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4 Days in Vancouver, BC: What to do, see, & eat.

Abigail Colombo

Jul 17, 2020
3 min

4 Days in Vancouver, BC: What to do, see, & eat.

I took this trip in January as part of a work conference, and it was supposed to be the first of many adventures in 2020. We all know what happened next, but that being said, for likely my only trip out of country this year, I feel so lucky for the opportunity I was given to both further my education in incentive travel, and explore a city that has been on my bucket list for quite some time. I arrived during a torrential downpour that essentially didn’t stop the entire time

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Abigail Colombo

Jul 5, 2018
2 min

Glacier National Park

When offered to tag along on a trip to Glacier National Park for a week, I couldn’t say no! Having never been to Montana, I didn’t know what to expect, but coming from Oregon, the most beautiful state (I’m biased), I thought, how cool could it actually be? OK really freaking cool. 10 mile hike, half of which was in semi-unexpected downpour (hence Fay’s trash bag poncho) Our cabin was minutes from the entrance to GNP, but with some road closures due to snow pack, we ended up d

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Abigail Colombo

Mar 28, 2017
3 min

Palm Springs, California

Go to Palm Springs, they said. It will be 75 and sunny, they said. Steps off plane into 98 degree sun and melts Don’t complain, I tell myself. It freezing at home, this feels so great * Skin searing; eyes burning* Okay, maybe a bit dramatic, but to say the least I was not prepared for a week of hot-hot after months of bitter cold…a girl needs time to acclimate! My aunt and uncle picked my cousin and I up from the airport, which I thought looked like a movie set. It’s mostly

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Abigail Colombo

Aug 20, 2015
4 min

TOKYO in 5 Days

This post is way, way overdue…by 6 weeks. I guess that is what happens when you get back to real life! It was only a few short weeks ago that I found myself writing multiple times a week and racking my brain for a list of things to do everyday in paradise. Anyway, Tokyo was the last stop of my nearly half a year adventure and it was the best finale I could have asked for. I spent this last leg with my best friend and her husband, and because they have family friends in Tokyo,

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15 Things to Do in Okinawa, Japan: Part I

Abigail Colombo

Jun 18, 2015
3 min

15 Things to Do in Okinawa, Japan: Part I

I’ve been in Okinawa for two weeks now, the weather has been incredible, especially considering June falls in the rainy season. On average it is 85-90 degrees with a “real feel” of 100-110 degrees (humidity). It took me full week to get over the jet lag and feel like myself again. Jenna has been an excellent tour guide and we have been keeping very busy with so much to do on this island. 1) The Sea Wall: A two mile boardwalk, a great viewpoint for sunsets and for those who li

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Abigail Colombo

Jun 9, 2015
4 min

Layover in Taipei

My flight from Croatia to Japan came with an 11 hour layover in Taipei. I knew I didn’t want to sit in the airport all day so I started looking into options for entertainment. The Taipei airport itself is one of a kind and can keep most people busy for hours. Another option is guided half day tours in and around Taipei for travelers with layovers of at least 8 hours. They offer a morning and afternoon tour for tourists, and at no cost. The reviews looked promising but since

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Abigail Colombo

Jun 2, 2015
2 min

Fight or Flight

But not so fast, my journey did not go as smoothly as planned starting from the first flight leaving Croatia. My flight was delayed an hour and I was worried about making my connection in Frankfurt. I gave the flight staff my info and they said I would still have an hour and that will be enough time. This may have been true if the plane was on time to Frankfurt, but we spent around 30 minutes parking and de-boarding. I looked at my phone and saw that I had 30 minutes until m

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Abigail Colombo

May 21, 2015
2 min

Three Days on Korcula

*pronounced core-chew-lah. I don’t have the Croatian alphabet on my blog so if the word doesn’t sound like it looks I’ll add the pronunciation. The water looked like this while we were on Korcula: Sad, very sad, windy, and cold. Even still, I think this will be one of my favorite stops on our trip because it was just that beautiful of a town. We didn’t do anything, literally nothing but eat and watch movies and drink wine for three days, and I still loved it. It’s definitely

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Abigail Colombo

May 19, 2015
3 min

Day Trip to Montenegro: Kotor & Budva

After three days in Dubrovnik we decided to head to a neighboring country for a day to see some other scenery. Kotor Bay: We spent an hour and a half in Kotor, which was just enough time to walk the short way to the top of the fortress on the city walls. It cost 5 euros for both of us and it is straight up hill. Compared to other hikes we have done this was the most difficult for me and we were sweating like little pigs by time we reached the top. The view was amazing and it

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Dalmatian Coast Roadtrip: For the Budget Minded Traveler

Abigail Colombo

May 12, 2015
3 min

Dalmatian Coast Roadtrip: For the Budget Minded Traveler

*We booked all accommodations through Air B&B. It makes the most sense for us because most accommodations offer a kitchen so we can cook 90% of our meals. The currency here is the Kuna. 1 Kuna= approximately .14 cents. Three Days in Split Day 1: Walked on the Riva, Visited Dolectians Palace (UNESCO World Heritage Site). Day 2: Hiked Marjan Hill. It was free and took about 2 hours to walk, provides amazing views of the city! Day 3: Took a day trip to Krka Falls National Park.

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Workaway #4: Ostuni, Yoga Retreat, & More!

Abigail Colombo

May 3, 2015
2 min

Workaway #4: Ostuni, Yoga Retreat, & More!

Our Italian travels are coming to a close! We’ve spent eight magical weeks in Italy and I feel bittersweet about the thought of leaving. It’s safe to say if we weren’t restricted to 90 days in Europe we would be here for a lot longer exploring other regions in Italy. Oh well, I guess this just means I need to plan another trip in the future ;). As for the last two weeks in Italy we were in Ostuni, Puglia, just 30 minutes away from our last location. Surprisingly though, it fe

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Workaway #3: A month in Brindisi, Puglia

Abigail Colombo

Apr 19, 2015
3 min

Workaway #3: A month in Brindisi, Puglia

I’ve been saying in past posts that we were staying/working in Brindisi but the truth is our hosts aren’t IN a city at all, and Brindisi is about 30 minutes away. Brindisi is just the closest big city, and a whole lot easier than explaining what part of the country we were in. Only recently did our hosts acquire an address, but they sometimes find it easier to give out GPS coordinates as directions. Basically, we were in the middle of nowhere. OUR HOSTS Our hosts were Bob and

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Abigail Colombo

Apr 12, 2015
2 min

Day Trip to Otranto, Puglia

You cannot go much further south in Puglia than Otranto, which is located on the east coast. This most southern area of Puglia is referred to as the Salento peninsula. The Strait of Otranto, connects the Adriatic Sea with the Ionian Sea and separates Italy from Albania. The old town is set next to the harbor and lined with the little boutiques, restaurants, and gelaterias you see in every town here. Out of all the towns we have seen in Puglia, this was one of my favorites. T

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Abigail Colombo

Apr 3, 2015
2 min

Sunday Market Finds: Brindisi

The cuisine in Puglia is called peasant cooking (cucina povera). The staples are olive oil, grapes, tomatoes, eggplants, artichokes, peppers, salami, mushrooms, olives and fresh seafood. We have had some amazing food and wine, not having eaten out, but from meals cooked using the ingredients from the markets. Some may find it inconvenient that if a vegetable, herb, or fruit isn’t in season or cannot grow in the region, that you just won’t be able to get it. I think it should

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Wine Tasting & Lunch in Gaugnano, Puglia

Abigail Colombo

Mar 29, 2015
2 min

Wine Tasting & Lunch in Gaugnano, Puglia

In the quiet town of Guagnano, Puglia lies Feudi di Guagnano winery and tasting room. On one of my days off, a friend of my hosts( who are originally from Manhattan,) were kind enough to take me wine tasting in this area. The tasting room is set between wine barrels, a large jenga looking wine rack, and one table. Add a candle or two and this could be quite an intimate setting. The wines were incredible, I’m confident in saying it is some of the best wine I have ever tasted.

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Abigail Colombo

Mar 13, 2015
4 min

By the Sea in Bari

Bari was a stopping point between Rome and our next host in Matera. It’s one of the larger cities in the Apulia region, right beside the Adriatic sea. Within the city you find a mix of new and the old. One block is lined with designer shops and boutiques and a block later you transport back thousands of years in the Old Town. Seriously, one second we were walking by GUESS and H&M, and the next we saw fresh seafood being prepared on the streets. From pavement to cobblestone al

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Abigail Colombo

Mar 11, 2015
3 min

When in Rome

Our flight from Amsterdam to Rome was delayed two hours and while we were waiting in line to board, a couple behind us saw the SOU Alumni sticker on my water bottle and asked if we were from Oregon. We discovered they were from Eugene and both University of Oregon graduates. They were traveling through France and Italy, and we spent the rest of the wait in line talking to them about their travels. They were the first people we have met from Oregon since we have left, and it w

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Abigail Colombo

Mar 6, 2015
3 min

Amsterdam: Part I

We took a train from Brussels to Amsterdam, fairly inexpensive if I remember right. The train companies/sites I use most are Rail Europe, Rome to Rio, and I just found a new one The Train Line- Europe which had much better rates. I almost booked a train through Rail Europe for 118 and checked The Train Line last minute, it was 58, so definitely worth it to spend time checking every option. Also, were considered youths until we are 26, so I always make sure to mark that as wel

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Abigail Colombo

Mar 5, 2015
5 min

Two Days in Brussels

Why did we go to Brussels? Well, there wasn’t a real reason other than, “why not?” I thought it looked beautiful (in photos) and being so close to our planned visit to Amsterdam, we decided to stop in on our way. I didn’t plan this portion of the trip to well, I have to say. I booked a later flight, thinking we could get to the hostel before dark. Arriving in the Belgium airport I realized I knew a lot more Spanish than I thought because French looked as familiar as Chinese a

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Abigail Colombo

Mar 4, 2015
4 min

Three Nights in Barcelona

Arriving in Barcelona was like entering new world. It was so different from where we were coming from, but only just a few hours away. We took a high speed train from Malaga, it was such a comfortable ride and a lot less of a hassle than a flight. I’m becoming very anti-plane if we can help it. Not only the comfort but since we have to pay for baggage with every single flight, the cost is usually the same or a little bit more. If the flight is 35 euro and baggage is 20 and th

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