As you probably know, Dan and I went to Jordan last month for almost two weeks! Our trip was amazing, but the main point of it was, obviously, Petra!! Petra had just re-opened during our visit and we only saw 12 other tourists, which was crazy! I will be posting a full write up and guide on Tuesday, but here are some of our favorite pictures for your Friday viewing pleasure! Happy Weekend!!
Of everywhere I’ve traveled and eaten the last few years, I receive the most questions about the underwater restaurant I visited in the Maldives! Named Ithaa, meaning “pearl” in Dhivehi, the local language, Ithaa is a restaurant 5 meters underwater at the Conrad Rangali Island resort!
You can just see Ithaa under the water. It’s the grayish looking tube.
If you read my last post, you know that my husband, Dan (a bit of a points guru), found a crazy deal for a week in the Maldives at the Conrad Rangali Island, Maldives the first week of December – 5 nights in an overwater bungalow totally on points. So that became our Thanksgiving vacation! I was a little iffy about staying a full 5 nights and 6 days on a remote island with no realistic ability to leave, but we had a wonderful time and it was perfect during the pandemic. And actually, Dan and I both felt that our Maldives vacation FLEW by and we easily could have spent another week. Big surprise! Here’s a run down of our week if you are curious (or hesitant) about what you would do on such a stay!
Palm trees at the Conrad Rangali Island.
Dan and I visited South Korea in November 2019 and, like many tourists, we had a few discussions about whether to visit the North/South Korean border, referred to as the Demilitarized Zone or the “DMZ.” I very much wanted to and quite frankly, could not imagine going all the way to South Korea without at least trying to catch a glimpse of the infamous country. Dan, on the other hand, had zero interest and preferred to spend his time on more “positive” things. We compromised by doing a half-day guided tour from Seoul to the DMZ with I Love Seoul Tour, which tour got totally restructured due to an “African Swine Flu outbreak.” Reflecting back on our half-day tour, Dan enjoyed it more than he thought he would, and I was underwhelmed. Interesting and historical for sure, but not a “must see” in my opinion. This post is about our personal experience in November 2019. Information and safety at the Korean border changes daily, as do what things tourists can access, and travelers should always review the most up-to-date information before engaging in such a trip.
Looking out to North Korea.
In planning our trop to Seoul, Korea, Dan and I were very excited to try allll of the food, but we also knew that we would have some trouble accessing some of the more local cuisine, especially of the street food variety, so I booked three (!!!) food tours during the course of our six day trip. Nope, I do not regret it at all and each one was quite delicious. Our first food tour was centered around Gwangjang Market, a busy market frequented by locals, as well as some tourists in the know. More so now with the release of Netflix’s Street Food Seoul episode – featuring Gwangjang Market.
Entering Gwangjang Market early on a rainy Sunday morning.
We entered Gwangjang Market early on a Sunday morning and despite it being rainy and cold, the market was largely open and packed with people, mostly Koreans. Our tour guide walked us through the most famous intersection of Gwangjang, as seen on Netflix’s Street Food Seoul edition, and pointed out some less authentic, more tourist oriented stalls in this popular area. He advised us to avoid them at all costs.
Some popular tourist stands according to our tour guide.
Our tour guide then led us to our fist proper stop – a humble stall serving noodles and dumplings – as featured on Netflix’s Street Food Seoul edition (!!), and we sat down for our first taste of the day (well, we did have some breakfast, which would later regret). Sitting at this food stall was quite exciting, as we did not realize this famous one was on the tour! Second surprise, the benches affixed around the cooking area are all heated! Totally genius and this perk made our meal much more comfortable on a cold morning. Our first food was two bowls of kimchi – the traditional red version that we often see is the US and a green variety that, according to our guide, is only found in Korea. We were also given a bottle of soju – Korean liquor – to drink with our breakfast… The kimchi was, as expected, way better than anything I’ve ever had in the US, and the green kimchi was my favorite of the two. It was absolutely delicious! The soju was a little much for a Sunday morning but, when in Seoul? We managed to finish the bottle.
The famous food stall from Netfilx’s Street Food Seoul edition.
Seoul is the capital of South Korea, the lower portion of the Korean peninsula (the upper portion being North Korea). Seoul is a huge city located in the northwest part of South Korea on the Han River. I have been wanting to visit Seoul for a few years, and Dan and I finally pulled the trigger and visited for six days in November as part of a Seoul/Tokyo trip over our Thanksgiving holiday. I had a bit of a difficult planning our trip and figuring out what to see and eat, so here are the highlights of our trip, as two thirty-something American travelers who are certainly not experts on Korea! We loved our time, found Seoul to be a surprising budget destination, and we absolutely need to go back for the cherry blossoms!
The famous Seoul sign at City Hall.
Ahhhhh, one of my favorite, if not my FAVORITE, restaurant that we ate at in Singapore on our honeymoon (sigh, take me back!) was Birds of a Feather! Birds of a Feather is a bit of a swanky sit down restaurant on Amoy Street in the Chinatown neighborhood of Singapore. We walked from the Intercontinental, and it took us close to 45 minutes.
Views of Marina Bay Sands on our walk to Birds of a Feather.
On our honeymoon earlier this year, Dan and I had hoped to have dinner at the famous Cuisine Damnak Wat; however, it was closed during our visit to Cambodia!! In looking for a comparable restaurant, I came across The Sugar Palm in Siem Reap. While I am not at all confident it is comparable to Cuisine Damnak Wat, The Sugar Palm was an excellent choice for dinner on our honeymoon!
Made it!
The Sugar Palm is set in the Wat Damnak neighborhood of Siem Reap. We took a tuk tuk from our hotel, and we ran into a bit of difficulty finding the restaurant. Eventually we arrived, just in time for our dinner reservation.
Dan and I visited Angkor, including the famous, Angkor Wat, earlier this year on our honeymoon. The entire trip was totally fabulous, and you can read more about that here. But, this post is about what to wear!! I was sort of clueless when it came to deciding what to pack for Angkor. I certainly wanted to ensure that I was comfortable and fully able to explore all of the temples in Angkor without issue, but I also did not want to look like I just came from the gym…. I mean, pictures!!
We had to look cute for these ridiculous pictures, right?
Angkor, commonly referred to as “Angkor Wat,” is the humongous, impressive, UNESCO recognized temple complex in Northeast Cambodia. Dan & I had been wanting to visit Angkor for years, and we finally visited in February 2018 on our honeymoon! Of course, I had to write a post about our experience, so here you go! If you are thinking of going there on a honeymoon, I thought Angkor was a perfect mix of adventure, romance, and beauty!
One of my favorite pictures of Angkor Wat in the morning (before allllll of the visitors).
