The world is my oyster: I'm Renata, founder and editor of this travel blog.
bye:myself - no, that's not a typo, it's referring to me saying bye to my comfort zone and heading for new shores solo.
Having been a solo traveller, flashpacker, and poverty jet setter for ages made me an avid and savvy planner and organizer of worldwide travel. Since I've been an author and journalist practically all my life, I love to put my travel experience into writing to encourage, inspire, and assist you.
Looking forward to meeting you somewhere on this planet!
Aruba was actually one of the first islands in the Caribbean that opened its hearts’n’harbors to international visitors by installing well-working touristy infrastructures. Today, Aruba is an absolute A-Lister when it comes to a dream vacation in the West Indies. However, while most visitors are coming for the dreamy sand beaches, it would be a big mistake to miss out on the natural wonders Aruba is hiding in its hinterland. In this post, I have you covered by telling you about all the wonderful spots you should not miss when visiting this self-proclaimed happy island.
Eagle Beach – one of Aruba’s most famous beaches. However, the bird in the pictures is not an eagle but a seagle seagull.This Way to the Whole Story ->
Buenos Aires and me – from the must-sees to the hidden gems: It was love at first sight. The stately baroque architecture like in Barcelona, the elegant cafés – even a bit more charming than those in Paris. Old-fashioned gelato parlors like in Rome. The powerful street art of Bogotá next to the picturesque decay of old Havana, and an entire neighborhood named after Palermo. In short: This city simply has it all.
Tango – that’s what Buenos Aires stands for. But it’s only a fraction of what Argentina’s capital has to offer.
The beauty and energy of Buenos Aires took me by storm – and was definitely the highlight of my trip to Argentina.
This is a completely revised, updated, and expanded edition of one of my first 24 hours in… posts. This series was created because, like most travelers, I’m always on the hunt for the cheapest flights possible. The downside is that this often includes connecting flights and, especially on transatlantic flights, I have a longer stopover in a city. Instead of killing time at the airport in annoyance, I venture to the center and this way, enjoy an extra city break. Funnily enough, my first two visits to Lisbon were stopovers: once on the return flight from Miami and the second time on the outbound flight to Santiago, the capital of Cape Verde. This inspired me to summarize in a short guide what you can see and do in Lisbon in 24 hours.
Even trams can get into a traffic jam.
By the way, I now deliberately postpone connecting flights to include short stays like this when my schedule allows it. Hence, I recently booked the flights on my flight to the Azores so that I could spend time in Porto on the outward flight and in Lisbon on the return flight. I hope I can inspire you to make a virtue out of a supposed necessity.
Although Porto is certainly not a major hub, it’s still Portugal’s second largest airport with many connections all over Europe and also to remote Portuguese territories such as the Azores. Since Porto is such a mesmerizing city full of beauty and wonders, you shouldn’t miss the opportunity to get a taste of the city during a short visit – I’m sure you’ll come back soon for more. But now I’ll show you how you can have a perfect stay of up to 24 hours in Porto.
This is the third and last part of the murals I saw during my recent trip to Lisbon. Already in some of my past posts on urban art, I took you to some rather inhospitable neighborhoods. Whether the 13th Arrondissement of Paris, Copenhagen’s Nordvest neighborhood, or the satellite town of San Pablo in the northeast of Seville – hardly any sightseer makes his way to these places on the outskirts of Europe’s glittering metropoles. And in Lisbon, too, you have to leave the picturesque historic old town and roam through high-rise developments like Moscavide to see some of the best street art the city has to offer.
String Quintet by Juanjo Surace and a massive collage by Colectivo RUA are waiting for you in Moscavide.This Way to the Whole Story ->
Let me guide you through Curacao, the Caribbean island that simply has it all: Idyllic coves and secluded beaches, a fascinating history, great contemporary art, amazing food, and a capital city that UNESCO put on the list of World Heritage.
Old Dutch houses and lots and lots of water – those two icons of the beautiful island of Curaçao.
But Curaçao has also some well-hidden gems that I’m introducing in this guide – and I promise that you will love all of them!
For years, when I travel, I have made sure to find out whether there is any street art worth seeing at my destination. And in fact, it’s very rare that I don’t find what I’m looking for. During my stay in Lisbon I not only found what I was looking for, I felt like I was overwhelmed by a tsunami of outstanding street art. Now, for cities like London and Bristol, I have divided my street art posts by area into two parts. But when it comes to Lisbon, it is actually the first time that I have to present the murals of a city into three parts so that the posts don’t become endlessly long. Bravo, Lisbon, you’ve really made it to the top of the street art hotspots! Drum roll, after I’ve introduced the most impressive murals in the very center of the city, here comes the best that the suburb of Marvila has to offer in terms of street art in Lisbon.
Each time I write a post on the supposedly best street art in some place, I’m a bit hesitant. Can I rightfully claim to present the best pieces? Most of the time, I haven’t seen each and every mural a city has to offer. And even if I show a broad selection – who’s to judge what’s best, anyway? Now, when it comes to Lisbon, I find my claim to introduce you to the best street art particularly preposterous as this city is just bursting with urban art. There are murals by the greatest of the greatest street artists everywhere. Also, the art festivals that flood Lisbon’s walls with dozens of new artworks every year don’t make the choice any easier. Yet, not only did I travel around the hotspots in the city center, I also made my way to the housing projects in Lisbon’s suburbs which are embellished by international superstars such as KOBRA, Shepard Fairey, and GLEO. I tried hard to see as many murals as possible so that I could rightfully assert: In this post, I’m introducing the best pieces of street art Lisbon has to offer!
It took two superstars of urban art to create this mural: Portuguese artist VHILS created the right side while the one and only Shepard Fairey painted the left half of the lady’s face.This Way to the Whole Story ->
Some of the worldwide most recognized muralists like Mr. Dheo and Daniel Eime are based in Porto, the vibrant Northern Portuguese city on the river Douro. Hence, it’s no wonder the façades and walls of Porto serve as canvases for some of the best street art.
Nîmes is indisputably the most Italian city in France. Consequently, it is rather famous for old structures like the amazing Maison Carrée. In 2023, UNESCO even put this remarkable building on its list of World Heritage Sites. Most rightly so. However, it’s a shame that far too few visitors are cherishing Nîmes’ wild side and contemporary art. Especially since you don’t even need to visit a museum as you’ll find the best art in Nîmes right on the street, on the houses, and walls of the Gambetta and Richelieu districts.
Wall of fame at the Square Clérisseau introducing local street artists Supo Caos and Isaac, the Brazilian muralist Nhobi, Maye from Montpellier, and others.
Nevertheless, you should definitely reserve half a day for hunting for street art, no matter what you call the hunting grounds.
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