Republica del Cacao Chocolate Tasting – An Ecuadorian Treat

A Chocolate Tasting fit for a King

For those who know me, you should know that I love chocolate.

My addiction has little to no limits and when I visit a country known for its chocolate, I'll go all out. In knowing this, it should be no surprise that our recent trip to Ecuador ended up with us trying over 20 chocolate bars during our exploration of the country.

After trying some of the country's best, we also purchased another 50 to send home for later consumption.

Out of all of the brands that we tried, there was one that we knew we were not giving a fair shake: Republica del Cacao. We could only try a few bars from this particular company as, by Ecuadorian standards (and even some American standards for premium chocolate), they are a bit pricey at upwards of $6 per bar.

Well, it turns out that Republica del Cacao read our review, and asked if we would be interested in trying some more bars to give their chocolate a second chance. Being a chocolate addict, it was hard to say no.

Read more

Sony a6000 Review – Is it The Best Camera for Travel Photography?

New Sony Mirrorless a6000

There is no secret why the Sony a6000 mirrorless camera is the best camera for travel photography. It is small, powerful, and takes incredibly gorgeous photos for a price point that wont deter most photographers.

As I am someone who loves to rant on Sony cameras after having several point-and-shoot failures, and even once made a promise to never buy one again, I am voluntarily putting my foot in my mouth for buying another (and publishing this Sony a6000 review to publicly state my love for this camera).

Ignoring my misgivings against the point and shoots, I always stood by the fact that in terms of image quality, my HX20V and HX50V cameras were the best I ever had- possibly even beating my old SLR. So it should be no surprise that when I made the leap to mirrorless photography, I ended up buying the Sony a6000 despite my reservations.

It has been well over a year since that purchase, and I am not looking back- the Sony a6000 is worth the price.

If you are looking towards buying the same, especially if you are using the camera for travel photography, the following are the most important things you need to know.

Poznan, Poland with Kids

One of Poland’s oldest cities and the fifth largest in the country, Poznan, is a wonderful place to visit with kids. While visiting the city we were blessed with nice warm weather, which allowed us to do lots of outdoors activities including visiting the city's war memorials, famous parks, zoo, and, one of our favorite activities, the local water park!

Read more

How to Build a Beautiful Push Pin Travel Map for Under $50

One of my favorite travel blogging images is the digital push pin travel map that highlights cities and destinations that its creator has visited.

In one quick glimpse you can see every place in the entire world they have been and with just a little thought, imagine where they may be going next.

As we are building a home full of travel decorations, I knew that one day I would be taking this popular digital map and converting it into a real-life decoration to be used as the centerpiece for one of our rooms (with a fantasy of it being in a travel-inspired bar room).

I always expected these maps to cost upwards of $150 or more when finished, as is the case with some of the nice ones available on Amazon or Conquest Maps, but I couldn't bring myself to spend that kind of money right away.

Instead, I put on my crafting hat and ended up being able to make my own professional style travel map with pins at home for just about $50 US and an hour of my time.

If you've ever fantasized about making a push pin travel map of your own, here's what you do.

Read more