The Trip that Never Was...2014

In Fall 2013, I began planning to join a group trip to China to check out the Great Wall and Terra Cotta Warriors...I had paid the reservation fee and traveler's insurance and it was a week away from when I was going to pay the remainder of the cost, however, I began to have second thoughts.

So I asked God to show me if it was still okay to go or not...

One day, after Thanksgiving, my mom and I went into a local store during their open house weekend. They were having door prizes and a raffle. So we both entered the raffle....and as I entered, I asked God to show me clearly one way or the other if it was okay for me to go to China....if I won the raffle, I should definitely not go...

So, a couple days later, when they had the raffle drawing, I got a phone call telling me I had won 1st prize in the raffle...a bittersweet victory, because I knew I had to cancel my trip:(

Although I did win a nice basket of Vermont-made goodies as a consolation prize!

Basket full of Vermont-made goodies

Since I was forbidden to go to China, I ended up staying in the country in 2014. However, I still ended up having 2 nice family vacations that year! One to Plymouth, Mass. to check out the plantation and Mayflower 2:

Plymouth Plantation 1600s

Mayflower 2

And one to Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse in Maine:

Cape Elizabeth Lighthouse, Maine

Cool little ship

So even though I couldn't go overseas, I still had a great time exploring more of New England! :)

God knows best;)

Happy Travels!

Rachael

#newengland #plymouth #maine #lighthouse #mayflower

Costa Rica April 2010

    It was April 2010, and after surviving another Vermont winter, it was time to go somewhere warm!
I put out my idea for an 11-day trip to Costa Rica on Facebook and asked if anyone wanted to join me, and one of my friends from college said yes. So we planned our adventure ad headed south.

We flew out of Connecticut down to DC, then El Salvador and finally to our destination. ( I like to get the best deals possible on flights, so sometimes end up having longer layovers and more stops;))

Immediately upon exiting the airport, a wave of amazing heat engulfed us, and I for one was glad to be warm again! We were picked up by a driver who let us stop at a grocery store before dropping us off at our first accommodation. We spent our first 3 nights at Campo Verde near Arenal volcano, an active volcano that we couldn't go too close to!

Campo Verde below Arenal Volcano

Swan towels in our room

While we were there, we went on 2 day tours. First, we went on a SkyTram up a mountain and walked to a spot to view the volcano from a different angle.

SkyTram

This was both my friend and my first time hearing howler monkeys in the trees!

Howler Monkey

The next day we went on a boat tour in the Cano Negro Wildlife Refuge. We saw lots of wildlife, including more howler monkeys, Spider monkeys, cayman, iguana (known as 'chicken of the tree'), and many types of birds, such as a cormorant, who was drying its wings on a nearby branch.

Spider monkey

Cayman

Iguana

Cormorant

This boat tour was one of my favorite parts of the trip!

Me on my 1st jungle river cruise

We briefly crossed the Nicaraguan border before turning around and stopping at a place for lunch, where I learned how pineapples grow.

Nicaragua border

Pineapples

We then left Arenal and went further up into the mountains to the cloud forest of Monteverde. The temperature was cooler and I even had to wear a sweatshirt at times!

We took a tour of the cloud forest and went over several suspension bridges (also one of my fav parts of the trip!) above the jungle canopy.

Monteverde cloud forest

suspension bridge through the jungle canopy

We saw hummingbirds, butterflies and many exotic flowers as well.

hummingbird

jungle flower

We also had a guided tour in the cloud forest and saw and heard many musical birds.

birdwatching through a monoscope

airplant

We then took a bus and a boat to get to Samara, a beach town on the west coast. This was my first time seeing the Pacific Ocean. And if it was cool up in the mountains, it definitely wasn't down there! We got put in an upgraded apartment because the room I had booked was being renovated, which was nice, but all we had to cool ourselves with was a ceiling fan!

upgraded apartment

Even the water in the ocean was like bath water that time of year, but we still enjoyed walking on the almost deserted beach!

Samara beach

Since it was April, it wasn't exactly peak tourist season, but we did see some people riding horses.

horses on the beach

After sweating for 2 days, we were glad to go back north and cool off!
We took a bus back to the airport and headed home, spending the night in a DC airport before arriving back in Connecticut and going our separate ways.
It was a fun trip, and my 1st down to Central America. A nice change from my usual more temperate climate destinations!

Happy Travels!

Rachael

#CostaRica  #Jungle #CloudForest #exoticwildlife #travel

Caribbean Archaeological Adventure June 2009

In February 2009 I found myself without a job. I had just finished grad school the year before and now had to pay for it. My undergrad degree was in Archeology and History, so I decided to do a month-long archeological field school on the tiny Caribbean island of St. Eustatius, known as Statia by the locals.
I got one of my college buddies to go with me, and in the beginning of June we headed off on our adventure!
We arrived at the small airport on Statia and got picked up by the archeology intern who was working at SECAR that summer.
There were about 7-8 of us staying at the SECAR building, which consisted of a living room, lab, kitchen, 2 bedrooms with bunk beds and bathrooms.

Inside SECAR building

Being summer in the Caribbean, it was hot...and all we had to help cool us was a ceiling fan and ocean breezes. We all got along well and ate and played games together when we weren't working or exploring the island.
Over the 4 weeks I was there, some people left while others arrived. We were all in our early to mid-20s and loved to play in the dirt! One particularly windy day I got tons of dirt blown in my face while sifting for artifacts:

Me enjoying the dirt

In the morning we would go to the dig site, which was an 18th century colonial site, and dug, sifted and used our trusty trowels to uncover artifacts and the remains of a building where people used to live.
The site had a nice view of the ocean, and after we cleaned and cataloged artifacts back in the lab we would go down to the beach and cool off in the Caribbean waters. Since the sun is closer to the earth near the equator, most of us got sunburned as well:(

The director of the field school also took us around the island and we got to see the Atlantic side (luckily we were on the gentler Caribbean side), went on several hikes, including up and down inside the caldera of a dormant volcano known as The Quill, and basically all over the 7-mile long 2-mile wide island.

The Quill volcano

Me on the way up to the top of The Quill

Me by big tree in the caldera of the volcano

Me on one of our hikes around Statia

Caribbean sunset

Some of the artifacts we unearthed were rusty nails, clay pipe stems, and, I even found the remains of a small hearth used for cooking my last week there!

hearth I uncovered

All in all, it was a worthwhile experience that I enjoyed before going back home and starting the job hunt and fully joining the world of adulthood:)

Happy Travels!

Rachael

#archeologyfieldschool #caribbeanadventure

Packing Light: How to pack 1 carry on for a 9 day trip

As I prepare to go off on another adventure, I thought I would share with you how I pack my bag, and how I manage to only have 1 carry on bag to last a 7-9 day trip!

When I was a teenager, I read an article in some magazine that suggested rolling your clothes instead of folding them to save space...I have been doing so ever since!

First, I pick out the amount of shirts, underwear and socks I'm going to need. I usually end up wearing the same thing for the 2 travel days there and back, so that cuts down on space already! ;)

Then, I fold the shirts lengthwise, making sure the arms are folded in like so:

After this, fold underwear in half and put on top of shirt, then add a folded pair of socks (or you can leave the socks unfolded)

Then, roll them up, like you would a sleeping bag:

After I've rolled up around 7-8 of these, I put them in my trusty bag that I've taken with me all over the world for the last 15 years or so, making sure to have my passport and travel papers of course:

And then I add an extra pair of pants, some jammies, and my little zip lock bag of toiletries, as well as a book, snack and camera, and voila! A perfectly packed bag for a 7-9 day adventure!

Much easier than going through the hassle of checking a bag and hoping it makes it to your destination!

Happy travels!

Rachael

#travel light #adventure

Studying in Scotland: My Year-Long Grad School Experience 2007-8

It was late summer 2007. I had just graduated from college in New Hampshire and was getting ready to head off to grad school at the University of Edinburgh in Scotland.

Before this, I had traveled twice through school to the British Isles (Ireland and England), and was now ready to explore further north, while earning my MSc in Osteoarcheology (the study of bones in an archeological context).

In late August I headed out of Boston to go across the Pond (Atlantic) once more. I always research before going on any trip, and had looked up the different steps I needed to take to get to my destination.

My plane landed in Glasgow, where a few weeks before there had been a terrorist attack. This did not deter me, since I figured it was the safest time to go with the heightened security.

I then took a bus over to Edinburgh, the capital city, and the place I would call home for the next year.

I arrived in St. Andrew's Square bus station and took a cab up the hill to my lodgings, which ended up being right off the Royal Mile near the castle!

Edinburgh Castle (from Prince's Street Gardens)

View out my window of Scott's Monument

 I signed in and was shown to my flat (apartment) that I would be sharing with 4 other girls. We each had our own rooms, and a shared kitchen and bathrooms. One of my flatmates was already there, and we went for a walk. I found out she was from Canada. My other 3 flatmates were from Taiwan, China and Ghana. We all got along fairly well, but I ended up hang out with other people I met elsewhere.

My 2nd day there we had an orientation meeting for the 3 buildings comprising Milnes Court. This is where I met one of my best friends, Sophia from L.A., who I shared many amazing adventures with, along with other friends, mostly who went to New College, right by where I was living!

New College

We all worshiped in several different churches together, including St. Giles Cathedral right on the cobble-stoned streets of the Royal Mile, a must see for all Edinburgh visitors!

St. Giles on the Royal Mile

Over my year spent there, I developed many friendships and explored many places.

Another place I recommend checking out if you are lucky enough to find yourself in Edinburgh is Arthur's Seat in Holyrood Park, right near the Palace of Holyroodhouse at the opposite end of the Royal Mile from the castle.

me climbing Arthur's Seat

In the middle of this park it's like you aren't even in a city anymore, a much appreciated spot for country lovers like me to escape the hustle and bustle of city living!

Me in Holyrood Park

The swans agree, as they can be seen near the ponds in the park!

swan overlooking pond in Holyrood Park

I also got to explore several castles outside of Edinburgh with my friends, and ate at a variety of eateries like cafes and pubs, and Chinese and Indian restaurants, and even tried some haggis! (Very flavorful, and good in small quantities).

Craigmillar Castle outside of Edinburgh

 During classes, I learned more about anatomy and physiology, how different domesticated animal bones look, and what happens to bones over time and in different environments. I did my dissertation on exploiting the antler and researched about the ways people have used antlers, specifically roe deer antlers, since they are native to the British Isles, throughout time in the British Isles. I also did a hands on portion and actually got to make some of the items I found in my research!

Dissertation Antler items- digger, stamp, paralleliped die, cube die, gaming pieces, and pendant

About half way through the year, in February, I had to move because of dry rot. So I ended up down the street on the opposite end of the Royal Mile closer to Arthur's Seat.

view out my window of Arthur's Seat and rainobws

In early April, I took a day trip up to the Highlands. This is what many think of as the real Scotland, and I must agree! As far as cities go, I enjoy Edinburgh, but I prefer being out in the country! :)

While only long enough to whet my appetite for more, this day trip allowed me to see quite a bit in a short time. I went with Timberbush Tours, a small group tour company, and we headed out of the city on a snowy morning up north to explore mountains, lochs and castles.

We stopped at Glencoe, saw a hairy coo named Hamish, and got to go on a cruise on Loch Ness and wander around the ruins of Urquhart Castle, a good place to spot Nessie!

Highland Mountains

Hamish the Highland coo

Cruise on Loch Ness

Urquhart Castle on Loch Ness

And even though there was snow and rain on and off all day, the sun did make an appearance when it mattered the most, when we were on our cruise of the loch! A worthwhile experience, and one I hope to repeat soon!

Studying and living in another country is a great way to immerse yourself in another culture and broaden your perspective. I highly recommend the experience!

If you would like more information about traveling to Scotland, please check out VisitScotland's site here to explore places and things to do on your own Scottish adventure!

#Scotland #studyabroad