2011 August — Camels & Chocolate: Tales from a Travel Addict

Prince Edward Island: In Search of Anne

August 31, 2011 By Kristin 33 Comments

When my family decided to go on a cruise in July as our summer vacation, I know there was but one reason my mom chose our particular route from Montreal to Boston: She wanted to see the place of Anne Shirley’s origins. Anne played a role in both of our childhoods—I hardly know a woman [...]

Filed Under: Canada, Cruise, North America, Slideshow, The Travel Bug

Sweet Tea, Fireflies and 90 Good Years

August 28, 2011 By Kristin 24 Comments

Our time in the South was but two very action-packed weeks, but it was enough to instill a heightened feeling of excitement in making Nashville our permanent base once we return from Semester at Sea. It’s the things that I grew up that are so alarmingly familiar to me but that are so foreign to [...]

Filed Under: All About Me, All in the Family, Slideshow, The Dirty South

Photo Friday: Montreal, Canada

August 26, 2011 By Kristin 36 Comments

Montreal is one of those cities that is pretty darn impossible not to like. I visited for the first time in 2007, found myself there on family vacation for the first couple days in July and—funny enough—am back right now, currently signing in 450 college students (and 73 lifelong learners) so we can set sail [...]

Filed Under: Canada, North America, Photo Friday, The Travel Bug

How to Prepare for Traveling Around the World

August 24, 2011 By Kristin 48 Comments

Everyone prepares for major trips differently, but our case was a unique one: We had just a month to tie up loose ends after our eight-week road trip and family cruise combo, we were moving clean across country before we left and we’d be traveling primarily by ship (meaning we didn’t have to worry about [...]

Filed Under: Around the World in 120 Days, Semester at Sea, Service-y, Study Abroad, The Travel Bug

Your Semester at Sea Questions Answered

August 22, 2011 By Kristin 47 Comments

While I’m sure many of you have been on cruise holidays before, I don’t know a lot of people who have worked on educational ships. I’ve received a slew of Semester at Sea-related inquiries over the summer, and while we just set sail last night and began staff training today (and thus I am still [...]

Filed Under: Around the World in 120 Days, Semester at Sea, Slideshow, The Travel Bug Tagged With: Semester at Sea

City Dog: Vol IX

August 21, 2011 By Ella 17 Comments

‘Sup, homeslice? It’s Ella here, checking in after a long hiatus. It’s not that I’ve forgotten about you, I’ve just been…preoccupied. It’s hard being this smart and adorable: People want a lot out of you, like learning how to mimic a polar bear. (You shrug, but it’s true: It’s the latest in my repertoire of [...]

Filed Under: Puppies, Slideshow, The Travel Bug

Photo Friday: Meteor Crater, Arizona

August 19, 2011 By Kristin 31 Comments

After our Hotel Monte Vista letdown, we hightailed it out of Flagstaff without so much as seeing the Grand Canyon. When the landscape started to flatten out, SVV turned to me and said: “I wonder if this is where that big crater impact took place?” Huh? I clearly missed mention of that in science class! [...]

Filed Under: Arizona, North America, Photo Friday, The Travel Bug, USA

Lucky 13: Moving Across Country, Part II

August 17, 2011 By Kristin 34 Comments

Our life arrived in Tennessee! Our life arrived in Tennessee! After bidding all of our belongings adieu back on July 30, our 1-800-PACK-RAT pod showed up in the South without a hitch on Aug. 15. Truth be told, we could have even accessed it sooner as the company called about delivering it last week, but [...]

Filed Under: All About Me, Slideshow, The Dirty South, The Travel Bug

Santa Fe to Memphis

August 15, 2011 By Kristin 22 Comments

After soaking up Albuquerque, we headed to Santa Fe for an afternoon. While there, we decided to get my tires rotated and my oil changed—something we neglected to do before leaving. (My husband, master of all trades, normally tackles this, but time simply ran out.) After a stop at Jiffy Lube in Santa Fe, the [...]

Filed Under: New Mexico, North America, Slideshow, The Travel Bug, USA

The Long Journey to New Mexico

August 14, 2011 By Kristin 25 Comments

Originally, when we realized we’d be driving roughly 2,500 miles across country to move, we planned a journey out of it. We’d stay a few days in Flagstaff, a few days in New Mexico, a night in Oklahoma City, a night in Topeka, detour up through Iowa so I can claim my 50th state, then [...]