Nurturing well-being while exploring the world: travel tips and self-care
After almost 35 years of being on the road—planes, trains, and the occasional tuk-tuk—I find myself asking a question I never thought I would: is traveling still worth it? It’s not that I’ve fallen out of love with discovering new places, far from it. Vietnam and Cambodia recently gave me some unforgettable adventures, the kind …
Sometimes the hardest messages are the simplest ones. This is me trying to put a difficult moment into words with honesty, kindness, and a little bit of hope for what comes next. Friendship isn’t about never disagreeing; it’s about feeling seen even when perspectives clash. When misunderstandings pop up, it can sting more than the …
Maybe you have to spend a long time away from home to start thinking differently about travel. I used to live for the dream of ticking destinations off my wishlist—the pre-trip research, the daydreams, the “this time next month I’ll be in…” fantasies. Honestly, sometimes the anticipation is its own kind of happiness. Is it …
If you’d asked me a few weeks ago what’s next on our travel calendar, I would have replied without hesitation: Nepal! After years—no, decades—of daydreaming, scrolling through photos of prayer flags and snow-capped mountains, and watching every documentary on Everest and Annapurna, we finally bit the bullet. Tickets booked, miles spent, itinerary mapped out for …
When we first decided to add Cambodia to our Southeast Asia trip, I’ll admit—my knowledge barely extended beyond spotting it on a map and knowing a few scattered facts about its tragic recent history. Angkor Wat, that legendary sprawl of ancient temple ruins, was the main draw. Like so many travelers, we came for the …
Before visiting Cambodia, I’ll admit—I didn’t really have the country on my travel radar. Like many people, the only image that came to mind was Angkor Wat, its ancient spires rising out of the jungle. I knew little about the rest of the country, except for a vague awareness of its troubled past. Growing up, …
Let’s be real for a second: writing a blog can be frustrating. There’s this romantic idea that you’ll pour your heart, soul, and many, many hours into a post—crafting sentences, tweaking metaphors, reliving stories you can’t wait to share—and then, miraculously, a crowd of readers will appear to devour every word. Maybe they’ll leave thoughtful …
I’m not a professional art collector—just an ordinary admirer of beautiful things. A bit of a treasure hunter. I wander through Japan Surplus shops here in the Philippines as often as I can, drawn not only by the possibility of finding something rare but by the strange, quiet magic these places seem to carry. Each …
The thrill of planning a future trip has always been almost as exciting as the journey itself. Just the thought of a getaway, even if it’s twelve months away, sends a rush of anticipation through me. That feeling of motivation kicks in, and time seems to fly by. In the early ’90s, when I was …
Ah, the joys and woes of documenting travel adventures! As someone who’s been wandering the globe for quite a while, I’ve gathered a treasure trove of stories that could fill countless pages. But here’s the kicker: my collection of photos is, well, less than stellar. Back in the day, when the travel bug bit me, …