We're parents! Travel, Disney and Beyond.

As I lay here in the early morning, five days into fatherhood, my priorities have certainly shifted a bit and my time is being distributed differently, but my passion for travel has never burned hotter. I can’t help but think about sharing this with the infant laying on my chest. I don’t mean right now. For heavens sake, she could wake up. But I mean every year moving forward, so that she gets to benefit from our love for new cultures, food, language and experiences. I am thinking of all of the wonderful places the three of us will visit together. My mind is all over the place. The rolling hills of Italy, the beaches of southern Australia, the unique culture of central and Eastern Europe, the spicy heat of Southeast Asia, Disney...Wait what? How did Mickey Mouse make the list? Well who hasn't thought about taking their children there and re-living fond childhood memories, or maybe even going for the first time themselves? It's only natural that we put "the place where dreams come true" on our travel list, especially with children. Heck, I can't wait to bring our daughter to see Cinderella's castle and watch those big eyes absorb everything around her. Its just that I want her to have other experiences as well. I want her to eat sweet crepes from Parisian street vendors and then ask us why she has to see boring paintings in the Louvre. I want her to meet the elephants in Thailand and learn that they are mistreated and need our protection. I want her to play hide and seek in a vineyard in Tuscany, after a picnic of local bread, cheese and prosciutto (and obviously wine for the adults). The thing is, I want other families to have these experiences as well. Disney is magical, but there is so much of this world to see, and there is tremendous value in experiencing it. And as for adventuring abroad with children, we are going to take our bumps and bruises, but it will be worth it. Children shouldn't handcuff our travel, but enrich it, as we watch them learn. Food for thought, would it make us happier to watch our child smile ear-to-ear at seeing Micky for the first time, or beam with pride after conversing in broken Italian with a Tuscan youth?

I think my thoughts above will begin a series of future posts as we continue to navigate the scary labyrinth known as "travelling with children". How can we include, but also expand our adventures beyond Orlando and teach our children, while making it enjoyable for us as well. Lets address the comparative costs of travelling abroad, while getting outside of our comfort zone. Even with our babies in tow. 

Kyle

Nantucket

Nantucket, Massachusetts is a tiny island off the coast of Cape Cod and happens to be the perfect destination for a long weekend away. With its cedar-sided buildings, cobblestoned streets, and quaint boutiques, Nantucket is one of the most charming places I’ve ever visited.  

My first (and only) trip to the island was this past weekend for a close friend's bachelorette party. Getting there was very simple, but there are a couple different modes of transportation, depending on your preferences and schedule. Many of my friends chose to fly from Boston, while others hopped on a ferry from Hyannis. I opted for the ferry and the faster one at that - arriving in only an hour. I bought my ticket online ahead of time and parked my car right across the street for $15 a day - not too shabby! Try to remember to bring cash, as parking is cash only. But don't worry if you forget because there is an ATM directly inside the ticket office. When planning your arrival, give yourself around 20 minutes before departure. The ferry's website recommends an hour, but I had no issues.

Once we arrived in Nantucket, there was no need to call an uber because taxis were all lined up waiting for passengers. We hopped in the taxi and headed over to Cisco Brewery, where all the other girls were expecting us. Cisco Brewery is very popular on the island, as it contains a vineyard and distillery as well! During peak season there is usually a queue line all the way down the street. We were lucky to be on the island a couple weekends before the high season tourists, so we walked right in! The brewery is unlike any I've ever been to - food trucks lined the outside, while live music flowed from within. If you venture through the brewery and into its "outside area", you will find fresh air, a fire pit, and picnic tables set up for groups to lounge together and enjoy a flight...or two ;). 

For places to stay, there are many different hotels and B&B's, but I'd recommend a house rental. We snagged a great deal for a beautiful home right on Surfside road. This was a convenient location, with an adorable breakfast place, Handlebar Café, right across the street and a pizza joint next door (in case you're one of those people who enjoy a late night slice – I know I'm guilty!) Also, just steps down the road was a bike rental business. My girlfriends and I rented bikes for $27 for the full day (I can't think of a more pleasurable way to navigate the island). The owners of the rental shop were very friendly and accommodating. We rode around the island exploring for a few hours while the other partygoers tried to rejuvenate from the previous night’s activities. Seeing the island was amazing - the streets were almost empty so we had plenty of room to make wrong turns as newcomers to the area. It was probably my favorite experience during the trip!

Another Nantucket highlight is Jetties beach bar. Jetties is an open air restaurant, where you can admire the dune-backed beach right from the bar. The oysters are a fan favorite and they have a few different fun drinks to try - Frosé anyone? Probably a little more enjoyable to drink frozen rosé in the warm summer months, but nonetheless everyone seemed to love them! 

For dinner we headed to a charming restaurant called Proprietors. The dishes were delicious! A couple of my friends and I split four different plates and each one was mouthwatering. We would have ordered more if we weren’t already stuffed (the empty bottles of wine along the table may have added to the gorged feeling). The meal was very reasonably priced for a high end restaurant, and I will absolutely visit again next time we’re there. 

The final stop of the trip was a place that had been raved about by everyone we met on the island. It was named the Chicken Box or as the locals call it "the box"...either way, let’s just say the box didn't disappoint. The live band was playing a diverse music selection that had all the girls dancing their tail feathers off (get it, ha). Not big on dancing, but enjoy live music? No problem. There are high top tables around the dance floor as well as pool tables in the back if you're looking for a more chill atmosphere. It's a "see for yourself" type of place, but if you are in Nantucket, do yourself a favor and visit the box. 

I can't believe it has taken me this long to find this endearing, isolated island. I will definitely be bringing Kyle on the next trip! Please make sure to keep in mind that I visited during the "off-season", so the island was much quieter than it is during the summer months. However, locals encouraged us to visit again during high season, so that I could enjoy the beaches, and the hustle and bustle the island has when it is filled to the brim with tourists. I may do just that because it sounds like a blast no matter what season we choose.

Nowhere On Earth: Month in Review

What a month! I was rehashing my travels on my 5 hour flight home this morning and realized it has been quite the four weeks. I've been on the road 18 days out of the past 28. This has included 10 flights for over 53.5 hours of total flying time (literally in the air, not counting airports, driving etc). I have spanned two separate continents and 15 total time zones. Wow. It's a bit overwhelming to put into words, but I promise I wouldn't have traded any of it for more sleep, or time at home. I was also fortunate to have shared these experiences with two awesome travel partners (My wife Kailah (Thailand) and future bro-in-law, Jared (Arizona)). Below are some of the highlights, as well as what is on deck for 2017!

Thailand:

This was Kailah and I's first time in Asia and boy did it not let us down. The cultural differences, scenery and Thai people, really made this a magical trip. We had three very distinct experiences, as we traveled north to the jungles of Chiang Mai, South to the beaches and limestones cliffs of Krabi and then finished in the hustle and bustle of Bangkok. In Chiang Mai, we enjoyed traditional northern cuisine, haggled vendors at several open air markets (buying countless counterfeit merchandise), enjoyed a day pampering elephants and even found time to shut down a few bars in the evening. The most amazing part was certainly the day with elephants. We learned about their mistreatment, walked them, prepared food and then fed and bathed them. These gentle beasts are amazing animals and if you want to learn more about them and our experience, check out the Elephant Nature Park website at https://www.elephantnaturepark.org/. 

Moving south, we splurged on four nights at Rayavadee resort (and got a great deal through TripAdvisor). This was the nicest resort I've ever been to, on one of the top ten beaches in the entire world; Phra Nang. Words can't describe the relaxation. Turquoise waters, white sandy beaches, limestone cliffs and UNBELIEVABLE service. The Thai are head and shoulders above America in terms of hospitality. After days by the beach and pool, we enjoyed meandering into town to grab some Thai or Indian food and a few drinks.

To round out the trip, we spent a night in Bangkok. We didn't have much time there, but managed to explore more open air markets and have one of the best Thai meals on our trip. We stayed at the Peninsula resort, which was gorgeous and had a pool, so we could soak up a few extra rays before our afternoon flight.

Arizona:

The purpose for this trip was to attend the men's basketball National Championship game. I had purchased tickets through a friend a few months prior (Thanks Mike Preseau!) and Jared agreed to meet me in Phoenix for a guys trip. Both game days were a blast, as we made sure none of the bars outside of the stadium felt left out. We didn't have tickets to Saturday's Final Four games, so we watched from a TV like everyone else in the country. Monday we went down early and hung out around the College Gameday set, where we were fortunate enough to rub elbows with the likes of Bill Walton, Tom Crean and Jim Calhoun. Once inside the stadium, the atmosphere was electric, as UNC avenged its loss from last year. Basketball aside, we woke up Sunday and decided we were going to drive a couple hours up to see Sedona, Arizona - since we had a day off between games. Brilliantly, we decided we should go in style, and rented a 2017, two door, red mustang. Sedona is BEAUTIFUL. We visited a small brew pub in town and then drove up to a lookout location, where we hiked up to the top of Bell Rock. Check out the commanding view below.

Balance of 2017: Currently, we have three more trips planned for the year. Check them out below!

- Kyle to Tahoe/Reno in June for Jared's bachelor party

- Kailah to Chicago in May for Sossan's bachelorette party

- Both to Greece in August for a week!