Headed to Tahiti/Moorea on a budget and looking for a good place to stay? We stayed in an Airbnb right on the ocean for a great deal in March and wanted to share the details here for other travelers since French Polynesia is notoriously expensive. We felt like we got great value from this particular Airbnb, which felt like a treehouse with stunning ocean views from huge, fully opening windows, from which we were able to watch reef sharks, storms, and fantastic sunsets.
Read moreReview of Faa'a International Airport: Good For a Layover With Kids?
Have an upcoming layover in Faa’a International Airport and wondering what it will be like, especially if you’re traveling with kids? We recently traveled to Tahiti and got to spend a few hours exploring Faa’a International Airport and were surprised to find a number of family friendly features, including a children’s play area! Keep reading for our full review including lots of photos, especially of the play area, our pros and cons list, and final verdict on this little airport.
Read moreUsing an ATM in Moorea: Our Experience + Tips
Traveling to French Polynesia and wondering about pulling out cash in local currency on the island of Moorea? Keep reading for our experience getting cash from an ATM at Banque de Tahiti in Moorea + more, including whether cash is necessary on Moorea, how many ATMs there are on the island, and which bank’s debit card worked for us.
Read moreReview of Flying French Bee to Tahiti - Would We Do It Again With Kids?
We just flew budget airline French Bee from San Francisco to Tahiti after seeing an amazing ticket deal. Known for nickel-and-diming customers, we were interested to see what the experience was really like, with particular attention paid to whether or not we’d fly with them again with our two toddlers. Keep reading for all the details including photos and whether we’d fly again as a family!
Read moreGold vs Sunshine Coast?
This fall I was lucky enough to make a trip to Australia to visit my sister, Bri, who has decided to call Brisbane home. Now in the Southern Hemisphere, fall is the beginning of summer, so a trip to the beach was mandatory - to me anyways. The main beach options from Brisbane are to head north to an area known as the Sunshine Coast, or south to the beaches near the city of Gold Coast. I never realized that the Gold Coast was actually a city! I thought it just referred to a stretch of beaches, but apparently Gold Coast is the second most populous city in the state of Queensland. Anyways, we decided to visit both areas, first with a trip south to Currumbin and then with a trip north to Caloundra.
Read moreEating My Way Through Brisbane
A month ago I decided to take a rather impromptu trip to Australia to visit my sister, Bri, who lives in Brisbane. I'd visited her when she lived in Perth and we'd eaten our way around the city. We had delicious Aussie breakfasts like eggs and avocado on toast, decadent coffees, and visited a fish and chip shop in which sheets of newspaper were laid on our table onto which the chips were poured. That was three years ago and I was determined to make a trip out to see her life in Brisbane. When she found out I was coming she assured me that like before, we'd eat our way across the city.
Read moreVisiting the Asaro Mudmen
Towards the end of our time living in Papua New Guinea, it became evident that we could not leave without having made a visit to the notorious Asaro Mudmen. A small tribe from a village just outside Goroka in the Eastern Highlands Province, they rose to fame by defeating other tribes by smearing their bodies in mud and wearing terrifying clay masks when at war. The story goes that they were once attacked by another tribe and hid by the Asaro River until evening. At dusk they decided to make a run for it and hope for survival. But when the other tribe saw them rising from the river banks glowing pale from the white mud they'd come in contact with, they fled in terror believing the Asaro tribe to be spirits. Therefore, they decided - with great success - to play up this image.
Read moreThinking of Visiting Papua New Guinea? Read This First.
Papua New Guinea - commonly known as PNG - is a large island off the coast of Australia that I had both the privilege and misfortune of living on for three years. I say privilege because it was an extremely beautiful and fascinating place, but also misfortune because of the violence of the culture and high crime rates. PNG is regarded as one of the least explored places in the world, with over 800 languages and head hunting and cannibilism that persisted into the 70's (and though now illegal still occurs intermittently even today). So how in the world did I end up there?
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