Tag: #CulturalJourney

dsc_0218
The next city

Discovering Birmingham, Friendship, and the Magic of Cadbury Chocolate

I have this amazing girlfriend who lives in Birmingham, and we’ve known each other since I was 17. Our children have shared countless memories—playing together, sometimes sleeping over at each other’s homes, having their little squabbles followed by sweet reconciliations with hugs and kisses. The beauty of it is that we live near each other again now, even though I’m based in the Netherlands and she’s in the UK.

I have to admit, there are times when I really miss her. That’s why, for both our sakes and especially for the kids, we decided to hop on a flight from Amsterdam to Birmingham. After a short but sweet hour in the air, we landed, and there my friend’s husband was, waiting for us at the airport. Read more

20170504_202924
Atlas

Morocco – One Thousand One Nights In Agadir

I’ve been to Morocco. So what? Well, I’m already planning my next trip there—this time with a backpack, no child, and a list of Moroccan towns to explore. Here’s the thing: my daughter, Miss J, at the tender age of early teenagehood, suddenly became more enamored with swimming pools than with wandering from one city to the next. Our hotel had a massive pool, and I barely convinced her to leave the water long enough to see the sights. Eventually, she abandoned me entirely. But that’s okay. It gave me all the more freedom to dream of returning to Morocco. Read more

Atlas

A Winter Escape in The Gambia – Part 3

Let me start with a confession: I don’t do 5 a.m. wake-ups. I’m not one of those sunrise yoga people. I’m more of a “snooze-button Olympics” kind of girl. On a regular weekday, I wrestle myself out of bed at 7:30 a.m., groggy, unenthusiastic, and half-human.

But then came Gambia. Suddenly, I was springing out of bed at 5 a.m. like a caffeinated meerkat. No alarm. No grumbling. Just me, excitement, and the road. Turns out, curiosity and wanderlust are better than coffee. Read more

Atlas

A Winter Escape to The Gambia – Part 1

For years, I had a dream: to welcome the New Year not wrapped in wool and sipping mulled wine, but barefoot in a bikini under the palm trees. There was just one catch—I’m a Christmas-at-home kind of woman. So, that left exactly eight days to jet off somewhere warm during my daughter’s winter break. The rule? It had to be sunny, not too touristy, and no more than six hours away by plane.

Enter: The Gambia. Read more

dsc_0020
Atlas

China – Lost in Translation, Found in Shanghai – Part 5

Shanghai is the glammed-up, cosmopolitan cousin of Beijing—sleeker, shinier, and with enough skyscrapers to give you instant vertigo. It’s a city that sweeps you off your feet whether you like it or not: luxury hotels, a riverside promenade steeped in colonial history, and a skyline that looks like a sci-fi movie set. You don’t visit Shanghai—you surrender to it.

With over 24 million people, Shanghai is the most populous city in the world. For perspective: Romania’s entire population in 2013 was 21.7 million. Shanghai is basically a country in itself. I remember waiting at a crosswalk to cross a street with five lanes in each direction, staring at the human tsunami on the other side, imagining my tiny self being trampled in the urban stampede. Walking in Shanghai feels like playing human pinball—and that’s on a good day.
Read more