Destination Guides

Ah, the tamale. The tamale is as traditional as Mexican food gets. It’s usually made of masa (nixtamalized corn), stuffed, and steamed in a corn husk or banana leaf. Tamales can be a cheap, quick snack, or several of them … Read More

Thinking about an overland trip to Mexico, but don’t know where to go? In this article, I share with you why the town of San Cristóbal de las Casas in Chiapas, Mexico should definitely be on your destination list! San … Read More

San Cristóbal de las Casas, tucked into the mountains of southern Mexico, makes an excellent home base to explore the State of Chiapas, Mexico. But don’t let these activities distract you from exploring San Cristóbal itself! Indeed, so many “Things … Read More

After months of overlanding through Mexico in our self-converted van, we have discovered the most unique and truly fascinating town in Mexico: San Juan Chamula in Chiapas State, Mexico. San Juan Chamula is just a 20-minute drive from the tourist … Read More

You see it on Instagram all the time: a converted van with doors wide open to frame a sparkling blue beach in the background. Maybe there’s also a hippie or two, a dog, or a margarita. (And, of course, I’ve … Read More

Thinking about an overland trip to Mexico, but don’t know where to go? In this article, I share with you why the small, beachy stretch of Playa Zipolite, Mexico should definitely be on your destination list! Playa Zipolite (Zipolite Beach) … Read More

Thinking about an overland trip to Mexico, but don’t know where to go? In this article, I share with you why the tiny but beautiful mountain village of San José del Pacífico, Mexico should be on your destination list! Yes, … Read More

Hierve el Agua is one of the most popular day-trips from Oaxaca City, Mexico. It’s a 1.5-hour drive out of Oaxaca City into a dry mountain landscape, a totally unexpected place to find swimmable, spring-fed pools and petrified waterfalls. In … Read More

Eating out: It doesn’t have to expensive to be good. It doesn’t have to be fancy to be enjoyable. It doesn’t even have to have chairs! That is how we roll when we’re eating out. If this is you too, … Read More

What it is: Mexico’s El Día de la Revolución (The Day of the Revolution) is a national holiday commemorating the beginning of the Mexican Revolution that began in 1910 and lasted for ten years of political and social conflict. When … Read More

The Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) holiday is a fantastic time to experience the beautiful and charming town of colonial San Miguel de Allende. In this article, I share with you all you need to know about … Read More

Thinking about an overland trip to Mexico, but don’t know where to go? In this article, I share with you why the Sierra Gorda Biosphere Reserve, Mexico should be on your destination list.   Why VanLife in the Sierra Gorda … Read More

Thinking about an overland trip to Mexico, but don’t know where to go? In this article, I share with you why the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site of Zacatecas, Mexico should be on your destination list. VanLife in Zacatecas, Mexico … Read More

Before #vanlife, Jon and I lived in Los Angeles and San Diego. To make up for the high cost of living in these cities, we rarely ate out. Instead, we loved to cook delicious, (sometimes) healthy and budget-friendly meals in … Read More

Have you heard of Telluride, Colorado?! Unless you avidly seek out small mountain towns or epic ski adventures, you may not have heard of this tiny place in southwest Colorado called Telluride. Coming from Southern California, we certainly hadn’t.

Mesa Verde National Park In southwest Colorado, about an hour from the famed “four corners” where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona meet, is Mesa Verde National Park. Mesa Verde NP was established in 1906 to preserve and interpret the … Read More

Van loaded, good-byes hugged and coffee mugs topped off, Jon and I hit the road on June 3, 2019. We first made some brief stops in Los Angeles, CA and Ojai, CA to say more good-byes, and then we started … Read More