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Charleston house with double staircase and clairvoyee

8 Reasons Charleston’s Architecture is unique

Charleston’s architecture is what makes the city the most charming of southern belles. It’s beloved for horse-drawn carriages, light-colored antebellum houses and more history than any book you read in high school. Charleston, South Carolina is a romantic little city along low country waterways is known for its rich cuisine, maritime story, and as the holy city for its 400 church spires. These things are anchored by architecture preserved and immaculately restored over hundreds of years. No place else can...

Rene Cizio standing on a white sand dune

5 Reasons White Sands National Park is Worth Visiting

There aren’t very many people at White Sands National Park. I don’t know how many national parks you can say that about anymore. On the days I was there, weekday and weekend, I was mostly morbidly alone. The sand is lovely, but who wants to go to a beach without water? And hiking in the sand, I can now tell you from experience, is precisely as difficult as you might expect it to be. But this place isn’t about the...

red painting says "new orleans ya'll"

How I learned New Orleans Yatspeak and Slang

Even English-speaking visitors will have to learn some New Orleans yatspeak and slang to understand everything they hear in the city. I was constantly delighted by the new words and usage I heard during my month’s stay. Despite speaking “English,” between the various colorful dialects and the words I’d never heard before, I was constantly trying to figure out what I’d just heard and what did it mean? I heard many words, sayings, and phrases in New Orleans that I...

Beauregard-Keyes House parlor in New Orleans
New Orleans Garden District house with gold curtains and live oak tree

Four Reasons to Walk the New Orleans Garden District

The New Orleans Garden District is best on foot. Neither car nor bike or any other mode of transportation can satisfy how walking will. Only a stroll allows your senses the time to take in the sights and smells and let your mind wander in the matchless sensation that is uniquely New Orleans Garden District. I spent a month in the Lower Garden District in a little shotgun house. Each evening, for an hour or more, I walked the streets...

City Park bridge

Three New Orleans Parks to Walk Off Beignets and Hangovers

New Orleans parks don’t get as much attention as neighborhoods like the French Quarter and Garden District, but they should because they’re spectacular. I recently spent a month in the city, eating red beans & rice, beignets, and king cake so I had a lot of walking I needed to do. Outside of the Garden District, these three parks were my favorite places to do it. Audubon Park This 350-acre park is Uptown, not too far from the Garden District....

Mardi Gras World paints

It’s a Mardi Gras World, We’re Just Livin’ in It

Floats at Mardi Gras World are not like floats you’ve ever seen before, unless, of course, you’ve been to Mardi Gras. If you grew up anywhere else in the world as I did, your idea of a parade float probably involves paper or plastic-colored flowers shaped into semi-recognizable figures made by high school students. I remember once seeing a series Disney princess floats and the only way you could tell what princess you were looking at was by the colors....

Bayou Sign

Touring the Bayou in Jean Lafitte National Park

Before booking a kayak tour through the Jean Lafitte National Park bayou, I messaged the host. The tour promised a slow paddle through the bayou with likely sighting of swamp birds, turtles, and maybe some gators. Kayaking and alligators didn’t seem like they should go together, so I asked,  “Are there alligators? I want to do this, but it seems totally crazy to me. Am I nuts?”  “There are alligators, but you’re not crazy!! It’s an awesome time!!”  A friend...

Saguaro National Park cactus with orange sunset

5 Beautiful Places to See Near Tucson, Arizona

Tucson is a rare and beautiful place. I didn’t know much about it before I went there, and that’s because the people are chill, and I think maybe they’re trying to keep this fantastic place a secret. You know a place is spectacular when it has two unique lifeforms that only live there – the Saguaro and Pipe Organ Cactus. Here are five places near Tucson that I loved 1 Saguaro National Park Saguaro Cactuses are an icon of the...