Hey travel bugs! Long time no talk! It’s been a busy year of work, travel, working on my upcoming novel, and a medical procedure that gave me some time to rest and think about priorities.
Last year I got my driver’s license and this summer I’m determined to make the most of my days off by exploring places I haven’t been before and places I’ve been to in the past but haven’t been able to get to for one reason or another. I made myself a list for the “Summer of Exploration,” but my list really stretches far into the fall. Some of these I’ve already checked off, some are fun activities / movies and some are parks I’m planning to return to as I’ve also made exercise a priority…
1. High Cliff State Park, Sherwood, Wisconsin
High Cliff State Park
2. Iverson Park and Bound to Happen Books, Stevens Point, Wisconsin
Iverson Park
3. Firebrand (movie) – June 14, 2024
4. Mosquito Hill Nature Center, New London, Wisconsin
Mosquito Hill
5. Hayman Falls County Park, Shawano County, Wisconsin
Hayman Falls
6. Hartman Creek State Park, Waupaca, Wisconsin
7. Cherney Maribel Caves County Park (Manitowoc County, Wisconsin), Greenhouse Coffee Shop (Kohler, Wisconsin), Lottie Cooper Shipwreck (Sheboygan, Wisconsin)
8. Escanaba/Gladstone, Michigan
9. Navarino Nature Center, Navarino, Wisconsin
10. Devil’s Lake State Park, Baraboo, Wisconsin
11. Door County, Wisconsin (a favorite destination!)
12. Symco Weekender (Event), Symco, Wisconsin
13. Wiowash State Trail, Outagamie County, Wisconsin
14. Rib Mountain State Park, Wausau, Wisconsin
15. Fully Stocked Wine Bar, Shawano, Wisconsin
16. It Rose From the Ashes (my new book!) Releases September 13, 2024!
17. Two Lakes Supper Club, Almond, Wisconsin
18. Fall Trip: Portland Maine, Portsmouth New Hampshire, Salem Massachusetts, Providence Rhode Island, Mystic Connecticut
I’ll be sure to keep you updated on each adventure and catch you up on my spring trip to Charleston, South Carolina in April, a Door County weekend in May, and my travel planning for this fall and beyond! Thank you for taking this journey with me! Safe travels!
Ah the holiday shopping season, almost upon us again. How did that happen? I swear it was just February about 2 minutes ago. 😆 So you love a traveler, or you’re a traveler and your family is asking what to get you for the holidays. Sure travel tickets would be fantastic, but a little pricey for your average family. Instead may I recommend something to remember your travels with?
The Wander Club is a company that makes little travel “tokens” that show off cities, countries, national parks, landmarks, military bases, and even baseball and football stadiums to remember the places you’ve been. You can put them on one of their keychains (called a Wanderchain), wear it on a necklace, or put it on your own key ring!
You can add the dates of your travel to the back of the token. Have your initials monogrammed into the wanderchain, and even have custom tokens made for places other than the ones they have listed or whatever you want it to say!
I stumbled upon The Wander Club last year as a Christmas gift for my mother who has cancer and who I was hitting a brick wall on gift ideas for. I ordered a wanderchain and tokens for both of us with trips we’ve taken together and apart. The CEO of the company emailed me after I put in my order to thank me for my order and ask a little about why I was ordering. I explained about my mother and when I received my order they had included a sweet note sending their thoughts to my mom and our family. I have never had a company go so above and beyond as this! I would recommend them to anyone who wants a unique gift for someone who loves to travel!
I’m still at the beginning of my traveling journey yet. There are so many places I want to go and things I want to see. Today I’m listing 10 Places I Want to Visit Domestically and 10 Places I Want to Visit Internationally.
Domestic:
1. Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is at the top of my list, and actually one of my picks for where I might want to go this fall. It’s competing against a return trip to Charleston, South Carolina though, which I absolutely love so I might have to make it a day trip from Charleston.
2. Salem, Massachusetts
I’ve been dying to go to Salem for years now. I’d love to go in October one year; both for the changing leaves and the seasonal events.
3. Vermont (Possibly Burlington)
Vermont is on my list of New England places I’d love to go. Last year when I was trying to decide where I want to go for my first solo trip, I considered Burlington which looks like an interesting city.
4. The Stanley Hotel (Estes Park, Colorado
As a huge horror novel/movie fan and paranormal enthusiast, I would love to visit the hotel that inspired Stephen King to write The Shining!
5. Maine
From the various tv shows and books I’ve watched and read set in Maine (minus Stephen King’s books 😂) I always thought Maine would be a gorgeous place to visit someday.
6. Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville was on the list of places I was considering for this year’s trip, and even when my mom and I were thinking of driving down it was on our route from Tail of the Dragon to Savannah. I’d love to see and take pictures of the Biltmore Estate.
7. New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is more on my hit or miss list. I’ve always wanted to go there but traveling by myself as a single woman with their crime rate gives me pause. I’d still enjoy the architecture, food, and history though.
8. Las Vegas, Nevada
This is a curiosity for me. I’m not into gambling, so I wouldn’t visit for that reason, but I’d love to see some of the museums and the sights of the surrounding area. I think it would be great for a weekend trip, maybe with my mom.
9. Denver, Colorado
This, backtracking to The Stanley Hotel, would be a great combined trip as The Stanley Hotel is only about 66 miles northwest of Denver. I’ve read a few books set in Denver, and actually when I was a kid our satellite dish would only pick up an ABC channel from Denver instead of our local Green Bay, Wisconsin station and the area always interested me.
10. Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville being on this list is less about me wanting to visit to see Nashville and more because I have friends as well as a half-sister that currently live there that I would love to visit.
Internationally:
I’m still a new flyer so I need to work on traveling domestically for a while before I attempt flying overseas. Some of these are general countries I’d love to visit and others are more specific to things I want to see.
1. Ireland
Traveling to Ireland is higher on my dream list than some of the US locations listed above. It’s so gorgeous and green in photos and I’d love to visit. Plus I can trace my Irish ancestry to the West Beara Peninsula in Ireland and it would be fun to see where some of my ancestors came from.
2. Paris, France
I know it’s cliche. But come on, the food, the fashion, the culture. Paris is a must visit for me.
3. England
I’d love to visit London but I’d also like to see wherever they film my favorite show, Midsomer Murders!
4. Egypt
Someone tell me I’m not the only millennial that was obsessed with ancient Egypt as a kid, especially after The Mummy came out in 1999. I’d love to see the pyramids someday.
5. Iceland
I’ve seen some gorgeous pictures from other travel bloggers of Iceland recently and I think it’s such a photogenic country. Other than what I’ve seen, I don’t honestly know much about Iceland, so I’d have to do some research but it looks like an amazing place to visit.
6. Bran Castle, Romania
Also known as Dracula’s Castle. I fell in love with photos of the castle when I read Hunting Prince Dracula by Kerri Maniscalco several years ago and saw pictures in the book. You’ll notice, a lot of the places I want to visit are history based. I find history fascinating, especially dark, bloody history like that of Bran Castle.
7. Madeira, Portugal
I first learned about Madeira while doing research for one of my novels and immediately fell in love with the gorgeous scenery.
8. Santorini, Greece
Show me a girl who was a teenager in the early-mid 2000s who didn’t fall in love with Santorini and it’s blue-domed, white-stone houses after watching The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants and I’ll call her a liar.
9. Italy
There’s so much to see and delight in Italy, including fabulous food.
10. Quebec, Canada
I can trace my French ancestors settling into the Trois-Rivières area of Quebec in the early 1700s. I think traveling to Quebec would not only be beautiful, but be a great first dip into international travel before making a bigger jump into traveling overseas. (I have traveled to Ontario as a child, but Ontario didn’t seem all that different than the US, although we only went as far as Sault Ste. Marie.)
What are some of the places you want to visit someday? Have you been to any of the places I’ve mentioned?
This post was originally posted on my old book blog, Taylor Fenner’s Bookish World. My trip to Charleston in September 2021 was my first solo trip. Perhaps that is what was so special about it. Or perhaps it was Charleston itself. I’d always wanted to go, since I first watched Southern Charm on Bravo; which I understand is a silly reason to want to go somewhere. I had a great time, and I can’t wait to go back!
In future posts, I’ll talk more in depth about traveling alone for the first time, flying for the first time, my experience with carry-on bags, traveling during Covid, and more. But for now, let’s just take a look back at my trip overview.
For as long as I could remember I’ve wanted to travel. I did a fair bit of it when I was younger with family. I’d been to five states and Canada. But here in 2021, at age 29, I’d never traveled solo. In May, I decided that come fall I was going to go somewhere. And I picked Charleston, South Carolina.
Bullet Journaling my trip planning.
But here’s the glitch: I’d never flown before. I’m a generally nervous person when it comes to trying new things and I was a bit nervous to be traveling by myself as a single woman. I nearly talked myself out of going so many times, even up to the morning of my trip. Then I found this blog post and it really calmed my nerves.
I think one of my biggest concerns was flying. I’d never been on a plane before and years of watching movies and seeing worst case scenario stories on the nightly news had me a bit… terrified.
I kept telling myself that thousands of people successfully fly every day without issues and that it’s like ripping off a bandage… you just have to do it and get it over with and then you won’t be afraid anymore.
Three out of my four flights (to and from) turned out just fine, the first one was a little turbulent and I got a little nauseous but I was alright.
I arrived in Charleston around 5:15PM on Tuesday, September 14th and grabbed an Uber to my Airbnb on King Street. The sun was out but the heat was a bit of a shock. We get 80 and 90 degree days in Wisconsin but going from 64 degrees to 84+ humidity was an eye-opener.
The Pineapple Fountain at Waterfront Park.
Once I had my things dropped off at my Airbnb, I hopped into another Uber (seriously, most of my expenses on this trip went to Uber) and went to Waterfront Park.
Waterfront Park was a must-see because I wanted to photograph the Pineapple Fountain. (See photo on above).
From what I learned later in the trip, the pineapple is a symbol of hospitality in Charleston from back when merchants would bring pineapples to the city as a thank you as pineapples were hard to come by in Charleston at that time.
Interior of The Griffon Pub
Once I walked around the park for a while and took a bunch of photos, I walked over to the Griffon Pub on Vendue Range (roughly just across the street from the park).
The Griffon is a funky little English-style Pub that has dollar bills covering almost every surface except the tables, chairs, and bar top. One of the major deciding factors in coming to Charleston is my love of seafood and I ordered myself some fish and chips. It was really good but I was still a little queasy from my flights so I took the leftovers back to my room to eat later.
Selfie @ The Griffon Pub – I was still so red in the face from walking and the heat lol
Day 2 – Wednesday, September 15, 2021
On Wednesday I woke up feeling much better and walked to The Harbinger Cafe less than a block from my Airbnb and had a mocha and a piece of pumpkin loaf. The pumpkin loaf was really good – moist with a crunchy graham cracker streusel on top.
My loose plans for Wednesday were to go to the Historic Charleston City Market and do a little window shopping on King Street.
Exterior of the Charleston City Market
The market was really cool. It is housed in a set of long buildings where vendors set up and sell their wares.
They sell everything from clothing, jewelry, local artisan pieces, food, and more. One of the buildings is partially air conditioned which is nice as I quickly noticed how oppressive the heat is in Charleston in such a short amount of time. The other buildings are more open air with fans running overhead. Above the first building is a museum, but I didn’t stop inside to check it out.
I did grab a sweatshirt (I’m perpetually cold in A/C), a hat to protect from the sun, some locally made soap, and some postcards to send to my friends in out autumnal pen pal letters this fall.
Here’s a selfie of me sitting outside the City Market before I headed off to King Street
Also worth mentioning, on the back end of the Market, across the street sits the United States Custom House. Isn’t it a cool building? I didn’t know what it was so I had to do a little research.
Custom Houses deal with the importing and exporting of goods into a certain jurisdiction or country and collect customs duty on imported goods. Construction started on the United States Custom House in Charleston in 1852 but was stalled in 1859 because of the Civil War. It would take until 1879 to be completed and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
After walking back to King Street I strolled through the shopping district and saw a Louis Vuitton store in person for the first time. (That was a big deal for me) I also browsed in a few other stores before stumbling onto Marion Square. It was a good thing because I was getting pretty overheated by this point and ended up wandering into a Starbucks a few blocks up.
Mural at Starbucks on King Street at Mary Street
I finished off my first full day in Charleston at Herd Provisions on Grove Street where I had one of the best burgers I’ve eaten in a long time. It was juicy, perfectly medium, and had a delicious sauce that was like a thousand island dressing with a kick that I can’t quite put my finger on. If you’re looking for a break from seafood, I definitely recommend the Herd Burger at Herd Provisions!
The Herd Burger
Day 3 – Thursday, September 16, 2021
Dungeon at The Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon
Thursday I set aside to tour a couple museums – The Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon (dungeon photographed above) and the Aiken-Rhett House on Elizabeth Street. I walked to Rainbow Row and The Battery and took photos of the historic homes.
The Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon above was the original Customs House in Charleston and housed pirates and revolutionaries in the dungeon below.
Rainbow Row
Rainbow Row (above) is one of the most photographed streets in town and people make a point of coming to photograph the beautiful, brightly colored homes.
The Aiken-Rhett House was once home to South Carolina’s former governor William Aiken and the house is considered to be the best preserved complex of antebellum domestic structures in Charleston. Being that it is preserved, not restored, it has largely been left in the condition it was found in with the exception of the art gallery which is air-conditioned and well maintained. It was an interesting museum but it was also very hot and I probably did not enjoy it as much as I would have, had it been cooler.
In total, I walked 4 miles on Thursday, the most I walked my entire trip, and it was the best group of photos I took.
Stuffed French Toast at Toast Restaurant
I finished off my Thursday at Toast on Meeting Street. Toast is famous for its stuffed French Toast (photo on right) – It’s cinnamon swirl bread with currants hollowed out and filled with fruit (peaches or apples) then covered in French toast batter and fried then served with whipped cream. I was not expecting how huge the French toast would be but it was definitely one of the more memorable meals during my trip!
First, though, I grabbed breakfast at Another Broken Egg Cafe where I could actually find normal breakfast food that didn’t involve a side of greens. I had some time to kill so I ducked back into the City Market before the Harbor Tour.
Fort Sumter
For something I did on the spur of the moment, the Charleston Harbor Tour was the best decision I made during my trip. The 90-minute cruise was well worth checking out, the captain was funny and entertaining, and I feel like I learned more about the history and area of Charleston on this tour than any of the other places I’d toured so far.
USS Yorktown
Among other things, we saw Fort Sumter, the USS Yorktown, and the Arthur Ravenel Jr. Bridge (which I personally was looking forward to)
I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone looking to see a lot of interesting things at once.
Finally, I walked to Hyman’s Seafood on Meeting Street. I’m so glad I made a point of stopping here for my last dinner in Charleston. Up the stairs and seated at a table where according to the plaque, Danny Glover once sat at, I was served an amazing bowl of Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo.
On Saturday, I was headed back home. All my nervousness was for nothing. I’d had a very nice trip, seen a lot of cool things, and eaten some fabulous food. To quote a movie I once saw, the things you’re scared of are usually the most worth-while. I’ve ripped the bandaid off and I’m now ready to check out some of the other places I’ve always wanted to travel to; perhaps once a year?
Taylor Sees the World 
