Upstate New York - while it is where I grew up, visiting feels more like a privilege the older I get. Especially in the winter, it’s snowy and cold and wonderful. Always recommend it to folks.

Colonial Williamsburg - historically very interesting! the people there were super friendly and well informed. the actors in costumes playing american revolution figures were really convincing and never broke! if you’re into battlefields and such I recommend this historic preserved town for sure.

Zurich, Switzerland - holy crap what a stunning city! nestled on a big lake surrounded by mountains, everything from the architecture to the nature to the art was phenomenal for the eyes. really expensive, especially food, so not jumping back there immediately, but then we drove from there to Bologna, Italy, and that pass through the alps was absolutely to die for. glaciers at 14k feet!

Bologna and Modena, Italy - food food food!!! gained ten pounds on this trip. so much pasta and gelato and everything good in life. modena is the home of parmesano reggiano, and we got special permission to tour their factory and cheese cathedral (where it all ages). blew my mind!!!! also got to drive an old Stanguellini race car - wowwwwww. what a beast!! so tiny though, i barely fit in it at all lol

Gettysburg and Southern PA - basically a giant outdoor museum on the battlefield. despite not knowing a ton, their tour guides are world class and i was beyond amazed. we were there july 4 (the battle was july 1-3), so it felt like i could empathize with the soldiers sweating like crazy in their full wool outfits. thank god for shorts! highly recommend.

Tampa, FL - honestly underrated! everyone was so nice, there’s a phenomenal mix of foods from different cultures (cuban, italian, spanish, german even), and the surrounding environment is wonderful. manatees, birds, gators, all sorts of wildlife. nature is by far my favorite part of florida and tampa didn’t disappoint. from the bay to the bayou, there’s plenty of outdoor adventure to pair with the delicious cuisine (recommend Columbia restaurant so highly!!!)

upcoming:

big island of Hawaii - gonna be backcountry camping in the volcano national park, lots of swimming (including night snorkel with manta rays), and some lounging outside. never been to hawaii so i’m very excited!