I’ve now been to Egypt twice in the last 6 months and not written a word about it, so I think it is time to start unpacking my adventures in my beloved country. Egypt holds a special place in my heart, and each time I go, I find myself wanting more, already looking forward to…
Tag: #travels
Baklava For Days at Mado Pastry
Let me start out by saying that I don’t really like baklava. Growing up in a Middle Eastern family, there was no shortage of baklava, kunefah, basboosah, etc, but as more of a savory than sweet kind of girl, none really held much appeal for me. My tooth has gotten slightly sweeter with age, however, even…
Worth the Ticket Price: Topkapi Palace, Istanbul
As a die hard budget traveller I am super skeptical of tours, tourist trap sites, and basically anywhere that charges an entry fee that I haven’t heavily vetted/weighed the value of the ticket price. I’ve mentioned before, if you’re travelling all the way to Istanbul, it’s worth it to set aside maybe $30-40 of your…
Discovering Istanbul: Beyoğlu, Istiklal, and My Love of a Hotel with Free Breakfast
As you readers know, this was my first time to Istanbul, but my parents have been many times. As such, they did a lot of driving the itinerary, so I didn’t have to put a ton of research or effort into figuring out the main places to go and things to see. It made for a super…
25 Goals for Turning 25: First Quarter Update
Things have been quiet on The 9 to 5 Wanderer lately…I’m afraid the last month has been A LOT of 9 to 5 and a little wandering. A massive work project that dragged on for about a month and a half finally wrapped up today, and now I have a bit of room to breath, aka write….
Weekend Wanderings: LDW on Cape Cod
I never think to take photos when I’m home (to be honest, I’m not really a photo person, and taking them is always a conscious effort). But home is just it, it’s home. To me, it’s ordinary, fairly unchanging, a normal place that I deeply adore, but a visit there is none too remarkable. I…
How to Survive a Long Haul Flight
For me, preparation for a long haul flight always starts two days before takeoff. In high school, my coaches always told me that what you put into your body two days before has the biggest impact on your game time performance. On the field, this meant carbo-loading and lots of hydrating. While a pre-match pasta…
Is Frequent Travel Actually Bad For You?
Buckle up, because this is going to be a bit of a long one. Make yourself a cup of tea, put on your comfy pants, and get ready. (Ok, it’s not actually that long, just a little longer than the typical posts I write on here. And that’s because I HAVE THINGS TO SAY). The Economist…
Something You Probably Didn’t Know About Your Stop Over in Istanbul
This post brought to you by my extremely high excitement levels over my recently booked trip to Istanbul. No, sadly Turkish Airlines is not showering me with extra special free perks, although I did get a free piece of baklava from them at a fair once, and the available-to-everyone perk I’m about to tell you about…
Travel Plan Update: What’s My Next Big Adventure?
Such exciting news!! After my setback with my planned trip to Cairo this month, I have officially booked my tickets to go to Cairo for my other cousin’s wedding, with a three day stop-over in Istanbul. I’m absolutely elated to be going back to Cairo to visit my family for the special occasion, and to…
How to Minimize Stress at the Airport
Know your airport. Know what terminal you need to be in, and when the gate closes. Seems simple, I know. But getting to the airport and realizing that you’re in the wrong terminal is bad news. Especially if you’re in a large airport, it could easily take you 30 minutes to get over to the…
Why I Love Staying in Hostels and You Should Too
A lot of my travel recently has been to places where I’m going with the express intent of visiting a friend(s), and have a place lined up to stay. Staying with friends is the ultimate- it’s a great way to squeeze in some real catch up time, and it’s free accommodation. However, when I’m travelling somewhere…
The 9 to 5 Wanderer 