The best laid plans often go awry, I’m told. But I’m always down for an adventure. When my brother’s dinner plans for us fell apart last minute, I rallied. Ae he drove us into Livorno, I googled restaurants. And I found La Barrocciaia, a highly-rated osteria on a side street near Livorno’s mercado centrale. Ben…
Category: review
is this the coolest hostel in keflavik?
A hostel with funky seating in the lobby, plush bedding you sink into at night, a cheap lobby bar and freshly roasted coffee in the morning. Is this the coolest hostel in Keflavik? The Base Hotel Hostel, in Keflavik, Iceland, is made up of two buildings in the former US Navy/Air Force Base. They’re instantly…
lodge review: the townsville rambutan hostel
A couple of weeks ago, I stayed at the Townsville Rambutan Hostel for one night. I’d been really curious about it because when I was searching for a place to stay, it consistently came up as the best hostel in town. It is also a YHA hostel, which in general are nice, clean, spacious places…
on the road: the arts trail in golden bay, new zealand
New Zealand often has surprises up its sleeve. For example, I went north into Golden Bay the week before Christmas expecting small towns and empty beaches. Imagine my surprise then, when I drove into Takaka and saw a long main street full of galleries, cafes, and shops. It made me wonder, what else is in…
lodge review: altamont lodge
I had the very fortunate opportunity to go back to Wanaka two weekends ago. After being slightly unsure if my car would make the drive, (!!) I got the okay from the mechanic and headed out of Dunedin on a post-rainy sunny morning. I was headed for Wanaka to explore the town and find out…
a penguin experience with the royal albatross centre
Last week, I joined my flatmate Mandy on a Penguin Tour with the Royal Albatross Centre out on the Otago Peninsula. It was one of the cooler moments in my life, watching tiny blue penguins scurry out of the water and up to their nesting holes in the hillside. Read on for my experience and…
lodge review: kinloch lodge
The road to paradise begins, quite literally, at the junction of Paradise and Glenorchy. Here, you have two options: keep going down a gravelly road toward Paradise and Rees Valley, or turn left and circle the top of Lake Wakatipu toward Kinloch.Personally, I’ll always go for Kinloch. I arrived at Kinloch Lodge late in the…
the hostel horror story: mount backpackers
Update January 2017: I am in the process of finding more photos for this hostel. You can view my TripAdvisor review here: Sarah’s Mount Maunganui TA review. I’ve debated for a while on whether or not to post this. I feel like people need to be aware of this place, as Lonely Planet calls it…