July 2011 Archives - A Cruising Couple

Our Turn at The Seven Links Project

Jul 302011

7 Links of the Year is a sort of blogging project currently being circulated around the travel blogosphere. Started by TripBase, the goal is to “unite bloggers in a joint endeavor to share lessons learned and create a bank of long but not forgotten blog posts that deserve to see the light of day again.” We’ve been following the Seven Links Project from afar, never expecting that us newbies would actually be nominated to keep the thread alive.

So when The Roamantics nominated US, A Cruising Couple, we were not only shocked, but also absolutely thrilled to join the movement in reminiscing on our past posts. We were nominated over a week ago, and with the craziness of moving to Taiwan we are just now getting around to posting our 7 links to the blog. But with no further ado, here we go!

Most Beautiful Post: New Zealand Love

Dan posted these pictures of his New Zealand road trip as part of the #Blog4NZ project right after the earthquakes in March affected the country. It only seems fitting that our most beautiful post should be strictly photos of one of the most beautiful places on Earth!

Most Popular Post: We Need YOUR Help!

This post is a little bittersweet to look back on. We applied for an internship with Amble Resort to be their Isla Palenque Island Interns, and while we made it to the final round, ultimately we were not chosen. In hindsight it was better that we were able to immediately move to Taiwan, but of course it was a little upsetting not to receive the jobs we wanted so badly at the time. The good part? Seeing all the support from our friends and family as we harassed people to vote for us and then spread the link to their friends. This was by far our most popular post, which reminds us of how much support we have from all of you!

Most Controversial Post: Portland vs. Seattle

We haven’t really written any controversial posts—or at least any posts people felt inclined to comment on as controversial. But we imagine that our Portland vs. Seattle post might have been a bit upsetting to a die-hard Seattle fan, as we ultimately choose Portland as our choice city.

Most Helpful Post: Razzlin’ and Dazzlin’ Chicago

We just recently wrote this post, but reading back through it we think it’s chock full of good information for anyone traveling to Chicago. I guess we’ll have to wait and see if we get more feedback from people who took our advice to know how truly helpful it is.

A Post Whose Success Surprised Us: Soul Burgers in Memphis

This post was just about our most successful, and it’s one of our favorites. It was hard to capture the essence of this dive in Memphis, but we did our best. And we were definitely surprised so many people were interested in reading about it. ‘Soul Burgers’ is still one of the most common Google searches for the blog!

A Post We Feel Didn’t Get the Attention It Deserved: Where the Buffalo Roam (Really Close to Your Car)

Maybe Yellowstone gets enough hype as it is. Maybe people were just sick of reading our blog at this point. Whatever the case, this post didn’t get nearly the attention we thought it would, especially because we’re a little partial to the pictures :-p

The Post We Are Most Proud Of: The Road Ahead

We weren’t really sure how people would respond to our idea to road trip across the States for our honeymoon. We also had no idea whether or not we would successfully keep the blog (or the Volvo) running throughout the whole trip. Nevertheless, we went ahead and posted our over-the-top road trip itinerary before we really had the chance to think it through. It was the whole reason why our blog took off, so we can’t help but say it is the post we are most proud of. Plus, we actually did it!

So now comes the part where we nominate up to 5 more bloggers! At this point in the game, most of the travel bloggers we follow have already been nominated. But there are a few bloggers from Taiwan we’ve been keeping an eye on, and we would love for them to continue the thread!

Taiwandering

A Hungry Girl’s Guide to Taipei

The View From Taiwan

Pittsburgh: Road Trip Closes, Airport Gates Open

Jul 202011

If you read any of our posts about San Diego, Napa Valley, or Portland and Seattle, it was probably pretty obvious that we were having a splendid time exploring the West Coast. But there is one thing all those great places lack, and that’s family Our last few stops of the road trip were spent visiting all our relatives dotting the East Coast before finally touching down in the Peak of Good Living, otherwise known as Apex, North Carolina. The first of these family-stops was Pittsburgh, which will always hold a special place in my heart.

When I was in seventh grade my Aunt and Uncle, Dan and Patsy, flew me up to their home and took great care of me for a week. It was my first time on a plane, and I’m pretty sure that it sparked some of the travel bug I’m so infected with now. For years I was telling people that Pittsburgh was my favorite city in the whole world. Of course, this was before I had really been to any great cities anywhere in the world, but that was completely irrelevant at the time. Luckily, this visit to Pittsburgh did not disappoint, due largely in part to the great hospitality Dan and Patsy showed us.

Our first stop in Pittsburgh was the classic Duquesne Incline. Voted by USA Today as one of the top ten sites in the world for viewing a cityscape, the incline offers a magnificent birds-eye view of Downtown and The Point, where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers converge to form the Ohio River. With such an astonishing view comes an astonishing amount of people, so soak it up quick or you’ll form an anxious queue of tourists waiting for their chance to capture the iconic view.

On Saturdays, a great way to spend the day is in Pittsburgh’s historic warehouse district at The Strip. This is where merchants come to sell you just about anything you could want, especially if it’s related to the Steelers, Pirates or Penguins, the city’s local sports teams. It’s also the perfect place to swerve in and out of the locals while grabbing a fish sandwich or picking out some fresh flowers. My sweet tooth opted for a pound of fudge.

We actually did quite a bit of eating in Pittsburgh, all of which was absolutely delicious. Of course, since we’re not counting calories anyway, a trip to Primanti Bros. Restaurant had to happen. Originally built to feed truckers on the move in the 1930’s, Primanti’s has managed to make your meal as dense as possible by throwing your fries right onto the sandwich. It’s pretty tasty, granted you can find a way to fit it into your mouth!

After a fabulous stopover in Pittsburgh enjoying good food, great family and a few intense games of Upwords, it was time to make our final stop in Newport News, Virginia. Here we visited with Dan’s grandparents while also making a quick trip into Richmond to say one final goodbye to our good friends Kati and Stephen. In between family meals and absurd amounts of laundry, we said all our final goodbyes before heading home, officially putting our road trip to an end.

So that brings us to North Carolina where it barely feels like we just spent seven weeks driving cross-country. But that’s probably because we were only here for a few frantic days. In fact, this post is scheduled to come out at the same time we will be boarding our plane from JFK to Tokyo! We arrive in Taiwan at 9:30 (Taiwanese time…so subtract 13 hours for EST) on the 21st, where we will be living and teaching English for an indefinite amount of time. We must admit it’s pretty liberating to have one-way tickets to the other side of the world with no idea what we’ll do after our one-year teaching contract is up.

We’re going to keep our blog going so we can continue to share all our wonderful experiences abroad. We have been amazed at the number of views our blog has received, and we are truly grateful to have so many people who care about our travels! We’ll also be coming back to our road trip, because once we get the time we want to reflect and sum up the trip. We want to make sure everyone knows our overall impression, the best and worst moments, what we would change, and all that other jazz people keep asking us about! But for now, that will have to wait until we are settled into our new Taiwanese home!

Chicago: Razzlin’ and Dazzlin’

Jul 162011

It started off as a town built out of entirely too much wood. Then fire swept through, causing destruction of epic proportions and the deaths of hundreds. But the result was an immediate rebuilding that transformed the place into one of America’s most important cities.

Chicago!!

Chicago really is a place like no other. Situated on the shore of Lake Michigan, the city provides a surprising contrast to the surrounding vast plains of middle America. Whether it’s the vibrant ethnic neighborhoods, the deep dish pizza and Chicago style hotdogs, or the public art ranging from The Picasso to The Bean, Chicago is a unique city that goes above and beyond its typical association with Al Capone.

There are countless ways to stay busy exploring the city of Chicago, but here’s our list of recommendations.

Accommodation

We almost always choose CouchSurfing over paying for accommodation. Which is what we did for most of our time in Chicago, staying with some great hosts conveniently located adjacent to the University of Illinois at Chicago. But when one of your best friends generously gives you a night at a gorgeous AAA Four Diamond Award hotel, you don’t think twice about packing up and indulging yourself. Our last night in Chicago we stayed at The W, an incredible hotel with phenomenal views of Lake Michigan. Seriously, we could see the lake from our shower. Include that with a feather-bed, down pillows and a five-minute walk to Navy Pier, and you have one happy newlywed couple ☺

Walking Tours

There are numerous ways to walk around exploring Chicago, and you can effortlessly spend a week just getting to know a few of the numerous ethnic neighborhoods. But if you want to stay in the Downtown area known as The Loop, there is a great public art walking tour to take advantage of, compliments of Lonely Planet’s Chicago City Guide. Not only is it free, but the public art really adds to the character of the city itself, and the tour can be done in as quickly as an hour and a half. Along the way, you’ll stop at the following:

1. The Picasso: Noone’s really sure what this piece of artwork represents (after all, Picasso did create it) but come game time it wears a Bear’s hat just like the rest of the Chicagoans.

2. The Chicago Theatre: Let’s be honest—how can you visit a city as great as Chicago and not get your picture taken with the famous 1920s marquee?

3. The Chicago Cultural Center: Not only does the center have the world’s largest Tiffany’s glass dome on the second floor, there is free wi-fi and a wealth of information about Chicago itself.

4. Cloud Gate: This landmark is more popularly known as ‘The Bean,’ after the shape it resembles, and is a great place to snap photos of the skyline’s reflection. Although most Chicagoans hated it at first, it is now one of the most photographed images in the city. This means be prepared to fight for your image-snapping ground amongst the throngs of fellow tourists!

5. Crown Fountain: These fountains provide children with plenty of water splashing pleasure while also displaying larger than life human faces on their 50 ft LED screens.

For the complete tour, including directions and descriptions, see the Lonely Planet guide mentioned above.

Stuffing Your Face

Oh the eating to be done in Chicago! You can easily expand your waistline here if you’re not careful, but every calorie tastes delicious and gives you an excuse to explore the great ethnic neighborhoods we keep mentioning. Some of the most expensive gastronomic adventures can also be found in Chicago, but if you’re on a budget than here are our suggestions:

1. Czerwone Jabluszko (The Red Apple): It’s a polish buffet with every sort of potato dumpling and sausage you could ever ask for. Even if you’re not a Polish food connoisseur, you’re bound to find something you like at The Red Apple.

2. Ann Sather: This Swedish restaurant, located in Andersonville, is known for its Cinnamon Rolls–and for good reason! For $3 you get two massive, warm and decadent rolls covered in all the rich icing goodness you could ever want. After breakfast you can explore the Swedish American Museum next door or head down the street to the landmark Swedish Bakery.

3. Giordano’s: Some say you haven’t lived until you have tried true Chicago deep dish pizza. Well, I guess we can officially call our life complete. Every Chicagoan has their own favorite pizza joint, but we opted for Giordano’s because of its convenient location near our CouchSurfing home. We were more than satisfied with our first experience, but be prepared that this pizza is seriously two inches thick, and you really only need a slice to fill you up.

4. A Random Hot Dog Place: We’re not quite sure where we got these hotdogs from, but they were actually much better than we expected. A hotdog ‘Chicago Style’ translates into tomatoes, onions, neon relish, sport peppers, yellow mustard, celery salt and a kosher pickle.

5. Yolk: We love a good breakfast (even if it’s at 1:00 in the afternoon) and that is exactly what Yolk specializes in. We suggest the California Omelette, with avocado, sautéed mushrooms, green onions, tomato and garlic, adorned with a side of two pancakes and fresh fruit. It takes two to finish the generous portion, and at only $9.99 we think that’s a pretty good deal.

Brewskies

If you need refreshment after all the walking on a hot summer day, head over to Goose Island Beer Company. This Chicago brewery has a constantly evolving beer menu with a fairly wide selection.

If you’re out exploring the ritzy Gold Coast, make your way to the John Hancock Center, Chicago’s third largest skyscraper. But don’t pay the $15 to access the 94th floor observation deck; rather, go to the 96th floor lounge for free, where you can use the same money for classy drinks to accompany your top-notch view.

Entertainment

We love going to see shows, so when we found $18 tickets to see Beauty and the Beast, we jumped on the opportunity. Yes, our seats were a bit in the nose bleed section, but when the show didn’t sell out we were able to scoot down quite a few rows. We thoroughly enjoyed the show in the gorgeous Oriental Theater and really couldn’t have thought of a better excuse to dress up and grab post-theatre drinks.

Boulder and Blair Buddies

Jul 122011

Since we have both done our fair share of international traveling, we’ve made great American friends abroad who live in all sorts of cool places in the US. Dan’s fellow Australia travel partner, Doug, lives outside Boulder, Colorado, and one of Casey’s good friends she met in India lives in Blair, Nebraska. Both took us in when we passed through their neck-of-the-woods, offerings us a chance to reunite while getting to know a new neighborhood.

We’ve always heard great things about Boulder, Colorado; the people are so healthy, everyone hikes and rock climbs, they’ve got great microbreweries… Luckily our high expectations were exceeded, starting at South Boulder Peak. First off, let’s just address the fact that we have been spending way too many consecutive hours in the car on our eastward trek home. The cities in the northern part of the US are few and farther in between (compared to the South) which means lots of nonstop 8 hour drives! Needless to say, we couldn’t wait to stretch our legs and check out the great hiking we had heard so much about. Doug informed us that South Boulder Peak was the way to go, one of his favorite hikes in the area. What he didn’t emphasize (probably not wanting to scare us off) was that the route is pretty strenuous for folks who have spent a good portion of the last 5 weeks sitting. Not to mention that the “path” turns from a walkway into an all-out boulder scramble as you near the top! As if we hadn’t suffered enough dehydration just sitting in the car without A/C, we attacked the route during midday and brought along one bottle of water for the both of us to share. Yep, we’re always prepared.

That said, every last drop of sweat was worth it. The steep and rocky 6.7 mile hike offers absolutely spectacular views once you reach the summit, with picturesque mountains painting the horizon. Definitely one of the most satisfying hikes we’ve ever done, although we’ll admit we were too sore to walk down the stairs later that night! To access this trail, park in the South Mesa Trailhead parking lot (after paying the newly implemented $5 fee). Follow the signs to Towhee Trail, continuing on to Shadow Canyon Trail, and then eventually taking a left to jump on the Mesa Trail. As you near the top you will see signs for South Boulder Peak. It’s fairly easy to figure out, just make sure to check out the map in the parking lot area.

Along with the great hiking opportunities, downtown Boulder–especially Pearl Street–is a pretty neat area with lots of great restaurants and breweries offering a nice eclectic vibe on a brick laden walkway. Boulder ranked pretty well on our personal livability index, although not quite catching up to our #1 favorite, San Diego.

Continuing our trip into Nebraska, we weren’t really sure what to expect. If it hadn’t been for visiting our friend, we probably would have skipped the state altogether. But we were pleasantly surprised, especially with Omaha. We drove into the downtown area for a visit to the Old Market, a historic district that runs parallel to the Missouri River. The Old Market has all sorts of antique shops, restaurants and vintage shops tucked away in renovated warehouses. We especially loved browsing the photographs at the Mangeleson Images of Nature Gallery. The artist is acclaimed to have some of the best wildlife images around, but we particularly loved his skill at capturing the essence of polar bears.

What we got to see firsthand was the massive flooding of the Missouri river, affecting both the Nebraska and Iowa area. You can see in the photo below that there’s a lot of water where it shouldn’t be, covering up the smaller trees.

Peace from the East! Words on Chicago coming soon!!

Yellowstone: Where the Buffalo Roam (Really Close to Your Car)

Jul 082011

Yellowstone is the ultimate in geysers, hot springs and wildlife. Established as America’s first national park in 1872, millions of travelers worldwide have made their way to Yellowstone to experience the pristine park for themselves ever since. Of course, we had to include it in our all-American road trip! Here’s a glimpse at some of our favorite park sights.

This colorful hot spring is located just a few steps away from the Old Faithful Geyser. Yellowstone’s numerous hot springs are a result of geothermally heated groundwater. Water temperatures can exceed 400°F, becoming less dense than the surrounding cool water and rising to the surface. With no constrictions (as opposed to geysers), the superheated water forms beautiful calm pools like the one above. But despite the pretty colors, there is a ‘rotten egg’ smell that accompanies the hot springs, the result of anaerobic bacteria living off the sulphur underwater.

Yellowstone National Park is home to numerous elk that often come out to play at dawn and dusk. Spring and summer are the prime seasons that animals pop out their babies, so it’s fairly common to see the youngsters frolicking around too. Just don’t get between mom and her kids!

Buffalo are also super common in the Yellowstone area. Not only did they come within inches of our car, we also had one guy blocking our hiking path to a geyser lookout point. They’re very dangerous though, so as tempting as it may be, don’t pet them

The Upper and Lower Falls in the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone are probably the most visited waterfalls of the area. They’re easily accessible and well worth stopping by! The photo above is of the Lower Falls.

A lone antelope taking in the mountain views.

The Grand Geyser!! We were lucky enough to spontaneously catch this beast of a geyser going off, which has the largest prediction interval of the predictable geysers–give or take two hours from the expected eruption time. The blast of water can reach up to 180 feet, providing a 9-minute, all-natural and spectacular water show. Take that Bellagio!

Of course, no trip to Yellowstone is complete without viewing the classic Old Faithful Geyser. While not quite as astounding as Grand, you’ve got to love a geyser that has been going off consistently even before its discovery in 1870. Today you can catch the eruption about every 90 minutes, although minor earthquakes are slowly increasing that interval.

Pretty Yellowstone!

Included in your 7-day Yellowstone pass is the entrance to the Grand Tetons. Driving past these mountains offers spectacular views and more chances to spot bears, moose and of course the ever-present bison.

Portland vs Seattle

Jul 032011

Upon arriving in Portland, we were immediately informed that most people visit the city for three reasons: to eat/drink, enjoy the outdoors, and evaluate the location’s livability before moving there. While we aren’t really looking to settle down anywhere in the US right now, we definitely thought we would give the first two a go.

When it comes to food, Portland has a pretty sweet way of doing things. Essentially it’s a food cart craze, in which abandoned parking lots have become hubs of innovative edibles. These food cart villages give rising culinary hopefuls a chance to showcase their ideas without having to open up a fixed establishment. Restaurants also have the opportunity to test drive their creative cuisines before going full-scale, and parking lot owners gain the rental fee from the carts themselves. Foodies, or just cheap travelers like ourselves, get to try awesome, independent and innovative food at an affordable price.

We first headed to Cartopia, where the food options range from wood-fired pizza to lemon and sugar crepes to Canadian-style fries covered in gravy and cheese curds. We especially enjoyed our Whiffie, a fried pie filled with chocolate and peanut butter. These food carts can be found all over the city, with one of the largest ones operating in the downtown business area during lunch hours. Here you’ll find one of the most famous carts of all, Nong’s Khao Man Gai. As the name suggests, this Thai restaurant only makes Khao Man Gai, a chicken and rice dish. Nong’s stays open until they run out—which normally isn’t very long.

Of course, if you’re not too hungry, Portland is also known for its microbrews and coffee, easily found all over the city.

When it comes to the great outdoors, Portland has a few options. There’s the 4 T Trail Loop Hike, an afternoon’s worth of trail hiking that also brings you on the tram, train, and trolley. This is a great option for exploring a little more of the city itself. There is also the Forest Park, which includes 70 miles of hiking trails. We opted for Washington Park, where we partook in a hike that lead us through the Rose Gardens, Vietnam Memorial, Japanese Gardens, Rosy the Elephant, and statue commemorating Lewis and Clark’s western expedition. This was all well and good, and the hiking trails were gorgeous, but a little hard to appreciate on a growling stomach. The hike probably would have been much more enjoyable had we eaten before our 3 hour escapade.

We heard throughout our trip that Portland is the West Coast’s version of Asheville. We can see the similar vibes, especially because both cities are very proud of their microbrewery presence. But Portland also gets compared a lot to another city just a few hours away.

Seattle

We can see this comparison too…maybe. We were only in both cities for a few days, so perhaps to really understand the similarities between Portland vs Seattle we just needed a little bit more time. But from our short experience, this is what we noticed.

While Seattle doesn’t boast the same food cart rage as Portland, it is the founding city of Starbucks. (This isn’t that surprising; with the continuously rainy weather you need an extra cup or two to make up for the lack of sunshine.) There is always a long line outside of the first Starbucks (in Pike Place Market) but live street music makes up for the wait. Of course, you can find more than just Starbucks in the Pike Place Market. This shopping area, which is one of the oldest and continuously operating markets in the US, boasts fishmongers, fruit stalls, antique stores and restaurants.We stayed busy here for a few hours, hording the free samples and browsing the numerous stands while trying to maneuver the crowded streets full of tourists and cruise ship patrons. Keep your eyes open for flying fish, when fish merchants throw their prime cuts across their stalls to the delight of adults and children alike.

When it comes to outdoor activities, specifically hiking, most of the good spots are outside of Seattle. Although we really wanted to check out Mt. Olympic, we just didn’t have the time. But Seattle itself does have plenty of places to go for a stroll and explore, whether it’s downtown near the market, along the waterway or in the Olympic Statue Park.

What Seattle really has that Portland lacks is a tourist attraction. The Space Needle!! We walked within a block of it to snap that must-have tourist picture, but the real views came when our CouchSurfing host chauffeured us to Kerry Park to get a beautiful view of the city, and Space Needle, from afar. Despite the drizzling rain, the sight was gorgeous and well worth the quick trip to the top of the hill.

So when it comes down to Portland vs Seattle, which did we prefer? It was a tough call, but ultimately we preferred Portland. We’re in love with street food, so we just couldn’t get enough of Cartopia. But to really decide, we would have to go back and spend a little more time in both places. Sounds like a good excuse to get back to the West Coast to us!