The Girl Who Goes

independent, intentional travel

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Top 9 Things To Do in Mexico City

mexico city - feature photo

Palacio de Bellas Artes in Mexico City

When many people thing of visiting Mexico, they may think of beach or resort towns like Cancun, Puerto Vallarta, or Cabo. But I’m not a resort girl — I prefer to visit places where I can get more of the local culture and go exploring on my own. Which is why, back in 2018 when Southwest Airlines still flew there, I spent some of my hard-earned points on a solo trip to Mexico City.

What I never expected was how much I’d love it! Mexico City is a busy, beautiful, vibrant city full of delicious food, gorgeous artwork, and friendly people. So when Matt and I had the opportunity to visit this past spring — and stay for three weeks — we jumped at the chance.

But Mexico City’s population is larger than New York City’s. And it’s nearly twice the size geographically! Which means it can be hard to know where to start with exploring the city, especially when your time is limited.

To help, I put together this list of 9 things you must do during your Mexico City trip. [Read more…]

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3 Things You Need To Know Before Visiting Cuba – 2024

cuba havana

Hi all! I’d like to introduce my friend Sarah, the first-ever guest author for The Girl Who Goes! I met Sarah back in 2018 when we were both assigned the same school as language assistants in Madrid. And just a few weeks ago, Matt and I were able to visit Sarah and her boyfriend, Kelan, in Ireland! As they told us all about their recent trip to Cuba — somewhere I’ve never been — I asked Sarah if she would write a few articles about visiting Cuba for me.

I’m so excited she took the time to share her experience and these essential tips for anyone planning a trip to Cuba, especially in light of the pandemic. I hope you all enjoy! –Cathy

Cuba is one of those bucket-list countries a lot of people talk about visiting. The allure of old buildings and cars, of an old world that appears to be simpler. However, before we visited Cuba in July 2022, we never could have anticipated how far back we were going!

We look back at our twelve-day trip to Cuba with great appreciation for our modern conveniences. Though we felt we had prepared well and done our research, we forgot one key issue — the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to the pandemic, Cuba had shut its borders for two years, and hence a lot of the information we had read was out of date. Luckily, I’ve a great friend Cathy who let me borrow her blog to tell you all about what Cuba is like now, as of summer 2022. [Read more…]

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5 Breweries in St. Louis That Aren’t Budweiser

breweries in st. louis - feature

Hi! It’s me, Cathy. I recognize it has been a pretty long time since I last wrote anything. That’s just because I didn’t have anything to write about 😬 Times like this, I really miss my old life in Spain where there was always something to write about… and I admire my past commitment to posting something new every 10 days…

Anyway, more travel is in my immediate future! Later this month, Matt and I are driving up to Milwaukee for a few days. And then when we get back, we’re flying up to spend a week in Washington/Oregon with one of his college friends! So, more to come. But for now, we’re here to talk about breweries across the state from us in St. Louis, Missouri. [Read more…]

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How My Parents Encourage My Travel Dreams

my parents

Since today is Mother’s Day, I wanted to write about something topical. But in my family, something funny happens every 5-6 years – Mother’s Day falls on May 13, which is also my dad’s birthday. So the day feels a little extra special.

We’re spending this extra-special day going to brunch and playing a family baseball game at a nearby field. All four of us girls are showering our parents with the love they hopefully feel from us every day. And tomorrow I’ll wake up at 3 a.m. for another too-early flight for another week in Indiana. As I think about what my life looks like now, it’s impossible to separate it from the upbringing I’ve had. My parents have been indispensable to my travel dreams and experiences thus far. [Read more…]

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Is Mexico Safe for Solo Female Travelers?

is mexico safe - feature

Is Mexico safe? Most of us know that Mexico gets a bad reputation. For many, the mention of Mexico invokes ideas of crime, violence, and earthquakes. Even the State Department has issued warnings urging U.S. travelers not to visit certain parts of the country. There were reports of tourists being served tainted alcohol; an Iowa family of four tragically found dead in their rented condo.

So, here we have Mexico sounding pretty dangerous for anyone to visit. [Read more…]