The Ohrns

I recently returned from a trip to the tropical paradise of Antigua with my mother. We stayed at an all-inclusive resort, wiling our days away in island luxury while enjoying tasty meals and a few activities. Antigua is beautiful and I would recommend a visit there if you’re in need of ocean-adjacent relaxation uniformly good…

Angela and I recently returned from a short trip to Phoenix for our (roughly) annual trip to see the Fiesta Bowl. This year’s match-up between Ole Miss and Miami proved to be competitive, although a little sloppy. Luckily, the last seven minutes of the game were exciting enough to make up for the other three-and-a-half…

We recently returned from a family trip to Deer Valley, Utah, where we celebrated our fifteenth wedding anniversary with Fitz in tow. The weather was chilly and we spent most of our time together in front of the fireplace, although we did brave the frigid temperatures for some wintry hikes. More than anything, it was…

Angela, Fitz, and I recently celebrated my fortieth birthday with a relaxing trip to Southern California. We spent our time enjoying the beautiful weather while walking along beautiful trails and through San Diego’s largest park. It was yet another trip where we made great memories as a family. Bookings Hotels One suite for four nights…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Vietnam. While there, we explored Hanoi, Ha Long Bay, Hue, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City (née Saigon). While we spent most of our nights in hotels, we were lucky enough to spend a pair of evenings sleeping on the water in Ha Long Bay.…

Angela and I recently visited Minneapolis for the second of this year’s bi-annual churning meetups. While there, we met up with our friends from around the country before heading to our first ever state fair for unhealthy (but delicious) food and carnival rides. The weather was lovely (certainly much better than when I visited in…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to the island of Maui in Hawaii. We hiked, snorkeled, watched a beautiful sunrise, and spent time exploring the unique natural landscape. This was our first time on Maui and, while we enjoyed our time on the island, we didn’t feel like it lived up to its…

Editor’s note: This post was written by Angela, so the first-person refers to her (unlike most content on this site). I recently returned from a girls’ trip to Malaysia with my good friend Xiaoling. While there, we spent time in Penang, the Cameron Highlands, and Kuala Lumpur. This was a new destination for me, and…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Austin for the fifth of my semi-annual credit card and travel enthusiast meetups. This was an extension of our trip to the Turks and Caicos Islands as we stopped on our way home rather than doubling back. Like always, it was excellent to see the people…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to the Turks and Caicos Islands (henceforth referred to as TCI for brevity). We weren’t alone in paradise, though, as we were joined by my brother, James, his girlfriend, Mallie, our mother, Constance, and her partner, Paulette. We took this trip in the midst of our mother…

Angela and I recently returned from a rock-climbing trip to Greece. On the way home, we made a short stop in the Austrian capital of Vienna to see a performance at the State Opera House and explore the city. Our time in Greece was marred by a streak of cold, windy, and precipitous days that…

I recently returned from an impromptu trip to Green Bay, Wisconsin, to attend the Chicago Bears vs Green Bay Packers game at Lambeau Field. This trip was made possible by the generosity of my friend, Noah, who thoughtfully offered to take me when he found that he had an extra ticket available. Since I was…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Phoenix to attend the Fiesta Bowl. This journey has become an annual tradition for us, and, this time, we were lucky enough to be accompanied to the game by some great friends. As the Fiesta Bowl has become a permanent part of the College Football Playoff…

I recently returned from a short trip to Minneapolis to attend, with my friend David, the Monday Night Football game between the Chicago Bears and Minneapolis Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium. While my team didn’t win (and I wasn’t really under any illusion that they would), the experience was excellent and I got to spend…

Angela and I recently returned from a whirlwind trip to the Middle East where we spent short stints in a few different locations. This journey was certainly more of a vacation than most of our travels as we prioritized relaxation and leisure over rushing around to see the sights. After a somewhat stressful year, it…

James and I recently returned from a trip to London, visiting the city to attend an NFL game. While we took the same trip last year, this time was a bit more exciting because the game pitted our beloved Chicago Bears against the mediocre Jacksonville Jaguars. Even better, we got to have an enhanced experience…

I recently returned from a weekend visit to Chicago where I spent some time with my brother and our mother. We celebrated our mother’s birthday with a few days full of activity, including a satisfying Chicago Bears victory over the Los Angeles Rams at Soldier Field. Bookings This was a short domestic trip and everything…

Angela and her mother recently traveled to San Francisco and Napa Valley, California. As it was her mother’s first time in San Francisco, they visited many of the popular tourist attractions. After a few days in the city, they headed to wine country. There, they spent the days sampling delicious food and drink. As has…

Angela and I recently returned from a luxurious trip to Italy to celebrate her birthday. We thoroughly enjoyed our time along Lake Como and in the surrounding area. Our stop in Milan was relaxing, given we spent some time in the city previously, and it was nice to spend a few days there before heading…

I recently returned from a short solo trip to Japan. I booked this travel because rare availability in first class cabins appeared that allowed me to use stranded airline miles before they expired. I built my trip around the flights available. I had no idea what I’d do in Japan for five days. It was…

Angela and I recently returned from a short trip to Toronto for the fourth of my semi-annual credit card and travel enthusiast meetups. While there, we took a daytrip to the most popular tourist destination in Canada, ate delicious food, and hung out with awesome people. I really value these opportunities to meet up with…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Japan with her father and stepmother (Mark and RaeAnn, respectively). A little over a year ago, they mentioned that they were interested in traveling with us post-retirement. We responded that there was no reason to wait and, after consulting with them on their interests, desires, and…

James and I recently returned from a trip to Spain where we spent three nights in each of Madrid, Bilbao, and Barcelona. We visited a few museums, hiked up a mountain, and spent a considerable amount of time pounding the payment to explore local neighborhoods. Most importantly, we enjoyed our time together discussing our lives…

Angela and I recently returned from an adventurous trip to New Zealand’s North Island. We previously visited the South Island in December 2022 and knew, even then, that we’d return in the future to see more of the country. As with most of our travel, this trip was born of opportunity. I noticed rare award…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Australia. Unlike our previous journeys to the country, we spent the majority of our time outside of the large cities, opting to enjoy the beautiful Blue Mountains near Sydney before driving north to Brisbane, stopping in a few coastal towns on the way. The impetus for…

James and I recently returned from a trip to Japan which included stays in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka. During our time together, we deepened our connection to one another and broadened our understanding of each other’s life. While I’ve visited Japan several times, this was all new to James. I tried to make sure we…

Angela and I recently returned from a whirlwind tour of Scandinavia. We stopped in Stockholm, Oslo, Copenhagen, and Helsinki and took a day trip to Tallinn, Estonia. This trip was essentially the opposite of our previous journey to Bali. While we spent a substantial amount of time relaxing during that trip, we never stopped moving…

My brother and I recently returned from a visit to London with a one-night stop in Venice during our journey home. The primary reason for this trip was to attend the Atlanta Falcons versus Jacksonville Jaguars game at Wembley Stadium, part of the NFL in London series. We arrived in the city a few days…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Taipei and Bali. While in Taipei, we wandered through the beautiful city, saw the tourist highlights, ate some delicious food, and perspired an obscene amount. Our time in Bali was much more of a true vacation. We spent the majority of our time relaxing and enjoying…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Fiji and Perth with our time abroad equally split between the two destinations. In Fiji, we fully embraced our adventurous side, zip-lining through forests and jumping out of a plane. In Perth, we slowed things down and connected with family that moved to Western Australia last…

Our family recently spent five nights in Truckee, CA before stopping for an unexpected night in Reno, NV prior to heading home. We journeyed to California because we were invited by our friends John and Lena to go rock climbing with them during their stay in the area. Angela had previously climbed with the couple,…

I recently returned from a trip to Denver where I spent a delightful evening eating with friends before meeting up with people that I’ve known for a few years via an online chat group. Of the twenty-eight people in the group, about half were able to attend this meetup. The composition was different from our…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to Poland, spending twelve days exploring as much of the country as we reasonably could. We visited Warsaw, Gdansk, Poznan, and Krakow during our tour of Angela’s cultural homeland, yet there remains so much for us to see on a return trip in the future. Returning to…

We recently returned from a trip to Seychelles. While there, we spent our time on the largest inhabited island, Mahe, staying several nights in both the north and the south. We drove the circumference, visited the capital, and explored several summits and a few beaches. Many of our trips are thinly disguised educational field trips…

Angela and I recently returned from a trip to South Korea and Japan. This was our first time in South Korea, and we confined ourselves to Seoul, but still managed to take in a lot of information about Korea, its long history, and its culture. We visited several museums and enjoyed the touchstone foods of…

Angela and I recently returned from Phoenix where we attended the VRBO Fiesta Bowl Game between the Michigan Wolverines and TCU Horned Frogs. My brother, James, and our friend Kenya, who we met through the dachshund Instagram community, joined us for the game. While I was rooting for the Wolverines, Angela pulled for the winning…

Angela and I recently returned from eleven days in New Zealand with all but one day spent on the South Island. We had an absolutely fantastic trip with beautiful landscapes, exciting hiking, and exhilarating and meaningful activities. It is hard to express just how much our plan for this journey differed from our past few…

Angela and her mother, Theresa, recently returned from a five-night stay in Punta Mita, Mexico. This was primarily a traditional sun-and-surf vacation, but they decided to partake of an off-road excursion to spice things up. This trip was specifically planned around the hotel they’d be staying at, the Conrad Punta de Mita. We needed to…

Angela and I recently returned from a whirlwind tour of the east coast of Australia. We visited Sydney, Brisbane, and Melbourne, meeting up with friends, drinking delicious coffee, eating good food, and walking through a few different gardens and parks in each city. As this was our second trip to Australia, and our second trip…

Angela and I recently returned from a weekend trip to Vancouver where we spent a few days exploring the city and eating delicious food. We really enjoyed our time there and would definitely recommend it to those on the west coast looking for a quick trip somewhere fun. At the end of last year, I…

I recently returned from a trip to Chicago where I went to a Thursday Night Football game at Soldier Field, spent an afternoon with family, and met up with some friends that I’ve known for a few years in an online-only capacity. Of a 28-person online group chat that I’m a part of, 14 people…

Angela and I recently returned from a week in London during which we visited a number of tourist sights and ate a variety of delicious foods. In addition, I met up with a couple of friends for an NFL game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium while Angela visited Windsor Castle. Bookings While there was a minor…

Angela, Fitz, and I recently returned from a road trip to Park City, Utah; a return after our successful trip at the beginning of June. While we had fun, we ran into some unexpected difficulties on this trip and had to cut our activities short by a couple of days. We were certainly disappointed by…

We recently returned from a trip to Greece during which we explored important sites from the Ancient and Classical era, both in and around Athens, before celebrating Angela’s birthday on the island of Santorini. As an added bonus, and because of a flight schedule change, we spent two nights in Switzerland before returning home. The…

Angela and I recently returned from a road trip to California with Fitz during which we visited Dana Point and Santa Monica. This was our second road trip with him since his spinal surgeries in December 2021 and a follow-up to our earlier trip to Park City, Utah. The impetus for this trip was my…

Angela and I recently returned from a road trip to Park City, Utah with Fitz. This was our first road trip with him since his spinal surgeries in December 2021 and the first time we had subjected him to what I considered a semi-strenuous workload for a nine-year-old dachshund, especially one with a history of…

We recently returned from a trip to Thailand in celebration of the start of my year-long sabbatical. While said sabbatical started at the beginning of May, this was our first trip together since I stopped working and it was our first chance to travel knowing that when we returned home, I wouldn’t face an avalanche…

I recently returned from a trip to Italy with my brother, James, in celebration of his 35th birthday. In the middle of the pandemic, I asked him where in the world he’d want to go or what single attraction he’d be most excited to see on a trip together. After some deliberation, he decided on…

Angela and I recently visited New York City to see a couple of Broadway shows and visit friends. This was a true vacation so we didn’t have much planned outside of the theater tickets we held when we arrived. As always, it was great to return to a city that we’ve grown to love so…

During the month of December, I flew around the country to see three football games with friends and family. These mini-vacations were planned before the Omicron wave of Covid hit and before Fitz suffered paralysis requiring surgery at the end of November. Given those things, I seriously considered calling off the short trips. After consulting…

Angela recently returned from a long delayed trip to Italy with her mother, Theresa. The travel described herein was originally booked to occur in 2020, which obviously didn’t happen, and just like our post about our Kenyan safari, I’ll only be discussing the final bookings. Bookings Given that the flight itineraries were booked separately for…

Angela and I recently visited New York City for the first time since February of 2020. This was a fairly spontaneous trip that we took because I desperately needed a break from work and we missed the city that we’ve grown to love so much. Bookings Because this trip was booked on such short notice…

I recently returned from a trip to Nashville where my father and I met to see the Chicago Bears play the Tennessee Titans in the third preseason game of the 2021 NFL season. With only a couple of nights together, we packed in the fun and had a great time. I am going to post…

Angela and I, along with our friends Justin and Melody, recently returned from our first international trip since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. This trip was originally planned in October 2019 for July 2020 and, obviously, was rescheduled and rebooked several times between then and now. In describing this trip, I’m going to delineate…

Angela and I recently took our first vacation since last February when we visited Singapore (during the time when no one knew just how serious the pandemic would become). We drove from Las Vegas to California, visited some friends, and then spent the night close to the ocean in Santa Barbara and at an all-inclusive…

In December 2018, Angela and I were lucky enough to enjoy our third trip to Europe in the past year. We visited Spain and Italy and, as always, created indelible memories that we will cherish for the rest of our lives. Some of this trip was booked with credit card points, hotel rewards, and airline…

After being at home for the longest period in quite some time, Angela and I set off for an exciting adventure that included stops in New York City, Tokyo, Kuala Lumpur, and Singapore. This trip was planned well in advance, but we had to make drastic changes in the middle of January due to the…

Angela and I recently returned from a circumnavigation of the globe that included extended stops in Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. This trip, like most of our extended travel, was booked with airline miles and transferrable credit card points. In this post, I’ll explain how we booked our travel and lodging, talk a bit…

Angela and I recently finished a trip to Southern Africa that encompassed three countries, with a long layover in Qatar on the way home. This was our first journey to Sub-Saharan Africa, if you exclude Mauritius. We didn’t really know what to expect as, unlike most of our trips, our itinerary was all-inclusive for much…

Angela and I just finished up a quick trip to Paris to celebrate her birthday. This was our third sojourn to The City of Light and we loved it just as much as our previous two visits. We had previously seen many of the popular tourist sights, so this trip was focused on spending time…

Angela and I recently completed a lengthy trip that covered most of the circumference of the Earth and visited a variety of distinct locations. Over the course of three weeks, we stopped in Houston, London, Beijing, Xi’an, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Lucerne, Zurich, and Milan before returning home. To illustrate our route, here’s an image displaying…

We recently took a group trip to Peru to visit Lima and Cusco and see stunning monuments gifted to humanity by the Incan Empire.

We recently completed a two and a half week trip to Australia during which we created many memories that will last a lifetime. We chose to prioritize the land down under over other destinations primarily because the last few years have seen a near constant stream of stories about bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef…

We recently took a trip to New York City, this time for an entire week. It was Angela’s fourth visit in the last year and a half (fifth overall) and my third as a tourist. We spent most of our time in Manhattan, as we did on previous trips, but finally journeyed to one of…

In late September and early October, Angela and I took our first trip to Asia with stays in Tokyo, Hong Kong, and Kyoto. We sprinkled in several day trips from Kyoto to ensure our experience was as varied as possible. Over two and a half weeks, we experienced the best hotel stays ever, walked more…

In April, Angela and I visited Paris for the second time in six months. After the frigid cold of December, it was a true delight to experience the city and its people in the springtime. Paris, Again? Some people might ask “why visit Paris again so soon after you’d just been there?” That’s a valid…

Every year, Angela and I try to take at least one vacation where I don’t work at all; a true break from the craziness of day-to-day life and the stress that comes with it. This year, we were lucky enough to go, literally, halfway around the world for the most amazing tropical getaway I can…

Angela and I recently journeyed to the Middle East for the first time, with stops in Egypt and Jordan. We had no intention of making a trip like this during 2018, but when I saw a 40% off flash sale on all Royal Jordanian fares pop up on January 1st, I decided to take the…

Angela and I recently returned from our first international transoceanic trip together. While we’ve previously traveled internationally, it has always been within the Americas, with trips to Mexico, Costa Rica, and Panama. We’ve previously flown across the ocean (to Hawaii twice), but that’s a domestic trip, so this one was something entirely different. This was…