nashville

A few weeks ago, I went to Tennessee with three of my oldest friends. We spent half the time in Nashville, and half in Eastern Tennessee visiting Dollywood. We had a blast - we ate too much, listened to more country music than I ever have in my life, and seriously considered buying cowboy boots. Nashville is a great town, and I felt like I only scratched the surface of it in the few days we were there. Nonetheless, I thought I'd share my favorite spots for those that might be considering a trip to Music City. Read my recommendations after the jump:

colorful key west

I'm back from Florida! Key West was amazing! I fell in love with all the gorgeous, brightly-colored houses and the lush tropical foliage everywhere. I was totally feeling the tropical pastel color palette- everything was painted sea foam green! We rented bikes from our hotel, (The Eden House- I highly recommend!) which was a great way to get around, except Jon kept almost losing me because I was stopping every 50 feet to take photos. What I wouldn't give for a wrap-around porch! 

Read on for more photos of my favorite colorful houses and their clever details:

monday links

Hello from Florida! I'm pretty busy soaking up the rays and eating oranges with dolphins, but thought I'd still post a few links for your Monday morning. Don't forget to follow me on Instagram if you want to stalk me, er, check out my photos of the weird and wonderful state of Florida.

Posting this might get me kicked out of Florida, but it only seems appropriate to link to this Atlantic article  about how orange juice shouldn't be thought of as a healthy drink. Warning: Though I'm always glad to learn more about the foods I eat and drink, I kind of wish I could forget I read this article. I don't want to have to stop drinking orange juice!!

Still have Olympic fever? Have you seen these frame by frame photos from the NY Times? Mind-blowing! I'm still not sure what some of the skiers are doing during their jumps though...

Have you been eating a lot of tea, cauliflower, and freekeh so far this year? Do you know what the hell freekeh is? You may be eating it soon. It's one of the food trends for 2014, according to these (quite similar) articles from NPR and Refinery29.

[Orange crate photo via Postcard Roundup, Oranges photo from The Atlantic via A Cup of Jo, Olympics photo from the New York Times, Tea photo via NPR]

monday links

Happy Monday! How's your week looking? I'm heading to Florida at the end of this week. We'll be in Miami for a few days and then we're driving down to Key West. I'm excited- I've never been to the Keys! Any suggestions on what to see and do? So far I've got two things on the agenda: eat lots of Key Lime Pie and try to see a Manatee. Oh, and singing Kokomo, which I'm sure will be stuck in my head the whole time.

While researching Key West, I came across They Draw and Travel, which features fun maps illustrated by artists from around the world. I love the illustration style of this Key West map by Nate Padavick.

Are you sad the Olympics are officially over? I didn't watch them as much as I would have liked to. I definitely would have watched more events if David Attenborough had narrated the whole thing, like in this curling video. I wish he could narrate everything, all the time.

If you need a laugh this morning, look no further than Texts from Dog. I think this one might be my favorite. Or maybe this one. Aah, can't stop. This one.


[Top image via Tip Trips Florida, Key West map by Nate Padavick via They Draw and Travel, Olympics image via 2014-Olympic]

places to go in 2014

The NY Times just released their list of the 52 places to go in 2014. Cape Town, South Africa took the top spot this year. Three places in California made the list: the Mendocino Coast, Downtown LA, and Lake Tahoe (remember when everyone freaked out that Oakland was included in the 2012 list?).

Where would you go if you had your pick? Would you like to hike an active volcano in Indonesia? Explore one of the world's largest caves in Vietnam? Hang out with snow monkeys in Japan? Or would you prefer a more relaxed vacation spent on the luxurious beaches of the Seychelles?

Personally, I'm dying to visit the Arctic Circle to see the northern lights. They're supposed to be especially dramatic this year! I'd love to see them from Iceland (another spot featured on the list).

Where would you love to travel? Check out their recommendations and some amazing photos here.


 [All images from The New York Times. Top photo by Justin Mott, center by Michael Poliza, and bottom by Tim Graham]

a great summer read

I picked up a copy of Where'd You Go, Bernadette?  recently at my local bookstore. I was looking for something light to read on a camping trip and had heard the author, Maria Semple, used to write for Arrested Development (the book's cute cover didn't hurt either). To my surprise, it turned out to be one of the most imaginative and entertaining books I've read in a long time. Semple's innovative narrative uses e-mails, letters, bills, and even F.B.I. documents to piece together the story of Bernadette Fox, a certified-genius architect turned eccentric recluse who disappears before her family's planned trip to Antarctica. Rather than just serving as a novelty, the varying formats of the story work to keep you engaged in the absurd antics of even the most unlikeable of characters. 

I like reading trashy tabloids as much as the next gal, but if I'm going to take the time to read a novel I want my trash to at least be well-written. Semple's acute observations and wry sense of humor elevate this novel far above your standard beach read. Maybe its my inner nerd, but I like to feel like I'm learning something from everything I read. The desire to learn often leads me to non-fiction, but its nice to be reminded how great fiction can trigger your imagination and pique your interest in new subjects. In the course of reading this novel, I learned quite a bit about the particulars of traveling to Antarctica, but I was too busy laughing and enjoying the story to even notice. It wasn't until after I finished it, that I found myself daydreaming about Semple's vivid descriptions of towering glaciers and icy alien landscapes. Maybe it was just the heat wave that hit us this weekend, but I feel ready to jump on the next cruise and join Bernadette and the gang on an adventure to the frozen ends of the earth.

[book photo from Barnes and Noble]