Can I share with you my happy place? My dream vacation spot in this season of life? My family’s favorite hotel? It’s truly a fairytale. Residing in a quiet corner of Switzerland’s Alps, the Märchenhotel Braunwald is an extraordinary family hotel that we have had the pleasure of visiting twice now – staying 2 nights…
A Peek Inside the Musée d’Orsay
In my last post, I wrote about my recent encounter with my favorite art museum in Paris: the Musée d’Orsay. As I wandered through the museum, I snapped some photos of the works that really caught my attention so that I could share them with you here on Global Heartbeat. Of course, taking a picture of…
Wooed by the Musée d’Orsay
As we travel and explore the world around us, we invariably wander into museums here and there. As time passes, we collect an indeterminable tally of standard-museum-visits that eventually fade from memory. Yet, that may not be the case for a select few. I believe that some museums stick with us for life. Take a moment to…
7 Things to Do in Zurich in Winter
I’ll be honest: this Southern girl has a love-hate relationship with winter in Zurich. Here in Switzerland’s largest city, it can be cold, grey, windy and rainy for weeks on end, causing my soul to die for a drop of sunshine! (Now I understand why people love to visit Florida…) But Zurich can also be a winter…
Paris by Numbers
When it comes to great cities on the global stage, Paris has enjoyed fame and fortune for centuries, an opera diva in the center of an international cast. Paris’ audience members travel far and wide to witness her performance, to explore her majestic monuments, examine her artist collections, or capture her joie de vivre. I am one of those curious…
Crash Course in Winter Sports: Part II
As I’ve shared in Part One of our Crash Course in Winter Sports, Justin and I are embracing the Swiss habit of going to the mountains as much as possible. This past weekend was no exception: we spent two nights in the Alpine town of Bergün to go sledding with our dear friends, Katie and…
Crash Course in Winter Sports: Part I
Switzerland is covered in snow, and the streets of Zürich – and my apartment – are buzzing with excitement over mountainside activities. “Winter is finally here!” shouts the Floridian gal from the window. “Hooray! It’s snowing!” Spurred by my ridiculous enthusiasm over the freezing chill, Justin and I are eagerly following the lead of local…
Drifting Thoughts on Winter
Snow falls softly on the quiet hillside, the flakes small and light – but numerous and relentless. A sparkling blanket of white spreads out slowly over yesterday’s footprints, filling in the lumpy gaps to restore the seamless covering over the frozen earth. The trees stand tall through the dusting of power, their branches stretching out to catch…
Eating Through 2015
As I look back on my 2015, I’m struck by the diverse range of experiences I had in the world of food. And because I love lists and record-keeping, I’m sharing my most memorable food experiences of 2015. I’d love for you to share some of your top eats, too! EATING IN ASIA DRINKING FROM COCONUTS IN…
6 Things You Didn’t Know About Switzerland
Switzerland is a fascinating paradox. It’s profoundly conservative in some facets of life, perspective and governance, but absolutely liberal in others. I have learned quite a bit about this European singularity since moving to Zurich almost six months ago. So, in honor of this next milestone, I’m sharing six interesting facts about Switzerland that you probably didn’t know.…
An Interview from Sicily
Recently, I escaped the chill of Switzerland and jetted down south for the weekend. The destination: Catania, Sicily. Located just off the toe of the Italian boot, the island of Sicily – Sicilia in Italian – is a rugged nugget of historical significance, geographical dynamism, and cultural intrigue. For a weekend in this fabled land, I booked my…
My Favorite Orlando Restaurants
I am counting down the days until I return to Orlando to reunite with friends and family over the Christmas holidays. Ever since we moved to Zurich this summer, I’ve been missing my peeps like whoa! But I must admit that people aren’t the only reason I am looking forward to visiting sunny Florida: I cannot wait to eat at some…
A Date with Milan
When we are reintroduced some twelve years later, we are little more than acquaintances. Proud and distinguished, like an elderly woman born into luxury and predisposed to a particular standard of life, Milan greets me in her finest display of fashion prominence and financial power as I step off the train. Amidst the briskly moving…
Into the Black Forest
Justin and I hosted his parents earlier this month, and they treated us to an excursion into the Black Forest of southern Germany. We rented a car in Zurich and set off for a relaxing afternoon of countryside driving and leisurely exploration. The Rhine Falls (Rheinfall) Europe’s largest waterfall is lodged between the Swiss and…
The Path to Community
I still don’t believe that I actually live in Switzerland. Over the past three months, Justin and I have slowly started to settle into Swiss life. After weeks of searching and months of waiting, we found an apartment and moved in to our own place. By now, we’ve learned the public transportation system and have picked up…
Is Lucerne the Best Day Trip from Zurich?
In the very center of Switzerland stands a little city with lots of charm: Lucerne. Spelled Luzern in German, this idyllic Swiss town is just a short train ride from Zurich, and it has just become my choice destination for a day trip from Zurich after Justin and I gladly joined our friends visiting from Orlando, Florida one autumn afternoon. With an interesting blend of…
Oktoberfest Für Alle
After the Mayor of Munich tapped the ceremonial keg and shouted “O’zapft is!” last Saturday, Oktoberfest 2015 officially began. Justin and I let our long-standing curiosity about the beer festival draw us back to Munich for the start of it all. As you may or may not recall, we spent a lot of time in Munich last…
In the Heart of the Jungfrau Region
Justin and I spent our anniversary weekend exploring the Jungfrau Region, one of Switzerland’s most popular tourist destinations, located in the Bernese Oberland (the Highlands within the Canton of Bern). We quickly fell in love with this beautiful slice of Swissness, where regal mountains and dramatic valleys welcome outdoor enthusiasts and encourage the imagination. IMAGE SOURCE After 200+…
Paragliding in Switzerland
Justin and I celebrated five years of marriage last month. Five years! Whoa – that seems legit, doesn’t it? My, oh my, how time flies! Actually, so did we. To start off our weekend getaway in Switzerland’s Jungfrau Region (think Interlaken) and commemorate five years of wedded bliss, Justin and I did something neither of…
7 Things to Do in Liechtenstein
If you’ve decided to include unconventional places on your European travel itinerary, consider visiting the Principality of Liechtenstein. You can tour this tiny Alpine country sandwiched between Switzerland and Austria in just a couple of days. Here are some tips and tricks to enjoying your time in Liechtenstein. 7 THINGS TO DO IN LIECHTENSTEIN 1. Purchase an…
Tiny Country Spotlight: Liechtenstein
Last summer, my friend SK and I included Andorra in our European Road Trip, even though travel reviews weren’t promising. Our journey through the small Pyrenean country of Andorra was rewarded with a splendid day of hiking and a humorously confounding cultural experience: Are we in Spain, France or somewhere else entirely? However, Andorra is…
8 Things to Do in Zurich in Summer
Justin and I moved to Zurich, Switzerland just over a month ago; and in that time, we have discovered some of the reasons why Zurich has consistently held first or second place as the city with the highest quality of life. The Swiss are notorious for an infrastructure that runs like clockwork, top quality and…
A Tale of Two Chopsticks
With a culinary heritage from its Chinese, Japanese, and aboriginal ancestry, Taiwan boasts an extraordinary food culture that every world traveler must experience. From smoky barbecue squid to steamed taro cakes, gooey oyster omelets and broth with pork liver, from deep-fried sea creatures and crispy chicken to candied strawberries on a stick, the variation and creativity of…
This Atypical American Life
“For my part, I travel not to go anywhere, but to go. I travel for travel’s sake. The great affair is to move.” —Robert Louis Stevenson To say that I’ve been on the move as of late is a severe understatement. Since I left my office job in downtown Orlando one year ago, I have…
The Towering Taipei 101
On my last day in Taiwan with the Rotary Club, I visited one of the tallest buildings in the world: TAIPEI 101. After it opened on December 31, 2004, Newsweek Magazine listed the elegant superstructure as “One of the New Seven Wonders of the World,” and I could see why. She’s a real beauty! A COMMERICAL CENTER Taipei 101 stands…
A Visit to Wat Pho
Just a stone’s throw away from the colorful Grand Palace of Bangkok rests a really big Buddha. Barely fitting his massive and lanky body under one roof, Wat Pho is home to the largest rendition of Buddha in Thailand. The Reclining Buddha, or Phra Buddha Saiyas, is a lacquered and gilded Buddha image in brick and…