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A Weekend in Vancouver with 2 under 2
I was feeling very twitchy and wanting to travel while I was pregnant with my son, so I booked a Disney cruise to Alaska for one of the earliest dates he would be old enough to sail. We booked an extra 3 days in Vancouver. We had always wanted to visit and it was a good opportunity to beat the jet lag as much as possible before starting our cruise. At the time our son was 7 months old and our daughter was a week shy of turning 2.
Our criteria for the weekend was:
- Nothing too intense, low key fun with plenty of rest thrown in.
- Walk or public transportation everywhere, we had elected not to bring carseats or a stroller.
- Eat Chinese food.
Sounds pretty easy right? Here’s what we did!
We stayed at the Delta Hotel by Marriott in downtown Vancouver because it was walking distance to the cruise terminal. I’m sure there are many more budget friendly options, but we were very happy with our hotel choice. We were able to walk or take the bus anywhere we wanted to go, we received good service and welcome cookies, and we had a pull out couch and an in-room crib. Probably the perk we took the most advantage of was the free loaner umbrellas. They don’t call it Rain-couver for nothing!
Since we were jet lagged we left the hotel early each morning and explored the city on foot. This would include an early morning breakfast at Tim Hortons, some admiration of the banking and museum districts, and then bee line for the cruise terminal to watch the sea planes. From there we would wander along the seawall, admire the sail boats, run through Harbour Green Park, or play on a nearby playground. These first couple hours of the day were low key and fun, just like we wanted!
Once it was late enough for some businesses to start opening, we would head towards the day’s planned activity.
Day 1’s activity was taking a gondola up to Grouse Mountain and exploring their wildlife refuge. The weather was chilly and rainy so visibility going up the mountain was low and there was a dense fog the entire time we were up there. We walked around the park and were able to get a good view of the sleepy bears as well as a very up-close encounter with a wild deer. The kids both loved it, although they stayed pretty snug in the carriers the whole time.
This was a good day for transportation since we took a ferry, a bus, and a gondola. On our way back down the sky opened for a couple minutes and we were able to get a view of the city from the gondola. The bus ride took us through residential neighborhoods, so we were able to check out some local real estate too!
Day 2’s activity was visiting Granville Island. Neither Chris nor I are much inclined to shop when we travel, but everyone loves a good market! We spent some time at the indoor playground, the Adventure Zone, browsed through all the food stalls and wonderful ethnic foods, listened to some live music, and had lunch overlooking the sailboats at Dockside. We all had a good time, but it was a little too crowded to let HJ walk on her own, and she was feeling confined in the carrier. Fortunately she went from whiny to sleeping in only a couple minutes!
Day 3 we visited the Vancouver Aquarium and had a great time. You simply cannot go wrong with small children at the aquarium. Both children were thrilled with the animals and loved the special feeding shows. We even saw some non-aquarium animals a little closer then I would have liked, when a whole family of raccoons decided to join the audience at the beluga show.
After the aquarium we stayed and explored Stanley park for a short while. Next time we are in town we’ll plan to spend more time here since they have several beaches and a train.
We picked a restaurant on our way back to the hotel each night and had an early bedtime, but we had a great time in Vancouver and would be excited to go back again. Low key worked really well for us this trip but we still got to see a lot!
Where did we miss?
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5 Fun and Free things to do in New Zealand
You’ve planned your trip to New Zealand, you’ve booked your flight, and you’ve packed your bag. Now you are wondering how to absolutely maximize your time in Middle Earth? Below are the things we did (or wish we had done) that cost nothing and made the trip really special.
I firmly believe that driving is the best way to see New Zealand, so several of these are driving specific.
Pick up a hitchhiker!
I probably wouldn’t give this advice to someone traveling in the US, but the hitchhikers in New Zealand are usually other travelers, saving some money as they tramp around New Zealand. Especially on the South Island, we saw many people with their thumbs out, and it was a great way to meet new, interesting people from around the world.
Take a nap in a park!
Again, probably not something I would do in the US! but when the afternoon sun started making us sleepy, we would pull off at a public park, lay out a blanket, and enjoy a short power nap in the sun. As someone who loves stretching out in the sun, this was such a pleasant break on a long drive. New Zealand has some really beautiful parks too, and in November (Spring!) everything was blooming and green.
Walk around some neighborhoods!
Chris and I like to check out the real estate everywhere we go, it is a fun way to compare and contrast daily living in different countries. Plus if we decide to immigrate we’ll have a head start on house hunting! Especially in the early morning when jet lag has you up, but nothing is open, The bonus was that the particular neighborhoods we chose, were all covered with meticulously tended gardens full of blooms.
Bonus points for houses decorated to reflect their home country!
Visit the Welcome Center
Many towns will have Welcome Centers and in our experience, they are well worth the visit. The representatives are knowledgeable and very committed to answering your questions and pointing you in the right direction. I guess it’s that famous British (colony) hospitality. If you are coming from the UK or Canada this may not impress you as much, but we were blown away by how cheerful and helpful everyone was. They’ll also be able to let you know what free community events may be happening during your stay.
This isn’t the Matamata Welcome Center, but the actual Center is also Hobbit-themed!
Community Events
This is not something we were able to fit in during our visit, but if we go back I will definitely be carving time to check out local farmers markets, arts and crafts festivals, and local celebrations. A couple options would be the Rotorua Tulip Festival in October, the Saturday market in Matamata, the Japanese Film Festival in Christchurch, or Queenstown’s LUMA Southern Lights Project in June.
If you’re interested in everything we did in New Zealand check out our full 2-week itinerary!
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Two Weeks in New Zealand
Two weeks in New Zealand was the first big bucket list trip Chris and I took together. We gave each other tickets for our one year wedding anniversary (the paper anniversary) but saved the trip itself for the end of November (2012) when we were most likely to see penguins.
I did a ton of research and we had an amazing trip. My goal was to find a great balance between relaxation and adventure and I think we nailed it! I would make very very few changes to our itinerary if we did it all again and I’ll mention those slight changes below. So without further ado, our 2 weeks in New Zealand!
Getting Around
We rented a car from Auckland to Wellington and then again from Christchurch to Queenstown. I cannot recommend this option enough. New Zealand is an incredible country with miles and miles (or kilometers and kilometers) of stunning countryside. I’m not a big road trip person but I loved every minute of our time in the car this trip. It also allowed us to customize our trip and visit some more out-of-the-way spots. Adjusting to driving on the left wasn’t a big deal either and our rental car was plastered with reminder signs “STAY LEFT!!!”.
We took the 3-hour ferry from Wellington to Picton and enjoyed this. We found the highest seats we could and spent the ride reading and enjoying the scenery.
From Picton to Christchurch we took the 5-hour train since it was hailed as an incredibly picturesque ride and there weren’t any stops we were looking to make in this part of the country. We saw a colony of fur seals, a beached whale, and some incredible beaches. We also go to listen in on a group of elderly women (I would peg the youngest as 75, they all had walkers) joke about the raunchy things that were going to happen this trip since they left their husbands at home. I love the conversations you hear on trains!
Auckland (1 day)
We flew in and out of Auckland and most tourists can expect to do the same.
Auckland is the “City of Sails” and we had one item on our itinerary in Auckland: sailing. We chose to sail on one of the America’s Cup racing yachts and took a harbor tour. We both love sailing and this was a lot of fun, but it was definitely chilly the day I went. Next time I might delay booking this until I actually arrive and can gauge the weather. To me, sailing and sunshine go hand in hand! Our guide said people often saw dolphins on this tour but we didn’t have that luck.
In addition to sailing, we also wandered around Auckland and checked out a couple restaurants and parks. I bet this would be a great city to live in, but it didn’t make it high on our list of places we wanted to spend time. We flew in early AM and got on the road headed for Matamata early afternoon.
Matamata (1 day)
Matamata has become a must-see on many traveler’s lists thanks to the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings movies. The original Shire that was built here was actually mostly removed after the Lord of the Rings and rebuilt for the Hobbit. The land owners negotiated to keep the set and now maintain it for tourists. This is absolutely worth the visit and the $79NZ per person. The tour was super interesting and the set and gardens were very beautiful. Our tour guide seemed super bored the whole time and clearly regarded us all as a bunch of nerds, but kept up an interesting commentary the whole tour so we had no complaints.
There were multiple gardeners working during our visit and we were told they keep a whole team working daily to keep the shire blooming.
Other than the Shire, we also spent the early morning jet lagged hours walking through neighborhoods and parks. Gardening must be important to New Zealanders because we saw some beautiful flowers. Overall it was a pleasant way to pass some time.
Next visit we will be adding a hike to Wairere Falls to our itinerary. It’s only a 20-minute drive from Matamata (although not particularly on the way to anywhere) and a 5k hike. The pictures look beautiful.
Rotorua (2 days)
We visited Rainbow Springs Nature Park in the morning. This was educational and relaxed and we got to see a baby kiwi as part of the behind-the-scenes tour. If we were more pressed for time, this would not make the cut, but since we were trying to balance relaxation with adventure this was a nice leisurely morning.
In the afternoon we checked out Hell’s Gate geothermal park including a guided tour and a mud bath. I had previously visited Yellowstone and this was nothing like that. At Yellowstone, the hot springs and surrounding areas are full of vibrant colors. Hell’s Gate was almost entirely on the white-to-gray spectrum. You can really see in the pictures how striking the blue sky is in contrast. Of course, that makes it sound incredibly unappealing, but it really was beautiful and unique. The pictures don’t do it justice. There was also a path through the woods and we passed a little waterfall and some beautiful trees.
The mud bath was definitely a great experience but also quite awkward. The mud baths were partitioned into private rooms and the mud was piped in. For some reason, the attempt at privacy (equivalent to stalls in a bathroom) made me more uncomfortable than just rolling in the mud with a bunch of strangers. I kept thinking, what are we supposed to be doing that we need privacy? It was probably just me…
In the evening we attended one of the Maori cultural shows. They took us on a bush walk to see their war canoe and we saw another pool with geothermal activity. This one was my favorite since the pool was crystal clear but the mud at the bottom was bubbling up. I have no idea how the bottom could churn so much but not muddy the water but it was amazingly clear. So much so that it took a little while to determine where the water line was exactly.
The dinner was cooked underground in the traditional Haggai fashion but that’s about where the tradition in the food ended. We had lamb, beef, chicken, and stuffing. I would say this is the closest we got to Thanksgiving dinner this year.
My pro-tip would be to try to get seats a couple rows back from the dancing. The war dances were loud and terrifying and we were shaking in our front row seats!
We stayed a the Victorian Lodge and they booked the Maori Cultural experience for us, there were several to choose from and we just went on their recommendation. I don’t even remember which one we did!
The second day in Rotorua we went mountain biking in the Whakarewarewa Red Woods Mountain Bike Park. We parked and rented bikes at Planet Bike and then road into the park. Chris is a fairly regular and experienced biker and I learned to ride a bike as a child. I was in no way prepared for even the easy Level 2 trails. They were super fast, super scary, and super fun. The best comparison I could make would be to roller coasters.
They had some practice bridges set up at the bike shop and gave us some tips for crossing. I only fell once (thankfully not off a bridge!) and was fortunate to fall to my right when a fall to the left would have meant a 100 ft drop.
One of my favorite moments of the ride was when we crossed from a pine forest into a redwood glade and we both went temporarily blind while our eyes adjusted to the darkness. Those trees are really amazing and the ecosystem under the redwoods is entirely different from the surrounding forest.
Waitomo Caves (1 day)
A most unique thing that happened on our trip happened on the drive to Waitomo Caves. We saw a volcano erupting! Mt. Tongariro blew its top for the second time in 2012 during our trip and we saw it from a distance. We had been catching snippets about the eruption and were keen to know whether it was going to affect our route, well we looked out the window and there it was! Even from a distance, there was no denying what we saw, and it’s definitely a very cool thing to have seen from a safe distance.
We joined the Legendary Black Water Company’s tubing tour of the Waitomo Caves which was awesome and very very cold. They outfitted us in wetsuits and we tubed and crawled down the underwater river past thousands of glow maggots. There is a series of underwater waterfalls that they teach you how to jump off backward in your tube so you get a fair dose of adrenaline during the trip.
Napier (1 day)
We didn’t spend much time in Napier but we took a half day tour of some local wineries, a lavender farm, and a chocolate factory and museum. We rented a tandem bicycle from Bike D’Vine and biked to each location while thoroughly testing our marriage. The low point was when Chris thought I was kidding when I told him to slow down, but overall it was a very nice way to tour the area. We did the half-day bike rental, but if we were to go back I’d want to stretch this to a full day to see all the wineries and the monastery on the map.
Christchurch (1 day)
We spent a quick overnight in Wellington at an airbnb before catching the ferry in the morning. Adding a day in Wellington is definitely something we would do on a return trip.
We arrived in Christchurch after a full travel day by ferry and train and checked into our first hostel of the trip. This one was an old jailhouse with each cell converted to individual rooms! I definitely couldn’t turn that down!
We spent the next day taking a redbus tour of Christchurch. This took us behind the army lines into the still live demolition site which has following the earthquakes of 2010 and 2011. In total, we were told that they would have to demolish 900 buildings, 300 of which have already been taken down. This was a fascinating and eye opening tour, but not exactly fun. I found it especially sobering because I remember the earthquakes but I really had no idea the extent of the devastation. I think it says something about how long these disasters stay in the news versus how long the disaster continues to affect the area in question.
Writing this post in 2017, the same behind-the-scenes Rebuild Tour is still being offered! I’m sure it is a very different tour than the one we took in 2011, and I would definitely take it again if I had the opportunity.
Arthur’s Pass (1 day)
This was a scenic driving day that ended with a short overnight at Arthur’s Chalet. We picked up our first and only hitchhiker of the trip (an 18-year-old German fellow) and spent the day relaxing and taking our time.
Heading down Arthur’s Pass the next day we stopped in a little town called Hokitika to tour a jade factory and do some tourist type shopping.
We also made multiple stops to walk along the beach and we took a side road to get an eensy-weensy view of Fox Glacier. Hiking up to the glacier was definitely on my list of things to do when we go back, but they closed the glacier to tourists in 2016 due to the ice melting.
Lake Moeraki (1 day)
This was one of the stops of our trip and we planned the timing for the entire trip around this stop! Lake Moeraki is one of the best places in New Zealand to spot penguins! Our one real splurge of the trip was staying at the Wilderness Lodge so we could stay as close to the penguins as possible. From the hotel, it was a short and beautiful 1.5-mile hike down to the beach to try to spot penguins. We only saw 1 penguin on two different occasions, but a guided tour led by the hotel saw a whole colony of them a few hours before our arrival. We really enjoyed our time at this hotel and seriously considered extending our trip an extra day to take the tour the following day, but ultimately didn’t want to rearrange our accommodations in Christchurch or spend the extra $700 to stay another night.
They offer 2 free tours per day and we were able to take a short walking tour of Lake Moeraki and a kayak tour. We didn’t participate in any paid tours because we thought they were obscenely expensive, but we regretted it because the other patrons raved so much about the tours and the wildlife they saw.
Even though the single night in this hotel took our 14-day trip’s average-hotel-per-night from $70/night to $100/night, we would reach into our pockets to stay here an extra day next trip. It really was a beautiful hotel and the tours were wonderful.
If I had a large fortune and visited New Zealand every couple years, I would probably even stay here a week. Breakfast and dinner were included with our stay and we met some fascinating people. I got the impression we were the only ones who had to stretch our budget to be there and we were a good 20-30 years younger than the other patrons.
Please note: you do not have to stay at this hotel to take the hike to the beach and penguin watch.
Queenstown (3 days)
On the drive to we stopped in Lake Wanaka for ice cream and a little walk around the town. Lake Wanaka has the reputation for being quieter and less touristy than Queenstown, but it was significantly smaller and I think I would only stay here if I was looking for a very quiet and relaxing stay and had time on my side (which I hope to have one day!).
In Queenstown we made an airbnb or home base and traveled from Queenstown to Doubtful Sound, Arrowtown, and around the Queenstown area.
One big bucket list item for me was hang-gliding. We even built a free day into our time in Queenstown in case the weather didn’t allow us to go up as scheduled. The weather was beautiful though and we had spectacular rides. The whole Queenstown area seemed to just float beneath us. I would definitely do this again!
We also took a mountain biking tour of the area that was very scenic and beautiful and very much designed for people in better shape than me.
Queenstown was a wonderful wrap of our trip and we had loads of time to just walk around the area, try out different restaurants, and soak up this beautiful town.
Doubtful Sound (1 day)
We did a full day tour of Doubtful Sound and it was absolutely awe inspiring! The very best part was we got to see a few more penguins! They have overnight cruises of this area and I would be tempted to do one of those next time, but the day trip was perfectly lovely!
So there you have our incredible, inspirational 2 week trip to New Zealand! All in all, we spent just under $10k including everything and had a good balance of budget friendly hostels and airbnbs and nicer accommodations. If we were to do it again I’d try to stick in airbnb as much as possible (as opposed to 50% on this trip) since we met such wonderful people and it really added some NZ charm staying in people’s homes.
I was able to add this New Zealand magnet to our collection and I cannot wait to go back! What do you think of our trip? What would you do differently?
You can also check out my post, 5 Fun and Free things to do in New Zealand.
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Hikes and Rambles: The Dish (Stanford)
So far this has been my favorite spot we’ve hiked here in Silicon Valley. We parked at Piers Gate on Alpine Road and I think that was a very lucky accident. Directly across from the Portola Valley Training Center there was a small parking lot as well as some street side parking. From here it is a mile walk (paved, uphill) to the Dish and to the 3.25 mile loop. The 1 mile walk, called Ranch Road, was less crowded then the loop and I got the impression that was typical as most people park at Gerona, Frenchman’s, or Stanford Gate.
It’s important to note that this is a private park owned by Stanford and guests are only allowed on the paved paths. There are also signs providing instructions if you have run-ins with mountain lions, coyotes, or wild turkeys. Also, if you plan to picnic, you will need to set your blanket up on the path. We did this right by the dish where the road was wider and we had plenty of room to picnic without affecting traffic. There were no trash cans that we saw, so plan to carry everything out with you.
When we first entered through Pier’s Gate we were struck by the incredible emerald color of the grass which was growing wild and tall, by the incredible trees whose bark was peeling off, and by the felled trees and branches. Generally I would not describe the remains of dead trees as pleasant, but there was something about this debris that was charming and added as much character as the living trees. I would recommend entering through Pier’s Gate just to experience this section, it is really worth the trip.
From there the road opens up to a field and starts to climb upward. There are views the entire way, the fields are full of squirrels and prairie dogs, and 2 hawks were hunting in the sky. Half way up the path we passed a cow bridge and there starts to be a slight odor as well as many cow patties on the path. The children found this completely disgusting, but it’s good for them to connect with the less appealing parts of nature!
Once we reached the Dish and joined the loop, the crowds picked up significantly, but not so much that it wasn’t still a pleasant walk. The views from the loop proper include Stanford, Palo Alto, the Bay, and even San Francisco in the distance. We didn’t make it around the entire loop but we enjoyed the views and spotted some cows and a heron. Next time we’ll bring both baby carriers and do the entire loop plus the Ranch Road extension for a total of 5.25 miles. I think this will also be our go-to spot to bring guests.
Heron and cows
Prairie dogs!
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Hikes and Rambles: Redwood Grove Nature Preserve (Los Altos)
Los Altos Library has a Mandarin-English storytime on Thursday mornings, so we came early to visit the Redwood Grove Nature Preserve. We followed Google Maps and I was surprised to find the entrance in a residential neighborhood where we parked along University Avenue. Once you enter the park the houses are close enough that you still feel like you are inside a neighborhood, which you basically are.
The trees are beautiful and there is a nice wooden boardwalk twisting through the park. The Adobe Creek was dark and quick on our visit (probably due to all the unusual rain recently) and the temperature under the redwoods was probably 10 degrees cooler then in the sun. On hot summer days I will definitely come back to take advantage of that, but on this particular March morning we were chilly and did not make it all the way through the boardwalk.
First and foremost this is a nature preserve and there were many signs of preservation (literally, there were a lot of signs) and I found that to detract from the nature experience somewhat. One way to avoid this would be to (1) just look up, always a good vantage points for redwoods! (2) Maybe there are fewer plantings happening in the summer or fall? I will need to check back to see if the large orange signs and small printed paper notices decrease over the seasons.
I would recommend checking this out if you are in the area, but I wouldn’t go far out of my way for it. It’s small and there are more impressive redwood groves in the area (posts on those coming soon, I just need to re-visit them as a resident!) and this park was on the small side.
Shoup Park was right next to the Preserve, so we spent an hour playing on the playgrounds there. This was a very nice park and if you have small children it is definitely worth visiting when you check out the Preserve!
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Hikes and Rambles: Bedwell Bayfront Park (Silicon Valley)
We have now been in California for a week and to celebrate the sun came out and completely transformed the landscape here. Bedwell Bayfront Park is just a minute down the road from Facebook so we’ve passed it often, but the sunshine made it irresistible and so we set out to spend a few hours there this morning.
Bedwell is an old landfill converted into a nature preserve and grasslands. It has a mostly flat 2.3 mile perimeter path for walking, running, or biking and a whole spiderweb of interior trails as well. Since it was a landfill the park is hilly and has a man-made vibe about it, since one doesn’t usually expect to find hills in the middle of the marsh.
When we visited in February the flora was green, the sky was blue, and the water was still. I’ll be very interested to visit in a couple months and see how the park handles the seasons! The most striking thing about this park is that your views from every hill are of Silicon Valley and the rest of the Bay area. It’s a wonderful juxtapose of the natural and the modern.
We saw ducks, birds, and snails during our visit, but relatively few homo sapiens. I’ve been told that the crowds really pick up in the afternoon, but for a late Saturday morning the park did not feel crowded at all, at least on the interior paths. I recommend packing a picnic and enjoying it on top of one of the hills. Bring the whole family and the dog!
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A Weekend in Dirty Durham
“Keep Durham Dirty”, “Durham, it’s not for everyone”, “Durm.”, “I’d rather be shot in Durham then bored to death in Cary”. These are all t-shirts you might run into while you’re downtown in the Bull City. For a long time Durham was the sketchy part of the triangle and, while that’s changed/changing, there are a lot of people who want to hold onto that image! I would never tell anyone that all the ‘grit’ has gone out of Durham, but somewhere along the way a cupcake bar got introduced, and I think that says it all. (The Cupcake Bar is actually pretty great, you should check it out.)
We owned a house downtown for 4 years, so I feel especially well qualified to write this recommendation! I love Durham and have seen it change a lot recently and I’m sure it will change more in the coming years, so this might be a post that needs to be rewritten periodically! I did focus my tips downtown, but there’s lots more to Durham, just maybe not time to squeeze it all in a single weekend!
To Do
DPAC
I love this theatre and they get some great shows, so check out what’s happening during your visit! The best thing about DPAC is there really are no bad seats. I’ve sat in the nose bleeds several times and had no difficulty seeing (and my eyesight is rough) so feel free to scrimp on tickets here!
Walk around American Tobacco Campus
During the summer they have concerts on the lawn and during the winter they have ice skating on the basketball court. Year round the old factory is a nice place to take a walk, especially if you’re coming or going to DPAC/The Durham Bulls.
Walk around Duke Gardens
Spring is definitely going to be your best bet here, but it’s worth the walk year round. Plan on spending several hours and maybe even getting ice cream at the Terrace Cafe.
Attend the Farmer’s Market
You’ll find this in Durham’s Central Park every Saturday morning year round. All the local produce, meat, dairy, and flowers you would expect will be sold but there is also a whole block of food trucks, generally some wandering minstrels, a playground, and a large grassy field for picnics. Great for families, couples, and groups.
Durham Bulls game
Baseball isn’t my cup of tea, but it’s a Durham staple so I’d be remiss not to mention it! Even if you aren’t into America’s pastime, the tickets are cheap and there are hot dogs and cracker jacks!
Full Steam Brewery
This is one of my favorite spots on a weeknight because it’s so chill. Weekends are still good, but more crowded. They will always have at least one food truck, plus the option to eat across the street at MotorCo or next door at the Pit. Expect arcade machines, lawn games, lots of dogs, and lots of babies. It’s a very laid back fun and social place.
The Eno River State Park
For lover of the outdoors, the Eno River offers wonderful hiking trails and a fun spot to wade in the summers. It’s not downtown, but it’s only a short drive away.
Durham Museum of Life and Science
This is also not downtown, but it’s only 5 miles away and a fantastic place for children to spend the day. When the weather is nice you’ll want to spend most of your time outdoors on the playground or walking around the campus to see the bears, lemurs, and wolves. There’s also a little farm, a train, and a butterfly house!
To Eat
Durham is known for it’s fantastic local restaurants. Narrowing down where to check out in Durham is quite a task, but I’ve listed my recommendations below. Assuming you travel like I do, you’d be in town Friday afternoon until Sunday afternoon and you’d eat at each of these Durham spots.
Beyu Cafe for dinner Friday
Expect music, check their website in advance to see who the live performer will be and the cost of tickets.
Everything on the menu is good here and they have a great bar, but I recommend skipping on their desserts. (If you can’t skip dessert, like me, head down the street to the Parlour for ice cream.)
If you had to twist my arm, I’d recommend the breakfast burrito with added sausage.
Pompieri Pizza for alternate dinner option Friday
This is an old fire station turned into a particularly good pizza place. It’s also my favorite spot to sit outside in the Downtown area. If you have children, there is a small play area with a bench and some toys.
Loaf for breakfast Saturday
You’ll want to grab some pastries to eat while you walk around or find a park bench. You can’t go wrong here, but I especially recommend their croissants and cheese puff pastries.
Dame’s Chicken and Waffles for Saturday lunch
You’ll need reservations, so call at least a full day in advance.
I recommend anything that comes with legs, especially the Light Brown Leghorns, because the chicken is the real star here.
Order a side of macaroni and cheese, yum!
Taberna Tapas for dinner Saturday
If you can get a group together, this is best enjoyed as true tapas, trying a couple bites of each dish. If there are only two of you, still make an effort to order as much diversity as possible.
If you have kids, I’d skip this stop. Through no fault of the staff, we have regretted taking ours. The intimate quiet atmosphere just makes our kids louder and messier.
Old Havana Sandwich Shop for Sunday brunch
Hands down my favorite downtown Durham spot! The atmosphere is casual, colorful, and fun and the food is fantastic.
I get the El Obrero for brunch, but all their sandwiches are good!
To Stay
The Blooming Garden Inn
This is the only one of the “Stay” recommendations I’ve actually overnighted with. On the outskirts of downtown in the popular Cleveland-Holloway neighborhood, this is a fun place if you are looking for something with lots of local flavor. The proprietors, Frank and Dolly, can tell you everything about the history of Durham you’d ever need to know. I also recommend this as a great way to feel out the area if you are considering moving to one of the downtown adjacent neighborhoods.
The Durham Hotel
This is new and I haven’t checked it out, but it was created as the retro fit of a very rad and 70s esq building. They have a rooftop bar and even rooftop yoga sometimes! If we need a place to stay in downtown, this is where I want to check out!
21C Museum Hotel
This is also new, but I’ve eaten at their restaurant, The Counting House, and it’s very good. The museum is a little too cutting edge/artsy/weird for me to appreciate, but I’d definitely be down for checking this place out during a visit!
I hope you put Durham on your list of places to visit and I’d be even happier if you’d check it out as a place to live, we loved our time there!
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Bangkok- What We Did
I already wrote a post with general tips for taking on Bangkok with toddlers, but this is a more specific look at exactly where we went and what we did during our 5 days in Bangkok.
- Wat Pho
- The reclining Buddha is the largest Buddha in Thailand and the main reason tourists visit Wat Pho. We had been prepared to pop in and out quickly, but ended up spending the entire morning exploring the complex. In addition to the reclining Buddha, Wat Pho houses over 1000 other Buddha images! That’s more then any other temple in Thailand.
- Wat Pho is home to the first school of traditional Thai massage. It still houses a massage school and you can sign up for a 30 minute massage for a little less then $7.50 USD. We didn’t take advantage of that but I would be interested in checking it out if I ever make it back sans-children. The massages take place in an open pavilion and are supposed to be a social experience. (Also, supposed to be very painful, we skipped the Thai massage and opted for Swedish ones in the hotel spa. Shame on us.)
- Once you leave the temple with the reclining Buddha and the immediate area, the crowd thins significantly and in some spots we were able to meander about in almost privacy.
Those white washed walls with those ceramic flowers make me swoon.
Incredible details on the buildings and Buddha’s pillow.
All the Buddhas! See how rosy my little squirts were? Bring lots of water!
- The Jim Thompson House
- Wow we loved this spot! I feel almost embarrassed to admit that touring the house of an American was one of the highlights of our trip, but it was the perfect combination of beauty, architecture, eccentricity, and mystery. Definitely do not miss this!
- Walking in off the street we felt as though we had stepped out of the city and into a secluded jungle village. The trees were clearly designed for acoustics and it’s easy to forget you’re in the middle of Bangkok! The grounds are beautiful and there is a little restaurant that we enjoyed very much. We had a Mint-Lychee smoothie that was worth dying for. Prices are steep for Thailand but in-line with American restaurants.
- If you have kids, this is a great spot to play for a bit before your tour. My kids loved playing with the little rocks in the gravel area, looking at the turtles and fish, and exploring the garden.
- We weren’t familiar with the clothing/fabric brand, but we fell in love with it. This made the gift shop dangerous, since it’s prices are only slightly discounted to what you would see for the same stuff in America.
She fell asleep during the tour and finished her nap at the cafe.
- Jim Thompson Outlet
- As I mentioned below the Jim Thompson brand turned out to be dangerous. We ended up buying things at the museum, the outlet, and the store at the mall. The outlet can be worth the trip if you love fabric, clothing, purses, or just want another shot at that Mint-Lychee smoothie.
Here we are waiting for the SkyTrain with all our Jim Thompson outlet bags!
- The Grand Palace
- This had to be #1 on our list of places to go in Bangkok and we’d done some research so we knew to expect crowds, but we were utterly unprepared for the sheer number of people visiting with us. The temperature in the complex had to be an additional 10 degrees outdoors with everyone crushed together as we were. If not for this, it was an amazing complex, but with the crowds we preferred Wat Pho.
That arch represents the turning point in the line, but past that point it was almost equidistant and more crowded to get into the complex.
Taking a break from the crowds!
- The Flower Market
- I love flower markets and was really excited for this one. It was a little bit confusing to walk to so I would recommend taking a TukTuk, but it’s worth the visit! Not much to elaborate on, just lots and lots of flowers!
K was not impressed.
HJ was more impressed once we had her properly ornamented!
- Koh Lorn
- This one is not in Bangkok, but is a doable taxi + ferry ride away. We arranged for a taxi through the hotel and then had our taxi driver negotiate with a private speedboat. It was significantly more expensive then the ferry, but since we had no idea where to find the ferry we ended up taking the easier route.
- If you take a private speedboat it will stop at a platform halfway to Koh Lorn and you will be given the option of parasailing for some ridiculously cheap price (I’m remembering about $15 USD). Do it! Their operation is crazy and I’m sure it would never fly in the US, but it was a great experience. My Mom and I took turns watching the kids and being thrust into harnesses at the speed of light. They had two boats going, each ride lasted roughly a minute and I would estimate that each harness was not in the air for a maximum of 30 seconds. That’s how quickly they were getting through people. The view of Pattaya is incredible and they will give you the option of getting dunked mid-flight. Do it! My dunking was only waist high but my Mom went in over her head.
- Koh Lorn was beautiful and packed. The sand was white and the water was clear, but the other tourists were all around and very eager to hold, take pictures with, hug, etc. my children. HJ was accommodating for the first couple pictures and then started screaming like a banshee when ever someone approached her.
- Koh Lorn was the only place we visited that I wouldn’t recommend. It took a lot of time to get there and the crowds really detracted from the pristine beach experience. I’d love to go further south to some of Thailand’s more remote beaches!
- Floating Market of Pattaya
- If at all possible you want to visit one of the weekend floating markets. This wasn’t an option for us since we were only in town Monday-Friday, but we could definitely tell that the weekends were when things really happened. Even with that, it’s still worth the trip, even if we were slightly disappointed.
- I would recommend skipping the animal show that is offered as part of the package. The kids loved it but Mom and I were pretty uneasy about the way the monkeys were treated and that took away any enjoyment it otherwise might have brought.
- We took advantage of the fish spa and that was a cool experience. Even HJ got in on it and found it hilarious.
- Ayutthaya
- Also, not in Bangkok but worth making a day trip. This was the original capital of Thailand that was burned in the 18th century by the Burmese army. We took a car arranged by our hotel and allowed our driver to set the itinerary which included several ruins and temples.
- Wat Lokayasutharam was my favorite and should not be missed. This hardly qualifies as a ruin since it is mostly intact and still contains an active temple and school. I am a big fan of the clothed Buddhas, such a statement.
- We each took an elephant ride around the city. Hindsight being 20-20, I would not recommend doing this with a child under 2. My son squirmed the entire time which made me, the driver, and the elephant very nervous. My daughter sat perfectly still and transfixed the entire time, so just evaluate your child’s temperament and attention span.
- If you’re not inclined towards elephant riding, feeding them is just as fun! For 50 baht we received 2 baskets of food and the kids had a ball passing corn and zucchini to each elephant. It was very sweet to see my daughter carefully make sure each got an equal share. The elephants are not particularly well contained though, and one got out of his pen to circle around us to try for the food from the back. It was not aggressive at all, but as you can imagine, I was very uncomfortable with this.
- The Malls of Bangkok!
- I was very skeptical when I heard and read multiple recommendation that we should eat at the malls in Bangkok. We are flying halfway around the world! We want an authentic cultural experience! Still true, and I don’t recommend spending all your time in malls, but they are worth a visit. Especially if your hotel is attached to one, like ours was! The food options are extensive, and some malls even have food courts featuring Bangkok street food specialties!
- If you come to shop, expect the same prices as back home. We price compared some Coach purses and they were exactly what you would find in the US.
- If you don’t want to take a dedicated trip to the mall, cut through any you come across as you walk to your destination. Some of them take up several city blocks and they are all air conditioned.
- Red Sky Rooftop Bar and Restaurant
- This was easy for us because it was in our hotel, but it’s a destination spot for tourists all over Bangkok. We sat in the open air on the 55th floor and enjoyed our drinks and dessert while taking in the incredible Bangkok skyline. The musical entertainment was quite good too. Just don’t expect Bangkok’s signature low prices here!
So that’s what we did during our 5 days in Bangkok. I fell in love with Thailand and am anxious to get back. Especially since my husband didn’t experience any of this and just worked the whole time!
Magnets
My husband and I both picked up magnets in Bangkok and I struggle to decide what to do about that. We should only have one, one must go! I can’t get rid of this, it came from Bangkok! In the meantime, the one I’ve share here is the one Chris picked out.
- Wat Pho
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8 Tips for Taking on Bangkok with Toddlers
This last year Chris had an opportunity to attend a conference in Bangkok. Obviously this was not something I was going to miss out on, so I recruited my Mom and we set off for the other side of the world!
The kids were 30 months and 14 months when we went, so here are my tips for making the most of your trip with toddlers!
#1 Come prepared for a long flight!
- Bring a cooler with ice, Asian airlines do not carry milk so make sure you bring your own. Our cooler did not stay cold the whole 24 hours, but if we’d had more time in Beijing I was planning to load up on ice from a restaurant.
- Pack whole apples, lollipops, beef jerky, and/or gum for the pressure changes. Anything that gets their jaws moving will help, and if your child still uses a pacifier or a bottle, capitalize on that!
- Try to stick with healthy snacks with one of two treats for emergencies. For a long flight you don’t want to deal with the sugar highs and crashes.
A sweet couple entertaining K on the flight from Beijing to Bangkok.
#2 Splurge on a nicer hotel.
- We chose The Centara Grand since Chris’s conference was there. It was only $120/night (expensive for Bangkok, totally reasonable for the US!) so it’s not that much of a splurge. I would even go further and recommend this specific hotel because we had such a great experience.
- The time change means you are going to spend a lot of time in the room. We had a sitting area with a view of the city and a sleeping area. This really came in handy when the kids were up at 1 am and my Mom and I were trading off sleeping and playing with them.
- Get access to a pool. Bangkok is hot and a quick dip with the kids feels awesome after a day of sightseeing.
- Make sure there is 24/7 room service! In the US I would never order room service, especially not for my children, but the time change means you’ll be up all hours of the night and those kids will be hungry!
- In lines with the above, make sure you have a fridge in the room. When the kids woke up for the day at 1 am they weren’t looking to wait for their morning milk!
The best way to end a day in Bangkok!
#3 Embrace public transportation.
- We took the SkyTrain and the Ferries and had great experiences on both. The SkyTrain was so clean and it was amazing to see so many people lined up neatly and politely to let people exit before filing on. We took a taxi in the city one time and regretted it the entire ride. It is just not worth sitting in traffic!
- We brought our own life vests for the children and wore them on all the ferries and also in the floating market. It was a pain to lug them around, but the peace of mind was worth it. Googling “Ferry accident Bangkok” should be enough to convince anyone in your party who doesn’t want to bother with this step.
Waving to Bangkok in her properly fitting PFD.
#4 Embrace the Thai love of children.
- We found the Thai people in Bangkok delightful when it came to our kids. They were loving and doting but still maintained what we thought were acceptable boundaries.
- Caveat: Tourists in Thailand are a different story. The day we spent on the beach in Koh Larn was entirely spent warding off tourists who wanted to harass the children to tears.
A sweet Thai woman helping HJ see the turtles.
A crowd of tourists clambering to hold and take pictures of the kids.
#5 Leave the strollers at home.
The streets are old and uneven and it will end up being more trouble than it’s worth. We brought our Tula carrier and Toddler Tula carrier and relied heavily on them. It was hot carrying them around, but I still think it was the best way to get around. If I have another baby I’ll probably invest in the more breathable Tula Coast carrier.
- If you travel with your carriers a lot I would invest in a bag that can be worn under or over the baby. We have a Slingyroo and get a lot of use out of it.
Babywearing in the flower market. You can also see that our life vests were hooked to our carriers.
#6 Plan on resting a lot.
- Whether this means hopping on a Tuk Tuk or stopping at every air conditioned restaurant, don’t overdo it. The kids will be tired and hot and the more frequently you rest the happier everyone will be.
Resting and reading the entry tickets.
#7 Dress for success!
- Long sleeved but very light weight apparel.
- Sun hats. (We use Sun Day Afternoons for the kids since they are breathable and cover the neck.)
- Wear sneakers. With the heat it can be tempting to wear sandals, but the streets are dirty and you’ll be walking a lot, so just wear sneakers and thank me later!
- Get as close to full coverage as possible while swimming.
- For babies, we love Stingray full body suits. After I put a hat on them I only have to do a little sunscreen on the backs of their hands and their nose.
- For toddlers we use SwimZip, but any long sleeved suit with leg protection will work. I have yet to find a swimsuit with long pants for toddlers and kids, any suggestions?
- Come prepared for mosquitos. We didn’t even see any during our March trip, but we came prepared with mosquito repellent bracelets. We put them on arms and legs and, who knows, maybe they were the reason we didn’t have problems!
And my number one tip for taking on Bangkok with toddlers?
#8 Do it!
- Wow, it was an amazing trip and I’m so glad we went. There were definitely difficult moments with the little ones, but we have those at home too! Vive la Aventura!
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Royal Caribbean in the Bahamas- Tips for Planning a Bachelorette Party Cruise
One of my best friends got married this year and I had the opportunity to be her Matron of Honor. The best part of this, of course, was planning the bachelorette party! Since we had all been working for a number of years the time was right for a 3 night cruise to the Bahamas!
We chose Royal Caribbean because we’d all done a Carnival cruise in college and felt that the low price was too in line with the quality of the experience. Royal Caribbean had a slightly better reputation but was still very affordable, especially since we put 6 people in 2 interior staterooms.
Our cruise left Miami on a Friday in April and we disembarked early Monday morning. One of the things I went back and forth about the most while planning was how best to organize 6 people arriving on 5 flights spread out of 2 airports. Ultimately I sprung for a limo which was the priciest option but well worth it. The limo meant that each individual could be picked up at the door, we didn’t have to worry about lugging our stuff around when we stopped for breakfast or a last-minute Target run, and we got to kick off the weekend in style! Since the bride-to-be was the first to arrive I was a little worried about her getting connected with the driver, but everything went off without a hitch!
The cruise itself was very nice. There were pools, plenty of beach chairs, a rock climbing wall, and various nightlife options. The other girls checked out some of the latter, but I was always the first one in bed! For destinations we had one day on CoCo Cay (Royal Caribbean’s private island) and one day in Nassau.
CoCo Cay was a lot more fun then I was expecting. My first thoughts on a private island were that they would be too vanilla and we would really miss having some local culture. Although I’m still a big supporter of local culture, it was definitely nice to have a totally no pressure day on the beach. Chairs and hammocks were provided and a BBQ was laid out at lunch. My favorite part of the day was exploring off-the-beaten path and walking around the island. We were able to find parts of the island where we could walk way out to sea and still be only knee high. The water was crystal clear everywhere and you could see little fish nipping at your toes.
I didn’t participate in any excursions in Nassau, and that turned out to be a mistake. We walked around shopping and sight seeing in the main town and that was just kind of OK. If I go there again, I will definitely join a tour. The town itself was nice and colorful, but not very exciting without any context for what we were seeing.
So with out further ado, below are my tops tips for planning a wonderful bachelorette party cruise!
- Plan in advance! The more notice the better. This should help you get a good deal with the cruise line and give everyone enough notice to clear their calendars and set aside the money.
- Start a reservation online and then wait for a travel representative to contact you. We were able to get free welcome gifts by booking through the travel representative. We had champagne and chocolate covered strawberries waiting in our room.
- Be very upfront about the costs. I tried to estimate the cost to fly from each of the origin points and cleared the flight + cruise cost estimate with the key players before booking. Be clear what the plan is for the bride’s share as well. (In our case the bride paid her own airfare and we all split her cruise fare.)
- Arrange transportation from the airport to the cruise terminal. Reserving a limo was a great way to make sure the weekend got off on the right foot. Leaving the cruise terminal to return to the airport it was much less critical, we all took separate Ubers.
- Err on the side of structure! Not enough structure can lead to stress from group decision making. If you have a plan in place, you can always choose to abandon it, but formulating a plan on the fly can be tough and stressful. You should especially plan downtime, its generally easier to go find something fun to do on a cruise then it is to explain to your friends that you want to miss a planned activity because you need a nap!
- Arrange some swag! I did custom bags which I stuffed with a few goodies: coordinating towels for group pictures, sunscreen, lip balm, etc. This wasn’t a necessity by any means, but it was fun to put together and I love the pictures of us with our towels!
- Have fun and go with the flow! I’ve known the bride since college as well as several of the other girls and some of our fondest memories are of just sitting around talking or goofing off. We got to do a lot of that this weekend and really enjoyed.
What am I missing?
Magnets From Everywhere
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Magnets From Everywhere 