A picturesque Mediterranean port city, cascading down Mt. Carmel to the sea, with the world-famous Baha’i Gardens in between…Haifa holds it’s own for beauty and culture. Not a big tourist-draw, it’s is a real city that prides itself on its harmoniously mixed population of Jews and Arabs. We particularly loved the street market and art of the Wadi Nisnas neighborhood and chatting politics with our awesome Airbnb host, Abigail. Just a half hour up the railroad tracks, Akko (or Acre) is a gorgeous stone city, graced by the likes of Alexander the Great, Marco Polo, Napoleon, and Egyptians dating back to 19th century BC. We wandered its narrow alleys, tunnels, and fortress walls and fell in love with this romantic little town. Check out our mini travel guide with this photo gallery.
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic doesn’t get nearly enough credit. It’s the oldest city in The Americas (est. 1496) and home to the first cathedral, university, castle, monastery, and fortress in the New World. If you knew that, good on ya, but I feel like every person we’ve told is as surprised as we were. Why…
The sound of trumpets, trombones, and snare drums is getting louder and louder…we roll over in bed. Then a crescendo hits like it’s pounding at our hotel door. There is no sleeping through this–Cuenca is calling. We threw a jacket over our pajamas and chased after the music. We followed a brass band of dapper…
It’s three o’clock in the morning in Mawlamyine, Myanmar and we are looking for a place to sleep. Going from overnight bus to taxi van, we wind down the mountain with toward the moonlit shimmer of the Thanlwin river. The cabby takes us to Breezes Guest House, a crumbling colonial mansion on the waterfront. We…