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3 Days in Cappadocia, Turkey: A Suggested Itinerary
“Hot air ballooning in Cappadocia, Turkey” has long been at the top of my bucket list. I’d imagined gliding over the moon-like landscape at sunrise, taking in scenes of fairy chimneys and rose-colored...
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A Weekend in Veliko Târnovo
Before I moved to Romania, I had never heard of Veliko Târnovo. And to be honest, I probably wouldn’t have been able to point to Bulgaria on a map. Even though Eastern Europe is quickly becoming a...
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International Teaching Community ‘Devastated’ by Anthony Bourdain’s Death
Almost two weeks ago, Anthony Bourdain took his life, and the news has formed deep wounds within the international community. “He was our guide, our teacher,” says longtime expat Erin Connolly....
View ArticleCancer Diagnosis + Revisiting my Bucket List
This summer has not been what I expected. I’d planned to go home for three weeks to get a branchial cyst removed, catch up with family and friends, then come back to my husband for a trip to Armenia...
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Filing Taxes as an Expat: What you need to know if you’re an American Abroad
I have a confession to make: before yesterday, I hadn’t filed my taxes in three years. I know this is awful, but I was honestly just too overwhelmed. Before moving abroad, I filed my taxes every year....
View ArticleThe Quarantine Diaries: Entry #1
Tuesday, March 24th, 2020 It’s day 8 of distance learning, day 11 of social distancing. At first, people were jokingly referring to this as “Corona-cation.” It was sunny and warm, and the first day of...
View ArticleThe Quarantine Diaries #2: We’re all in this Together
Friday, March 27th, 2020 Last night, my husband and I spent some time looking out the window. All around us, apartment buildings were full of light. Even the old, gray Communist block down the...
View ArticleThe Quarantine Diaries #3: Stuck
April 12, 2020 For the last month, I’ve been receiving emails from the US Embassy in Bucharest: health alerts, travel advisories, and increased warnings to return to the United States, unless I’m...
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The Quarantine Diaries #4: A Stay-at-home Vacation to Jordan
Last week was supposed to be our spring break. Well, technically it was still our spring break, but we weren’t allowed to go anywhere, and our trip to Jordan was canceled. So, it was basically the...
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Traveling During a Pandemic: Our Road Trip through Northern Greece
As we approached the Bulgarian/Greek border crossing checkpoint, I pinched the wire around my nose and tightened the mask’s loops around my ears. The border security guard walked from car to car,...
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Romanian Wine Country: A Weekend Away from Bucharest
Most years, come August, I’m ready to go back to school. I’ve spent time with family and friends, caught up with hometown gossip, hugged my niece a thousand times, and even squeezed in a road trip or...
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Market Day in Abruzzo
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View ArticleThe End of Summer and its Zucchini (with recipe for Zucchini Pasta)
Sitting on the terrace of our friends’ country house in Abruzzo, the morning sun hangs lower than it did two weeks ago. The last of the figs have fallen to the ground and the pomegranates have turned...
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Eating Abruzzo’s Most Famous Dish at Perilli Arrosticini
It’s 7:30 on a Sunday night and Luke and I are the first customers to arrive at Perilli Arrosticini: a family-run restaurant famous for its lamb skewers. The staff are still in their pre-shift...
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Experiencing the Wine Harvest in Abruzzo
Ever since I was a kid and saw the “I Love Lucy” episode where she stomps grapes, I’ve dreamt about climbing into a wooden wine barrel and doing the same—dancing and stomping with the Italian...
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One Day in Abruzzo
Before my parents came to visit us in Abruzzo, I spent hours trying to research what we should do. I’d found lists of the best things to see, but got overwhelmed when looking at the map. There was...
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Harvesting Olives in Croatia
It’s 8:30am in Benkovac, Croatia, and already I’ve learned my new word of the day: “živjeli” (pronounced ji-vo-lee), or “cheers.” The shot of homemade brandy burns my throat, and my host Vito holds...
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End-of-Year Reflections
It’s three days before the new year, and our coastal Croatian apartment is littered with stuff. Plastic IKEA tubs have been pulled out from under the beds, filled with reusable water bottles and...
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A Letter From Abruzzo
Snowflakes the size of golf balls are falling outside the windows, and Luke, Charlie and I are huddled on the couch in front of the electric radiator. It’s been a month since we moved into our Abruzzo...
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An update from our apartment in Italy: with lessons on garbage recycling,...
When buying a home in Italy, it seems you either find a skeleton of a house without so much as a kitchen sink, or you inherit the previous owner’s old life. For Luke and me, it was the latter. And...
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