Imagine an amusement park where only kids are allowed to ride and they receive endless rides on the tea cups, carousel, and trains. Where kids drive cars, motorcycles, and tractors. All. By. Themselves. The 1980s are alive and well at Lådbilslandet—or Soap Box Car Land—an amusement park in Sweden with soap box cars, “motorcycles” (they […]
“Where’s the chamber pot?” I asked my husband at 2 am. “You’re kidding me,” he mumbled. Wish I was, my dear, wish that I was. If you ever wanted to know what life was like before modern conveniences, then look no further than your nearest Swedish stuga. Stuga is Swedish for “cabin or cottage, ” […]
Maybe I’m just a simple gal who enjoys the simpler things in life but in all of our travels, my favorite vacations have been the ones in which I can let go of all of my stress. I’m a casual jeans and T-shirt, comfort over style, laid back type of person and my most […]
I’m about to get on a plane for 12 hours and fly straight into the face of the unknown. I’m not heading in for a family trip, holiday, or celebration. I’m making this difficult, time-consuming trek because I feel compelled. Something is pulling me. I must go. New friends, old friends, and […]
A few weeks ago, I packed my suitcase and headed out of town for a week in Amsterdam to facilitate a data analysis and management workshop—switching my crisp and clean editor/publisher hat for my worn-in public health hat. It was refreshing to step back into comfortable shoes and play a role that was familiar and […]
I pre-ordered this book because Christine Gilbert was offering some awesome rewards for her fans before the book hit the shelves. Despite living in Sweden, it arrived only 20 days after its release and I devoured it while absorbing the intense Swedish summer sun on my front deck. Christine Gilbert is somewhat of my publishing […]
Last month I published the Top 10 Ways To Be An A+ International House Guest and fellow expats around the world cheered with delight. Well, the knife cuts both ways and I’m here to share some tips on how to be an excellent expat host. As nice as it is to have respectful, thoughtful […]
We want to hear your stories about parenting in foreign countries. Do you have a travel story you want to mention? Maybe you live far away from friends and family. Are you a military family? If so, this Twitter party is a great way to share your perspective. “Twitter Party, what’s a Twitter Party? Will there […]
Benjamin Franklin said, “Guests, like fish, begin to smell after three days.” However, when you are traveling internationally to visit your friends and family, this rule does not apply. In my diverse network of expat friends, I have never once heard someone say that they do not like having visitors. In fact, everyone says […]
As a family, we have traveled all around Europe and the US on planes, trains, and automobiles but no matter where we are headed, we employ these core approaches to traveling lightly. As a mom of two kids, I found that I needed my arms to remain as free as possible to hold little […]