Recent Posts
Eric’s 50th: Gijón, where we stayed
In Gijon we had a one-night stay on our way to the mountains, and then a week-long stay near the beach. ARTIEM Asturias ARTIEM was a good stopping point after a morning of travel, located on the rural edges of the city. Our check-in lady was friendly and gave us a...
Eric’s 50th: daytrip to Oviedo
The bus from Gijon to Oviedo is way cheaper (and more frequent) then the train, which makes it popular, but it’s a little tricky to figure out. We bought our timed tickets for 11:15am via credit card on a machine - so far so good - but there are no signs about what...
Eric’s 50th: Picos de Europa hikes and sites
We spent six days around park, moving every two days from east to north to west. Our plan was to do one big hike per day in the park. Brez to Canal de las Arranedos The morning started overcast with rain threatening but we decided to try this “mostly flat” hike near...
Eric’s 50th: Picos de Europa food and drink
Potes La Soldrería doesn’t take reservations, so we decided to go on the early side to see if we could snag a table. The regular tables were all full at 8:30pm but luckily there were two seats at the bar. We had a lovely time chatting with the bartender in mixed...
Eric’s 50th: Picos de Europa, where we stayed
We wanted to be close to certain hikes and sites and ultimately chose three different towns around the park. If we had to do it again I would have skipped Las Arenas and added an extra night in Potes (our favorite) and in Cangas de Onís. Potes El Balcon A steep road...
Eric’s 50th: Madrid sites
Our only full day in Madrid was spent visiting free museums and getting our steps in! Our first stop was Museo Geominero, where one of us had to show our passport to enter. This museum was surprisingly detailed with three floors all in one large room. Here we saw lots...
Eric’s 50th: Madrid food and drink
On our first evening in Madrid, we took a leisurely walk up Ponzano Street to check out the tapas spots the area is known for. Our first stop, Bokaxankla Bar, had a young vibe. Lots of tables were marked reserved at 8pm mid-week but the place was mostly empty. Our...
Eric’s 50th: Madrid, where we stayed
Madrid: Hyatt Regency Hesperia Madrid We had a nice quiet room at the end of the hallway that faced an inner courtyard, which was perfect for sleeping. The bathroom was a good size, but the frosted glass door was a bit weird. Thankfully they had a shade… and the...
Our Itinerary
2026 Trips
Parrish, FL (Jan)
Medellin, Colombia (Feb)
Wilmington, NC (Apr)
Madrid, Spain (May)
Asturias, Spain (May)
Galicia, Spain (June)
London, UK (July)
Cotswolds, UK (July)
Long Island, NY (July)
Ireland (Aug)
Vietnam (Nov)
Laos (Nov)
Cambodia (Dec)
Singapore (Dec)
2025 Trips
Tampa Bay, FL (Jan)
Buenos Aires, Argentina (Feb)
Villa la Angostura, Argentina (Feb)
Bariloche, Argentina (Feb)
Iguazu Falls (Feb)
Miami, FL (Feb)
Richmond, VA (Mar)
Boston, MA (Apr)
Kathmandu, Nepal (May)
Bhutan (May)
Doha, Qatar (May)
Bristol + London, UK (Jul)
Long Island, NY (Jul)
Slovenia (Sep)
Treviso, Italy (Sep)
Bologna, Italy (Sep)
day trips from Bologna (Oct)
Turin, Italy (Oct)
Greensboro, NC (Nov)
Featured Video
Eric and Leandra in Orient Point, NY :)
Hello! This website chronicles the travel adventures of a computational biologist and a WordPress website developer (with past entries of our 😇 rescued mini schnauzers, Riesling and Pasha).
We’ve steadily increased our travel over the last several years and that is the focus of our blog currently, but you can read older ‘daily life‘ and ‘canine‘ posts by clicking on those links.
Eric and Leandra in Orient Point, NY :)