The Castles of France’s Loire Valley

The Castles of France’s Loire Valley

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August 10, 2023

It was almost sunset, and the countryside of the Loire Valley was tinged with a warm, golden glow. Our hot-air balloon’s basket nearly brushed the treetops below us, so the pilot squeezed a lever to inject more fuel into the flame. Almost instantly, the black-and-yellow balloon soared higher, and we continued our thrilling flight over rows of vines, rolling hills...

I Used This “Cheatsheet” to Find My Overseas Home

I Used This “Cheatsheet” to Find My Overseas Home

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August 8, 2023

Two years ago, after living in Southeast Asia for 16 years, my husband David and I found ourselves looking for a new overseas home… and that meant another list. There’s no right or wrong method for picking where you might live overseas, but personally, I found that making a list helped me to narrow down my criteria. Which in turn helped me find Santiago de Querétaro...

An Inside Look at Scandinavian Life in Sweden’s Ljusdal Region

An Inside Look at Scandinavian Life in Sweden’s Ljusdal Region

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August 6, 2023

People often think my husband Keith and I were crazy to swap our sandals and life in sunny Portugal for snow boots and extreme winters in Sweden. But we see it all as part of the expat adventure. Our expat journey started in 2012 when Keith and I moved to Portugal. We lived in a variety of homes and regions, learned the language...

Mallorca: Mediterranean Island Life at Half the Cost of the Caribbean

Mallorca: Mediterranean Island Life at Half the Cost of the Caribbean

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August 4, 2023

When I first started learning Spanish, I could only speak in metaphors. I sat with my now-fiancée on a 1,000-year-old facade outside the Port of Valldemossa, while we watched the sun set over the Mediterranean. “I don’t want to get off this train,” I told her. I knew the vocabulary for trains because that’s how I got around...