Unlike the first time we were in Jamaica, this time around we decided to do some exploring. I went off on my own on a long journey to the Bob Marley house. I recently read The Hobbit to Jacob (which he absolutely loved), and so when I found out there was a series of caves – with an underground lake no less) just a few minutes away from where we were staying, we just had to take him to the…
This is Ariel, Liran’s wife, with another guest post covering our brief and parents-only babymoon to Montreal, Quebec, Canada. WHY MONTREAL: We had two childfree nights coming from the NY/NJ area. At first I looked into options that we could drive to, but post-COVID, if it’s within 3 hours drive of central NJ, chances are, we’ve seen it. Instead we looked at destinations we could fly to relatively quickly. And given that I was in my third trimester of pregnancy,…
When traveling, especially on a long journey, finding an inviting, comfortable, and safe place to get some rest is critical. During the pandemic, when we weren’t traveling as much, it was still important to search for places of refuge from the mundanity and quiet but omnipresent low level anxiety of virus-driven daily life. Regardless of the circumstance, finding an oasis of peace and rest amongst the chaos can go a long way towards restoring both mental and physical stamina. In…
So we’ve been in Hawaii for about a week, traipsing around Oahu to literally every corner of this island. Tomorrow we’re heading for Maui, and in a week we start the journey home. Oahu is great, and I’ll try to put together a post with more details on what we’ve been up to while we’re on Maui, where we should have a little more down time. This post is going to be dedicated to talking about a sidequest I had…
I’ve never been a huge U2 fan… I mean sure, Where The Streets Have No Name and Sunday Bloody Sunday were big when I was growing up and all that Mission: Impossible stuff was cool. And what teenager didn’t have With Or Without You or I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For on repeat at some point after being dumped by their girl/boyfriend. So when I saw I was passing near Joshua Tree National Park, like anyone who was…
With Jacob now in daycare, and shifting into full fledged toddler mode, Ariel and I decided it was time for another trip for just the two of us. Unlike our trip to Bermuda though, which ended up being more of an adventure than we had intended, our goal this time was to just relax on a beach and try to stifle our instinctual need for exploration. We really just wanted a break, especially after going through a nearly incessant two…
For a change of pace this year, we decided to spend July 4th outside the US. Ariel had never been to Niagara Falls and had always wanted to go. Plus Jacob is still little enough that he gets to do a lot of stuff for free. Anything tourism-related in the USA on Independence Day tends to be zoo, and besides none of us were really feeling extra patriotic this year. So we decided to fly up to Toronto and head…
New Jersey is not really known for isolated places. As the densest state of all, finding places to be alone is always a challenge. In fact, most people are shocked to hear that the Appalachian Trail winds its way through New Jersey for 72 miles, all within less than a two hour drive from New York City. Running nearly parallel to the AT for about half of its run through the state is one of the wildest drives you can…
With Jacob about to turn six months old, Ariel and I decided it was time to finally try a short getaway. Years ago, I discovered a true hidden gem in New Jersey – The Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area – and it was one of the first places Ariel and I went together. So, we dropped Sam off at his boarding place, dropped Jacob off with his grandparents and we were off for 24 hours of local adventure. Our…
Well, it finally happened. You can add me to the ranks of fathers who have, in desperate need of getting their baby to nap, gone for a drive with said baby in the back seat. What sort of magic or devilry transpires within the confines of a car rolling down the highway is beyond my comprehension, all I know is that it works. In actuality, our little car nap adventures have been part of getting Jacob used to sleeping during…