Since I started my little “Total Travel Disasters” series, I’ve highlighted travel meltdowns in which I was, more or less, an unwitting victim. Getting screwed with a broken camper rental. Being targeted by a bed and breakfast tyrant. Finding ourselves on the wrong side of a battle with a rental car in Britain. This post is […]

 

Love to dive? Nab one of the last three spots on my Wander Women: Dive + Yoga Retreat in Koh Tao, Thailand! After kissing my land-lubber boyfriend goodbye in Maui and heading back to Oahu solo, the first thing I wanted to do? Get straight underwater. After an excellent experience with Kaimana Divers four years prior, […]

 

Waikiki seems to be one of those places that some travelers love, and some travelers love to hate. I’d been to Waikiki before, and had seen many of it’s major sites — Diamond Head, Pearl Harbor, The Aquarium, a sunset booze cruise and beyond — but I’d never actually stayed there or taken the time to […]

 

Ian and I tend to fancy ourselves a pair of fairly with-it twenty-somethings — though I admit I’m concerned that saying so is the blogging equivalent of wearing non-ironic mom jeans. When we travel, we like to book boutique hotels, chic apartments, or design hostels; go out to eat at trendy local cafés and restaurants; and […]

 

Hawaii is not a state of mind, but a state of grace. — Paul Theroux As a full-time travel blogger, I’m frequently asked about my favorite destinations around the world. My answers, depending on my current whims and the energy I have to delve into such a query, range from a carefully calibrated, heartfelt list of […]

 

 

My favorite part of visiting friends when I travel is getting to jump in and live their lives for a while. When Heather and I went to visit Wim and Dave in Oahu, we got a little taste of what it’s like to live in Hawaii — Dave showed us where he goes surfing in the […]

 

I’ve said it before, and in all likelihood I’ll say it many more times — one of my favorite things about Hawaii is that life is lived outdoors. Sure, I slept in a room with four walls and roof (most nights!) but my days were spent surfing, diving, ATV-riding — and hiking. I never considered myself […]

 

What do you think the most visited tourist destination in all of Hawaii is? An exotic luau, a famous surf break, maybe one of the filming sights from Lost? Actually, it’s Pearl Harbor. Just a few short miles west of Honolulu, Pearl Harbor is home to America’s naval base in Hawaii. But that’s not why it’s […]

 

There aren’t many things that get me out of bed before the sun rises. I’m not a late sleeper, but normally a 7:15am start time would be enough to make me take a pass on just about anything. But I do make an exception for diving — especially scuba diving in Oahu. While there are many […]