Tag: travel

35.

for years, i have selected a word as my personal theme. at 34, my word was calm. i think i nearly mastered it. for 35, i chose: surrender.

the art of surrender isn’t defeat, giving up or powerlessness. to surrender is choosing acceptance over resistance, appreciation over expectations and flexibility over foolishness.

as someone who has historically struggled with needing to be in control, i knew this wouldn’t be an easy feat. even still, i was also confident i could remain calm when things became turbulent. the universe has a funny way of testing us as my life more or less blew up at the start of february. luckily, i had a trip to the dominican republic with 20 of my favorite humans to planned. i highly recommend getting people together to celebrate your trips around the sun in big and small ways.

reuniting with the girls after check-in

when traveling with groups, i believe in a balance of planned fun and leisure time. i asked everyone to be at a cocktail party —> dinner one night and invited anyone interested on a boat for a sunday funday. any other time, i would send a broadcast via paperless post so people knew where to find me at the resort. it was honestly so easy and there is nothing i love more than having so many of my loved ones in one place. below are some photos of those in between moments.

for the cocktail party and dinner, i asked everyone to wear black and/or white (as most have that in their closet). this was the first time all of us had been in the same place and it was such a blast.

and for the sunday funday on the boat, to say a time was had would be a gross understatement. there are three things that are ALWAYS worth saying yes to: a day on the water in the sunshine, an open bar and the additional cost for a photographer.

while there were hiccups with our travel agent, the resort was top notch, the weather was beautiful, the people present to celebrate me were extraordinary and the love i felt is immeasurable. arriving to the dominican republic already having the mindset of surrendering made the trip exponentially more enjoyable. when i think of the rollercoaster that 35 has been so far, surrendering was the only way to not just make it, but enjoy it.

i am already brainstorming for 36.

xoxo,

k. tap

kauai 2024

last year, one of my supervisors sent an email to our team offering up her condo in kauai as a way to offer some self-care to all the clinicians. instead of paying thousands of dollars for a week in paradise, we would simply pay the cleaning fee for the week. i was flabbergasted and knew i needed to take action immediately. i thought about who could best benefit from a week away and knew i needed to invite my twin, anj. we invited two of our girlfriends but as the youth say, life was lifin’ – they had to cancel. anj and i didn’t let that stop us from having a beautiful week in paradise with her son, enzo. getting to hawaii was far from easy for me with multiple delays and plane issues that required trekking through the airport to a new terminal all together before takeoff but once i landed, reunited with anj and enzo and saw that this was my backyard for the week, any travel exhaustion no longer mattered.

there is something extra magical about seeing a beautiful place through the eyes of a child. enzo is more knowledgeable about flowers and wildlife than almost anyone i know. even just the simplest walk to the pool would morph into a special moment for me.

we were fortunate to have a lengthy list of recommendations as multiple friends of ours have family in kauai and frequent the island. a beach that was a must was po’ipu. we made sure to stop at puka dogs to enjoy their unique hot dogs and fresh lemonade on the beach.

to say we were fortunate to have hanalei beach be in such close proximity to the condo is an understatement. that is where we spent the next few days.

outside of our time spent at the beach, we certainly had some favorite spots for a quick and fresh bite. hanalei poke was to die for. i also still dream about the shaved ice from wishing well. the flavor options are next level and the fact that there are organic options versus processed syrups is a game changer.

when we wanted a more upscale dinner, we traveled across the island to beach house restaurant. i’d highly suggest it and a reservation can be made on open table. tap on the link to read the full blog post about our dining experience. it was the one day we took the time to get dressed in something outside of swimwear.

there was something incredibly special about getting a tattoo to honor my grammy while there with one of my best friends who not only loved her (and was loved by her) dearly but walked alongside me through every stage of grieving her. i truly cannot thank twin enough for that. the libra club was the best tattoo shop i have ever stepped inside of. i immediately felt not just safe but comfortable. it felt like i was sitting in the living room one of my girlfriends. i am so grateful to hilly for recommending it.

for our final night on the island, we had dessert before dinner at jojo’s shaved ice (because wishing well was closed) before heading to the terrace restaurant and bar for dinner. enzo got to try shaved ice for the first time and i thoroughly enjoyed my calamari and poke nachos from the terrace.

while leaving the island proved to be chaotic (both because of sadness and because my preordered lyft/uber cancelled and the next ones i requested continued to cancel on me), i would go back in a heartbeat. kauai officially has a piece of my heart.

if you have an opportunity to travel with one of your best friends, the answer is yes. happy birthday, twin. i would go anywhere with you.

xoxo,

k. tap

beach house restaurant – kauai

i am lucky enough to have multiple friends who grew up in kauai so figuring out where to go once on the island was a no brainer. from the views to the cocktails to the cuisine, one of the restaurants at the top of my list was beach house restaurant – kauai.

no ka oi – ocean vodka, thai basil, fresh lime, honey-lilikoi purée
fresh focaccia
poke tacos

the no ka oi was light and subtly sweet with a little punch at the end. i am going to try my hand at recreating it at home. while anj is gluten free, enzo and i aren’t so we enjoyed the focaccia without her. there was no way i was going to be in hawaii and not have fresh fish everywhere we went – the poke tacos were to die for. the wonton shells were light and flaky and the ahi melted like butter.

fish and lobster pasta

for my main course, i had the fish and lobster pasta. i thoroughly enjoyed the freshness of the fish, the buttery lobster, the saltiness of the capers and the delightful sauce. i pretty much never say no to a savory dish. the meal was substantial without me feeling stuffed. there is something great about knowing how the meal we were eating was locally sourced. after dinner, we took a moment to take on the water and it certainly didn’t disappoint.

damn, this view is hard to beat. if you find yourself in kauai, be sure to make a reservation at beach house restaurant – kauai via opentable.

xoxo,

k. tap

the libra club

there were many parts of my trip to kauai that i loved but one that stood out most was my tattoo session with mckenzie. welcome to the libra club.

the libra club magazine
chess + checkers
one of the tattoo stations

hillary, one of my dear friends (and fellow aquarians), knew that i was in the market for a couple of new tattoos. when we were at dinner earlier this summer, she couldn’t rave more about the libra club. the moment i walked in, i understood why. so many tattoo shops i have been to have a vibe that isn’t inviting or comfortable. many of them just seem like they are missing a little something. once inside of the libra club, i realized what was missing – feminine energy.

the libra club is owned by a woman and filled with amazing female artists. the space felt light and safe. it was an added bonus that there was great natural light, a/c on full blast (necessary when battling the hawaii humidity) and plenty of cute things to buy. when it was time to get started, i felt completely at ease. mckenzie, the owner, was my artist. i had sent her some ideas ahead of time but also told her i was open to her putting her own spin on it. i truly couldn’t have been happier with the outcome.

compass tattoo with flowers

for anyone that knows me, it is no secret that i view connie (my late grandmother aka grammy) as my compass. i cannot even tell you how many times per week i think about what grammy would say when making a decision – whether it is what throw pillows to get to what advice to give a friend to how to handle conflict at work, she always knew just what to do. with grammy in my heart, my sense of direction is exactly where it needs to be. i cannot thank mckenzie enough for creating something so beautiful to honor the most beautiful person i’ve ever known. if you find yourself in kauai, be sure to visit the libra club.

xoxo,

k. tap

on fridays, we wear fringe

every year, i purchase my coachella tickets in june for the following april (before the lineup even is released). shortly thereafter, we book a house. no later than january, i am searching high and low for outfit options. this year, that did not happen and i was PANICKED.

early last week, it occurred to me that i had done zero shopping whatsoever and that coachella was less than two weeks away. every year, at least one of my outfits has been from asos. i quickly went to their site to see if there was anything that caught my eye and immediately fell in love with this little fringe number!

coachella vip – weekend one – day one

i never say no to a little black and knew as soon as i tried it on that i would be wearing it long after coachella. it was initially $50 which i would have been happy to pay, especially because a dress is an entire outfit. imagine my surprise when it was on sale for just $30?! getting it was a no brainer.

one of the things i love most about asos is their inclusive sizing. whether you wear a 00 or a 28, need short pants or an extra long pair, need maternity wear or a wedding dress in an extended size, they have it all.

if you go to coachella, where is your favorite place to get outfits from? do you go for aesthetics, comfort or both?

xoxo,

k. tap