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I’ve been writing these recaps on the blog since 2016 and writing one for 2023 is no exception – even though this one is coming out a tad later than I normally post. I like to look back on my memories and my wish lists and goals to see what I accomplished (or didn’t) each year. It’s a way for me to grow and learn and also a way for me to connect with readers on a more personal level!
This year, I really struggled with writing my yearly recap more than usual because for me, 2023 was tough in many ways. I experienced deep grief and loss, watched part of my home island burn, had a lot of changes happen with my day job, and entered a new decade of life that had me questioning my accomplishments up until now. It was a rollercoaster!
But my year was also filled with many beautiful and happy moments that I want to share. Even when life hits us hard and when the world is in disarray, there’s no guilt in finding a way forward. You can still have your tough moments, but if something makes you smile through them, take that as a win.
Without further ado, here’s a recap of how my 2023 went – both the good and the bad.
Travel in 2023
I’ll kick this off with travel, because this is a travel blog after all. This year, we finally left the country! And while I didn’t get to do as much exploring of the U.S. as I would have liked, there was still enough travel to make me feel fulfilled. To be perfectly honest, I’m okay with part-time travel. I truly enjoy my time at home being a couch potato just as much as I love exploring the world.
And because travel isn’t always perfect, I also wrote a separate post this year about my travel fails! Be sure to check out that post for some mild entertainment and learn from my not-so-great moments (they weren’t that bad!)
Travel Summary
- Countries Visited: 3 (U.S.A., The Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland)
- States Visited: 5 (although technically, I personally only visited three – California (where we live), Hawaii and Washington, and Micah added in solo trips to Nevada and Arizona)
And now on to my travel highlights of this year!
A Long Weekend in Washington
In years past, we’ve taken road trips up to Washington State and Oregon to see our friends and to explore towns and cities in the Pacific Northwest that are near and dear to me (like Portland and Bend). This year, we were shorter on time so we flew up for a long Memorial Day weekend instead!
I always love visiting our friends near Seattle and just having some peace and quiet to chill out at their home, surrounded by giant trees and nature.
We did also manage to sneak in a 24-hour trip out to Yakima for a food and wine-filled adventure! We got to try James Beard-Award winning tamales, stopped in at a couple of wineries and breweries, and enjoyed a farm-to-table dining experience.
Paso Robles Bachelorette Getaway
In June, I went on a group trip to Paso Robles for one of my best friends’ bachelorette weekend and it was a fun escape! This was my second trip back to Paso Robles and it is becoming one of my favorite long-weekend getaway spots in California.
On this trip, we spent time wine tasting around the Tin City area on foot and also got to take a unique wine tour in an off-road Jeep. It was a very cool weekend to celebrate one of my favorite humans soon becoming a bride!
A Memorable Trip Home to Maui
Traveling to Maui was especially meaningful this year for many reasons. For starters, I got to see more of my family than usual with my niece and her partner visiting the island at the same time! I also spent time with my mom, my brother and his girlfriend, and one of my other sisters. I have an extremely blended family that I’m very proud of! If you’re from Hawaii, you know what I mean…
Micah also joined me this trip after not having been back to Maui for nearly five years!
Moments like this, although rare, truly fill my heart.
But of course, the most important reason we made the trek to Maui in 2023 was for the wedding of two of our best friends. I’m so glad they chose my home island as their destination!
Emotions were heightened as we were there only two weeks after the big fires. But our mission was clear – not only were we there to celebrate our friends, but also to support local businesses at a time when they needed it most. It was a raw but magical trip and getting to witness our friends have the wedding of their dreams was the absolute best.
A Bucket List Trip to Ireland
Ireland has been on my travel wish list for a very long time and we finally made my dream a reality this year. This trip was originally booked in May of 2020 but was, of course, cancelled. When 2023 rolled around, I decided it was time to get it back on the books and we ended up there in October!
Since it was our first time in Ireland, we made Dublin our home base, eating and drinking our way around the city. We took a day trip out to the West Coast, which had some of my favorite scenery, including the epic Cliffs of Moher and the Wild Atlantic Way. And we also spent a day visiting Northern Ireland (technically its own separate country) learning about The Troubles and visiting castle ruins and landmarks of the Antrim Coast.
We were only on the Emerald Isle for a week and barely scratched the surface. We will undoubtedly be back!
California Adventures
Living in California, we like to get out and do a lot of local travel too. Other than my trip to Paso Robles I mentioned above, we spent a lot of time exploring the food scene in the Bay Area. I created a challenge for myself to sample world cuisines by choosing one for each letter of the alphabet – the A to Z Challenge! It has been great expanding our palates and visiting new spots closer to home.
We also committed to exploring Napa a bit more – and NOT for the wine scene! Napa can be seen as a pricey destination (and truly, it is…good luck going wine tasting on a budget there). But there are a ton of great restaurants and food spots, including the Oxbow Market, which we’re currently eating our way through.
We’ll be up there a bit more in 2024 since we signed up for a distillery club membership to force us to spread our wings and explore the North Bay.
Lounge Life
This year, I also (finally) signed us up for Priority Pass which we get complimentary through our Capital One Venture X card. We also get unlimited access to Capital One Lounges, of which there are only currently three in the U.S.
We had a layover in Dallas, TX on our way to Ireland, which I may or may not have intentionally planned to visit the very first of its kind. Our visit was amazing! I felt so spoiled with good food, drinks, and a more comfortable place to kick up my feet.
We also hit up a Priority Pass lounge at London Heathrow, which paled in comparison to the Capital One Lounge (but it was still nice to have the option). I’m looking forward to getting into more airport lounges this year!
Traveling Carry-On Only
I jumped on the carry-on-only bandwagon and challenged us not to check a bag for any travels in 2023. We did it! I used my Beis for local travel and our Monos carry-ons for flights as those bags are a bit smaller and better sized for airline regulations.
Why did I want to do carry-on only? First of all, I hate waiting at baggage claim for my bags. And for Ireland, we had a connecting flight and I didn’t want to risk our bags getting lost. It all worked out great and I can’t believe we both packed for a week in Ireland carry-on only! I’ll be writing up a post soon on everything we took – what worked and what didn’t.
Personal Highs and Lows
This yearly post of mine is also largely personal and not all travel. It’s my best outlet to express the things that either lifted me up, or brought me down. I do think there are some things in life worth keeping private from the world, but I also find value in sharing certain things with others too. They are all moments in time that make me who I am!
Low: Losing my boy
In April, I endured the biggest heartbreak of my life when I had to say goodbye to my little Kiba after 14 years of having him as my companion. I never truly understood or felt grief until I lost him. It was painfully hard to get through the days and I still cry sometimes when I think about him.
My husband and friends gave me much-needed emotional support and I even connected with others who had similar losses this year. My heart broke for them having to go through the same thing I was, but I also felt the power of having a support group and talking through your pain.
Someone sent me a quote that really resonated with me and if you’ve lost something or someone this year, maybe it will help you too:
“Grief is love’s souvenir. It’s our proof that we once loved. Grief is the receipt we wave in the air that says to the world: Look! Love was once mine. I love well. Here is my proof that I paid the price.” – Glennon Doyle Melton
Rest in love Kiba boy. We’ll love you always.
Low: Fiery Devastation on Maui
Another really tough low for me this year was watching wildfires overtake towns on Maui. It was particularly devastating to see the whole town of Lahaina nearly gone. Not just the town – there was death. Close to 100 people and countless animals died. Thousands of homes were flattened; businesses and livelihoods destroyed. People lost loved ones and all of their possessions, of which can only now exist in their memories.
Watching it unfold on the news was horrifying. I couldn’t focus on anything else for days. I cried when I saw the the first images of just how much was destroyed. Hearing stories about those who had to flee from such a raging beast was hard. It broke me knowing that West Maui will never be the same.
And unfortunately for the rest of the island, tourism took a steep dive. Even though West Maui was off limits, the rest of the island was open and needed support. I felt the best thing I could do to help was to write a (long-overdue) article listing out all of the things that people could still do when visiting Maui.
I don’t know when the island will fully recover and I don’t know when Lahaina town will be rebuilt. But I do know that people should still visit. Spend generously, visit small businesses, and be kind. Put your dollars straight into the hands of the locals so they can make a living and do their best to take care of their own.
High: Becoming NASCAR Fans
Well this was unexpected and yes, it actually is a real high for me! We had been to a race years ago and would occasionally watch some motorsports on TV, including Indy and Formula One, but were never serious about it.
This year, our friends invited us to the NASCAR race in Sonoma and something just really clicked for us. We spent the rest of the year watching nearly every race (on TV) and Micah even went to some of the Xfinity Cup races in Phoenix and Las Vegas because his company sponsors a car.
It was fresh, fun and a welcomed distraction for me.
High & Low: Turning 40
Is turning 40 a high or a low? I guess it depends on the person. For me personally, I was secretly dreading turning this milestone age. After the losses that happened this year, I really spent a lot of time meditating on the last four decades of my life – what I should have done, or could have done better – or done more of.
And what would be in store next? How will I spend the next five years, 10 years or the next 40 years of my life (that is of course if I’m lucky enough to be alive to see those days). Am I truly doing all the things that make me happiest? Am I following my dreams? Is 40 too old to pursue my passions?
Is it normal to have an existential crisis when you approach new decades of life?!
My saving grace: my husband and friends gave me the best surprise of the year. They threw me a 40th birthday party! As a relatively antisocial introvert, I don’t like the attention of birthday parties. But this was an exception. It was Harry Potter-themed! Nothing says mature 40-year-old like a whimsical, magical-themed soiree, am I right?
And my god, did they do such a good job – not only with keeping it a secret from me for probably a few months but also decorating my house in the most epic way. I was so touched, I cried when I walked through the door. I honestly can’t express how grateful I am to have these people in my life and for them to do something so special just for me.
Okay, 40…let’s see what you got.
Blog Highlights
This year was actually quite good for the blog and while it still has a long way to grow, I’m patting myself on the back for some accomplishments! I’ve had this blog for 10 years – first in the form of The Wandering Dragons, and then evolving it into Appetites Abroad as I turned much of my focus to food and drink. It has always been something that I’m passionate about and it’s exciting to think about where I can take it.
Doubling Page Views From Last Year
In 2023, I put a lot more effort into implementing some changes around here, including cleaning up and deleting old (irrelevant) posts and optimizing my content for easier reading.
And even though my Maui articles took a huge hit after the fires (I’m talking like a 75% drop) it was still my best year so far. I more than doubled my total page views for the year! It was encouraging to see the stats and I can’t wait to see what happens in 2024.
My Visit Idaho Article
Something new (and scary) for me this year was writing an article for the 2024 Idaho Official Travel Guide – all about the humble potato. I have my Must-Try Potato Dishes in Boise blog post to thank for this opportunity! It was a lot of work to say what I wanted to with a word count limit, but I put my best foot forward and am proud of the final product. Copies arrived in the mail just in time for me to add a bit here to my recap!
Starting a Newsletter
One of the things I avoided most with this blog (like an idiot) was growing my email list and sending out regular email updates. I decided that needed to change this year! Could I commit to monthly emails? Would people even read them? How do I get more people to sign up for this thing?!
Social media is great and all but you could lose your accounts at a moment’s notice – and all of your following for that matter. Email helps to ensure you stay connected with all of your people. I think I’ve been doing a decent job so far and I get to share things that I normally wouldn’t on socials or even on the blog. If you haven’t signed up already, get on the list!
My Favorite Posts of 2023
Normally, I list out my top-performing blog posts of the year. This year, I decided to list out ones that I enjoyed writing about the most:
- Maui is Open: Best Things to Do on Maui (Outside of Lahaina): This one is near and dear to my heart – one that I wrote not only because it’s my home and I want people to see the best of it, but because Maui needs all the support it can get right now.
- A Guide to Livermore Valley Wine Country: Livermore is a favorite hidden gem when it comes to wine country, and it’s only 30 minutes from me! It’s easy to explore, especially for those living in the SF Bay Area.
- The Perfect 3-Day Knoxville Itinerary: Even though we visited Tennessee in 2022, I wrote about that trip in 2023. Knoxville surprised me, especially with the food scene! I can’t wait to revisit soon.
- My 10 Best Bites of 2023: I’ve posted foodie recaps in my yearly posts before, but decided to give the topic its own home this year. I love going through all the food I ate and it was so hard to pick only 10!
- Nashville Guide for Foodies (and People Who Don’t Like Country Music): Nashville was exciting but I was particularly focused on the food scene for our visit. As someone who’s not a big country music fan (though I’ll admit some of it is growing on me), I wanted to share things you can do that are food-focused.
Coming Up in 2024
I have no travel booked or planned yet, which is very unlike me. Real life: we have a senior dog at home and navigating the wonderful world of finding a pet sitter for every trip is becoming more and more difficult and stressful. However, I do have some wishes and wants for this year so we’ll see what I can make happen!
- Arizona: We missed spring training last year and I’m sort of itching to get back to the desert and the Southwest!
- A return trip to Maui: I try to make yearly treks home because it’s good for the soul and also to see my family. I’m eyeing this in late spring and will be adding a visit to Kauai this time around. I’ve been to Kauai before but my husband hasn’t and frankly, it has been years since I’ve been.
- Possibly attending a travel conference in Portland this May: If I want to up my blogging game, I need to further my education and networking. Plus, I really need to update my Portland guide with new restaurants!
- Summer road trip: We’re due for a PNW road trip this summer (maybe a return visit to Bend and Walla Walla, WA?)
- Return to Tennessee: I’d also like to get back out to Tennessee to visit family. If we do, I want to tack on a stay in Asheville, NC and possibly start exploring the Kentucky Bourbon Trail. If I want to see all 50 states in my lifetime, I need to get to work.
- Spain: I’ve been thinking about planning a trip to Spain for a few years and I just haven’t brought myself to pull the trigger. Flights to Europe are expensive! I am trying to see if I can pull it off with points somehow.
- Local Stuff: Yep, always exploring more of California and getting my A to Z finished. Next up is the letter J. I knew this would probably take me about 2 years to complete but I’m not complaining as it fills in the time between travel.
As we kick off another new year, I’m going into 2024 with a lot of positivity despite 2023 being a bit bittersweet. I have some big personal and blog goals and am ready to tackle them head on.
I’m always grateful for those who read my articles on this site. When I get feedback about how something helped them travel better, it’s one of the best feelings. So thank you again for being here – it means the world to me!
Wishing you all a safe and happy 2024.
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