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Passions and Places

A travel + outdoors blog

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Movies and Mountains: The Dharamshala International Film Festival

November 12, 2019 By Jen Ambrose 2 Comments

We spent last weekend at a film festival high in the Himalayas of northern India – and it was a blast! We got to see some fascinating independent films from all over the world, and we loved being part of a cultural event that set the town abuzz.

Filed Under: Asia, Educational and Experiential, India Tagged With: Dharamshala, festival, film festival, McLeod Ganj, Travel Styles

Hanoi Free Walking Tours: Exploring the Old Quarter of Hanoi Without Spending a Dime (or Dong)

July 9, 2019 By Ryan Victor 6 Comments

Free tours can be hit or miss, but this one in Hanoi was top-notch! This walking tour of the Old Quarter covers many of Hanoi’s most fascinating sights and offers a chance to dive into their context. (Plus, the guides provide expert navigation through what must be one of the world’s most confusing and chaotic neighborhoods.)

Filed Under: Asia, Educational and Experiential, Vietnam Tagged With: Guild Streets, Hanoi, Travel Styles, walking tour

Exploring Buddhist Hell at Singapore’s Haw Par Villa

May 29, 2018 By Ryan Victor 12 Comments

Singapore is thought of as sterile and commercial, but it’s got pockets of quirk – and perhaps nothing quirkier than Haw Par Villa. This main event at this free museum/theme park is a massive exhibit on the Buddhist concept of hell, and let’s just say, there’s no inner peace or jolly Buddha here.

Filed Under: Asia, Educational and Experiential, Off the Beaten Path, Singapore Tagged With: Haw Par Villa, Ten Courts of Hell, Travel Styles

Lights, Camera, Festival: The Luang Prabang Film Festival in Laos

December 30, 2017 By Jen Ambrose and Ryan Victor 6 Comments

Thanks to some lucky timing, we got to attend the 2017 Luang Prabang Film Festival in Laos. This annual festival celebrates Southeast Asian cinema, supports local filmmakers, and gives Lao people a rare chance to go to the movies.

Filed Under: Asia, Educational and Experiential, Laos Tagged With: festival, film festival, Luang Prabang, movies, Travel Styles

A Motorcycle Adventure to Cambodia’s Bokor Hill Station

July 7, 2017 By Ryan Victor 12 Comments

Cambodia is ripe with opportunities for adventure travel, and Kampot is no exception. Just 20 miles away is the Bokor Hill Station, a now-abandoned hill station developed by French colonists in the 1920s. Today, it’s a renowned spot for urban exploration, and it makes a great day trip from Kampot. There are plenty of organized tours to Bokor, but you can also rent a motorcycle in town and ride up independently for more adventure. Either way, you’ll enjoy the refreshing cooler temperatures and stunning views of southern Cambodia.

Bokor Hill Staton in Cambodia had been on my radar as a top urban exploration site for a while before we visited. It’s full of interesting abandoned old buildings, including what used to be a luxurious French hotel, and it makes a great motorcycle trip from Kampot.

Filed Under: Asia, Cambodia, Educational and Experiential, Motorcycling, Nature and Outdoors, Road Trips Tagged With: activities, Bokor Hill, Kampot, Travel Styles, urban exploration

Seeing History Repeat Itself: An Alabama Road Trip

June 7, 2017 By Ryan Victor Leave a Comment

This Alabama road trip was the final segment of a longer trip through the Deep South, focused on human rights and social justice. A historical itinerary like this one is a great way to travel through Alabama. Birmingham, Montgomery, and all Selma offer great museums and opportunities to learn about the Civil War, the history of slavery, and the Civil Rights Movement.

The final state on our road trip through the South was Alabama, home of a gigantic steel statue, some delicious bagels, and several amazing museums. From protests to voting rights to immigration, it turns out Alabama has a lot to teach us about history and about issues facing the country today.

Filed Under: Alabama, Educational and Experiential, North America, Off the Beaten Path, Road Trips, U.S. Tagged With: Birmingham, Montgomery, Selma, Travel Styles

Learning about History and Culture on a Mississippi Road Trip

June 3, 2017 By Ryan Victor Leave a Comment

As part of a longer route through the Deep South, our Mississippi road trip included historical sites and museums that taught us all about slavery, race issues, the Civil Rights Movement, and even Muslim culture. This historical road trip itinerary includes Natchez and Jackson, MS, and follows part of the famed Natchez Trace.

Mississippi might not be high on your bucket list, but it’s a great place to learn about civil rights history. The state’s capital of Jackson also surprised us in a lot of ways, from its museum on Muslim culture to its delicious vegan restaurant.

Filed Under: Educational and Experiential, Mississippi, North America, Off the Beaten Path, Road Trips, U.S. Tagged With: Jackson, Natchez, Natchez Trace, Travel Styles

Exploring Louisiana from Baton Rouge to Bayou Country

May 21, 2017 By Jen Ambrose and Ryan Victor 2 Comments

Many people who travel to Louisiana only visit New Orleans, but it’s not too representative of the rest of the state. As it turns out, Southern Louisiana is a great place to learn about history, politics, climate change, and oft-forgotten communities. Follow along on our road trip to see the best things to do in Baton Rouge and then explore the Louisiana bayou. Stops include Houma, Thibodeaux, Cocodrie, Montegut, and Isle de Jean Charles, the setting of the film Beasts of the Southern Wild.

As much fun as New Orleans is, there’s more to see in Louisiana. Our road trip took us to the highlights of Baton Rouge and then to Houma and the bayou, a place where land becomes water.

Filed Under: Educational and Experiential, Louisiana, North America, Off the Beaten Path, Road Trips, U.S. Tagged With: Baton Rouge, Houma, Travel Styles

Getting Beyond Bourbon Street in New Orleans

May 6, 2017 By Jen Ambrose 9 Comments

New Orleans, Louisiana, is largely known for Mardi Gras parades and year-round parties on Bourbon Street and elsewhere in the French Quarter - but it has so much more to offer. It’s also a place visitors can learn about history, ecology, climate change, slavery, voodoo, and more. NOLA makes a great stop on a historical road trip through the Deep South with a focus on human rights and social justice issues.

During our human rights and social justice-themed road trip through the American South, we weren’t too sure how New Orleans would fit in. The Big Easy not only gave us a great time, it also turned out to be a really interesting place to explore history, culture, and ecology – a few of the things we’d come to the South to learn about.

Filed Under: Educational and Experiential, Louisiana, North America, U.S. Tagged With: American South, New Orleans, Travel Styles

Stories in Ruins: Photo Essay of a Mississippi Ghost Town

April 28, 2017 By Ryan Victor 10 Comments

What’s a road trip through the American South without a stop at a ghost town? This photo essay tells the story of Rodney, Mississippi, a formerly important port town with some interesting Civil War history. Today, it offers a unique and quiet beauty to the few visitors who head that way. But at only an hour from Natchez, a visit to Rodney is a fun thing to do if you’re in the area.

The ruins of Rodney, Mississippi, tell the story of a thriving Southern town decimated by the Civil War and the changing course of a nearby river. The churches and houses are abandoned now, and we loved experiencing their quiet beauty.

Filed Under: Educational and Experiential, Mississippi, North America, Off the Beaten Path, Road Trips, U.S. Tagged With: abandoned places, ghost towns, Natchez, photo essay, Rodney, Travel Styles

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Hi! We’re Jen and Ryan, an American couple on a journey to travel the world while working from the road. We’re passionate about outdoor adventure, responsible travel, and getting off the beaten path. Passions and Places is a space for us to share our stories and tips with you, but most importantly, we hope to inspire you to seek your own adventure.

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