We decided to visit friends in Cyprus and timed it with the Abu Dhabi Hash annual Rehydration run in Abu Dhabi, and ended the trip with an epic adventure to Saudi Arabia. We hiked, ran, scuba dived, and went canyoneering. It was special trip to see friends again and travel to the last of the Arab countries we'd yet to visit <3 Tomb of Lihyan son of Kuza at Hegra Pre-trip Notes (Saudi Arabia) Saudi visa: You definitely need one to visit! Oddly, there are multiple websites adve

When we told coworkers we were headed to the UK for vacation, their responses were, "Why?" "Do you have family there?" Well, turns out, there's loads to see :P Nick was to end up at a stag do in Bristol, so we traversed as much as we could of the southern parts of England, as well as Cardiff, Wales. It was honestly overwhelming when it came to planning, because there are just so many interesting things to do/visit. The countryside was gorgeous, and we're hoping we can make it

Ash had to go to Oslo for work, so she decided to visit Barcelona as a side quest since Nick had already seen it a couple of times. She saw as much Gaudí architecture (and other art) as possible in a short weekend layover before heading to Oslo for training! Roof of Casa Milà Pre-trip Notes Gaudí architecture: Popular for a reason, so Ash booked tickets to all those she visited in advance. Basílica de la Sagrada Família What We Did Barcelona Basílica de la Sagrada Família : F

Wanting to travel with Ashley's brother and his SO, we finally landed on meeting up in Turkey. We'd heard great things, and the trip still managed to exceed our expectations. The people are super friendly, travel/driving is easy, and the country is an interesting blend of Europe and the Middle East. If you're considering a visit, we honestly can't recommend it enough. Süleymaniye Mosque, Istanbul Pre-trip Notes Museum Pass : Economically, this worked for use since we planned

Our friends were getting married near Almeria; so we decided to do a prelude visit of the gorgeous region of Andalusia. The dynamic history of the area is highlighted in the striking mixture of Spanish and Islamic architecture. Alhambra - Nasrid Palace Pre-trip Notes Alhambra : BOOK EARLY! This fills up months in advance, so be sure to get tickets ahead of time. Parking : Can be a PAIN. We were constantly on the lookout for a parking garage, which largely was recommended by

We visited Budapest for a friend's birthday, which later turned into a surprise celebration of her and her boyfriend's engagement <3 Hungary was safe, clean, full of life and culture (architecture, art, music, ruin bars)...we hardly scratched the surface. It certainly lives up to the hype! Hungarian Parliament Building Pre-trip Notes We read that taxis regularly scam tourists, so we used the Bolt ride share app with no issues. We only had a tough time hailing a ride when we

Some friends posed the question, "Who wants to join us in Dublin for St. Paddy's?" That's how it started. From there we tacked on a few extra days to see some sights we missed on our trip to Ireland in 2018. Giant's Causeway What We Did Dublin St. Paddy's Day Pub Crawl: One of our friends put together an amazing custom pub crawl with fun challenges at each stop! The parade got in the way of some of our plans, but we improvised just fine; the floats we could see were really un

Our first time skiing...ever! We joined some of our friends on a ski trip to Borovets, Bulgaria, and it did not disappoint. We weren't able to lock down ski lessons, as it was super busy due to UK half-term. This worked out as our friends were amazing and patient instructors, which ended up being better than booking actual lessons. It did not snow during our visit, so the pistes gradually got icier, but we found that the beginner routes were really great. We really hope we ca

We stopped over in the City of Light for one day and two nights on our way back to Abu Dhabi. It was so Ashley could stop saying to me “yOu nEVeR ToOK mE tO PaRIs” the last time we visited France. Avenue de Camoens Pre-trip Notes Public transportation: With Google Maps and a little patience, Paris was pretty easy to navigate. It was a little confusing at first, but we got the hang of it. Uber: We should have pre-ordered one for our departure flight because we couldn’t hail on

“No bad views.” Norway is a country absolutely plagued with natural beauty. Fjords, mountains, glaciers, lakes, valleys - It has it all... This is one country to which we will definitely return for more hiking, outdoor rock climbing, and troll hunting! Trolltunga Pre-trip Notes Transportation Trains Oslo airport -> Oslo Central Station: Got tickets for this at the airport - cheap and very easy! Oslo Central Station -> Stavanger S.: Booked this one in advance, as we heard it’s

Both of us: "Remember, we only have four days." Also us: "Eh, it's fine. We can squeeze it in." We took a whirlwind tour of Northern Europe as an early 30th celebration for me. It wasn't enough time to "see everything," but we were certainly able to experience most of the major aspects in each region. We rented a car to see as much as possible in the time we had. We would have preferred to take trains at a slightly slower pace! Nick planned an "aggressive tourism" itinerary

A two-week whirlwind tour of five countries with old friends, new friends, and family. Starting in Italy, our Airbnb host, Riccardo, picked us up from the airport around 6 PM and took us to one of his quaint two-bedroom apartments overlooking Fiumicino. During our ride, we were informed that in Italy, “if there’s room, you can park anywhere” (foreshadowing). We showered and had a quick beer before heading out for a calzone and drinks. We then walked to the coast and down the

Neither of us, at this point, had driven on the left side of the road. I said, “Take as much time as you need. We are in no rush, so ride around the parking lot first if that makes you more comfortable.” What did Nick do? He went straight for the highway. I sat questioning my life choices and Nick's sanity while we drove 100 kmh on small, winding roads with no shoulder on the back roads of Ireland. At one point, after I had told him he was getting a bit too close to the edge

After leaving Innsbruck, the group was a little ... on edge. After several days of driving, walking 25,000+ steps, and staying up late enjoying local beverages, we were ready for some real rest. As a group of nine, it was challenging to balance desired activities with exhaustion. But on a clear, crisp fall day, we began to hike up the picturesque mountainside of Werfen, Austria. Our destination, as we would later find out, was only half of the adventure. As we approached our

Our experiences in Iceland were filled with excitement and surprises. While we only witnessed a small southwestern portion of the country, known as the Golden Circle, it was certainly packed full of destinations that can't be missed. We were in an adventurer's dream surrounded by waterfalls, volcanoes, hot springs, midnight sun, rolling green landscapes, and glaciers. The secret is out, because the island has become increasingly popular for tourism, largely due to social medi