Up and Down the California Coast

After our stay up North, we headed a little further south to explore a bit of the coast, but there was no L.A., San Diego, or even Big Sur. Instead, based out of Santa Cruz, we explored the coast between San Fransisco and Monterey. Although our stay required a little extra driving, it gave way to miles of coastline, hours of hiking, sea life sightings and cool sea breezes, the quintessential California experience.

Minnesota Summer Photo Diary

This week I learned that the Minneapolis/Saint Paul area was found to have the most extreme weather in the whole country. This was based on the number of days in which heating or air conditioning was needed per year. Considering our winters, this comes as no surprise. But our summers play their own role in these numbers. Hot and humid though they may be, Minnesota summers are adored throughout the state, most likely because our 10,000+ lakes are there to cool us off.

Yes, I was out of town a lot this summer (I haven’t even covered all my summer trips on here yet), but I tried my hardest to make the most out of my time at home.

“In the deep, dark hills of eastern Kentucky…”

“In the deep dark hills of eastern Kentucky; That’s the place where I traced my bloodline; And it’s there I read on a hillside gravestone; You’ll never leave Harlan alive…” starts the song  “You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive”, depicting Harlan County in the Appalachian mountains of Eastern Kentucky, one of the poorest counties in the nation. Last month, my church took a mission trip down to Harlan.

On the way there, we stopped at Natural Bridge State Park, smack dab in the middle of eastern Kentucky. The park gets its name thanks to a long stretch of rock that connects two sets of hills, like a bridge. A natural bridge. Before hand, one of our leaders had told us that if this park were in Minnesota, the bridge would be roped off on all sides, that is, if they even let people on the bridge at all.

Beach Days are the Best Days: La Franqui

My last day in Europe, my host family and I  headed from Toulouse to La Franqui, a little beach town on the Mediterranean. Some of my favorite memories of the entire trip are from that afternoon spent at that little beach town. We got to there late in the afternoon, and, after stopping for ice cream, headed straight for the beach. Swimming out to the furthest buoy, taking pictures underwater, and lazing around on the beach, book in hand, life felt easy, simple, happy. I guess that’s what beach days are for.

A Day in Grenoble

One day in Valence, we took a little day trip to the nearby mountain town of Grenoble. By mountain town, I don’t mean that it was situated on the side of a mountain, but rather that that it was surrounded, 360 degrees, by mountains. The Vercors, Belledonne and Chartreuse mountain ranges. After about an hour and a half train ride from Valence, through the countryside, gaping at views of the sprawling mountain ranges all around us, we arrived in Grenoble.

5 Natural Wonders of the US in Honor of Earth Day

Happy Earth Day! Today is a day to celebrate the earth and promote eco-friendliness. I like to think that every time we visit a national or state park, we are contributing to the preservation of the earth, even if only just a little bit. The US has no lack of parks protecting its natural wonders, and it’s pretty incredible how diverse these parks are in terms of land forms and climates. From lakes to mountains, grassland to deserts, oceans and forests, the US park system has it all.

8 Reasons to Re-Think Texas

Texas? Oh, you mean the big southern state with cacti and cowboys and Ted Cruz? Well yes, but as I recently discovered on a trip down there this month, Texas so is much more than that. It’s a state like no other.

When I told people I was going to Texas for spring break, they were a little taken aback. Most people don’t realize what a wonderful travel destination Texas is. I didn’t realize it until I started researching this trip. Wonderful things about Texas started to pop out at me on travel

Deep Sea Fishing on the Gulf

Port Aransas is right on the Gulf of Mexico, making a great location for deep sea fishing. We spent a misty day on a fishing boat, floating on the Gulf and casting our lines out into the sea, hoping for a lucky catch. The view off the boat was beautiful. The fog stretched off into the distance, covering the vast ocean.

Bird Watching in Port Aransas

One of my favorite things we did while in Port Aransas was going bird watching at the Leonabelle Turnbull Birding Center. Yes, I know how lame that sounds, but besides the fact that we were probably the only under-sixty, non-binocular-wearing visitors there, it was actually pretty fun. It gave me an opportunity to practice a new kind of photography and break out of my “scenery photos” habit.

I was amazed at the variety of birds that inhabited the birding center. But there weren’t only birds; we even spotted a few alligators. There was a chart detailing the predator/prey relationships between the animals in this kind of environment. The alligators eat the

Port Aransas Beach Daze

Today we left Port Aransas, a small beach town on Padre Island, after five blissful days on the beach. We passed the time exploring the beach, lying out on the sand with books and country music, floating in the Gulf waves on our boogie boards, exploring the natural wonders that Padre Island offers, and cozying up inside for Friends marathons during the few splashes of misty weather. It was spring break at its finest.

Spending time on the beach was my favorite part. We stayed in a condo just a short walk from the beach in a community of beach houses. There was plenty to explore on the beach.