Colors of Cartagena

Our time was short in Cartagena, but it was incredibly memorable. We started the morning with what many say is a must-do while visiting this gorgeous city riding in a Chiva Bus. A Chiva bus cam only be described as a party on wheels. Upon arrival to the bus we were handed a bucket of ice, local rum and coke. The entertainment on board was a 3-man band located in the middle rows of the bus; which truly bring the party to life. While some shy away from 8am cocktails, we embraced the experience like a local. When in Rome, right?  

We took a short site seeing tour stopping to take photos at San Felipe Castle and Las Bóvedas. Las Bóvedas at one time was the cities dungeon and now turned into a tourist hub for souvenirs. Outside the shops was an authentic Colombia coffee kiosk made out of an old Willys jeep. From Las Bóvedas you can capture views of the ocean or even start a bike ride along the city walls. 

We headed back through the city on our party bus and were dropped off at the clock tower to finish the city highlights. Beyond those walls were some of the most colorful buildings I had ever seen. The balconies, flowers and colorfully dressed ladies carrying baskets of fruit on their heads were along every street. We strolled for hours just taking in each and every square block of this fantastic city. We even stopped into the famous Juan Valdez. 

Cartagena sparked our curiosity for Colombia and we cannot wait to go back to see more. 

Happy Traveling, 

Katrina

Georgia and Beyond- Journey through the Caucuses

When people say Georgia, they usually think of the small state in the USA and not the country squeezed in between Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan, Turkey and the Black Sea. Georgia is known for its vast vineyards, snowy mountains, ancient sites and UNESCO Monasteries. The country first sparked my curiosity as its proximity to the famous Silk Road and ancient sites. Georgia for me is where religion is a way of life and wine is the sacred nectar of all social functions.

My first impressions of Georgia were a 3am arrival at the airport, in which I could not find my driver. In country where my friends and family only knew it as war ridden and unstable, I will admit going alone had me on edge. People could sense I was looking for something or someone as I paced up and down the corridor searching the signs to see if I could find my name. They were helpful, but my guard was up and not prepared for so many genuinely helpful people. A quick phone call to the hotel and I heard my name over the intercom. A 30-minute transfer and I was in the heart of Tbilisi.  

I entrusted Envoy Hostel and Tours to keep me safe and show me around the amazing country and beyond.  On about 3 hours sleep, a simple breakfast and 2 cups of coffee I was ready to start my day in Georgia. A trip to Jvari, Mtskheta, Gori, Uplistsikhe and the infamous Stalin Museum offered a nice variety of culture and scenic beauty. What I loved the most about the Envoy tours was the knowledge of the guides and the people who joined the tours. Every day was truly an adventure which usually had some consumption of delicious food and wine. The lunch with the locals was a highlight for me on this day as our host was from the region where it is now forbidden for Georgians to go. 

Our first stop was the hilltop church of Jvari which was built overlooking Mtskheta the oldest village in Georgia. This church is said to be the holiest church among the Georgians. The church was built between the 5th and 6th century over the original location of the wooden cross; which was erected by King Mirian.  We made our way down to Mtskheta and stepped into what felt a boutique village. The fences, houses, and flowers were in perfect order within the village. You could see the amount of pride the Georgians have in preserving their longstanding heritage here. After a few hours walking around the churches and village we made our way to Uplistsikhe.

Uplistsikhe I think is a nice place to visit if you do not plan to see David Gareji, in my own opinion. While some of the buildings were intact it was truly just an afternoon of crawling through caves, but not much factual information to be told about the site. The Stalin Museum in Gori gives you a chance to visit Stalin’s hometown and you can see his childhood home on site. The museum was one-sided and all the good was told about his life in the museum and none of the bad, I would leave it at that.

We headed back after a long day into Tbilisi. I was completely exhausted at this point and searched for a good place for dinner. I found Pastorali and ate their everyday as the food was so delicious and the staff was super friendly. Its always really awkward for me showing up to a restaurant asking for a table for one, but the staff always let me pick a great seat to people watch from.

I truly loved Georgia and cannot wait to plan my next visit to the area to see more of what this country has to offer.

Happy Traveling,

Katrina

Dordogne Valley – Best villages for a weekend getaway

Dordogne Valley – Land of Fairytales

La Roque-Gageac - Upper Village

There are no words to describe the beauty of this region. Dare I say it; it has the most beautiful villages I have ever seen. Perfectly placed flower boxes in each window with honey-toned buildings overlooking the winding Dordogne River.

La Roque-Gageac Promenade

The region covers a vast area between Bergerac and Brive, but we picked a small area that was far less populated. We chose to stay at the Domaine du Château de Monrecour, which was just one village over from Beynac-et-Cazenac, where we spent time strolling the quiet cobblestone streets at dusk.

The local hot air balloons launch from the castle grounds, which was quite the site to see at sunset. The hotel offered two heated pools and an incredible backdrop to the gorgeous area.

In my opinion the three best villages to visit in no apparent order are:

Domme, Beynac-et-Cazenac and La Roque-Gageac.

La Roque-Gageac:

We started the first day off roaming around the bustling La Roque-Gageac. This town truly had a lot to offer, there are many viewpoints from all over the village.  There are caves high above the town, but at the time of writing they were under renovation.  There were more activities and restaurants here than in the other villages we visited later in our trip. You had the choice to take a riverboat, which takes you up stream for a one hour ride with a guided tour.  Alternatively, you can also rent a canoe from various vendors along the water and make your way down the river yourself. Some of the streets felt like quiet alleys tucked away in a fairytale. 

 

Beynac-et-Cazenac:

We set off to Beynac-et-Cazenac right as the shops were closing, which no doubt made the experience in the village that much more exciting. We strolled around for nearly an hour getting lost in the streets without a soul in sight. We hiked up towards the Chateau to get some of the views of the hot air balloons launching from our hotel. It was down right magical. The photos alone do this village no justice. You could see numerous Chateaus’ in the distance from the viewpoints in the village.

We finished the evening with one of the best meals I have had in a long time at Hotel-Restaurant du Château. You must try the Foie gras while here; it’s a local favorite and can be found at most restaurants. This village took my breath away, I truly felt as though we were on the set of Beauty and the Beast.

 

Domme:

We started the morning off on the east end of the Dordogne River into the village of Domme. Domme is set up high on a hill overlooking the winding valley below. The village is well known for its caves “Grotte de Domme”. We opted for ice cream and a stroll along the city’s still remaining fortification walls. Each street offered such breathtaking views. The colors of the doors and shutters in this town by far were the most picturesque. 

 

Happy Traveling, 

Katrina

Dublin in a Day - 12 hours in Dublin

Dublin in a Day- Tackle Dublin in 12 hours

I am always saying how close so many countries are to the UK. Flights to most places are just under 45 minutes. Yep, you can hop to another country just for the day. What I find great is that the low cost airlines like Ryan Air and Easy Jet promote this and you can find flights to meet that tight schedule.

Flights make it happen

So I am sure you are wondering how do you make this work, right? I have done this about 3 times now so it’s totally tried and tested. Each time I try to see something I didn’t see before and its possible. 

View fullsize

Well on our recent stop over to Dublin we grabbed the 6am flight out of Stansted and the 8pm flight back. It makes for a long day so if you have kids you and be assured that will be sleeping in route back to the UK. We have done this with my daughter when she was just 2 years old, and then again when she was 9.

Before you go I highly recommend picking up a Freedom Pass, this enables you airport transport, Hop On and Hop Off Tour, and free bus transport while in Dublin. Once booked online you print off your voucher and collect right in the terminal building. On arrival you will pick up you pass or chose to head straight out the main doors to the bus stop. You will see signs for AirLink buses. There is a machine at the bus stop to pick up your ticket if you decided not to go with the Freedom Pass Ticket. The cost of the ticket is around €6 each way at the time of my trip. From there I recommend getting off at the College Green and Temple Bar and taking a stroll through the Temple Bar district before headed onto the Hop On and Hop Off bus. If the Guinness Storehouse is top on your list I would highly recommend heading there on the bus first as the lines by midday can get long. The Guinness Storehouse was family friendly and offered apple juice or orange juice for the kids.

View fullsize

From here we headed to Dublin Castle, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Trinity College to see the Book of Kells, and then to Kilmainham Gaol. We headed back into town to grab a warm lunch at the Queen of Tarts. It was a quick pub lunch and offer breakfast for the better part of the day. After a quick bite to eat we headed to Christ Church Cathedral to jump on the afternoon tour of the church for a history lesson. This is great as they have traditional bell ringers in the church and you could have a chance to ring the bells if you catch it in time.

Relaxing Afternoon

At this point we had spent the better part of the morning touring and decided to head over for a Jameson Whiskey Distillery tour. This was kid friendly as well as they were talking about the science involved in the making and really tried hard to provide some educational learning for the kids. It was about 5pm now so we headed back into town to walk down through the Temple Bar area. We decided to have a relaxing sit down dinner at the The Oldstorehouse based on a friend’s recommendation to try the Guinness stew and she sure was right. We popped into a few tourist shops to pick up some fun gifts and headed to the airport on the AirLink.

View fullsize

We packed a lot in, but it is totally doable if you utilize the bus tour to get around. If you have family visiting it’s a great stop over and its far less crowded than a trip to London.

Good Tips:

Wear good walking shoes

Pre-book as much as possible to maximize you day

Don’t be afraid to ask directions. Dubliners are the friendliest people around.

Happy Traveling,

Katrina