Chizu Shirts Around the World!!
We got these cool Chizu shirts to represent our favorite small town in Japan. They always seem to spark a conversation wherever we go! #Chizu #ChizuTown #Japan
Iceland Vacation 2024 - Part 1
Vacation time! We decided it was time for a real vacation, and had the opportunity to take a week-long stopover in Iceland (while traveling from Italy to the US). The first half of the week we would spend near Hella, about two hours east and…
Caves and Coves of Phang Nga Bay
We stayed on Koh Yao Noi, Thailand for the month of February at an AirBnb hosted by the guy who runs An Pao Ocean Safari tours. We felt like James Bond characters upon arrival when we took a speedboat to our accommodations. Definitely one of…
A Jaunt to Iceland
We’d been hoping to take this trip out to Europe for about 5 years. Back when we started searching, we heard about an airline that had an “Iceland stopover”. Wow, what a cool idea to stop in Iceland on your way across the pond! It…
Visiting London while the Queen lays in state
Queen Elizabeth died on September 8, 2022. We already had a trip to London planned for the middle of our Manchester trip from September 16-18. The dates worked out to be two weeks after leaving Switzerland and two weeks before we left England so we…
Making Pasta in Italy
As an Italian American, it seemed my duty to learn how to make pasta when given the opportunity in Italy. I mean, where better to learn this art? Luckily our friend Matteo’s mom, Amelia, was ready and willing to teach me. So the plan was…
Coffee Tour in Costa Rica
Over the weekend, we took a trip to the Bela Pitina Waterfall. Just as we were pulling into the parking lot, we saw coffee beans drying on some nearby tables. I snapped a quick photo and we made our way through the garden towards the…
Red Lodge Montana
When we were getting ready to leave Pennsylvania, we really didn’t know where we’d head next. Of course, many of you know its about the time we usually go to Costa Rica but both of us had to renew our passports for another 10 years,…
Getting the COVID-19 Vaccine in St. Croix
Just a few days after arriving in St Croix, a lady mentioned that she just got her vaccine. She said “You can too even though you’re visiting.” Well now it was on our mind! We found the medical office that she suggested online (https://plessenhealthcare.com/covid-19-vaccine-updates/) and…
Visiting the Osa Peninsula
During our times in CR, we’ve always heard of the biodiversity and beauty in the Osa but we were always deterred by the distance to get us there. We found a property that peaked our interest and with our newly acquired car, nicknamed Chiky, we…
St Barths on the Cheap
During our time on Sint Maarten, celebrating Maria’s 40th birthday, we decided to take the ferry over to the world famous St Barths for the day. Recreation spot for the rich and famous, we were a little apprehensive about going since we are neither of…
Puerto Viejo and Bocas del Toro
Maria and Neil Celebrate 19 years! We arrived in Costa Rica in December of 2018 and, according to our tourist visa, our 90th and final day was approaching. We wanted to stay longer, so we needed to figure out how to reset our time here.
Summer Train trip out West
August 3rd - September 19th, 2018 And the trip begins greetings from Chicago farmer's market in MN took the bus to Osceola, IA then the train visiting Carla and Nick in Ouray, CO We love this Amtrak Route!! had a tweet up in Seal Beach,…
Our thoughts on Durham, NC
We had just enjoyed our friends’ wedding in New London, NH, but where should we head next? Let’s see where we could take a direct flight; Durham, NC, was the winner and by chance Neil had a cousin who lives there too! Since this was…
Panama Border Crossing
We’ve been to Costa Rica a half dozen times now, but today’s story will be about our third trip in 2017. Some of our work and finances had dwindled and Costa Rica is a great place to weather that storm, and it just so happened…
Costa Rica Hardly Ever Gets Hurricanes
We chose to visit Costa Rica in the Fall of 2017 in order to experience the rainy season. We had been there during other parts of the year but we’d heard that in some parts of the country the rainy season can be difficult to…
Carnaval in Ecuador
Our February began with Carnaval celebrations! If you’re Catholic then you’ve probably heard of the celebration that happens just before lent begins. New Orleans is known for their Mardi Gras Parades, but in Latin America it’s a little different and lasts for more than just…
Seattle Adventures
This entry begins our new series of The Maria and Neil World Tour! We know how much all of you enjoy reading our entries so we apologize for the delay. Without further ado, the month of September! We had decided sometime around June that we…
Ancient Rome
Previously posted as part of the Travel Pod Series "Furry Beard Hops the Pond" on Sunday, March 30, 2014 Ah Sunday, our last day to catch some sites. After another awesome breakfast, we left the apartment a little late to catch our bus to the…
The Vatican
Previously posted as part of the Travel Pod Series "Furry Beard Hops the Pond" on Saturday, March 29, 2014 This was the first morning we spent in our Roman apartment. These accommodations included a kitchen and a stocked fridge for breakfast. We celebrated by making…