travelteachlove

A Kid Again, Biking Through Copenhagen

January 27, 2016 No Comments

This past summer my family and I took a cruise through the Baltic Sea out of Copenhagen. Before setting sail we flew into Copenhagen so we could spend a little extra time taking in the city and seeing some of its highlights. One of my favorite experiences was using the bike share program. Much like in Boston, renting a bike was easy in Copenhagen. There were bike hubs all over the city, all you had to do was find a bike not in use to ride around. What was different on these bikes was the iPad like tablet attached to the […]

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Packing Light Round 2: Carry On

January 23, 2016 No Comments

After pairing down my checked luggage for Spain to a carry on size bag, which at this point if stuffed to the gills and would never fit in those tiny overhead bins, I decided my carry on could use a little trimming. I had to do a little more cramming into my checked luggage (meds, converter, flashlight, you know the essentials) but the zipper still closes so we’ll call it a success! By putting those last few items into my luggage I was able to get my backpack down to a reasonable load that won’t break my back. Not to […]

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Packing Light

January 20, 2016 3 Comments

So many of you probably will look at my suitcase and what I am bringing for a 10 day trip to Spain and say to yourself, “she thinks that is packing light?!” Well for me it is a major victory. There will be no bell boys, assistants or parents on this trip to cart around my luggage, it’s just me and whatever I can carry. And quite frankly, I’m tired of heaving around my large luggage up narrow European staircases, or squeezing into impossibly small elevators. The time has come to downsize. Hence the carry on size bag, packed to the gills […]

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Learning (Finnish) Isn’t Easy

January 17, 2016 4 Comments

Recently I had a major lightbulb moment about teaching and learning. To prepare for my upcoming trip to Finland this summer, I decided to embark on a quest to learn a new language, Finnish. For some this may sound like a walk in the park, but for me let me tell you, it is not easy. I have never considered my self a “language” person. Three years of Spanish in high school was my own personal hell as far as I was concerned. A passing grade through Spanish III was enough to meet the foreign language requirement for an advanced diploma at my […]

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Peru: How a Country Made Me a Better Teacher

January 12, 2016 No Comments

I have traveled all over the world with my family. London, Paris, Rome, around Australia, and all of those trips were amazing! I saw and did things that I never thought I would. But it wasn’t until I took a trip to Peru that travel changed me as a teacher. It was my first big trip without my family with me. No mum with her guidebook pointing out sights and herding us to museums. Instead I would be surrounded by a group of educators, most of whom I had never met before. It was a leap of faith, but it was an opportunity […]

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License to Drive

January 9, 2016 No Comments

In preparation for my up coming trips I have been devouring guide books. I’ve been reading for tips, must see places, best museums, how to get there and everything in between. It was during one of my guide book reading marathons that I stumbled across a brief mention of an International Driving Permit. My immediate thought, “What do you mean you an international permit?” It didn’t even occur to me that you might need anything more than you passport and US license to prove you are capable of renting and driving a car somewhere else. Never mind the hairpin turns I […]

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Favorites From Stockholm

January 8, 2016 No Comments

Taking out my suitcase to pack for Spain brought back so many great memories of my last trip through the Baltic. One of the port stops on the cruise was in Stockholm. It didn’t take long for me to fall in love with this city on water. Here are my top 5 favorite moments from our short stay. 1. The Vasa Museum- it was incredible to see this almost perfectly preserved 300 year old ship. We learned that it sank on its maiden voyage and was made for Swedish royalty. This is why it was so elaborately decorated. With limited […]

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STEAM Connection: Windmills of Toledo

January 5, 2016 1 Comment

One of the places I am most excited to see in my upcoming trip to Spain are the Windmills of the Toledo area. After doing a little bit of research in my guide book and online, I can’t stop thinking about the picturesque views of the whitewashed windmills, plunked down along the Calderico ridge. These beautiful windmills were made famous in the novel Don Quixote. They have inspired me to at least download the novel onto my Kindle to attempt to read before I leave, but that is for another day. While Don Quixote may or may not get read sometime soon, something […]

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New Year, New Adventures

January 1, 2016 4 Comments

Bring on 2016! I am so excited for the new year and all the new adventures that come with it. My travel list is already filling up, and I am sure there will be other small side trips that pop up along the way. Here is a quick peek of my future travels in 2016. February- Spain Along with a group of 22 educators we will discover big cities, little towns and everything in between. I love these trips because we get a chance to visit schools and talk to educators and students from another country. Stops during our 11 […]

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Travel Tech Favorites

December 29, 2015 No Comments

There are so many things to pack when going on a trip but my tech pieces are usually top on my list to pack, repack and then check again to make sure I have them all! Here are my tech tools I can’t live without when I travel. My Nikon Camera– I have been obsessed with photographs and photography since I was in high school and took my first class. I have upgraded since my days of film and darkrooms into a world of SD cards and digital print. Without my camera I would feel like I was missing a […]