Category Archives: Trip Reports

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Malta Trip Report Part 1: Walking Through Valletta and Attending Feast of St. Peter & St. Paul

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Good morning everyone.  After spending a few days in Athens (post 1 and post 2) and a few days in Crete (post 1 and post 2), we headed to Malta for a week.  My girlfriend has relatives in Malta, so her family showed us around and treated us to several dinners and an amazing feast.  All of the things I will show you are available to the public and accessible via public transportation.  If you are in Malta for a few days, I highly recommend getting a 7 day bus pass for 21 Euros.  If you pay as you ride, each ride is 1.5 to 3 Euros, so if you make a few round trip bus rides, the 7 day pass pays for itself very quickly.  The bus network goes all over the country and runs relatively on time.

The first stop in Malta was to Valletta, the fortified city near the coast.  Valletta had lots of shops, restaurant, and history.

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a heart made of coffee beans

Shelli’s World Coffee Tour – Coffee Houses in Madrid, Spain (Part 3)

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I guess it’s time for a true confession. I’m a coffee snob. And when I travel, I have a passion for supporting local roasters and coffee houses. Let’s just say I’ve BEAN Around the World and I’m feeling like now is the time to start sharing the love… and caffeine, one city at a time. Recently, I had a wonderful holiday in Madrid, Spain. And though it was hard to tear myself away from the incredible pinchos and rioja, I did explore the coffee houses, and I’m glad I did. I drank plenty of coffee, talked with baristas, and I’ve got lots to share with you. Let’s open the TWG cafe society doors and talk coffee, Madrid style. If you haven’t had a chance to read Madrid coffee part one and part two, I suggest you do because they offer in-depth explanations of the general coffee scene and talk about how people in Madrid typically drink coffee. And of course, I give you my best recommendations for where to drink coffee! Continue reading →

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Crete Trip Report Part 2: Crete Safari ATV Tour to Milatos Cave, Feed Monkeys, Taste Olives & Visit Churches

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Good morning everyone, I hope you enjoyed reading yesterday’s post, Crete Trip Report Part 1: Radisson Blu Beach Resort & Nearby Milatos Fishing Village.  In today’s post, I am going to share a lot of photos from Crete Safari, a guided ATV tour around the Milatos / Sissi area of Crete.  I did a little research on Trip Advisor and the ATV tour was highly rated.  During the 5-6 hour guided tour, we went inside the Milatos Cave, fed monkeys in a zoo, tasted various olives at an olive oil factory, had lunch, and visited a few churches.  I believe the tour cost 150 Euros total for the two of us.  We shared an ATV and I drove the entire time.  On the back of the ATV was a lock box, so we left our backpacks and valuables locked inside – which was a really nice ATV feature.  Spoiler alert, the ATV tour was awesome and I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys ATV tours :)

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Crete Trip Report Part 1: Radisson Blu Beach Resort & Nearby Milatos Fishing Village

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Good morning everyone, I hope you had a great weekend.  After a short stay in Athens (post 1 and post 2), we had the pleasure of visiting Crete.  It is the largest of Greece’s islands, but doesn’t get as much love (or tourists) as Santorini or Mykonos.  I didn’t know anything about Crete, but I knew I wanted to visit.  I looked up chain hotels on Crete and only found the Radisson Blu Beach Resort in Milatos, Crete.  I booked 3 nights using a bunch of Radisson Rewards Points.  The property is an all-inclusive, but there are different tiers of “all-inclusiveness.”  As a Radisson Rewards Gold Elite Member (thanks to having a few US Bank Radisson Rewards credit cards), we received complimentary breakfast every day.

Even though the beach resort is beautiful, with a nice beach cove and several crystal clear hotel pools, there is a great little fishing village just around the corner.  Laura and I walked over to the fishing village twice during our stay.  There are several restaurants and a small market in town.  We had a delicious lunch, grabbed some snacks at the local market, had a fish dinner (during our second visit) and walked back to our hotel.  In this post, I will show you the beautiful Radisson Blu Beach Resort and share some photos from the small fishing village. In tomorrow’s post, I will share some photos of my amazing ATV tour around Crete… stay tuned!

a beach with chairs and umbrellas

Image source: https://www.radissonblu.com/en/resort-milatos

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Heading to Madrid, Spain? How to Save Money, Time… and Eat Well!

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Have you ever gotten a tip about a place you were about to visit that just didn’t make sense? I have. And it taught me a great travel lesson. When someone gives me tips about a place I’m visiting, I’ll always ask them, “When was the last time you were there?” I just prefer tips to be as recent as possible. So having recently returned from a really wonderful time in Madrid, Spain, I’ve got a variety of tips I think you’ll enjoying knowing about.

Of course, we start with food. Here’s a fun question for you. Do you like to throw your napkins on the floor after you use them? Then I’ve got a restaurant in Madrid to recommend! And not just because of the napkin routine :) Orio is a Basque style tapas bar in the Chueca area of Madrid. If you’ve never tried classic pintxos, you must! Orio is fun, delicious, and a great value. The fresh oysters may have been some of the best I’ve ever had. Don’t be shy about asking questions because the staff is warm and welcoming. And don’t forget to throw your napkins on the floor!

a group of food on a black board

Pintxos at Orio in Madrid, Spain. Image source: http://gruposagardi.com/en/restaurant/orio-gastronomia-vasca/

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