our journey
El Salvador is the first country we decided to travel to in Central America. Despite all the rumors of being one of the most dangerous countries in Latin America, (in the past, statistically San Salvador was the murder capital of the world), we decided to visit, due to so any recent positive changes. E specially after so much progress was made to improve the safety and security of all, under the leadership of their new President, Nayib Bukele. One interesting aspect of our visit, was that we unknowingly visited in El Salvador, and the capital of San Salvador, during the 2024 Presidential elections. Wow, what an experience!
Before we left, we got some great tips from neighbors, who had visited there several years prior, when it was much more dangerous! To describe our 3 week visit to El Salvador in one sentence: “Our trip was a blast!” We fell in love with this charming, beautiful country, and learned a lot about its very sad past.
The original name of Guatemala was Quauhtlemallan, which means ‘place of many trees’ in the Mexican language Nahuatl. …
Guatemala City, happens to be the largest city in Central America and yet, almost half of the population in Guatemala is indigenous descendants from the Maya civilization.
The natural beauty of the country, with its many mountains, and volcanoes, along with the very famous lake, Atitlan, formed in a massive volcanic crater, and is surrounded by coffee fields and villages is almost hypnotic. There were times when we could not believe these amazing sights, of mountainous and volcanic beauty. We oft felt like we had gone back in time, or were visiting some Hollywood set for Jurassic Park, or the like.
Mexico is known for its rich culture, ancient ruins, dazzling beaches, with world class snorkeling and diving in the pristine waters of the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico, or the Pacific Ocean. Oh, not to mention that there are over 7500 Cenotes in Mexico as well. Only in Mexico is the phenomenon referred to as a “cenote,” which comes from the Mayan word dzonot—meaning “water-filled cavity”, with water so cold and refreshing, on a hot Mexican afternoon. One can tour Mayan temple ruins by day and indulge in fantastic food while listening to the rhythms of live music by night. Sounds great no? To date, we have only visited two of Mexico’s 32 states, meaning we have many more miles, and adventures ahead of us and we are very excited to see and learn more about this wonderful land!
The land of Rodeos, Bar-b-ques, Vineyards, Breweries, and home to such big thriving cities, like Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin and many more. With wildlife galore, hiking, mountain trekking, river tubing, plus so much more river and lake activities, there are just so many things to do in Texas, and so much area to do it in. Texas has also played a great part in American history, (and not just the Alamo). Exploring its vastness is a challenge, but the Texan hospitality makes such challenges a most enjoyable adventure.
So much has been written about the “Lone Star State”, from its extra-extra large geography, to its natural beauty, its food, and culture, the hospitality, its history and so much more. After living in Austin for three years, and travelling the vast Texas landscape as often as possible, we feel that we have only scratched the surface, of its innate wonders.
So here is just a microscopic glimpse of our adventures in Texas.
We had a ‘once in 6 year opportunity’ to visit Turkey together and our expectations were high. Due to chaos at Amsterdam airport, our routine trip was delayed 2 times, and we arrived in Istanbul, at midnight after 16 hours of travel. Unfortunately, our luggage did not arrive with us. Fun! Due to lack of sleep, travel and some family members being ill, we had 2 weeks of off and on, ‘down time’, resting and recovering. So our ‘great expectations’ started off in a minor key. Istanbul, a city we both are very fond of, had grown even larger where traffic was other worldly. We travelled by metro, and car, by boat, by taxi, when one could be found, and we were most effective on foot. Hot and humid weather, high cobble stoned hills, were as challenging as one could imagine. The city, that straddles two continents, a mixture of so many cultures, and history, is like a museum unto itself.
Fields and fields of Sunflowers, aqua blue waters, and friendly, warm smiles, accompanied us through our travels in Western Turkey. The sunflowers blended into olive orchards, and vineyards, the village mosques transitioned into village churches, and yet as we travelled overland to Greece, the warm friendly smiles were very much the same. Culturally diverse, and yet with so many similarities, we immensely enjoyed each day in Greece. Short but sweet, a journey to remember.. We do hope to make it back there soon, and hopefully for a longer visit.
Thanksgiving Holidays? Visit Family.. road trip? Great Idea! In November 2021, we set out on a short 6-day, 2400-mile road trip from Austin, Texas to Ashville, North Carolina. Being music lovers, and since our trip originated from the ‘Live Music Capital of the U.S., we felt destined to stop and visit Memphis, Tennessee, the home base of Elvis Presley and the home ‘of the Blues’ and so we crossed the Mississippi River for the very first time! Following our Memphis visit, we spent 2 wonderful, but bone-chilling days in Nashville, the heart of Country Music, hosting the Grand Ole Opry, Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, with music and history on almost every street!
Being inspired by the amazing history of music, we experienced, we set out for the final leg of our journey to Asheville. Our challenge was to arrive on time for dinner, the night before Thanksgiving, and we had ‘miles to go before we sleep’! Due to heavy holiday traffic, and ongoing road work on the Newfound Gap, the only route open through the Great Smokey Mountains National Park, the 31-mile trip took us over two hours. We were warmed and happy to arrive home just in time. Smiles and hugs, a warm fireplace, family, and Thanksgiving!