Reflection // Projection 2024 - 2025
I make an ode to myself that I intend to pick myself up when I stumble, because I will, and approach myself and those I hold close to my heart with tenderness and without judgment as we navigate the new year because I owe it to myself and those I love to show up as the best version of myself as often as I can.
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Thank you to Justine Duran from In The Grey for providing me with these reflection questions as part of our work together and for allowing me to share them here.
Campi Flegrei: My Favorite Things
We have lived just west of Naples, Italy for almost three years. Our area specifically is called Campi Flegrei—or the Phlegraean Fields—and is a sprawling volcanic area rich in history, natural beauty, and geothermal waters. At our finger tips, we have ancient Roman ruins, hot springs (which means incredible thermal spas), incredible coastal views, easy access to the lesser known islands in the Gulf of Naples (Ischia and Procida), and of course, the amazing Southern Italian food. We have absolutely fallen in love with this area and exploring as much of it as we can. Below. I’m sharing some of my favorite spots and experiences. Check back often as I will keep this list up to date as we explore more places!
Packing for Europe: 4 Day Weekends
After nearly three years of travel across 24 countries, we've perfected our packing and travel routine. We prefer checked luggage for convenience, especially with a toddler, and rely on packing cubes, a toiletry bag, and essential travel items to stay organized. We also have a few go-to toddler travel hacks, like using a lightweight carseat and stroller. Simple airport tips and strategies, such as color-coded passports and PriorityPass for lounges, also help make our trips run smoothly.
Europe Travel Essentials
After nearly three years in Italy and traveling across 24 countries and countless cities, I’ve learned a few travel essentials. First, don’t forget the right plug adapters—an all-in-one adapter with USB ports is a lifesaver. If you're bringing motorized devices, like a blow dryer, get a transformer. For renting cars, many countries require an International Driving Permit (IDP). Keep an eye on visa updates for the UK and EU, and consider using e-sims for affordable data while abroad. These simple tips will make your travels smoother!
The Netherlands
We have been wanting to do a longer trip to The Netherlands ever since we moved abroad. We visited the small town where my partner’s grandparents are from on a day trip from Cologne, Germany but hadn’t spent a significant amount of time exploring the country.
We ended up with a four day weekend over Easter and found decently priced flights into Eindhoven, the airport in the south. I will say: this was not the best time of year to plan a last minute trip. Not only was it a holiday weekend, but it was peak tulip season. The prices of things like AirBnB’s and hotels…made me want to cry. But we made it work!
Malta
We had an impromptu 3-day weekend in Malta, flying in from Naples for some much-needed relaxation. We stayed at the Hilton in St. Julian’s, which had amazing views, a fantastic pool, and great service. We spent Friday by the pool, then wandered around Valetta before heading to Mdina the next day. The highlight was definitely our private boat tour around Comino and Gozo—swimming in the Blue Lagoon, exploring sea caves, and just soaking in the beauty of the islands. Malta was such a surprise, and we can't wait to go back!
Hungary: Budapest
With its rich history, stunning architecture, and abundance of kid-friendly activities, Budapest proved to be the perfect destination for a long weekend. From soaking in the Széchenyi Thermal Baths to exploring interactive museums and breathtaking city views, we found something for every member of the family. Check out this post for travel tips, hidden gems, and lessons learned (including the realities of traveling with a toddler!).
Austria: Vienna // Slovakia: Bratislava
Vienna completely took me by surprise with how quickly and easily I fell in love with it. We were only there for a four-day weekend (as per usual), but I’d go back in a heartbeat to keep exploring. After a quick flight from Naples and an easy train ride into the city, we checked in, grabbed a bite to eat, and started getting ready for the main event—the Officers’ Ball at the Hofburg Palace. It’s been on my Europe bucket list since moving here, and thanks to my mom flying in to babysit, we got to experience every magical moment.
Greece: Delphi, Meteora & Athens
We spent an incredible 4 day weekend in Greece to celebrate our 6 year wedding anniversary and as our “Labor Day” weekend trip. The way things work for my partner’s command, he has a four day weekend for almost every US federal holiday. We are able to travel within Europe without taking leave, or PTO, over those weekends. On this trip, we managed to squeeze in Delphi, Meteora, and Athens.
Two Years in Italy
This is officially the longest we have lived in one place. Actually, when we hit 1.5 years, that was the longest I have lived in one place since I went to college. As an active duty military spouse, I have gotten used to moving around a lot, but even this is a little unusual for the military. Typically, we would be on 2-3 year orders in one location. Our family has just taken a bit of a different path because of my partner’s career, and that is okay. At the end of the day, it brought us to Naples and I can honestly say that this has been one of the best places for our family - for me and my individual growth, for my relationship with my partner, and for my son.
Andorra: My 20th Country
We spent Thanksgiving in Andorra and it took us by surprise how much we loved it! We were definitely there in the shoulder season because there was no snow and the ski season hasn’t started so it was quiet, but the scenery is unreal. Andorra is a tiny principality (non-EU) tucked away between France and Spain in the Pyrenees mountains. It was about a 2.5 hour drive from Barcelona.
Slovenia: Lake Bled + Triglav National Park
We visited Slovenia (Lake Bled, Triglav National Park, and the capital city of Ljubljana) in early November and absolutely loved it. This was one of our shorter trips because of slightly inconvenient flight times, but we were still able to make the most of it, squeezing in both city and nature.
One Day in Venice
We spent the last day of our trip to Slovenia in Venice. We had flown in and out of Venice, since it is not a long drive over to Bled and the flights were better priced for when we were traveling than flying to the closer airport in Trieste (still in Italy but right near the border with Slovenia). It worked out nicely though because somehow, even after living here for over two years, we still had not made it up to Venice. Here is how we spent one day to make the most of it.
Croatia: Plitviče Lakes + Zagreb
Seeing Plitviče Lakes has been incredibly high on my “must do” list while we are living in Europe. This is a national park and UNESCO World Heritage Site in Croatia that is, truly, one of a kind. It is made of a series of connecting lakes, tufa caves, and waterfalls. We visited in early October when the leaves were changing. I was doing an Earth Day Peloton ride the other day and Camila, the instructor, said to close your eyes and think of your favorite place on Earth — the most beautiful place you’ve seen. I closed my eyes and went to these waterfalls.
Sardegna: Tortolì + Costa Baunei
We had never done an all-inclusive resort before, but for our 4th of July long weekend, we wanted to go somewhere to park ourselves at the beach and not move or think about anything. I saw Arbatax Park Resort & Spa on Instagram months before and saved it, not thinking of a time we would actually go. I just saw the incredible blue water, the white beaches, and that they had an animal park for kids. This turned out to be the perfect summer holiday for us.
Lake Geneva: France + Switzerland
I tend to be a pendulum that swings between planning far in advance and planning about 2-4 weeks before a trip. It usually depends on what I can convince my partner to do, if we’re being honest. This trip was something we halfway planned months in advance (flights booked in December for an end of May trip). For probably 90% of our trips, we have let SkyScanner decide where we go. Because of our military-decided long weekends, we know for an entire fiscal year when we are going to have “free weekends” to travel. As we drove to Puglia for Christmas 2023, I got on SkyScanner and planned out our holidays for spring 2024. I found wildly affordable flights on EasyJet to Geneva for Memorial Day Weekend and booked them. Then came the fun part of planning what we would use the city of Geneva as our jumping off point for.
One Day in Annecy, France
Annecy was a spontaneous day trip and I am so glad that we did it. If you put me near water and mountains together, chances are you will see my entire personality change. We spent the day in Annecy on our way home from a weekend on Làc Leman (or Lake Geneva) in France and Switzerland. Annecy is absolutely stunning. It’s often called the Venice of the Alps because it is built on canals, but unlike Venice, here you will find incredible mountain views.
Montenegro: Bay of Kotor
This has been one of my absolute favorite trips. One of my best friends was born in Montenegro and to visit her home was really special. The beauty of this country cannot be overstated. Highly recommend a trip here!! It was a great balance of relaxation for us and fun for our toddler.
Ireland: County Kerry & County Cork
When my partner spontaneously got a few days off of work, we looked at Skyscanner, and found last minute cheap flights from Naples into Dublin. We had an absolutely fantastic trip exploring a bit of County Cork and a fair amount of County Kerry with our three year old. Here is how we spent our long weekend. The Dingle Peninsula is now one of our favorite places we have traveled to in all of Europe.