where are you going?

Our trusty guide Gulli leads the way. When my sister Sarah started planning her own trip to Iceland two weeks before mine, we decided to have her tell you about some adventures of her own!  Here’s the story of her Hot Spring Hunt with Arctic Adventures.  –Kate If there is one thing you must do in Iceland (especially if you are a city dweller like myself), it is to get out into the middle of nowhere.   Luckily, Icelanders know how stunning their country is, and there are countless easy ways for visitors to get out and see it.  When Zack and I heard about the Hot Spring Hunt – a trip that would allow us to hike through the beautiful countryside, and bathe in natural hot springs – we knew we had to check it out. The Arctic Adventures office is located on Laugavegur, the main shopping street in Reykjavik, an easy walking distance from almost anywhere in town.  While we opted to meet at the office, the Arctic Adventures crew will pick you up from just about any hotel, ho...

After the shipwreck, we were taken from Komodo Island to the port town of Labuan Bajo on the island of Flores. Lonely Planet describes Labuan Bajo as “the next big thing” in Indonesia travel. I think there are two kinds of places you can describe as “next big things” — either places that are fantastic and virtually unknown, or places that are simply the next step. Labuan Bajo falls into the latter category. It’s not an amazing secret yet to be discovered, and people are there because it’s a gateway to better sights in Flores — but it’s pretty nice, nonetheless. Labuan Bajo has almost a Wild West feeling to it — dirt roads, gap-filled sidewalks, dogs running down the street (though thankfully not as bad as the Bali dogs), children staring wide-eyed at the Westerners walking by. Westerners, though coming to Labuan Bajo in increasing numbers, are still relatively rare — especially in the outer reaches of town. Most...