Eating is a favorite pastime of mine. What better way is there to experience a new country than to eat my way through it?
I believe you cannot know a people or a culture until you’ve tried their local cuisine—and not just from the tourist stops. The history behind their food or the nostalgia and pride they have in certain snacks is exciting to me.
Different from some of my other posts on “what I ate”—this one includes more focus on alcohol! I don’t usually drink in the countries I visit, but this time I did more than usual. I suppose New Years Eve and all of the tequila tastings around Cozumel lured me to partake.
In this post, I give you the highlights of my foodie—and drinkie?—experience in Cozumel!
I brought in 2024 in a very unexpected way while staying in Cozumel, Mexico. The street that my accommodation was on became a block party complete with a band and (drum roll)—a drag queen!
The evening started with a beautiful beach sunset and dinner. Then, I celebrated at midnight with locals in a low key bar-restaurant setting in the main tourist area of San Miguel.
While I thought the night was over, I was both shocked and elated to find that the real party was right on the street back home with the neighbors. Furthermore, their support for the LGBTQ+ community was palpable, going against my previous held notions.
This goes to show that travel outside of the tourist areas really does produce some of the most unexpected and wonderful experiences that may even challenge your assumptions about a culture.
I spent July 4th, my last night in the southwest, in Flagstaff, Arizona. That night, I celebrated America's independence with my couchsurf host, Jeremy. Before my flight the next day, I made sure to pay my respects to the indigenous peoples of the region.
Before America became an independent nation, native tribes and cultures were involuntarily eliminated. We often forget this.
So, in this post, I touch on information about Arizona's native peoples. I visited some of the Hopi ancestors' preserved sites near Flagstaff. I also experienced the Diné (Navajo) peoples' modern presence throughout my stay in Arizona.
The Jones Beach Air Show (aka Bethpage Air Show) is coming up this Memorial Day weekend. On May 27th and 28th, military aircrafts, civilian jet teams, and aerobatic pilots will take to the skies on Long Island's south shore.
I moved an hour east of New York City for a new job last year. Since then, I've been living about 20 minutes away from Jones Beach on Long Island. The Air Show was my first major introduction to my new location. And it was quite the spectacle.
This post marks my 1 year anniversary since landing my first "real" post-graduate job. This post also marks 1 year since living solo for the first time. I've been loving every minute of my new life! So it's about time I take a break from writing about Hawaii to introduce a local highlight.
The Florida Keys are not very well known for their food. But I believe food is a great way to get to know the atmosphere and culture of a new place.
So this post will introduce you to Southern Florida by way of everything that went into my stomach (and more!).
It's been almost 2 months since I visited New Orleans and I can still feel it. That city had such a lasting impression on me, it's as if the symbolic elements of the city left a permanent imprint on my mind.
When I think of New Orleans, there are several iconic features that stand out to me.
If I had to paint a picture representing the Big Easy for you, it would not be complete without the following.
The music culture is one of the main reasons I decided to take Jono to New Orleans this summer.
Trumpets, tubas, and trombones lead the culture of this Louisiana town. It's where parades of brass instruments blare down the streets at the start of a new day and jazz processions commonly mark the end of a life.
From a famous, 20-year old brass band recognized by the Grammy's to simple street performing artists, I saw the Crescent City bring strutting jazz, indie funk, hip-hop attitude and old school swing together under one melodic genre that is uniquely New Orleans.
This is an introduction to New Orleans from the perspective I saw it: From the streets!
Aptly named the Big Easy, I comfortably explored the majority of downtown New Orleans by foot and street car last month. Jono and I were staying in an Airbnb that put us right at the cross section of several different neighborhoods within walking distance of the famous and lively French Quarter district.
Historic black culture, hurricane damage, enormous mansions, blaring brass instruments, drunken tourists and beignets—each of these characteristics define at least one of five neighborhoods in New Orleans.
This is going to be a quick post. I've run out of time to write something more extensive this week because I just returned from my trip to New Orleans and the Florida Keys!
I had an awesome time exploring these two parts of the USA with Jono who has been visiting me from New Zealand this summer. We spent 5 nights in New Orleans and 7 nights in Southern Florida. These places were vastly different from each other and incredible in their own separate ways.
Instead of going into a deep post this week, I've decided to share with you a few of my favorite photos from these two places. I think these photos best capture both locations in their individual glory.
On my last full day in Bali, I hopped on the back of a motorbike with a local who showed me the highlights of the lower Karangasem Regency. My tour guide was Han, a local who offered to take me around the region. His tour turned out to be the perfect wrap up to my time in Bali.
There really is no experience like the one you can get from a local showing you around. I got a personalized tour of the region with opportunities to learn about Indonesian culture and take in some of the sights on my own terms. Han ended up driving me to 5 separate locations, including a traditional Bali village, two water palaces, a chocolate and soap factory, and a chilled-out, sandy beach. Below, I describe my experiences visiting each of these places, but the real story to share is how wonderfully well-rounded Han had made this tour.
When we travel the world, our own beliefs and comfort zones are often challenged by the cultural differences we encounter. I was reminded to keep my own beliefs in check one morning in Bali when I stumbled upon a cockfight outside of Ubud. After my attempts to engage with Macaque monkeys in an ethical manner the day before, I now found myself standing as an observer to a bloody, testosterone-charged death match between beautiful roosters.
In my opinion, it's an incredibly inhumane tradition—one I felt uncomfortable taking part in as a reluctant voyeur. At the same time, it was just that: A tradition. The cockfight is one of those travel moments that reminded me about how much our culture shapes our beliefs and behaviors. You don't have to agree with those of others, but you can try to understand them.
Singapore is a city state and Southeast Asian island country next to Malaysia. And it’s small. At only 278 square miles (719 sq km), Singapore is an easy city to see during a long layover between flights. I flew into Singapore Changi airport at about 6AM from Auckland, New Zealand. My next flight was not until 9PM. This was more than enough time to see a bit of Singapore city.
The only problem was I had not done any research before my arrival! Was there public transportation? Could I leave my baggage at the airport? Where in the city should I go first? Find out how I got around and where I ended up in the first part of this post!
On a remote island like Niue, getting to know the locals is as easy as stepping outside your guesthouse door. A cultural exchange with a local was bound to happen—we just had no idea when or how. We met the Tongia family from nearby Tonga on our 3rd day in Niue. Palemia, a shuttle driver for Matavai resort, gave us a ride home from dinner.
He then offered Jono a chance at free diving with a local spear-fisherman. As a thanks, we offered to help him and his wife, Louna, with their farm work. We ended up planting potatoes through the middle of the night and enjoying other wonderful cultural exchanges with this delightful little Tongan family who live and work in Niue.
I was expecting Niue to be a small country. But there was no way I could have anticipated just how small and remote it is. Jono, my Kiwi partner, and I traveled from New Zealand to “the rock” of Polynesia at the end of August.
Upon our arrival, we realized the entire country is the equivalent of a rural village dropped onto an island in the middle of the ocean. With its approximately 1200 human dwellers (and possibly twice as many chickens), we felt like we were getting a true getaway from the fast pace of life. You’ll understand why if you ever have the chance to go, or you can just keep reading.
The drive from Sydney to Brisbane is 900 km of highway filled with so much to do, just about anything is possible. After picking up Roojin in Sydney, we headed straight up the A1 Pacific Highway.
As with most of Australia, however, you have to get off the highway to see something of interest. Most of the time. Aside from a giant banana, we veered off-route to see someof Australia’s best beaches, hike over sand dunes to get to a shipwreck, and even spot dolphins traveling up the coast.
I like to try to blend into a place as much as possible. Short of mimicking the Kiwi accent, I think I did a pretty good job at blending into the Hawke’s Bay life while seeing as much of it as a “tourist” as possible.
During my four months living in Napier, I saw and did heaps. I’ve picked out the best of the best to give you an idea of what local living is like in the Hawke’s Bay.
In celebration of the month of June, this post is about my experience attending Auckland Pride this year. New Zealand’s most populated city hosts their LGBT Pride parade, or as they call it “Hero Parade,” in February rather than in June (Pride month in the USA).
The parade and LGBT people were not always so accepted in New Zealand, however, and LGBT needs continue to be ignored by the NZ government.
There are lots of ways to get around New Zealand. So far I’ve only really talked about traveling with other travelers who have bought a car, buying one yourself, or renting a car. But there’s another way: Hitching a ride with a local! Some travelers search for ride shares around New Zealand using online listings like Carpoolnz or Catchalift. I have tried this before without much success. Hitch hiking better suits the spontaneity of the on-the-go travel lifestyle and it can be a safe alternative if done cautiously.
The best part is the potential to connect with friendly locals. For example, I was lucky enough to get a ride from a few locals on my way to Christchurch for my second house-sit. Even better, they were not only locals but Maori descendants—the native people of New Zealand. I love talking to and hanging out with all kiwis, but these are a special group of people who have a culture all their own from a time long before Europeans arrived on the shores.
Some of the best experiences I have had while traveling have been the result of connecting with local people. New Zealand has been no different. Samart, whom I had met and stayed with in Chiang Mai, Thailand, connected me to Jonathan, a factory worker who fishes and free dives on the East coast of the North Island in his spare time. I had been in communication with him since I arrived in New Zealand.
Four days into Harald and I’s camping adventure, Jonathan invited us to stay with him for a night. He took us for a unique evening fishing experience, I got to try my hand at free diving in Hawke’s Bay, and then we enjoyed a delicious seafood lunch before continuing on our journey back inland.
When I visit a country, I like to open myself up to the culture through its food. If the food is served at a place locals frequent rather than a tourist trap or if the food is ordered for me by a local, I know I’m getting an authentic experience.
In past posts about my eating experiences in Portland, Iceland and Germany, I was able to name what I ate or at least describe what I ate fairly easily. The numerous, unfamiliar ingredients used in Thai cooking, the complexity of the Thai names for dishes, and the poor English translations usually meant I had no idea what I was eating half the time.
