People of Dubrovnik: Nina and Peter Brunsko The bus ride to Dubrovnik was one of the most scenic I’ve ever taken – hugging the coastline like California’s Highway 101 – we watched the scenery changed from pretty to stunning. It’s strange what a difference a couple hundred kilometers can make. We were greeted like rock stars in Dubrovnik by an excited group of travel agents and women who rent out apartments in their homes. These sobe are common and the city approves the families and their apartments – an official soba will have a sign with a star ranking. It was my...

Climbing trips are usually done on the fly and on the cheap. With Joshua Tree a quick drive from Phoenix, it’s easy to throw gear into the car and camp at the park for a weekend. There are nine campgrounds in the park with six first-come-first-serve sites ranging from $10 – 15 / site / day. All are near trails and climbing areas and this proximity means you’ll get to make the most of everything in Joshua Tree. If you’re traveling with a group of people and have some time to plan, there are some other options. There are three group campgrounds in Joshua Tree that you can reserve...

The great thing about traveling is the way you open yourself up to new experiences and meeting new people. When you return you tell yourself, you will be like that all the time. Then the realities of life set in and it’s back to work and a regular routine. The Couchsurfing Project tries to keep the vacation alive. The idea is like hosteling on steroids. People offer their couch or extra room to fellow travelers. I hosted my first surfers recently, and it was like inviting a sitcom into my house. Graeme and Cameron walked up my drive on a busy Friday afternoon carrying everything they owned and...

After two weeks on the go, constantly moving with all my belongings in tow, the break in Finale was a great relief. I arrived in Nice on Thursday and had a very silent ride to the apartment with the concierge. I am on the far side of town up a long hill. The apartment rivals any of the loft living going up in Phoenix. It’s about 750 sqft – huge by European standards. The kitchen flows into the living area bookended by two balconies, one overlooking the sea, the other the forest. The pool seems Olympic sized and overlooks the Abbaye the complex is named after. But loft living is loft living. Within...

I met the family I am renting from in Nice. Maria and David Millet and their daughter Aline rendez-vous ed with me at the Fountain St. Michel. My French still needs work, so when Maria told me she was from Peru, I thought I had misunderstood. That she meant I was from Peru. But no, she is from Lima. She was very excited when she found out my dad was from Cuzco. She said she saw it in my hair. No, really. I got the French right on that one. That random connection made the transaction seem all the more right. Not only have they graciously rented me their lovely home, but have extended the use of their...