traveler || the pacific northwest

"Please be a traveler,

and not a tourist.

Try new things,

meet new people,

and look beyond what's right in front of you.

Those are the keys to understanding

this amazing world we live in."

|| Andrew Zimmern

Lately my mind has been wandering again and again to the beauty that is the Pacific Northwest, primarily Washington, Oregon, and Northern California. I'm awed by the rugged glamour and raw beauty of each of these pictures. Simplicity is always on my heart it seems, and the Pacific Northwest just seems to capture that simple, understated, intentional lifestyle that I hope for. Roadtrip, anyone?

Market Day in the City of Bridges

I don't really know why, but I claim four different towns/cities as "my" cities: Titusville, Erie, Indianapolis, and Pittsburgh. I've spent so much time in most of those cities, that it seems I must surely know them like the back of my hand... But yesterday was the first time that I actually ever explored downtown in the city of Pittsburgh. And I sort of fell into love. I love that city of mine, the city of 446 bridges. With chai lattes and camera in hand, my sister and I played the perfect part of tourists, stumbling upon an open-air market, eating homemade cookies purchased there, and taking mental notes of things we'd like to do and see when we come to the city again...

my 28+ days of sun and sand, part I

Life's been pretty much as fast-paced as I could imagine it to be these past few weeks. After 10+ days with Stef and Ethan in Pennsylvania, I headed down to Tennessee --> Florida --> Tennessee again --> North Carolina with them. [Let's just say, that if they aren't incredibly tired of seeing my face once again this morning, I'll take it that we're best friends for life. ;D

We went swimming.
Hiked mountains.
Witnessed weddings on the beach.
Tried new coffee.
Took pictures [you'll be pleased to know that I actually used my camera some of the time and not just instagram. ;) ]
Painted henna.
Walked [and ran] countless miles on the beach.
Got ourselves some pretty little tans [and sunburns, ahem].
Planned parties.
Admired surfers and kite-boarders.
Shopped.
Consumed entirely too much Starbucks [how does that always seem to happen??].
Oh, and I almost broke my front tooth, but ended up only chipping it a little instead. True, true story. It's kind of sharp now. :)

"I believe in memories //

they look so pretty when I sleep."

|| Jack Johnson, Better Together

 

 

 

These are just a tiny handful of memories to hopefully suffice until I take the time to actually do something with the rest of my pictures. :)

xo.