Ecatepec and Its Colorful Houses – Keep Calm and Wander

Ecatepec and Its Colorful Houses - Keep Calm and Wander

A Mexicable ride through Ecatepec and its colorful houses on the hills was an experience to remember. It was also an interesting trip from the very start to the very end of our half-day excursion. 

Photos of Ecatepec’s colorful houses are all over the internet. Even before we arrived the Mexico City, Ecatepec was already in our itinerary. We just didn’t know how to get there yet. However, on our way to the Teotihuacan Pyramids, we passed along these colorful houses on the hills.

Ecatepec de Morelos: One of Mexico’s Dangerous Cities?

We asked our tour driver (to the Pyramids) on how we could go to Ecatepec. All we wanted was to ride the MexiCable, passing through those multi-colored houses. However, the look on his face perplexed us. He never had that question before, and as a tour bus driver, he never met anyone who was interested in visiting Ecatepec. Also, he warned us that it’s dangerous to visit the place for tourists. He strongly advised us not to go with our plan.

But, of course, we didn’t listen to him. We also asked our hotel receptionist on how to get there, but he was very adamant about letting us go there. Instead, he recommended a trusty driver to accompany us. We totally understood their worries – news of Ecatepec’s violence is not hidden online. “It is a slum where the poorest of the poor lives,” says the receptionist. The slum is also dubbed as one of “Mexico City’s most dangerous cities.” We read and knew all of these, of course. And it piqued our curiosity.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Mexico City Gay Travel Resources

Victoria for Gay Families – 2TravelDads

Victoria for Gay Families - 2TravelDads

Victoria BC is our go-to destination for fun and easy weekend trips around the holidays and in spring when the weather is getting nice. Yes, we go to Victoria often, but it’s because we love it so much! We’ve figured out our top favorite activities and tips for visiting Victoria with kids and get ready, because we’ve got 18+ things for you to do to have an unforgettable trip.

Victoria for Gay Families – Locale

Victoria BC is on the southern tip of Vancouver Island, just north of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula and just west of Vancouver, BC. It’s a fairly large city and is situated on a harbor, the Inner Harbour, and then stretches out to its suburbs of Saanich, Sidney, and Sooke. Getting there is fairly easy and doable on nearly any budget.

We have written about Victoria before and have a lot of details around transportation to the city here, in our article highlighting a great 3 Day Victoria itinerary. Here’s a recap though and top tips for getting to Victoria with kids. By ferry, you can depart for Vancouver Island from either Vancouver (Tsawwassen terminal) or Port Angeles. Both sailings are approximately 1.5 hours so which you choose depends on your starting point, travel schedule and budget. Check out the map to see which makes sense for you. You can also take the passenger-only Victoria Clipper from Seattle, which is a great option for those adding Victoria with kids to their family trip to Washington.

By Chris and Rob – Full Story at the 2TravelDads

Victoria Gay Travel Resources

Mexico City’s Teotihuacan Pyramids – Keep Calm and Wander

Teotihuacan Pyramids - Keep Calm and Wander

The massive Teotihuacan Pyramids lie 40 kilometers outside Mexico City. Two of its biggest pyramids here are the Pyramid of the Sun and the Pyramid of the Moon. The former, however, is bigger than the latter. It doesn’t matter which one you explore first – but in our case, we chose the Sun Pyramid first.

How to Get to Teotihuacan Pyramids

There are three ways to get to Teotihuacan Pyramids. The easiest one is via a one-day tour that your hotel/hostel organized. This is what we did because we liked the tour itinerary that included Palacio de Ituberde, Our Lady of Guadalupe Cathedral, and a local handicraft (you don’t have to buy). Our last stop was the Pyramids, of course, and we were allowed to stay there close to 4 hours on our own! There was no planning and sweat on our part. TripAdvisor has some recommended tours.

The other way to get there is to take a taxi if you can afford it. This is the quickest way to get there but nothing educational happens on the road. Unless, of course, you will hire a private car with the tour guide as your driver, too. 

It is also possible to get to Teotihuacan by public transport. All you have to do is take a metro (line 5) and get off at Terminal Central del Norte. From there, buy your ticket and find the bus that says, “Piramides.” The bus will drop you off at Gate 1. Buy your ticket before you enter or else you’ll regret going back. It’s a long way from here to the Pyramids. So, pack water, a hat, and sunscreen! If you choose this mode of going there, make sure to start early.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Mexico City Gay Travel Resources

Pocket WiFi in Taiwan – The Nomadic Boys

Pocket WiFi in Taiwan - The Nomadic Boys

We love Instagramming during our trips, especially Stefan, especially in Taiwan…look, I’ll be honest, it does start to grate on me when trying to enjoy a romantic cocktail together with a beautiful sunset backdrop, yet he’s on his phone posting about it on social media…

…but you gotta do what you gotta do to keep your man happy right?

So, when arriving in a new place, the first thing we HAVE to do (to prevent the infamous Stefan tantrums breaking out)is to make sure he has a way of staying online at all times. We normally buy a new local SIM card, but recently, whilst travelling through Taiwan, we’ve found that investing in pocket WiFi devices is much better.

For starters, it means your phone can still be locked to your home contract, whereas SIM cards require you to have an unlocked phone. It can also work out cheaper as data is unlimited (compared to SIM card data packages), and it means you can connect all your devices to it, so if you’re travelling as a group, everyone can stay connected.

We used a pocket WiFi device during our trip to Taiwan and it was a godsend! Prior to ordering it, we researched all the many different pocket WiFi options, which we summarise in this article so it can help you figure out which one is best for you.

By Stefan Arestis – Full Story at the Nomadic Boys

Berlin’s Charlottenburg Palace – Keep Calm and Wander

Berlin's Charlottenburg Palace - Keep Calm and Wander

There is no doubt that Charlottenburg Palace is the most splendid in Berlin. I’m not sure how many palaces the city has, but if there’s one palace that you must go in, this should be it.

The Baroque and Rococo facade of the palace tells of its former glory. Its history dates back to the Hohenzollern Family, a royal dynasty. Built towards the end of the 17th century, Charlottenburg Palace and its surrounding area were named after the first Queen, Sophie Charlotte, the first consort of Prussia.

Charlotte was a voracious lover of the arts. The “Court of the Muses” inside the palace hosted philosophers, poets, musicians, and other artists.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Germany Gay Travel Resources

Victoria’s Royal BC Museum – 2TravelDads

Victoria's Royal BC Museum - 2TravelDads

There are very few museums that we’ve gone back to several times, but the Royal BC Museum in Victoria is one of them. Located just off the Inner Harbour, it’s an easy addition to a Victoria BC weekend getaway or even just a day trip. And the Royal BC Museum with kids is wonderful too. This is both our review and our guide to the museum and should answer any questions you’ve got about planning a visit.

Getting to the Royal BC Museum

Victoria is an easy place to get to, either from Seattle, the Olympic Peninsula or Vancouver. Living in the Seattle area, the Victoria Clipper is a great option for us. Catching the Clipper from Pier 66, there is overnight parking nearby or it’s a short Lyft ride from anywhere in the downtown area. The ride from Seattle to Victoria is a little less than three hours, and riding the Clipper is really relaxing. It’s a great way to start a Victoria weekend getaway.

Other options for getting to Victoria include the Blackball Coho ferry from Port Angeles, WA; Washington State Ferries to Sidney from Anacortes, WA; BC Ferries from Tsawwassen, BC to Sidney; or the V2V boat from Vancouver, BC (seasonal).

Depending on your overall travel plan, any of these can be booked on relatively short notice and at a variety of price points. Also, seaplane flights from Seattle’s Lake Union or Vancouver’s waterfront are available, but at a much higher cost.

By Chris and Rob – Full Story at the 2TravelDads

Victoria Gay Travel Resources

Slovakia’s President Lives Here – Keep Calm and Wander

Slovakia's President Lives Here - Keep Calm and Wander

The President of Slovakia lives here – at the Grassalkovich Palace in Bratislava. I was surprised that the surroundings were not heavily-guarded with Presidential guardians. It was early June when I was there – and boy, it was quiet!

As you can see in the photos below, I was the only tourist roaming around. It’s so different from Presidential residences I’ve been to – like the White House in the USA, 24 Sussex Drive in Ottawa, Canada, or at 10 Downing Street in London.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

St. Augustine for Gay Families – 2TravelDads

St. Augustine for Gay Families - 2TravelDads

We have visited St Augustine quite a few times and each time we’ve stayed someplace different. There are many hotels in Saint Augustine for gay families as well as other options, such as camping, and we’re covering them all! After you read this article you should be able to make a solid choice in choosing a hotel in St Augustine and the surrounding area.

We work with Best Western Hotels & Resorts and have lots of experience with the brand, so we do recommend them for sure, and they sponsored our most recent trip to Saint Augustine. We encourage you to check them out for booking a hotel in the St Augustine area, particularly because they have so many options! We’ve got additional recommendations for St Augustine and all the way up to Jax Beach for hotels and other accommodations, so let us know if you have any questions.

St. Augustine for Gay Families

A city like St Augustine is great for any type of traveler because there is such a diversity of accommodations. Whether you want to find a budget hotel or want to book a beautiful, historic suite, there are lots of options!

By Chris and Rob – Full Story at the 2TravelDads

St. Augustine Gay Travel Resources

Who Really Goes on a Gay Cruise? – The Globetrotter Guys

Who Really Goes on a Gay Cruise? - The Globetrotter Guys

Please throw all of your stereotypes and preconceptions straight out of the window – they aren’t welcome on this gay cruise.

We have been on our second gay cruise with Atlantis and are finding it incredibly difficult to put into words how the experience felt.

It’s the one place in the world where we felt no barriers whatsoever.

It allowed us to remove all of our inhibitions, be our true selves and celebrate every type of person with no judgement or attitude at all.

It was empowering, liberating, full of love, the friendliest environment we have experienced and gives us hope for humanity. An Atlantis gay cruise is something special that needs to be experienced to be appreciated and fully understood. 

We’ve asked you to throw away your stereotypes for good reason, these may include:

  • Gay cruises are just for hot young muscle-men 
  • Gay cruises are just for singles looking for sex 
  • In contrast to the one above, some people think cruises are actually just for couples
  • In contrast again, some people ask why on earth would you go on a gay cruise as a monogamous couple?
  • Gay cruises are cliquey, I could never go solo

Before we move on, from our experience and from all the people we have spoken to, all the above points are false.

Quite simply, a gay cruise is for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you are travelling solo, with friends, are in either an open or closed couple, a throuple or anything else in between – we have seen and met them all.

However, don’t take our word for it, we have sat down and interviewed a mix of these types of travellers from this years Atlantis gay cruise.

Read on to find out how this experience worked out for each of them.

By Sion & Ben – Full Story at the Globetrotter Guys

Pnyx Hill in Athens – Keep Calm and Wander

Pnyx Hill in Athens - Keep Calm and Wander

Pnyx Hill in Athens is not your ordinary hill. It may just be another hill in the city but this was once where citizens congregate to talk about and vote on issues that mattered to them. 

Yes, democracy was born here! When power was transferred to the people, they held assemblies here to discuss reforms.

The hill is overlooking the ancient Agora, once a thriving center for business and commerce of ancient Athens. The Parthenon or the Acropolis is very visible at a far distance. It’s only less than a mile.

By Alain – Full Story at Keep Calm and Wander

Athens Gay Travel Resources