theViatrix | Stephanie Dosch
Insider planning tips, hidden gems, and luxury intel for transformative travel experiences. Drawing from 18+ years of award-winning expertise, I help you explore more meaningfully. Subscribe to theVialist for curated cultural guides and destination insights.
Rude.
I was outside at one of my favorite cafés yesterday, and the guy behind me had his phone to his ear. Except he wasn’t the only person who could hear what he was listening to. It sounded like that feature on the New York Times app where you can hear an article read aloud; it was in American English, and I heard snippets about “economy” and “Gaza.” And it was loud. I kind of turned around and looked at him, but he was pretty absorbed. I had my headphones in because I was busy editing a Reel...
Just Basque
Reader— Just a quick note to say hey this week since I’m still catching up after almost three weeks away. I wrapped up a great trip to Seattle with more nature walks, lots of quality time with family and friends, and a several-day stint to Boise (an underrated city—stay tuned for more on that). While the reason for the side trip was to celebrate my grandma’s 92nd (!) birthday, the dates coincided with Jaialdi, a Basque festival that only happens once every five years. In the late 19th and...
how did I forget this? 🤦🏼♀️
You know in guided meditations when they tell you to imagine a place in nature and visualize yourself there? Well for me, that’s often the forests of the Pacific Northwest, where I grew up (or the North Shore of O’ahu, but we can talk about that another day). There’s just something about the tall firs, fragrant cedars, and verdant big-leaf maples that inspires that sense of awe, wonder, and spaciousness I crave. And I often forget how much I miss them until I come back. This is what a city...
Uber reject
I refresh the Uber app again and get the same result: a spinning wheel and then … nothing. I was worried this might happen. It’s why I’d asked the driver who dropped me off—in Spanish I pretended was Portuguese—if he wanted to wait for me. He said no and drove away. I’d taken the Uber up into the foothills above Rio de Janeiro to check out Mirante Dona Marta, a less-visited viewpoint with spectacular views of the entire city, with the more crowded Corcovado (home to the famous Cristo Redentor...
We're havin' a heat wave
“Is she breathing??” I’d escaped my hotbox apartment for some A/C and rosé with a friend. On my way home, I turned a corner, and there, in the middle of the sidewalk, was a young woman sprawled face up, her belongings strewn around her. A man was dialing whatever 911 is here (I should figure that out), and a waiter was running from a nearby café with a carafe of water. As a small crowd of concerned pedestrians gathered, they turned her over and checked that she was breathing. All of a sudden,...
Postcard from Rio
Finally carved out a minute between adventures—been moving nonstop for three days and haven't even touched Instagram. But I wanted to share a couple quick photos, because they don't call it the "Marvelous City" for nothing. More stories and full trip report coming when I'm back to proper WiFi and fewer caipirinhas. For now... this view from Sugarloaf says it all. Ciao for now!
You, me & Ratatouille
Have you ever had one of those transcendent food moments, Reader? Like at the end of Ratatouille, where the food critic takes a bite and is instantly transported to his childhood? I’ve had a few, and of course they’ve all been while traveling. Like the best peach I’ve ever eaten. My mom and I were on a cross-country road trip from Seattle, where I grew up, to Middlebury, VT, where I was about to start college. Yes, my mom and I are identical Somewhere in upstate New York, near Lake Ontario,...
Why do you travel?
Reader- I wanted to make sure you knew: tomorrow’s the last day to join my Insider Oaxaca trip. If you’re still on the fence, let me share this spot-on IG post from my friend Janessa (@janessajstorlie on Instagram) about why travel is so important: Now, Janessa is an incredibly supportive friend, and she’s also completely right. Travel IS important for our mental and emotional health—in fact, that’s one of the core beliefs of my business. For me, travel is all about connection (something...
That time I went to Scotland...
The most expensive trip I ever took was to London and Scotland. I had been given some free hotel nights at a luxury hotel in London, and used that as an excuse to plan a trip for me and Iñigo that just got more and more expensive (the exchange with the pound didn’t help at all). We stayed at some iconic hotels, took in spectacular scenery, and did fun activities like touring castles and whisky distilleries. But every time the bill came, we gulped a little. At some point, we just started...
"No really, I don't do group tours"
On Monday, I wrote to you about why I decided to cap my Insider Oaxaca trip at just 6-8 participants, keeping it not just small, but super small. If you missed that email, you can read it here, but the TL;DR is that I wanted to create a trip that has all of the advantages of group travel and none of the drawbacks. But, Reader, you and I know that group size is just one piece of that. So what else makes this trip special? Here are five important differences from your typical group tour: We’re...
Insider planning tips, hidden gems, and luxury intel for transformative travel experiences. Drawing from 18+ years of award-winning expertise, I help you explore more meaningfully. Subscribe to theVialist for curated cultural guides and destination insights.