California Homestead & Potager: Building a Floating Deck

FEATURED

Reading Time: 3 minutes In this post we share a step-by-step guide to building a simple floating deck. We plan to place a child’s playhouse on top of it, as the deck will anchor the space and make the play area feel more complete.

We used The Handmade Home’s “The Handmade Hideaway” & Rose to Life’s “Easy Floating Deck” as inspiration and adapted the plans to bring this deck to fruition. This guide does not require complicated plans, tools or the help of a handyman.

Included are step-by-step directions, notes, photos and a price breakdown of what this project will cost.

Read More

California Homestead & Potager: Quotes about Gardening

FEATURED

Reading Time: 4 minutes In this post we share some favorite quotes about gardening. Quotes Frances Hodgson Burnett: “However many years she lived, Mary always felt that ‘she should never…

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal of Park Hyatt Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 5 minutes In this post we share photos from Park Hyatt Kyoto, Kyoto, Japan.

This Tony Chi interior designed hotel is remarkable for its location, design, and overall feel; we could swoon over it all day. Park Hyatt Kyoto is a luxury hillside guesthouse located in the Higashiyama Hills (historic Kyoto). Guests have views of the Yasaka Pagoda and are just steps from Kiyomizu-dera Temple, a UNESCO World Heritage site and place of reverence and spectacular photos.

With only 70 rooms, the sloped tamo wood ceilings and floor-to-ceiling windows embody East-meets-West design, where artisanal craftsmanship using local materials accompany contemporary lines.

The Park Hyatt Kyoto is a nod to Kyoto’s artistic and cultural traditions, and a vision for hospitality and design.

Read More

FEATURED

Packing: A Travel Uniform – An Easier Approach to Packing?

FEATURED

Reading Time: 3 minutes This post explores the idea of a travel uniform, or clothing that we already turn on a daily basis at home that transitions nicely into our travel plans.

Instead of purchasing new outfits for a trip, select the pieces you already know, love and wear eases decision-making when on the road.

Read more to learn about the numerous benefits and examples of how a travel uniform might come together for a 10-day summer trip.

Read More

FEATURED

UNESCO Travel: Singapore Botanic Gardens, Singapore

FEATURED

Reading Time: 4 minutes In this post we share photos from Singapore Botanic Gardens, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal from Shinjuku Gyoen National Park Tokyo, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 4 minutes In this post we share photos from Shinjuku Gyoen National Park Tokyo, Japan.

Developed in the Edo Period (1603-1868) as a feudal lord’s Tokyo residence, it was transformed into a botanical garden, then a public space used by the Imperial Family (Japan-guide.com, 2023). World War II brought near total devastation to the area, and after extensive repairs, the park opened to the public in 1949.

Shinjuku Gyoen National Park offers three different gardens within a single 144-acre park, including a Japanese landscape garden, English Garden and formal French garden.

This park is particularly beautiful during hanami as 1,000+ somei yoshino trees blossom and create a moment-in-time gloriously beautiful atmosphere.

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal from Shinjuku Chuo Park, Tokyo, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 2 minutes In this post we share photos from Shinjuku’s Chuo Park, Tokyo, Japan.

If you need a break from shopping in Shinjuku, or have just feasted at the Park Hyatt’s New York Grill and need a walk, stop through Chuo Park. This lovely space offers two children’s play areas, wild flowers, open concrete expanses for gathering and green space for sport.

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal from Ueno Park & Ameyoko Shopping District, Ueno, Tokyo, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 4 minutes In this post we share photos from Ueno Park & Ameyoko Shopping District, Ueno, Tokyo, Japan.

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal from Yanaka, Tokyo, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 4 minutes In this post we share photos from Yanaka, Tokyo, Japan.

Within walking distance to Ueno Park, the shitamachi flair brings visitors to a Tokyo from a previous time. The narrow alleys, traditional wooden houses, atmospheric coffee shops and izakaya pubs make for a a wonderful glimpse into a different side of Tokyo.

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal from Meiji Shrine, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 3 minutes In this post we share photos from Meiji Shrine, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Logistics Shrine Highlights Map of Meiji Jingu Main Entrance (Entry from Harajuku Station)…

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal from Yoyogi Park, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan

FEATURED

Reading Time: 3 minutes In this post we share photos from Yoyogi Park, in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. Logistics Park Highlights Map of Yoyogi Park Entrance Gardens Trees Dog Run…

Read More

FEATURED

Packing: Easy Travel Makeup

FEATURED

Reading Time: 3 minutes This post shares the makeup Engaged Abroad’s founder, Sophia, uses when traveling for a quick, easy-to-apply sun kissed look.

Read More

FEATURED

Americas Travel: A Photo Journal from Filoli Historic House & Gardens, Woodside, California, USA

FEATURED

Reading Time: 3 minutes In this post we share photos from Filoli Historic House & Gardens, Woodside, California, USA.

Filoli Historic House & Gardens was built in 1917 as a private residence and was later turned over to National Trust for Historic Preservation in 1975 for the public to enjoy.

This stunning country estate sits on 654 acres in California’s northern coastal range. Visitors can spend an afternoon meandering through a 54,000 square foot Georgian revival-style mansion, 16 acres of exquisite English Renaissance gardens, a 6.8-acre Gentleman’s Orchard, and hundreds of acres of Natural Lands with 5 distinct ecosystems and a 1-mile Estate Trail (Filoli, 2023).

Read More

FEATURED

Asia Travel: A Photo Journal of Rayavadee Resort, Krabi, Thailand

FEATURED

Reading Time: 5 minutes In this post we share photos from Rayavadee Resort, Krabi, Thailand.

Set on the Andaman Sea between Railay and Phranang Beaches, the Rayavadee Resort is the premier hotel in the area. With the three white-sand beaches, cinematic limestone cliff-sides and glistening azure waters, this idyllic place in the world has you wishing time would stand still.

Read More

FEATURED

Americas Travel: A Photo Journal of Santa Barbara Zoo & Botanical Gardens, California, USA

FEATURED

Reading Time: 2 minutes In this post we share photos from Santa Barbara Zoo & Botanical Gardens, California, USA.

This 30 acre space overlooks the Pacific Ocean, Andree Clark Bird Refuge, and Santa Ynez Mountains and is only a few miles from downtown Santa Barbara’s State Street.

From its beginnings in 1935 as an estate with landscaped gardens, the property has transformed into a self-policed community, then a park, and now it exists in its current state as the Santa Barbara Zoological Gardens, a public space estate for children, with animals, gardens, and play areas.

Read More