Are you planning your summer getaway and are short on warm-weather essentials? Need a wardrobe refresh? Then read on and bookmark this detailed summer packing list! Whether you’re dreaming of days spent lying by the beach, trekking Europe, hiking scenic trails, or attending concerts, festivals, and baseball games, this summer packing list has everything you need. I want you to be prepared and comfortable, ensuring you have a memorable summer! I live in Sacramento, where the summers get scorching hot. I’m talking about 100°F or higher. It’s certainly not fun (especially having lupus and sun sen ..read more

Are you planning to go on a cruise with a stop in Ensenada? Do you want to see the best of this cute little town without the overcrowded and overpriced tours your cruise offers? I can help you out with the best Ensenada tours from the cruise port! My husband Cecilio and I recently went on our first cruise to Ensenada. Most of the tours that the cruise offered were pricey with bad reviews from passengers. Rather than booking through the cruise, I booked a private tour with a local tour company, heading to La Bufadora. We did what we wanted and didn’t wait around for 50 other fellow cruise passe ..read more

Situated 17 miles south of Ensenada, Mexico, La Bufadora is among three of the world’s biggest blowholes. Water spraying from the Pacific Ocean up to 100 feet makes you in awe of what nature is capable of. If the water sprays that high, chances are, you’re going to get wet! Most people who visit La Bufadora come from cruises. They either book through the cruise line’s excursion or a local tour company. Some visitors who aren’t on a cruise book a tour from San Diego. When Cecilio and I went on a Carnival cruise, I booked a private tour for us to see La Bufadora. I loved the one-on-one attenti ..read more

Are you going to Ensenada any time soon, from San Diego or a cruise port stop? You have to visit Bar Andaluz, where the margarita (yes, the Mexican cocktail everyone loves and eats with tacos) was invented! Cecilio and I went on a Carnival cruise sailing out of Long Beach with port stops in Catalina Island and Ensenada. We went on a private tour, with our guide, Eugenia, driving us to La Bufadora for a couple of hours. She then took us to Bar Andaluz (where the margarita was possibly invented) towards the end of our tour. You bet I couldn’t leave without ordering a glass myself! Disclaimer ..read more

If you’re visiting Japan for the first time, I’d recommend staying at least 5 days in Tokyo. As a first-timer, you’d also probably want to visit other parts of Japan like Kyoto and Osaka within the limited time you have (especially in the US, where vacation days are scarce). In this case, this 5-day Tokyo itinerary is for you! I curated this itinerary based on when Cecilio and I recently went to Japan. I made some adjustments to ensure that everything goes smoothly for you! Staying longer than 5 days means spending more money on accommodations, food, transportation, and souvenirs. At the sam ..read more

If you’re planning a trip to Japan, consider squeezing Osaka into your itinerary! As Japan’s 3rd largest city, Osaka is a feast for all senses, with streets lined with food stalls, neon lights, and shopping centers. Osaka is known as Japan’s Kitchen, with vendors selling mouthwatering regional cuisine like takoyaki on every corner. From tantalizing dishes to endless entertainment activities, you’ll be spoiled with endless things to do in Osaka! Cecilio and I spent 11 nights in Japan, which included the last 4 nights being in Osaka. We explored almost every nook and cranny of Dotonbori and Um ..read more

Sea cows. Sea potatoes. Gentle giants. I like to call manatees the “angels of the sea” because they are the sweetest and least aggressive animals to ever walk on the face of the earth. They can do no harm! I first learned about manatees when I had Undersea Adventure installed on the computer when I was a kid, the 90s interactive encyclopedia/game narrated by the late oceanographer Jacques Costeau. I just thought they were the cutest sea creatures ever in the software! I’ve seen manatees in photos and actually got to see 2 of them in person in Xcaret during my honeymoon in Mexico. But never i ..read more

Figuring out how to get from San Francisco to Sacramento? This is the post for you! Many people go to Sacramento from San Francisco’s airport (SFO), especially if they are coming from abroad. While Sacramento does have an airport, it’s a lot cheaper to come from SFO since the airport is much bigger and more flights fly there. Whether you are going to Sacramento on a business trip, to visit family, for a date, or on a day trip from San Francisco, this guide will show you 4 different ways to get from San Francisco to Sacramento. But that’s not all! Along the way, I will highlight some cool sto ..read more

One good thing about staying in Kyoto or Osaka when visiting Japan is how easily accessible they are to other cities for a day trip. You could easily visit Hiroshima, Kobe, Kinosaki, Nagoya, and Nara. Cecilio and I took a day trip to Nara from Osaka through the train, and it was only 40 minutes away. We had our sights set on the famous sika deer that roam around the town. Millions of tourists visit Nara per year to see, feed, and play with the deer (and there are over 1,200 of them too!). While the deer mostly hang out in Nara Park, you’ll see them scattered across town roaming the streets a ..read more

2023 blew me away with the trips I took. I know I’m going to look back and think to myself, I can’t believe I did that! But if there’s anything I’ve learned from every trip, it just reinforces how capable I am and can reach my fullest potential. Travel has helped me be the best person I can be; it has helped my problem-solving skills (figuring out logistics on where to go and how to get there isn’t always easy), and it’s given me a curiosity about the world in a way that history classes in school didn’t. So grab a cup of coffee or a glass of wine, and let me share with you some of my best tr ..read more