Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen is quite possibly the fairest castle in all the land. Though Germany is full of gorgeous castles, Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen is one of the largest and grandest I’ve ever laid eyes on, rising up out of an outcropping of rocks and stretching across almost an entire city block. If you’re into magical castles you’ve got to […]
Tsurutokame: The Only All-Female Kaiseki Restaurant in Tokyo
The chef poured the sake into my host’s glass until it spilled over the brim and into a curved bowl at the base. Though clearly intentional, it was a gesture I had never seen before. When I asked why, I was told that abundance and the possibility of more is always welcome, and who can […]
10 Quirky Things to do in Harajuku, Tokyo
The first time I heard about Harajuku girls was from Gwen Stefani in the early 2000s. While as an adult I see the Harajuku-girls-as-props situation as alarmingly problematic, one thing she said is undeniable: Harajuku girls do have some wicked style. When I visited Tokyo for the first time 11 years ago, seeing this style […]
Dreamy Niijima, an Island Paradise Near Tokyo
Watching the turquoise waves roll over the gray shoreline, a perfect combination of fine white and black volcanic sand, I kept thinking to myself that if it were in Southeast Asia, this island would be crawling with tourists. This was the last week in October, still perfect beach weather, on the island of Niijima near […]
10 Questions Every Solo Female Traveler Gets Asked
Even though solo female travel is not as uncommon as it used to be, people are still fascinated with the concept, and a lot of times, quite confused too. Naturally a woman traveling alone raises a lot of questions, some of which keep coming up again and again. Whether you’re a woman who already travels […]