Louisville, Kentucky is the city where I was born and raised, and although I’ve traveled all over the world, I’ve never found anywhere quite as special. Louisville is more than just a world class city brimming with art, culture, food, bourbon, and the friendliest people you’ll meet anywhere. Halloween season is one of the best times of the year to visit Louisville. It’s not just the crisp autumn air and crunchy colorful leaves that brings me back year after year, but also unique autumn festivals and events (like a massive Jack O’Lantern immersive art experience) an incredible array of terrifying haunted houses (Halloween in Louisville is SO EPIC), yummy autumn bourbon tasting, and gorgeous scenic drives and walks through some of the most beautiful fall foliage in the USA. Here’s why you need to celebrate Halloween in Louisville, Kentucky!
![[INSPIRATION AT HOME] #ad At the risk of sounding anti-climactic, traveling full time taught us how much we value having a home base. Yes, y'all, we missed our couch SO MUCH. We are the ultimate homebodies! But there's truly nothing like waking up in your own bed surrounded by things that bring you joy to make you feel grounded and happy. This is particularly important if your home also happens to be your office and you spend 99% of your time sitting around in your apartment in sweatpants writing about travel😂.
.
I've learned this year that in order to cultivate an environment that fuels me with inspiration and creativity, I need to surround myself with things that invigorate me. So we've started picking up little travel souvenirs here and there: a singing bowl and a carved elephant from Nepal, a layered pyramid from Ecuador, postcards from everywhere. We place these around our apartment so that everywhere we look, we're reminded of all the incredible places we've visited in this great, big, wide world. Nothing inspires me to write about travel more than being surrounded by memories of all the places I've been!
.
We also have a collection of our most valuable travel tools: books! There's nothing like a book to transport you to somewhere amazing. We're both avid readers, and we have a whole hallway lined with bookshelves; Jeremy's dream is to one day have of an office full of bookcases from floor to ceiling, Beauty and the Beast style.
.
We read everything from novels to non-fiction, and of course, guidebooks. Travel guidebooks not only inspire us to visit new places, but help us feel like those dreams are achievable. The newest addition to our collection is the Moon Camino de Santiago guidebook. Hiking the Camino de Santiago has been a dream of mine for years, and between the colorful, informative pages of my @moonguides and the photos & blog posts from my friend Carol at @wayfaringviews (who's currently hiking her way down a 250-mile stretch of the trail on her 2nd pilgrimage), those dreams feel more and more achievable each day.
.
What inspires & motivates you at home? Do you have a collection of travel books & souvenirs too? Drop us a comment!](http://scontent-sjc3-1.cdninstagram.com/vp/4217ba11b992ecb8729767933483980a/5DAE506E/t51.2885-15/sh0.08/e35/c0.135.1080.1080a/s640x640/64931484_903850313283204_5962974716578393190_n.jpg?_nc_ht=scontent-sjc3-1.cdninstagram.com "[INSPIRATION AT HOME] #ad At the risk of sounding anti-climactic, traveling full time taught us how much we value having a home base. Yes, y'all, we missed our couch SO MUCH. We are the ultimate homebodies! But there's truly nothing like waking up in your own bed surrounded by things that bring you joy to make you feel grounded and happy. This is particularly important if your home also happens to be your office and you spend 99% of your time sitting around in your apartment in sweatpants writing about travel😂.
.
I've learned this year that in order to cultivate an environment that fuels me with inspiration and creativity, I need to surround myself with things that invigorate me. So we've started picking up little travel souvenirs here and there: a singing bowl and a carved elephant from Nepal, a layered pyramid from Ecuador, postcards from everywhere. We place these around our apartment so that everywhere we look, we're reminded of all the incredible places we've visited in this great, big, wide world. Nothing inspires me to write about travel more than being surrounded by memories of all the places I've been!
.
We also have a collection of our most valuable travel tools: books! There's nothing like a book to transport you to somewhere amazing. We're both avid readers, and we have a whole hallway lined with bookshelves; Jeremy's dream is to one day have of an office full of bookcases from floor to ceiling, Beauty and the Beast style.
.
We read everything from novels to non-fiction, and of course, guidebooks. Travel guidebooks not only inspire us to visit new places, but help us feel like those dreams are achievable. The newest addition to our collection is the Moon Camino de Santiago guidebook. Hiking the Camino de Santiago has been a dream of mine for years, and between the colorful, informative pages of my @moonguides and the photos & blog posts from my friend Carol at @wayfaringviews (who's currently hiking her way down a 250-mile stretch of the trail on her 2nd pilgrimage), those dreams feel more and more achievable each day.
.
What inspires & motivates you at home? Do you have a collection of travel books & souvenirs too? Drop us a comment!")
![[POKHARA, NEPAL] Snowy Himalayan peaks. Lush green hills. A peaceful, shimmering lake dotted with bright blue boats. Skydivers and paragliders soaring high above. Welcome to Pokhara, Nepal! Best known as the gateway to the Annapurna Circuit, Pokhara is also the soft adventure capital of Nepal.
.
After the overwhelming, dusty chaos of Kathmandu, arriving in Pokhara felt like a breath of fresh air - literally and figuratively. Literally because I'd been wearing a mask to protect my lungs all week. And figuratively, because Pokhara is a peaceful, beautiful, quiet lake town. I'm more of a country girl than a city girl (I grew up on a farm in Kentucky, remember?) and Pokhara was absolutely perfect.
.
We arrived in Pokhara at night, and it felt like we'd entered another world. Bright lights lined the streets, enticing us with food from every country, dance and karaoke clubs, shops full of cashmere blankets and singing bowls, and outdoor gear for the trekkers who flock to Pokhara.
.
Although we weren't here for a trek, we did explore Pokhara's bright green hills on a hike to the Shanti Stupa, a Peace Pagoda perched at the top of steep stone stairs. Our group bounded up the stairs, eager to stretch their legs after several days of 12+ hour drives along dusty, unpaved roads. But I took about 10 sweaty steps in the 85-degree heat and opted to take the scenic route instead (I am VERY ill-equipped I am for hiking in hot places, y'all, Northern California spoils me).
.
After our hike, our guide drove us to a handicraft market - Pokhara has some of the best in all of Nepal - but instead of shopping, we walked right through the market and emerged at the ornate entrance of a cave. Inside the cave we found a cow statue and a waterfall. Nepal is full of surprises..Early the next morning, we woke up at 4am and sat in mountain traffic for 2 hours so we could watch the sun rise over the Himalayas. We stood in the rain and watched fog rolling in over the hills, but the mountains were completely hidden from view. Somehow, I wasn't disappointed at all. I know I'll be back to catch that view.
.
Do you prefer big cities or quiet towns? Drop me a comment below!](http://scontent-sjc3-1.cdninstagram.com/vp/607d63dbb14ad1b8319fefa1f7edf750/5DB33540/t51.2885-15/sh0.08/e35/c0.135.1080.1080a/s640x640/64268448_116509419379244_7039727908020891485_n.jpg?_nc_ht=scontent-sjc3-1.cdninstagram.com "[POKHARA, NEPAL] Snowy Himalayan peaks. Lush green hills. A peaceful, shimmering lake dotted with bright blue boats. Skydivers and paragliders soaring high above. Welcome to Pokhara, Nepal! Best known as the gateway to the Annapurna Circuit, Pokhara is also the soft adventure capital of Nepal.
.
After the overwhelming, dusty chaos of Kathmandu, arriving in Pokhara felt like a breath of fresh air - literally and figuratively. Literally because I'd been wearing a mask to protect my lungs all week. And figuratively, because Pokhara is a peaceful, beautiful, quiet lake town. I'm more of a country girl than a city girl (I grew up on a farm in Kentucky, remember?) and Pokhara was absolutely perfect.
.
We arrived in Pokhara at night, and it felt like we'd entered another world. Bright lights lined the streets, enticing us with food from every country, dance and karaoke clubs, shops full of cashmere blankets and singing bowls, and outdoor gear for the trekkers who flock to Pokhara.
.
Although we weren't here for a trek, we did explore Pokhara's bright green hills on a hike to the Shanti Stupa, a Peace Pagoda perched at the top of steep stone stairs. Our group bounded up the stairs, eager to stretch their legs after several days of 12+ hour drives along dusty, unpaved roads. But I took about 10 sweaty steps in the 85-degree heat and opted to take the scenic route instead (I am VERY ill-equipped I am for hiking in hot places, y'all, Northern California spoils me).
.
After our hike, our guide drove us to a handicraft market - Pokhara has some of the best in all of Nepal - but instead of shopping, we walked right through the market and emerged at the ornate entrance of a cave. Inside the cave we found a cow statue and a waterfall. Nepal is full of surprises..Early the next morning, we woke up at 4am and sat in mountain traffic for 2 hours so we could watch the sun rise over the Himalayas. We stood in the rain and watched fog rolling in over the hills, but the mountains were completely hidden from view. Somehow, I wasn't disappointed at all. I know I'll be back to catch that view.
.
Do you prefer big cities or quiet towns? Drop me a comment below!")
