Tokyo Running Like any big city, Tokyo has its ups and downs when it comes to running. It’s hard to run in any city unless it’s very...

Vietnam – The Basics Want to know the basics like how to cross the street, make a call, or find local currency? We’ve got you covered. Posts on Vietnam : Hanoi: Things to Do , Food , Markets/Shopping Hoi An: Things to Do , Food (Hoi An and Hue), Markets/Shopping Ninh Binh Ha Giang Lan Ha Bay/Halong Bay Hotels in Vietnam Running in Vietnam Sim cards Most websites recommend Viettel first, then Mobifone or Vinaphone. TLDR: buy the cheapest, most convenient or best da

Thailand – The Basics Thailand in a nutshell – the old and the new side-by-side Posts on Thailand: Things to Do in Chiang Mai, Food in...

Running in Thailand Like the rest of Southeast Asia, it is hot year-round in Thailand. Even Chiang Mai, in the winter, is still much...

Running in Vietnam It is hot year-round in Vietnam – the lows when we were there were 23-25 oC and humid. I decided our 6-week trip to...

7 Things to do in and around Hoi An Day trips and local finds for you! 1. Hoi An Old Town – shopping, exploring, biking. Your hotel will...

Hoi An, Vietnam Shopping (with prices) Hoi An is a resort town. Like resort towns elsewhere in the world, it comes with resort prices....

Food in Chiang Mai, Thailand Like everywhere else in Southeast Asia that we visited, Chiang Mai has great food on practically every...

12 Things to do in Chiang Mai, Thailand Monk Chats, Doi Inthanon, Cham Cha Market, Visit Temples, Saturday and Sunday Walking Streets,...

Lan Ha Bay/Halong Bay Cruising, Vietnam TLDR: Halong Bay/Lan Ha Bay really live up to their reputation as a UNESCO World Heritage site. ...

Shopping and Markets in Hanoi, Vietnam (with prices) A good way to start shopping is to look online for prices (when you are in Vietnam). For example, I googled “North Face men’s pants” and the local vendors pop up first (thanks Google search engine). I find the best price and take a screenshot so that if I’m tired of bargaining or just need to remember the right price range I can pull it up. Showing a shop owner the price I can order it for online worked every time to secur

Our daughter wanted to improve her Spanish language before college started. She had her eye on an immersion program in the US. For the...

13 things to do in Hanoi , Vietnam 1. The Night Market in Old Town This night market, aka the Weekend Market, is located along Pho Hang Dao/Pho Hang Ngang/Hang Duong/P. Dong Xuan (these are all the same street; the name changes several times) on Friday-Sunday from 6 – 10 pm. It runs about a kilometer in length. You can find clothes, shoes, souvenirs, sunglasses, etc. Many food vendors set up on street corners but we wouldn’t call this a food-oriented market. A better

NorCal Japanese food Sushi-sho You might be surprised that our number 1 choice for sushi omakase (set meal) is located in El Cerrito,...

Running in Copenhagen Although I didn’t realize it at the time, we booked our AirBnb apartment right next to probably one of the best...

5 Things to do: Brussels 1. Horta Museum This Horta Museum is a lovely art nouveau example from the turn of the century by major...

Running in Brussels On my most recent visit to Brussels, I stayed in the European quarter, which contains the European Commission...

Netherlands Amsterdam: 8 Things to Do Amsterdam: Food The Amsterdam flag (above) has three X’s. Our tourboat guide said it is to...

Amsterdam: Food Stroopwafel and Beer There are stroopwafel everywhere. We never found one we liked better than those at Trader Joe’s back...

Amsterdam: 8 Things to Do 1. Rijksmuseum This is a wonderful, well-curated museum with information in Dutch and English. Placards offer...