A Handful of Adventures in France 🇫🇷
It started two years ago with a phone call from my aunt asking, “Do you know a memorial to your Great Uncle is going up in France to honor his sacrifice during WWII?” I couldn’t afford the trip but I took a flight to Paris, a train to Nancy, another train to Sarrebourg where relatives I hardly knew picked me up and our countryside adventure began! I learned so much about the battles of 1944 to free the region of Nazi occupation and made so many connections - friends - some that last to this day. And so when I said I might come out for the Paris Olympics I received invitations to Normandy and to the very corner of France where we could look out on Luxembourg and Germany while wine tasting. It’s always amazing me how travel can stumble into further travel! 🇫🇷
The dog days of summer in NYC, specifically Central Park. It’s hot but it’s better to be outside than inside and the musicians are out!! (Just be sure to leave them a tip if you take a photo or video!)
I am in love with these accommodations in my 39th country - onboard a vintage boat docked on a very icy Söderström River!! (Don’t worry mom, the heater works well, so well I’ve opened the window.)
Bed bug check done!! It’s not much but it’s clean, I feel safe, and all I need is a place to lay my head for 5 nights while I reconnect with the first place I experienced being abroad. Hallo Berlin!!
Wishing y’all a Happy St. Patrick’s Day with this clip ☘️ Featuring cast members from the North American tour of the musical ‘Once’ performing Irish tunes at Rockwood Music Hall in NYC (I’m on the accordion 🪗). As an artist I’ve been so lucky that I not only get to perform but that the work has taken me to various spots on the globe! What a way to see world 🌍
Happy Veterans Day and thank you to all who have served! #WashingtonDC boats a wealth of memorials to remember those who’ve fought to protect our freedom, whether or not as an individual we have agreed with a war or conflict. Newly revealed is the expansion of the Korean War (Conflict) Memorial, remembering the names of those lost. It’s a lot to take in, a photo wasn’t good enough! #VeteransDay2022 #FreedomIsNotFree
Our hike to the historic Cabo Rojo Lighthouse in southwestern Puerto Rico!! With local guide Ibeth Massari Xodo !! Here the landscape is very different than in the north, much more desert like and often called a “dry forest.” The lighthouse itself was once a very important navigational beacon in the Caribbean Sea and in 1898 a bridge was built across the salinas (the salt flats) to ensure the keepers of the lighthouse had access. However due to a recent hurricane the bridge has been washed out and we had to hike 2.5 miles in the blazing sun - doesn’t sound like a great distance but on this day it way! The locals that stopped our car told us it’s considered one of the most beautiful lighthouses in the world - #16 - AND as soon as my travel partner told them it’s my birthday, they broke out into song, singing the Puerto Rican version on “Happy Birthday” 🥳🎶 Enjoy the beautiful views of this video!!
Washington D.C. with the family!! Perhaps the best thing about being a tour guide is using my knowledge and skills to guide family and friends :) One of my uncles has cancer and has a bucket list of places to see before he can’t. What a wonderful week with these west coasters, seeing the sites, private insider tours, inspiring them to try local cuisine and ride the metro!
TRAVEL DIARIES: That time I had a layover in Lisbon - just a few days ago! - and found a long line of people waiting to take the historic Santa Justa elevator…. But there’s a guy brilliantly playing Fado music at the base and so I’m the weirdo who simply sits down on the steps and listens. Sometimes travel isn’t about doing what’s on the must see / must do list, sometimes it’s about just taking everything in 🎶💙 #music #fado
Folks often ask me, “What’s your favorite tour to give?” My response? “It’s not my favorite, but I think the most important one I give is of the World Trade Center.” Though I refuse to call it a 9/11 tour that is what people come to learn more about. I was here on that day 21 years ago and it has greatly impacted the person I and many of my classmates grew into. Properly sharing the impact of that day is very important to me.
Below is my buddy Harry, a 9/11 survivor. He’s made it his mission to do the same and can be found most afternoons at the Firefighter’s Memorial Wall. Take a moment to listen. He’s quiet a poet.
Where am I?? Lisbon, Portugal!! I arrived grumpy but this city stole my heart Portugal 🇵🇹 💚
Street Ball in NYC - A Real Community Event!
A lot can be learned about a culture by its sports. Here in NYC, Street Ball has been a thing since at least the 1970s. The game can pop up anywhere but the courts in Greenwich Village known as The Cage are the ultimate spot - named as the court is smaller than a typical basketball court. Though this is an official tournament pop up games can be seen daily and folks surrounding the fence, watching a game, are a common sight 🏀 I don’t always care about sports but these games, I love.
