pack light. Here is what I pack when I am galavanting around Europe.

Sleeping. Of course there are SO many options for hotels and hostels in the UK, but as a family, we have enjoyed staying in private rooms in YHAs (youth hostels). We can usually get a room with the number of bunks we need (4-6 depending on who is coming along) and for breakfast, we either prepare our own in the hostel kitchen or eat from the menu at the hostel. We have stayed in the YHA in York and Berwick-upon-Tweed, plus several of the YHAs in the Lake District. The YHA in Whitby is very special. We also love the smaller bed and breakfasts that you can find in English and Scottish villages. I’ll list a few favorites, but you can always find good ones by reading reviews from others. In the Lake District, I love Ghyll Farm (a little further west) and the Scafell Hotel. Between Inverness and Aviemore, I would definitely stop again at the Cragganmore House. (Here’s the story of my visit there.)

Money and credit cards. The best way to pay for everything in the UK is to use a credit card that has a chip in it. Also, side note: You want to get a credit card that does not have international fees before you come. Both Chase and Capitol One offer cards with chips that don’t have international fees.  You can also use your debit card to get cash, which some places will require. I try to use my credit card as much as possible because my bank does charge me a fee to pull out international currency. However this fee is generally lower than the one I would pay to exchange American dollars. So I leave all cash at home and just bring my credit card and debit card.

Also, I specifically left off the Isle of Skye since I included it as a possibility in my other UK itinerary. But it would be very hard to choose between seeing the Isle of Skye and the Northwest Highlands.

Any other questions about driving around the UK? Ask away, and I’ll try to answer them. If I’ve left out your favorite village, it’s probably just because I haven’t been to it before, so tell me why we need to go! 

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Ten Days in the UK via Train

Friends, I have been playing a lot this month with creating itineraries around the UK, partly because I am still trying to fit in a few last wanders through the Britain before our time is up and also because I often find myself making recommendations to others about where to go. Because Ten Days in the UK seems to be about how long most of our friends can get away when they come, I have chosen to plan around that length of time.

What you want to do in the UK depends on how much time you have and on whether you want to see the cities or the countryside.

I have come to dearly love the Scottish and English countryside, which is why I spend so much time tromping through fields on foot. But, walking through the more remote parts of the UK is usually going to involve renting and driving a car. On the wrong side of the road. Down tiny little lanes.

And because that can be frustrating, I thought I would first create a trip you can take completely by train. This trip hits a lot of great UK cities and manages to cover England and Scotland, so you get a great variety of culture. I think this is a great trip for someone who has never been to the UK before, and actually the UK is a great first trip to Europe for anyone feeling intimidated by the idea of not speaking English.

So if you’ve never left the good ol’ US of A and you want to have a wander through the UK without the bother of learning to drive on the left side of the road or trying to speak another language, this trip is for you.

Itinerary:

Days 1-3. London

Arrive in London, preferably via Heathrow Airport where you can take the Underground straight into the middle of London.

Go ahead and purchase an Oyster Card at the machine at the London Heathrow station and put around 20GBP on it. (You can add more if/when you run out) You will use this card on the buses, the DLR and the underground in London to get around. You can even use it on some of the boats on the Thames. You tap your card to the yellow circle when you enter the Underground. Then you tap it again when you exit so that it stops charging you. On the bus you only tap it when you board the bus and you don’t have to tap out. I highly recommend figuring out how to get around by bus because it is cheaper and though sometimes slower, you get to see more by bus. (Go ahead and try for the top, front seat!)

My general rule on London transport is if I am going less than a half mile I walk, but anything between 1-5 miles, I take the bus and further than that I use the Tube because it’s the fastest. I find having internet and Google Maps available on my phone to be oh-so-helpful! But you can also use a paper map and London is wonderful for having maps around town to help you figure out where you are. 

On your first day you’ll be jet lagged and exhausted, but you want to stay awake as long as possible to adjust.

There is so much to see in London that I could not possibly cover it all. I would recommend checking out some guidebooks at the library and then making a list of your top ten sites you want to visit. I often even take photos of guidebook pages (museum descriptions, maps, etc).

But here are some of my fav things I’ve done in London:

Walk Southbank (the south bank of the Thames River) If it’s a pretty day, you can walk all the way from Tate Modern (at the Millennium Bridge) to the London Eye on the south side of the river. The river walk will be crammed with food stalls, street performers, used book sales and all kinds of people watching. I love it.

City Cruises I think seeing London from the water is a must. I love these little river cruises and all the funny tidbits that the boatmen share as you ride along. (They are funny). You can choose between a set cruise time or a hop on/hop off ticket that is good on any of their boats for 24 hours. I have done both. Love it.

Go to a show in the West End. Or go see a Shakespeare show at the Globe just as it was in Shakespeare’s day. (You can even stand up in the pit…cheap seats!)

Eating London: Food tour in East London. This is SUCH a great tour! A combination of food + street art + history. And they have a new one in Central London that looks fun as well. East London is my favorite part of London, and part of it is the food for sure! I also love Camden Market for browsing food stalls and eating all kinds of street food. Saturdays can be insane in Camden.

Go to Evensong at Westminster Abbey or St Paul’s Cathedral. Evensong is a short service that is sung that happens almost every day in these grand cathedrals and it is free to attend. I would always rather attend a service than tour a church.

Context Travel Tours of London: We did a great history of theater tour of London with Context Travel, but there are loads more to choose from. These are small (often private) tours with local experts, and they have some great ones for families.

Museums! There are so many museums in London and they are almost all free to visit. The British Museum is a favorite but I also enjoyed the Tate Modern and The National Gallery.

(More London info in the archives!)

Day 3. Travel from London to York via train.

A word about trains: The train times are available to search at trainline.com. You can search prices and times and pay with your credit card. But then you have to have THAT credit card to collect the train tickets at the station. You can buy your tickets on the day of travel at the station, but they are generally much cheaper if you buy them 9-12 weeks in advance and you can reserve your seats. Here’s another place to read about booking UK trains. 

I would take the train from London in the afternoon or evening to save on one night of expensive London accommodation. So grab a picnic for the train and then enjoy a drink in a pub in York before heading to bed.

Day 4. Visit York.

We loved our time in York! We learned about Vikings and chocolate, walked the city walls and drank loads of tea. Also Evensong in York Minster!

Day 5. Train to Durham. Visit Durham. Train to Edinburgh.

Durham is right on the train route between York and Edinburgh, so even if you don’t stop, keep your eyes peeled for a glimpse of this city on a hill out your window.  You can easily wander the city of Durham in a day, so if you grab an early morning train out of York and a later one to Edinburgh, it’s worth a wander.

On our day in Durham, we climbed to the top of the famous cathedral, walked the river that surrounds the city, found some gorgeous Italian food and spent some time in the town square. There’s also a castle and a fun market hall.

Days 6-7. Visit Edinburgh.

Wake up early on Day 6 and go for a walk in Edinburgh before anyone is awake. The city streets will probably be glistening with rain but don’t be daunted. My favorite moments on the famous Royal Mile always seem to be those dark, rainy mornings darting out for a coffee before the shops have opened up and the street is cluttered with kilts, tartan scarves and Celtic jewelry.

There’s so much to do in Edinburgh that you will easily fill two days! Here are a few suggestions, but consult a guidebook and the internet to find your own favorites or take a look through the archives to see what we’ve done on our many visits to the Scottish capital.

If you’re feeling up for a good hike/climb, head to the top of Arthur’s Seat. Gorgeous walk and great views of the city. The walk starts at the bottom of the Royal Mile in Holyrood Park, past Holyrood Palace.

A smaller hill to climb that also has a great view of the city is Carlton Hill. It’s on the opposite side of town from the Royal Mile. Turn right on Princes Street after crossing the bridge and head up the road.

Again Context Travel for a thorough history of this city. Several to choose from, but I did the Old Town tour where I learned much more in depth history of Edinburgh. There are also street tours up and down the Royal Mile that you can join in. Definitely worth it to do some kind of tour of Edinburgh because there is so much history! Also the underground tour is well-loved.

Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace are both worth touring but are rather pricey. You can buy a combo ticket, but if you have pretty weather and you just want to walk up to these and see them from the outside, you can go all the way in the gates of both of them. (that’s where you buy the tickets) The insides are like touring fancy old rooms and lots of history.

The National Museum of Scotland is one of the best museums in the UK and it is free to visit. Loads to see in there. It’s massive. Just wander around until you can’t read little plaques anymore and come back later.
The National Gallery in Princes Street Gardens is also free and well worth a wander. There are some Italian masters in the collection and of course, famous Scottish artists. Look for McTaggart, landscape painter with gorgeous scenes from the west coast of Scotland.

A picnic in Princes Street gardens might be my favorite way to eat in Edinburgh. You can get lovely picnic food at the M&S food hall (either in the train station or a larger one on Princes Street), but if the rain pours and pours, we like the museum cafes for lunch as well.

Combine eating and sightseeing by popping in the Elephant Cafe if you’re a Harry Potter fan, as JK Rowling wrote from a table in the back with a view of the castle.

Days 8-10. Option A.

If you’re coming to visit me, you would travel to Aberdeen this day and I would show you around the Highlands and then put you on a plane on Day 10 to head home.

My favorite Aberdeenshire moments are:

Balmedie Beach wandering

Walking Coastal Cliffs (a few choices)

Touring a castle (also a few choices)

Touring a castle ruin (sometimes even better)

Eating fish & chips in small villages or on the beach

Touring whisky distilleries (so many choices)

Hillwalking or forest walking

However, if you’re not coming to see me, you would need a car for all of the best the Shire has to offer, so I’m going to go ahead and say skip Aberdeen and go on to Option B.

Days 8-10 Option B.

Day 8. Take the train from Edinburgh to Inverness. Visit Inverness and Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle. You can book a tour straight out of Inverness or you can take a bus to Urquhart Castle.

Day 9. Take a bus or a tour a little farther afield just to get a taste of classic Scottish scenery. Visit the Isle of Skye, Glencoe or Eilean Donan Castle.

Day 10. Fly home from Inverness.

A few more planning details:

An Option C for your last three days would be to take a bus tour of the Highlands straight out of Edinburgh and then fly back home via Edinburgh. There are great tour companies that leave straight from Edinburgh almost daily and for the end of your trip, you might enjoy being taken around a bit instead of navigating on your own. You can do a backpacker type tour or a little bit nicer highland tour.

Flights. I use several different websites/apps to search for flights. On Kayak you can easily check the price for flying into one city and out of another, which saves you traveling all the way back to London by train at the end of your journey through the UK. I also like Momondo and Skyscanner for checking flight prices.

Packing. Your time in the UK will be so much more pleasant if you are not weighed down with lots of luggage. Hopping on and off trains and buses is easiest with a small backpack. Here is what I pack when I am galavanting around Europe.

Sleeping. Of course there are SO many options for hotels and hostels in the UK, but as a family, we have enjoyed staying in private rooms in YHAs (youth hostels). We can usually get a room with the number of bunks we need (4-6 depending on who is coming along) and for breakfast, we either prepare our own in the hostel kitchen or eat from the menu at the hostel. There are many YHAs in London but I love the St Paul’s for location. And we have stayed in the YHA in York as well. In Edinburgh and Inverness, we have had luck with hostels and with renting apartments through airbnb. For Edinburgh, I recommend staying on or near the Royal Mile if possible.

Money and credit cards. The best way to pay for everything in the UK is to use a credit card has a chip in it. Also, side note: You want to get a credit card that does not have international fees before you come. Both Chase and Capitol One offer cards with chips that don’t have international fees.  You can also use your debit card to get cash, which some places will require. I try to use my credit card as much as possible because my bank does charge me a fee to pull out international currency. However this fee is generally lower than the one I would pay to exchange American dollars. So I leave all cash at home and just bring my credit card and debit card.

Ok that’s it! Any questions?? Ask in the comments and I will try my best to fill in details. Also, if you have been to other UK cities you love, feel free to highlight them in the comments. I only included cities I have been to so I might have missed your favorite.

Coming soon: Ten Days in the UK by Car. Road trip options for the adventurous souls who want to see more of the countryside or who have already been to London! 

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Packing Light Weekend Edition

Since I usually travel with my backpack whether I am on the road for five days or fifteen, I wondered if I could get it down even smaller the last time I went to London for the weekend.

I set myself the challenge of carrying just a small handbag. And guys! It was so easy!

I put together a layered outfit for the autumn/winter weather mix. Then I filled my purse and headed out the door.

The freedom of walking onto an airplane with nothing but a purse is glorious.

Here are a few of the things I found super handy about being in a big city with only a small handbag:

• Knowing that I would not need to figure out where to stash my backpack while I was in meetings or at a play.
• Not having to check my bag when visiting museums.
• Not having to go back to my hostel to collect my bag.
• Not bumping anyone on the tube with my backpack.

I can’t always manage traveling this light but for two nights away it was totally doable!

So here it is! The Packing Light Weekend Edition rundown of what was in my bag + what I was wearing:

In My Bag:

tissues

rolled up shopping bag

band-aid (I was breaking in new boots!)

head band (Buff)

one book

granola bars/tea bags/1 dried oatmeal

phone charger and headphones

underwear

pen/tiny notebook/headlamp

oyster card

pill bottle full of a cocktail of any meds I need (ibuprofen, allergy meds, vitamins)

weensie toiletries (in a ziplock bag ready for airplane security)

wallet

money belt (which I wear under my clothes with most of my cash/credit cards in it)

Wearing:

a pair of dark jeans + underpants (with leggings underneath because it was super cold!)

a cream long sleeved t-shirt + bra 

a short-sleeved t-shirt on top

a long red cardigan

my winter coat (warm + waterproof)

a scarf (used around my neck when cold, tied up my hair with it when it was warmer)

wool socks and boots

(I used the leggings and short-sleeved t-shirt as pjs and then crammed them into my handbag the next morning instead of wearing them the second day.)

I’m super curious! Would you ever leave or have you ever left home for a weekend with only a handbag or purse??

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Packing Light for Europe

Today I’m sharing a few thoughts about the joys (and the practicalities) of packing light.

Often people ask me about what to pack for a trip to Europe or the UK. 

If at all possible, when I leave my house I am only carrying this Osprey Sirrus 24L backpack. I can get by for two weeks in almost all kinds of weather with this pack, and I am SO happy about it when I’m getting on and off buses and trains, walking around a city on a transition day, or just hopping on an airplane without checking a bag. I know it seems a little hard core, but packing light makes travel so much more pleasant.

I only let my kids bring small backpacks when we are traveling and I promise that everyone is happier.

If you need to bring more, I won’t judge you I promise. Not everyone has dreadlocks, rarely bathes, and is comfortable wearing the same pair of wool socks for a month.

A few reasons for packing light that might not be super obvious:

More time for sightseeing: On your last day somewhere, if you have a bunch of stuff, you usually have to set aside some time for packing. But you can throw in one more tour, one more stop at a museum, or just one more walk around the city if you don’t need that time to pack up. The same can be true of unpacking when you arrive somewhere.

You spend less money on souvenirs (AKA junk to carry back home that no one needs). If you have no room to carry that cute leather fringe bag or double decker bus piggy bank, you’re way less tempted to buy it. Sometimes if something reminds me of someone, I send them a picture and say “This reminded me of you!” It’s almost as good as taking it home to them and way cheaper.

At the risk of stating the obvious, Europe has almost everything you need. In the UK, there is a drugstore on every corner. If you need something, you’ll be able to find it. So the list of things you need to pack “just in case” is really small. A raincoat is about the only thing I recommend as a “just in case” and that’s because in the UK (and especially in Scotland), if it doesn’t rain, well, you need to be thankful. VERY. THANKFUL.

So here is what I actually pack:

In case you want to try packing in a small backpack, I thought I would share a quick rundown of what I pack + what I wear when I go wandering in Europe.

In my backpack:

Clothes:

1 small black dress

black leggings or tights

black flats (Toms) 

2 t-shirts

1 tank top

1 long sleeve t-shirt

1 pair socks (wool)

5ish changes underwear

1 bra

Electronics:

camera

converter for charging my phone + camera 

camera charger

1 book OR kindle

Other:

smallest available toiletries (soap/toothbrush/toothpaste/deo/chapstick/lotion) in a ziplock bag in top pocket, ready to pull out at airport security

deck of cards (seriously)

small package of tissues

money belt/wallet that holds my passport, debit card, credit card and cash. I wear this under my clothes after I get off the airplane and just put 1 credit card and 20-40 in cash in my pocket or a tiny change purse. Oh, and I don’t get cash until I am in the airport at my destination. Don’t bring a bunch of USD to Europe. It’s best to wait and pull cash out with your debit card after you get here than it is to exchange actual, physical money. 

water bottle

a granola bar

a ziplock bag of nuts/trail mix

a small pill bottle with a cocktail of meds I might need (ibuprofen, claritin, vit C, benedryl)

a rolled up cloth shopping bag for buying picnics/groceries

Wearing:

1 pair jeans (+ underpants)

1 t-shirt (+ bra or camisole)

1 sweater/cardigan

1 raincoat

1 scarf

1 pair wool socks

tennis shoes or comfortable walking boots or any shoe I can walk FOREVA in.

PS Don’t pack a hair dryer or hair straightener or any kind of small appliance. The conversion in the outlets burns them out. Everywhere you stay will have hair dryers available.

Do you have any other questions or thoughts about packing light?? Ask/Share away! 

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I try not to hate airports. I really do.

Hating is just not in keeping with the positive energy force for good that I want to be in life.

So I focus on the end goal of what the airport, or more accurately the airplane, is bringing. A new destination. An adventure. Or arriving home after a trip, which can be equally sweet.

But sometimes the airport gets the better of me. The stripping down and pulling oneself and one’s things apart to get through the security lines. Everyone except for the person watching the bags on the screen is in a terrible hurry. The tubs are bumping up against each other with the people behind you trying to shove theirs onto the conveyer belt. My tubs are rolling even as I take off one last scarf or belt. I toss valuables carelessly in a tub that I spend the rest of my vacation guarding like a hawk because in airport security, everything is revealed. Laid bare. Usually someone has to physically scan my hair because the dreads are thick. Or perhaps they are a red flag.

Through the years, I have learned that arriving insanely early, smiling, breathing deeply and maintaining a positive attitude helps me land at my gate still excited to be traveling, instead of wondering why I ever bother to walk out my front door.

I know that sounds crazy because I am at this very moment sitting in paradise, and how could I possibly have wondered if it was worth it to brave airports to be here? But when I am in an airport I think about where I could have got in the same amount of time in my car, with all my things in tact, with my belt, scarf and shoes on the entire time.

I think I do this because when I am in a car, I am strangely able to maintain the illusion that I am the master of this adventure, captain of this ship. I can tell it where to go. I am in control.

Let me tell you a little story about being out of control.

Five hours into our long haul flight to Mauritius, somewhere over Africa, I pulled a book out of my bag to read. And just before I closed the flap back over my satchel, I thought,

“How strange. There does not appear to be a laptop in the slot for the computer.”

I will spare you the searching under seats and in overhead bins that followed. It took me about twenty minutes to confirm that my computer was not with me. And about ten more to decide that it had probably not been stolen in the airport while my bag was hanging on my shoulder.

I spent the remaining six hours of our flight like this:

Panic.
Tears.
Laments.
Prayers.
Mantras.
Hope.

Panic that I had lost my computer, obviously.

Tears thinking of all the writing not yet uploaded to the Internet sitting on my computer.

Lamenting what an idiot I am, followed by lots of ugly self chastising about how I should not be left alone with important things, much less be trusted to travel alone to Africa with a small child. (This phase of the journey = Not pretty)

I asked Simon to pray with me. To pray for me. It may have been the five hour looping of The Lego Movie, but he was really calm.

After lots of praying and crying and panicking I remembered.

Gratefulness is always the antidote for despair.

It sounds so trite but it is so ridiculously true. And because I have experienced this truth over and over again, I got out my little blinking phone and pulled up a new notes page and through gritted teeth, I made a list. A familiar listing of what I have to be grateful for:

Extra seat on this plane. Simon and I can stretch out and enjoy the ride.

Tears. So many tears cried in the dark on an airplane over my lost computer. And so many tears this year. Surely they are taking me somewhere, all these tears. And I know that Jesus sees every one.

Warm sunshine waiting for us tomorrow. And gorgeous beaches. And new adventures if I would but have them.

Lots of the things on that computer have been uploaded to the Internet. Lots.

Weeping for the ones that have not will make me more disciplined about backing up my writing. Maybe.

After making a list, I began to recite mantras of gratefulness. Reluctantly.

Had you been there on that plane in the wee hours before landing, you could not have even heard the small voice over the hum of the airplane, a crazy lady staring out the window into the dark and saying,

Thank you Jesus for the sun that will come up soon.

Thank you Jesus for my sweet Simon, sleeping on the floor, healthy and happy.

Thank you for Taido, for Cole, for Mary Polly, for Ben.

Thank you for this trip.

Thank you for the chance to make new friends.

Thank you for rest, for light, for being constant when I am wavering.

Thank you for perspective.

Thank you for food to eat and clean water to drink.

Thank you for peace.

And then a little hope. Hope that my computer and I might one day reunited. Hope that I would enjoy a week without it, letting go of the work that would not get done. Hope that this mistake would not consume the rest of our time away.

And as usual, the very act of being thankful and opening my heart to peace became the channel God used to wash hope and peace over me.

And now over halfway through our trip to Mauritius, I can affirm that a little hope can be all mercy and grace. We have had a wonderful time and I have enjoyed the chance to write only in a paper journal. And to leave this space quiet all week.

As for being reunited with my computer, there is even hope there. Apparently I’m not the first person to have ever left a laptop in a security tub in London and a procedure exists by which I might retrieve it again when we fly back through on our way home.

What kind of crazy wonder of mercy that would be!

Do make me feel better and tell me you’ve left something very valuable in an airport!!

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