Though we spent a considerable portion of our time driving along the coast there were several inland parks that we stopped at as well. On day one we headed inland from Lorne in search of several...
Blog posts from International Travel
Asia/Australia 2013: Great Ocean Road coastal sights
From Melbourne we drove about an hour south through dry countryside before hitting the first views around Torquay. With a beautifully sunny day we had views in every direction. Along the road we...
Asia/Australia 2013: Great Ocean Road food & lodging
Hotel I originally booked us into a hotel closer to the beach, but thinking a B&B would be a nice change, I switched the reservation a few months back. Best decision of the trip. Nelson's Perch...
Asia/Australia 2013: Melbourne sights
While tennis was our main objective in Melbourne, we still planned to explore the city in our off-time. Unfortunately my 36 hour fever/cold coincided with most of our time in Melbourne so we didn't...
Asia/Australia 2013: the tennis
The Australian Open, known locally as 'the tennis,' was a motivating factor for our trip. However, tickets didn't go on sale until October, so we had to wait 7 months after reserving our flights...
Asia/Australia 2013: Melbourne lodging & food
Hotel The main purpose of staying in Melbourne's CBD was to attend the Australian Open, so location factored highly in our decision for the Punthill Manhattan Apartments. Though not inexpensive, the...
Asia/Australia 2013: Yarra Valley hikes & sights
While the area around the Yarra Valley is well known for its wines there are also a number of nice nature spots in the neighboring hills too. We started out our first morning with a curvy drive to...
Asia/Australia 2013: Yarra Valley wine tasting
Our first winery stop was Innocent Bystander in Healesville, a bustling restaurant and shop with a wine tasting area near the front door. They offered a free tasting that was ok but not really...
Asia/Australia 2013: Yarra Valley food & lodging
Lodging Yarra Glen Bed & Breakfast, Yarra Glen There were numerous B&B options available in wine country, so the key for us was to find a well-priced place in a good location. I liked the...
Asia/Australia 2013: a day in Hong Kong
We'd been in Hong Kong on our first trip to Asia (Dec 2011), so we were excited to return during our long layover and try out some new spots while revisiting some of our previous favorites. From the...
Asia/Australia 2013: travel overview
We recently returned from an two week adventure that saw us in Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, and Sonoma County. Wine, koalas, Grand Slam tennis, tropical storms, and orchids were just a few of...
2012 retrospective
Leandra recently completed our now annual (2011, 2010, 2009) year-in-photos recap with a 3 minute video overview highlighting our travels (domestic and international) and home renovations (backyard)...
Belgium 2012: overnight in London
On our way home from Belgium we had a 20-hour layover in London, so after clearing customs we dropped our carry-on luggage at the hotel and took the tube into central London. Our intended...
Belgium 2012: street art
Below are a few of my favorite examples of street art / graffiti we saw on our recent Belgium trip. Bruges always look behind the street signs... harsh yo. that's where I left it... Antwerp those...
Belgium 2012: sights in Ghent
On our last day in Belgium we visited Ghent which is about a 40 min train ride from Brussels. At the Ghent train station we purchased metro cards for the tram that would take us to the the center of...
Belgium 2012: food & drink in Ghent
Beer Waterhuis aan de Bierkant - It was a bit chilly during our visit, so while Eric was wandering around taking photos, the rest of us pulled up a chair next to the heater and sampled a few beers....
Belgium 2012: Brussels food & drink
Cantillon The experience at Cantillon gets its own heading because it was so unique and so good. We finally made it here on our third trip to Brussels and boy was it worth it. For 5 Euros you get an...
Belgium 2012: Antwerp food & drink
Beer Once again we were within a mile of the top-rated beer place in the world and, once again, it was randomly closed for our entire stay in Antwerp. Thankfully, we found many other places to try...
Our Itinerary
2025 Trips
Tampa Bay, FL (Jan)
Buenos Aires, Argentina (Feb)
Villa la Angostura, Argentina (Feb)
Bariloche, Argentina (Feb)
Iguazu Falls, Argentina + Brazil (Feb)
Miami, FL (Feb)
Richmond, VA (Mar)
Boston, MA (Apr)
Kathmandu, Nepal (May)
Bhutan (May)
Slovenia (Sep)
Treviso, Italy (Sep)
Bologna, Italy (Sep)
Turin, Italy (Oct)
2024 Trips
San Diego, CA (Jan)
Sarasota, FL (Feb)
Madrid, Spain (Mar)
Valencia, Spain (Mar+Apr)
Palma, Mallorca (Apr)
Croatia (May)
Long Island, NY (July)
Faroe Islands (Aug)
London, UK (Sept)
Puglia, Italy (Sept)
Matera, Italy (Oct)
Rome, Italy (Oct)
Mosel Valley, Germany (Oct)
Frankfurt, Germany (Oct)
London + Manchester, UK (Dec)
2023 Trips
San Diego (Jan)
Orlando (Feb)
Richmond, VA (Apr)
Northern Italy (Apr)
NC Mountains (May)
Long Island (Jul)
Wisconsin (Aug)
Chicago (Aug)
Oak Island, NC (Sept)
Brooklyn, NY (Sept)
Bordeaux + Rugby World Cup (Sep)
Castilla y León (Sep)
Seychelles (Nov)
Willamette Valley (Dec)