Secret Pieces
Asheville North Carolina, Homosexual Central!
by Heather Vint
If you are liberal and have a partner who you can't say enough good things about or you are looking for love, this is the place to visit. Set in the middle of the mountains, you can smell the relaxation in the air. There are plenty of places to go if you are looking for gay friendly spots to cuddle or get hot and heavy on the dance floor. Read more.
What a Boy Wants
When my boyfriend and I decided to travel to Nicaragua, the greatest motivation for us was to see the volcanoes. The cities Granada and Leon, copied after the Spanish cities, were ideal places to visit while searching for volcano trips. Though we came to the country with a plan, we quickly realized that despite our grand expectations about bubbling lava, the best part of travelling will always be unexpected encounters with the local population. Read more.
Ashland, Oregon
As teenagers, my friends and I would pile into an old, red Chevy Malibu and take a crazy trip over a small-ish mountain at breakneck speeds. Frankly, I have no idea how we survived hairpin turns at 80mph, but we somehow lived to tell the tale. Read more.
Valparaiso, Chile
by Eileen B. Smith
The inhabitants of Santiago, or Santiaguinos, take their vacation time very seriously. Not a three-day weekend goes by when they're not packing themselves into cars or buses to take advantage of the beautiful areas within a day's ride from the Chilean capital. Read more.
Scary Toronto Offers Much More then the CN Tower
by Abigail Vint
Growing up in small town Ontario, the big city lights of Toronto always seemed like a bit of a scary place. We would go there for school trips to see a play or a baseball game and I was always in awe. So many people, rushing from place to place. It would be so easy to get lost there. No one looked you in the eye. No one knew who you were. Read more.
Belfast - The best of a renewed city
by Abigail Vint
I would be lying if I said there weren't a few raised eyebrows when my boyfriend Dave and I announced we were moving to Belfast. After spending a year touring to some of the most beautiful cities around Europe, we had decided on a place that many remember only from the headline news bomb stories. Read more.
Cut 'Em Loose!
I grew up in a small town, surrounded by forests and rivers and mountains and wheat fields and cattle pastures. When I was in high school I couldn't wait to get out of there, but thanks to the perspective that comes with distance, I've discovered what a little gem it is and how many great things it has to offer. It's been four years since I was there last, but when my heart longs for "home," Grangeville, Idaho is where I want to be. Read more.
What Has Leeds Got?
by Abigail Vint
It's the little treasures you find when you're living in a city that make it unique. When I arrived in Leeds, UK, I could feel the energy. I knew instinctively it was going to be a great place to live. Read more.
Les Pointieres, Beaufortain
by Patricia Perkins
Montagne ou je suis né
Pays de mes vacances
Lieu de mes rencontres
Les Pointieres, Beaufortain Read more.
Youth's Mecca: Astoria, Oregon
Every day after school it was the same. Rush in the door, grab some cookies and milk, pop in the special pirated tape we'd made and sit back and relax. Mind you, this was the same tape every single day. The same tape. The same two movies. Read more.
Winter City: Kiruna, Sweden
When Swedes found two mountains of iron slightly above the Arctic Circle, the native Sami reindeer herders laughed and said no town could ever exist in such a spot. Cold winter winds and deep snow claimed the area for eight months of the year, leaving it to hordes of mosquitos for the other four months. Read more.