11thJune
Tyler
4 Comments
5. Peru

The Perfect Travel(er) Day Defined

If you were to ask me what the perfect traveler day is, I would describe a day that resembles the day we spent last Monday in Cusco, Peru. It went something like this: 9am: Wake up. It’s pretty cold in the morning in Cusco because it’s at some 13,000 ft altitude in the Andes Mountains. So I wake up, and it takes some will power to leave the heavy covers of our Hostel bed. Considering my only real commitments are to keep …

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02ndJune
Seema
3 Comments
4. Colombia

Colombiana (I kind of wish)

Our time in Colombia has been utterly brief – a measly 10 days – and I am writing this on our way out of the country (in Cali, to be exact) en route to Cusco, Peru. Our overall impressions are that this is a gorgeous, vibrant, fast-growing, and youthful country filled with people striving to outgrow their violent and volatile past and embracing all things modern and beautiful, but maintaining an unshakeable pride in being a Colombiano/a. The people here are, generally …

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30thMay
Seema
2 Comments
Miscellaneous

Best/Worst of Central America

T&I came up with this list upon exiting Panama. Though we’ve visited Mexico, Costa Rica, and Honduras on previous trips, we have excluded those experiences from this best/worst list and have only included Belize, Nicaragua, and Panama. We hope to come up with something similar for South America as well, mostly because it makes for a good passing-time activity on bus rides. FORMAT: Category- Best/Worst Category Best Worst  Beer  Toña (Nicaragua)  Belikin (Belize – only 9oz)  Rum  Flor de Caña (Nicaragua)  Strong Rum (Belize)  Street Food  Lady selling oxtail stew & other …

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26thMay
Seema
8 Comments
3. Panama

Son of a son of a sailor

Words are failing me. I don’t think I can fully describe the last week of our lives with the accuracy and depth required for you to fully comprehend how incredible it was. Suffice it to say, sailing from Portobelo, Panama to Cartagena, Colombia via the San Blas Islands on the S/V Luka will be one of our most treasured memories from our year of travels. The most important factor to our enjoyment was the people we were fortunate enough to …

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17thMay
Seema
4 Comments
Miscellaneous

When I grow up, I want to be…

Throughout my youth, I would have answered one of the following: pediatrician, teacher, aeronautical engineer (thanks to Apollo 13 and a visit to space camp in AL), psychiatrist (until I realized they really only dole out drugs and don’t do much counseling), therapist, policy-maker (vague, I know), and of course, lawyer (though not something as specific as Illinois public finance). But now, I have no idea how to complete that sentence. The answer could very well be bond lawyer extraordinaire, …

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12thMay
Seema
4 Comments
Miscellaneous

Food/Comida – a Central America overview

This post is dedicated to my friend (we’ll call her L) who sent me an email last week saying she loves the blog but wants to hear more about the food. L- I hope this satisfies your appetite. It should be no surprise to most of you that Tyler and I describe ourselves as amateur foodies. We appreciate all types of cuisine at all prices, and when in Chicago, probably spend too much money on eating out. But we love to …

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11thMay
Tyler
3 Comments
3. Panama

The Great Hot Dog Project: Panama City

You may not know that I am a Great Hotdog Project correspondent for StewOver.com.  As such, I have the responsibility to uphold the standards and founding principles of the HotDog Quotient.  This is my quest, and I aim to apply the HotDog Quotient around the world from the beef dogs of Argentina to the actual dog-meat-based dogs (I’m assuming) in Vietnam.  I plan to make my vendor/restaurant selection based on popularity as judged by the amount of people …

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06thMay
Tyler
3 Comments
3. Panama

Santa Catalina, Surf Haven

Santa Catalina, probably my favorite place we have visited so far. A beautifully rustic tiny surf town on the southern Pacific shore of Panama.  It is the home of multiple international-class surf beaches and not much more – which is precicely why it’s such a gem. No internet (basically), no supermarkets, no chain businesses of any sort (including gas stations and ATMs), only a few scattered restaurants of questionably quality and sanitation practices, and a point break that makes beautiful waves …

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25thApril
Seema
3 Comments
3. Panama

Panamania

Our journey to Panama started on Saturday morning at 10am from San Jose, Costa Rica. The bus was almost empty and only charged $8 for the 6 hour drive to a town just past the CR/Panama border. Unfortunately, I needed to use the facilities on board and was faced with an unfortunate predicament when told the lock on the bathroom door could not be removed. In my evaluation of the situation, I determined that a bladder infection would be more …

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13thApril
Seema
10 Comments
2. Nicaragua

And on the Seventh Day…

A much needed rest (though 44 days in, not 7). Now I realize most of you are muttering under your breath “Rest from WHAT? How do you rest from vacation?” Oh but allow me to explain why we insist on NOT calling our trip a vacation. Vacation implies comfort, relaxation, ease of travel, dealing with businesses/people who are generally directly involved in tourism, a relaxed budget (or none at all for some lucky people), nice restaurants, packing enough clothes/supplies for …

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