Morocco has been on the top of my travel bucket list for a long time. The geographical and cultural intersection of Africa, Europe and the Middle East, the idea of Morocco has always thrilled me. I was endlessly charmed by imagining the chaotic marketplaces, the flurry of foreign languages being spoken, the call to prayer echoing from the minarets, getting lost in the Sahara desert, and just existing in a culture still so steeped in history, tradition, and superstition.
Travels
Andalucía Part 3: Arcos, Cádiz and Seville
For the final segment of our two-week Andalucía tour, we visited another small mountain town before returning to the coast — this time to Cádiz on the Costa de Luz — and finally wrapped up our trip in famed Seville.
Andalucía Part 2: Málaga to Ronda
The next phase of our two weeks in Andalucía took us down to the Mediterranea Sea on the Costa del Sol, then up into region’s mountainous heart. We explored a new city, spent some quality time with the sea, and got our first taste of the romanticism of small town Spain that exists off the beaten tourist path.
Andalucía Part 1: Granada
The first new Spanish phrase I learned in the first day of our Andalucía trip? Hasta donde alcanza la vista: as far as the eye can see.
We were cruising through the hilly countryside just north of Jaen, en route from Madrid to Granada, and I simply couldn’t wrap my head around how many olive trees covered the surrounding lands. From horizon to horizon — literally as far as the eye could see, nothing but olive trees.
Lisbon: Land of Poets and Adventurers
I’ve been behind leaving pieces of my heart all over the place during the last few months, but the biggest one yet is in Lisbon.
Three Months in Madrid: Looking behind, looking ahead
December 23 was a notable day for a couple of reasons.
For one thing, it’s the first day of our 2+ week Christmas vacation and the beginning of our travels around Andalucía.
For another, it marks exactly 3 months since we arrived in Spain.
Paris: 36 Hours of Life and Death
It was a warm, pleasant night in Madrid when the Paris terrorist attacks took place. We were spending our evening much like many of the victims: out with friends, enjoying the city.
Paris isn’t exactly in our back yard, but the event still felt near to me in a way I’m not used to as an American. Messages from our more worry-prone family members started to roll in, asking us to take precautions, avoid crowds, stay off the Metro. We remembered the terrorist attacks on Madrid’s subway in 2004 — which we’d only recently learned had taken place at a station we now pass through all the time.
Berlin: Connecting with the past
Over the last few years, I’ve been hearing more and more about what a cool city Berlin is. I jealously followed my friend Rikka’s experience there over on Deviating the Norm (hashtag travelbloggoals), and her descriptions of the city’s devotion to social justice, egalitarianism, noncomformity and partying (duh!) made up my mind that this was a place I needed to visit.
An End, a Beginning, and 24 Hours in Purgatory
Leaving Iceland was bittersweet as could be. We made our way to the airport early on Tuesday morning under gray skies, with a cold rain falling and a gusty breeze. It was literally the first bad weather we’d had all week — which in Iceland is just shy of an actual miracle.
While we were sad to leave the country behind, we were more than satisfied with the great trip we’d had. The experience had exceeded all of our expectations. And we knew we’d be coming back someday to pick up where we left off.
We were also finally starting to get excited for Spain again. Though anxiety over beginning this new chapter had come and gone throughout the last week, being at the airport with our bags and plane tickets in hand, I felt ready.
Goodbye Iceland. Hola, Madrid!
But first… Norway happened.
Iceland By the Experts: 10 Travel Tips
Having spent one week in Iceland, we’re now experts, obviously!
Okay, we barely scratched the surface of this place in the short time that we were here, but I did learn a lot. To wrap up this section of the blog, I wanted to share these tips: based on things we did wrong, things we did right, things we wished we’d known before we came here, and things I wish everyone knew before they came here.
Here goes!
find me in the air 