Want Claire’s entire guide to Merida? Check out her PDF! WHY MERIDA? The Landscape: Mérida lies about 20 miles from the Gulf of Mexico on the Yucatán, and about 100 miles from numerous Mayan ruins. Cenotes, primal sink holes that act as oases in the sweltering jungle, dot the map to the south and east through the peninsula. Proximity to wilderness […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Charlottesville + Virginia Beach? Check out her PDF! My family has quite a bit of history in Virginia, so it’s a little surprising that the only time I’ve visited prior to this was on an 8th grade field trip to Washington D.C. to learn about places like Monticello and colonial Williamsburg. This time around, Craig and […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to The South of France + Bordeaux? Check out her PDF! What brought me to the French countryside was actually an invitation from my dear friend Yasmine Khatib (@yasminemei). Yasmine is an amazing florist (seriously, check her out on Instagram), who also happens to have an aunt that lives in a very small village in the south […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Ojai + Santa Barbara? Check out her PDF! WHY OJAI/SANTA BARBARA? My husband Craig and I love Santa Barbara! It’s only a 90-minute drive from our house (without traffic) and it’s super dog-friendly, which means Buster gets to come along and we don’t have to find a pet-sitter (yay!). We’ve been to Santa Barbara together many […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Rome? Check out her PDF!   WHY ROME? The eternal city has been a traveller’s destination for thousands of years. There are so many idioms focussed on Rome – when in Rome, all roads, etc. – that it’s almost impossible to view it as a modern city, apart from its burden of context.  And that’s what […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Vancouver? Check out her PDF!   OVERALL VANCOUVER NOTES – This city hates reservations and all of the best spots are popular, so be ready for waits unless you eat early. Like seriously, forty five minutes  to an hour is typical. – Enjoy the Seafood. The seafood here is excellent: super fresh and local. However, their […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Vancouver? Check out her PDF!   VANCOUVER Vancouver feels like a place you would’ve created in Sim City as a kid.  Cradled by snow capped mountains, overlooking an island dotted bay, lush and green with sharp sparkling crystal sunshine (when it is shining) – it’s an aggressively striking town. Now fill that town with Portlandians – […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Palm Springs? Check out her PDF! WHAT’S IN MY PALM SPRINGS TOTE BAG A bicycle: Ok, too large to fit in a tote bag I know, but you will definitely put your tote bag into the basket, so I guess it kind of works?  Palm Springs is a small community, and everything is pretty close together, […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Palm Springs? Check out her PDF! WHY PALM SPRINGS? Back when men smoking cigars would yell at back-lot kids, “You wanna be in a picture?” and directors wore three piece suits to set and startlets would start in the chorus just hoping for a chance, Hollywood needed a weekend hideaway.  This hideaway needed to be an […]

Want Claire’s entire guide to Tulum? Check out her PDF! OVERALL TULUM NOTES: My favorite part of Tulum was sitting on the beach reading and eating ceviche.  There’s lovely yoga studios, higher end restaurants, and engaging activities like the ruins or cents as well, but honestly, I liked just hanging out in the sun and walking around town the best. Before […]