The Acropolis in the late afternoon, Athens, Greece
Every month of 2022 felt like a different life. It was a blur of places across four continents—both new and old—and reunions with old friends. I finally feel like I’ve gotten my old life back—the one I spent over a decade building. Every year, I share a recap of my favorite adventures and photographs. Here’s the 2022 edition!
I started and ended the year in my two favorite cities—Buenos Aires and Chiang Mai. These two places couldn’t be any further apart or any more different.
I reluctantly flew back to the States in the spring. I spent the month of March visiting my parents and building a bed in my dad’s shop. (My dad makes 18th-century furniture for a living, and I’ve built several pieces in the past.) Then, the road trips started—Ocracoke Island followed by Austin and Marfa.
For the summer, I bounced between Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and the Southeast for work trips. Then, September was a dream—I sailed through the Mediterranean on the Sea Cloud, a historic four-mast sailboat, for work. I literally got paid to spend a month traveling around Europe teaching photography! (2011 Anna—who was making barely $20-30K/year working retail and waiting tables and wondering if she’d ever make a living as a photographer—would be so proud.)
All of the work I lost during the pandemic came back at the same time. By October, I was really burned out. I spent the month in Italy traveling with a friend for part of the time then solo. I got sick for the first time in years—a terrible bout of tonsilitis followed by COVID. After resting up at a lovely Airbnb in Lecce, Italy, I made my way to Asia, where I belong.
I’ve spent most of my life living on a bridge between Asia and the U.S. unable to choose a side. I’ve always known I belonged in Thailand but was too scared to commit because I thought I had to live in America to have a career outside of teaching English. I finally built a career that allows me to be location independent most of the time so I can spend more time in the places that feel like home—Buenos Aires and Chiang Mai. (If you didn’t see my Washington Post story on Buenos Aires, check it out!)
Here’s some of my favorite adventures this year!
Marfa, Texas
El Cosmico, a luxury campground and hotel in Marfa, Texas, has a series of unique types of accommodation for rent including this ’49 Mansion.
There’s no place quite like Marfa—this funky West Texas town was a former railroad stop and military base. When minimalist artist Donald Judd moved to town in the 1970s, his goal was the create large-scale permanent art installations, which put Marfa on the map as an arts destination. This spring, the Central Marfa Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places, including some of Judd’s properties. I made a trip out to Marfa to write about this for the Washington Post and check out the dive bars—Casita Bar is the best spot in town. It was my third time making the trek to Marfa, a six-hour drive from Austin. (TIP: It’s much more enjoyable to take the backroads instead of I-10 and almost as fast.) This shot is from El Cosmico, a lux bohemian campground where you can rent vintage airstream trailers like this one for the night.
Ocracoke, North Carolina
Portsmouth was one of the largest settlements in the Outer Banks in the 1770s. The last two residents left in the early 1970s.
Haida Gwaii, British Columbia
In May, I traveled by boat from Seattle to Sitka, Alaska for a work trip. On our voyage, we stopped by Haida Gwaii, an archipelago off the west coast of British Columbia often referred to as the Galapagos of Canada for the endemic wildlife. It’s also famous for a UNESCO site, SGang Gwaay, the site of a 19th-century village and memorial poles. We were cursed with terrible weather and the roughest seas I have ever experienced. Despite that, I did get some wonderful photos, including this shot of a flying bald eagle. The eagle was sitting on the beach as my co-worker and I were slowly walking toward him hoping to get close enough to get a good shot. Out of nowhere, a car pulls over the side of the road, a door slams and a dog starts barking, scaring away the eagle. As the eagle flew away, I shot a few frames reactively and ended up with my best image of a flying eagle. It only took three seasons of working in Alaska to get this shot!
Bend, Oregon
The Tam McAruthur Rim Trail, Three Sisters Wilderness, Bend, Oregon.
Two of my friends spent most of the pandemic on an RV trip around the country. They stopped in Bend, fell in love with the city and traded their RV for a house. I instantly had to go visit to see what all the hype was about—Bend is a year-round adventure playground also famous for craft beer. I spent two weeks hiking by day and sipping a tasty brew every afternoon. Of course, I wrote about it for the Washington Post! This shot is from one of my favorite hikes—The Tam McArthur Rim Trail.
A Gnome in Rome
My first trip to Rome was in college, a drunken blur of ruins and pasta dinners. In late October, I went back to visit for five days with a friend and was surprised by how much I loved the city. I literally could live in Rome—it’s a very walkable city with ancient ruins on every corner. I really love going back to the same places to experience them differently. Since it was Alfred the Globetrotting Gnome’s first trip to Rome and Italy, I took him on a grand tour of the main sites—the Coliseum, Pantheon and Trevi Fountain, and photographed him at each. The Coliseum was my favorite shot of the three.
Puglia, Italy
I spent the month of October in Italy and most of the time in Puglia, the stiletto heal of Italy’s boot shape. The area is famous for conical, mortarless stone houses called trulli. The largest concentration is in a town called Alberobello, a UNESCO site with over 1,500 structures. I only visited the city at sunrise and sunset to avoid the crowds, which I highly recommend.
Delos, Greece
The ruins of Delos
I spent the month of September working on the Sea Cloud, a famous four-mast sailboat in the Mediterranean. It was literally a dream—our first trip was to the Greek Isles followed by Albania, Montenegro, Croatia and Italy. Greece was one of my favorite stops. I loved Delos, an uninhabited island covered with ancient ruins and ruled by the cat mafia. A handful of stray sheep appeared, and I followed them around for a bit to get this shot. Delos is definitely worth a trip and is an easy day trip from Mykonos, Naxos and Paros.
Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany
Neuschwanstein Castle, Germany
Aside from ruins, I also love castles, which is why I had to visit Neuschwanstein Castle on my two-day layover in Munich. I went by public transit since I hate day tours. It took two trains, a bus and a shuttle to make it to the castle! This spot attracts Disney-style crowds so tickets were sold out for the castle tour. I only wanted photos so I spent a few hours hiking the trails above the castle for the scenic viewpoint—a great way to escape the crowds. I even made some new friends along the way! I don’t even regret not going inside because photography isn’t allowed indoors.
