A Year in Review: 2023 Trip Round-Up

Long time no write :)) Since the year (and my trips) are quickly winding down, it’s the perfect time to reflect on some of my adventures in 2023, with some exciting trips already in the works for 2024. Let’s dive into a trip round-up of my recent excursions, spanning local, national, and international travel.

Local: The Rosenbach

One highlight from the fall was my visit to the Rosenbach (pronounced rosen-back), a hidden gem in the heart of Philadelphia. Nestled in two beautiful townhomes in Rittenhouse Square, this museum houses the impressive book collection of the Rosenbach brothers. This destination has been on my local visit list since 2020 and was awesome to finally check it off. I originally came across this museum because of the children’s book author Maurice Sendak, who had a close relationship with the Rosenbach family and donated some of his personal collection (Melville) upon his passing. Sendak is the author and illustrator of my favorite childhood book, Outside Over There, though most people know him because of Where the Wild Things Are.

I had a private tour of the collection and since I am a total book nerd, it blew me away: the Ulysses manuscript, 15th-century manuscripts of Canterbury Tales, Lewis Carrol’s personal edition of Alice in Wonderland, letters of Emily Dickinson’s and so many more.

Admission for adults is $12.50 and visitors are “strongly encouraged” to buy tickets online, which covers a 1.5 hour tour. A visit to the Rosenbach is a literary and historical immersion, and I’m already planning a return to explore more and attend some of their events.

National: Great Smoky Mountains

Venturing beyond local borders, my sister and I embarked on a 48-hour road trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Our whirlwind adventure involved an 11-hour drive, a stay at the scenic Bearskin Lodge (beautiful views and only minutes from the park), and a day of hiking that included Clingman’s Dome, Andrew’s Bald, and even horseback riding. While the trip was intense, the breathtaking landscapes and the shared experience with my sister made it worth it.

The park is huge – 522,427 acres! For context, Acadia is 50,000 acres. There’s no fee for entering the park, but there is a required parking pass if you’re staying for longer than 15 minutes.

Note: It was a really fun trip to share with my sister and since I’m not sure when my next NP trip will be, I’m glad we pushed ourselves to do this one but I don’t recommend such a tight schedule.

International: Amsterdam

And finally…Amsterdam! My friend is studying abroad there and invited me to visit (thank you, Jenn). With a free place to stay and great company, how could I say no? The flight was 5 ½ hours from Boston to Dublin and then another 1 ½ hours to Schiphol. 

I was there for 4 days and the question really is what didn’t we do? We biked to a windmill (an adventure in and of itself), drank wine by the canals catching up, visited the Van Gogh and Rijks museums, ate a lot of carrot cake and fries with mayo, did a brunch boat tour (Miss G’s), but I have got to say my favorite thing was our visit to the town of Hilversum.

My grandfather worked for IBM and had the chance to work abroad in Holland for a year. So my grandparents, my dad and his siblings lived in Hilversum. It worked out that the town is only 30 minutes by train outside the city. HUGE shoutout to Jenn for agreeing to my crazy plan to visit. We had lunch at Restaurant Parc (very cute) and explored the town. We spent a lot of the afternoon at Chocolate Company Café chatting :))

And then, in a shocking turn of events, I went to Disney for my birthday.

This year has been a blessing of exploration. I visited 1 new country, 2 national parks, 6 states, and countless local gems. I am so thankful for the memories and experiences gained during this year of adventures. Here’s to the joy of discovery and the anticipation of new adventures in the coming year; Time to hibernate!