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We were having the best time just hanging around our hotel (W Retreat & Spa Bali) during the first part of our honeymoon, but finally felt like we should venture out and explore more of the island. After speaking with the hotel concierge about how to best leave the property and see some cool sights in the area, we settled on hiring a car and driver by the hour. The W had a few prescribed routes for sightseeing, but the beauty of being able to rent a car + driver is that you can easily custom tailor it to what makes sense for you.
We weighed our options and ultimately decided to leave in the morning to visit the temples Tanah Lot and then Taman Ayun –with a few more [...]
Jet lag on our trip to Turkey was no joke, so we ended up getting later starts to the days than planned. When we finally set out for the day, we headed for the Grand Bazaar and the Egyptian Spice Market– one of our favorite adventures in Istanbul. Although they are very different than what I’d imagine they were like in years past (lots of tourists these days!), it’s fun to feel like you’re going back in time to visiting the bazaar for your weekly (or daily?) grocery trip.
I’ve never seen a more beautiful assortment of tea for sale
‘Mısır Çarşısı’ — the Egyptian Spice [...]
If one word describes Inle Lake as a whole – and, more specifically, Inle Resort & Spa, it’s peaceful. Time stands still as you find yourself captivated by the Inle fisherman on the lake and the morning fog slowly giving way to the mountains. We spent most of our time at Inle Lake relaxing and enjoying the beautiful views. The slower speed was welcome after spending time in the “big city” of Yangon with honking cars and busy people.
Inle Resort & Spa
After about an hour’s drive from the airport, we arrived at Inle Resort & Spa, which is right on the lake’s [...]
Sunny southern California was just what my pale skin needed in dreary February and to get to spend the time with my mom made the trip extra-special! The area around Santa Barbara was just beautiful– no wonder the celebrities flock here! Perfect weather, gorgeous beaches and delicious restaurants… what’s not to love? Plus, there’s such a variety of things to see and do — from old Spanish missions to presidential libraries to restaurants on the pier — there’s plenty to keep you busy for days.
After leaving San Diego behind us, we headed up the coast on Highway 101 and drove about two hours to the San Juan Capistrano Mission. [...]
On a recent trip to Nashville, we booked a night at the Sheraton Nashville Downtown. The location was fantastic for walking around and exploring and its proximity to Broadway – the place to be at nighttime – was one of its selling points. Although we were only there for a night, we had no complaints about our stay and thoroughly enjoyed our time at the hotel.
The hotel recently went through a $25 million renovation, completed in April 2014. Along with updates to the guest rooms, the lobby looks brand new and the wine bar was looking pretty fancy, too. The lobby was large and open, very spacious with many sitting areas. The bones of the hotel looked to be an Embassy [...]
We organized a day-long tour of Inle Lake using the only transportation possible: a boat. Although they say you can get a boat tour leaving from Nyaung-shwe for around $20 total, we decided to go on a private boat scheduled by our hotel for about $45 total – this way, we avoided the $20+ taxi ride to Nyaung-shwe AND (hopefully) our hotel bases their reputation and (more importantly) Trip Advisor stars on making sure our boat captain is top notch.
We were ready to go around 7:30am and walked to the end of the hotel dock to meet our captain. As you might have guessed by now, this guy was extra friendly, especially with not knowing a lick of English. Our motor boat was long with [...]
Before we left for our 15 day trip to Myanmar, I scoured the internet looking for tips and tricks on what to pack. It’s a bit very, very befuddling because the climate is mighty tropical (think 104° most days we were there…YIKES!!!) but the Burmese are extra-super-duper-conservative, so, if you walk around in what I would consider normal attire for 104° (a bathing suit?!??! at least something close to it…), you will get stares All. Day. Long. and just feel pretty uncomfortable.
So, how can you respect the conservative culture while avoiding the misery of jeans + other knee-and-shoulder-covering clothing? How can you stay cool without looking like you’re walking around [...]
Inle Lake isn’t just a lake, it’s a way of life that’s other-worldly, even when compared to other lesser-known parts of Myanmar. Its beauty is seen in glimmers of the 70,000 Intha farmers and their way of life, from paddling with one leg to living above the water in wooden + bamboo houses on stilts (with TVs in every window!).
An Intha fisherman on Inle Lake with his huge net
Myanmar is a country full of surprises to any traveler, but Inle Lake has the most surprises of all.
We saved Inle Lake for last on our Myanmar itinerary because we [...]
