Tag Archives: Thrillist

Unoffical Comfort Foods of Every State

Food, Uncategorized,

a map of the united states of america with food icons

When I think of the term comfort foods, unhealthy is the first thing that comes to mind.

According to Merriam Webster, comfort food is “food prepared in a traditional style having a usually nostalgic or sentimental appeal.”

I wanted a better definition of the term so I turned to Urban Dictionary which says that comfort food is “defined as food that gives emotional comfort to the one eating it, these tend to be favorite foods of childhood, or linked to a person, place or time with which the food has a positive association.”

I’d tend to agree more with Urban Dictionary than Merriam Webster. Continue reading Unoffical Comfort Foods of Every State →

Places That Want You To Kill Exotic Animals

Off Topic, Travel Articles,

a wild boar in a grassy area

A couple of weeks back I heard about the poaching of the  world’s largest elephant in Kenya and it angered me so much.

Now I don’t consider myself one of those activists like in Greenpeace or Sea Shepherd, but I do believe (to some degree) in their causes.

Some of you may know that my family and I are animal lovers and over the years Kim and I have had many amazing animal experiences, mostly during our travels. I’m not going to mention them again but you can find out my top 5 experiences here. Continue reading Places That Want You To Kill Exotic Animals →

Souvenirs That Could Land You In Jail

Travel Articles, ,
a group of chocolate eggs
Image from Thrillist

In recent years we’ve been bringing back less and less souvenirs from our trips. On many of them we don’t even buy a single thing. We do like to get Lucas a little toy during our travels so he has something new and exciting to play with. We also bring back some local snacks on occasion but I’m not really sure if that would be considered a souvenir since they get consumed, eliminating the collectable aspect.

I’m sure most of you know not to bring home meat, fruits, vegetables and cultural artifacts among many other things but what about souvenirs that could really get you into trouble? Continue reading Souvenirs That Could Land You In Jail →

Most Iconic Soft Drinks of Each State In America

Food, Off Topic, ,
a map of the united states of america with different bottles of soft drinks
image from Thrillist

I can’t say that I’m a big fan of soft drinks but I do enjoy a cold soda on occasion.

When flying, my drink of choice is ginger ale and/ or water. Otherwise, there isn’t really a time that I consistently drink soda.

On our recent trip to Atlanta, we visited the World of Coca-Cola. I have to say that I was a bit disappointed during the visit. I expected to learn some details about the history of Coke but left feeling like the place was one massive marketing pitch. (Check back for a future post about our visit.) Continue reading Most Iconic Soft Drinks of Each State In America →

6 Most Interesting International Borders

Travel Articles,
a table and chairs outside a restaurant
Netherlands/ Belgium

I’m not sure what it is, but I always enjoy crossing borders. In recent past I have made this seemingly boring event into a fun photo-op. It can be crossing from country to country or even state to state, whatever it is, I find it fascinating and have to say that as minimal as it seems, it can be a lot of fun!

Over the years, border crossings that stood out were:

  • Walking from Vietnam into Cambodia and having to argue with the border guard who wanted to keep my Visa page
  • Walking from Cambodia into Thailand- seeing our luggage being pushed in strange, wooden wheel-barrows across the border
  • Walking from South Africa into Namibia
  • Taking a photo at Peru & Brazil’s border sign and catching our flight within Colombia from the Amazon.
  • Stopping on the side of the highway, waiting for a turn to jump by the Welcome to South Dakota sign (from Wyoming).
  • Getting permission from the Kosovo border guard to allow us to take some photos by the welcome sign.
  • Having our driver stop on the road into Albania for a brief photo-op.

Continue reading 6 Most Interesting International Borders →

Best Ice Cream Shops In America

Food, Travel Articles,
a man holding a child
Minnesota- Summer 2013

I-scream, you-scream, we all scream for ice cream!

Are you crazy for ice cream? If so, this list of Best Ice Cream Shops in America from Thrillist might help you find some tasty places to try out.

When I saw the title of the article, I had to check it out. Lucas has always liked ice cream but his love for it went to a new level during our trip to Japan (late June/ early July 2013). Shops in Japan are slick and have a great way of letting you know that ice cream is for sale. Most shops that sell ice cream leave giant, fake cones outside or hanging from the building to let you know they sell the frozen treat.

Continue reading Best Ice Cream Shops In America →

Man Visits Every Country Without Flying

Travel Articles,
a man holding a certificate
Image from Thrillist article

A couple of months back I was lucky enough to get a chance to do an interview Lee Abbamonte, the youngest American to visit every country in the world. Talk about an an amazing achievement!

Now imagine visiting every country in the world without stepping foot on a plane?

That’s exactly what Graham Hughes of Britain did Continue reading Man Visits Every Country Without Flying →

15 Most Annoying Travelers In The World

Travel Articles, ,
a woman standing in front of a leaning tower
image from Thrillist

There are many kinds of annoying travelers that you might cross paths with all around the world. For me the worst kind, are the overly loud, obnoxious know-it-alls. These kind of people tend to annoy me in all walks of life, not just travel.

When traveling, there are many situations where you can pretty much expect to find irratating people. Don’t get me wrong, we have met lots of interesting and nice people around the world. But there are types of annoying travelers that you are pretty much guaranteed to run into on the way to or during a trip.

Two of the most annoying to me are:

  1. Continue reading 15 Most Annoying Travelers In The World →

Regional Foods That Need To Be Everywhere

Food, Travel Articles,
a hand holding a burger
Jucy Lucy- Matt’s Bar

While traveling around the U.S. (and the world) we love to seek out and try or should I say taste the local eats.

When I think of local foods, here are a few that come to mind- Pizza in New York, Chicago & Connecticut, Cheesesteaks in Philadelphia, Lobster Rolls in New England (especially Maine & Connecticut) and Muffulettas & Po’ Boys in New Orleans just to name a few.

During our trip to South Dakota I found a food that is pretty much only known within the state called Chislic which you can read about here. We also tried out Johnny Cakes in Rhode Island. While they aren’t only found in RI, I haven’t seen JCs on a menu anywhere else that I’ve been. Check out my post about them here.

Continue reading Regional Foods That Need To Be Everywhere →

Fascinating Pop Culture Maps

Off Topic, , ,

Screen Shot 2014-02-08 at 12.04.18 PMKim and I love maps and have a few interesting ones hanging on our walls. Maps can make for a great piece of art while also being quite interesting and informative.

I came across a bunch of very different maps thanks to Thrillist.

  • College Humor Presents: 9 Oddly Fascinating Pop Culture Maps

I figured that the maps featured would be really silly and of little interest but after looking over them I have to say- the title does not lie. I mean, some of the maps were a bit ridiculous but a bunch of them really were fascinating!

Check out the maps that I feel are worth checking out:

Continue reading Fascinating Pop Culture Maps →