Shinjuku, Tokyo May 29 – June 2, 2015 Park Hyatt Tokyo Riding the Shinkansen back to Tokyo during the daytime was a much easier than our initial nighttime journey to Kyoto. Who knew that being well-rested and having some idea of what you’re doing can really add a lot to an experience? After arriving at…
Kyoto
Kyoto May 25 – 29, 2015 Machiya Residence Inn – Geppaku-an While researching for this trip there were multiple times where not having much knowledge about Japan ended in long periods of time googling for ‘places to go in Japan’ followed immediately by googling for ‘things to do in Kyoto’. But even if we had planned…
Japan 2015
May 24 – June 4, 2015 Planned destinations include Tokyo and Kyoto The bus ride to LAX feels quite a bit different than previous trips Becca and I have taken chiefly because we now have a 3-month old daughter sleeping next to us in her car seat. Our destination is Japan and the general plan is to spend…
Overnight at Cottam Camp
Jeff and I hiked down to Cottam Camp for a quick overnight in early January. The last time I was down there, we hadn’t had any rain for a long while and every water source was bone dry. This time though the hike included some small snow patches leftover from some cold-weather storms which were enough to get Escondido…
Overnight at Forbush Flats
Connor and I went for a quick overnight down at Forbush Flats in early December. Getting to the campsite was easy enough and after dropping our gear off we continued down Cold Springs Trail to see what the recent rains had meant for Emerald Pools and the Santa Ynez River. Emerald Pools seemed to have about…
On to Tamarindo
With half of our group heading back home and the other staying on for another five days, it was necessary to make a quick jaunt to the airport to drop off our departing comrades. One unexpected taxi strike later left our quick trip stuck in sight of the airport with a road blocked by the…
Papagayo Peninsula
The journey to Costa Rica began on a Thursday as we headed to Los Angeles trying to beat traffic by leaving at 2pm. What would have normally been a great plan ended up stuck in traffic for the upcoming 4th of July weekend. Our flight was scheduled for either a late or early 1am departure…
Costa Rica 2014
July 4-12th, 2014 Planned destinations include the Four Seasons Papagayo and Tamarindo It has been two years since our first trip to Costa Rica and are excited to see what the country has for us this time. We previously split a week between Arenal and Santa Teresa, but this time around we’ll be spending our…
Santa Teresa
Santa Teresa, Costa Rica August 9-12, 2012 Esencia Hotel The beach, lounging, and Isla Tortuga After our time in the northern part of the country, we made our way to the Nicoya Peninsula for some beach relaxation. We flew on NatureAir from San Jose to Tambor, which was basically a single landing strip cut into…
Arenal
Arenal, Costa Rica August 6-8, 2012 Birdsong Villa Arenal Sky Trek Zipline, Guided Tour at the National Park Birdsong Villa Arenal had incredible views of Arenal Volcano, Lake Arenal, and the forest, but the volcano has been inactive for a few years so there was no lava to be seen. The b&b was a bit remote, so…