Evita<\/em> in London made headlines for an unusual staging decision: Eva Per\u00f3n, played by Rachel Zegler, would sing \u201cDon\u2019t Cry for Me, Argentina\u201d not in the theater, but from the balcony overlooking the people below.<\/strong><\/p>\nSo yes, the showstopper song of the show wouldn\u2019t even be performed inside the theater. The audience would watch it live, but filmed from outside. What the hell?!<\/p>\n
But if you know the show or the history, it makes perfect sense. Eva Per\u00f3n was a woman of the people. She cared for the working class \u2014 not the wealthy. That\u2019s why she was so beloved. Of course they deserved the best of her.<\/p>\n
I happened to be in the West End close to showtime one night, so I headed down to the London Palladium about half an hour before Rachel was due to come out. Boy, was it crowded there! The streets were full of theater fans eager for a glimpse.<\/p>\n
And then Rachel came out \u2014 and she sang so beautifully, I was nearly in tears. This song is so moving and Rachel has an angelic voice, perfectly suited for it.<\/p>\n
It was absolutely worth being squished in that crowd for 45 minutes to hear Rachel sing. What a moment.<\/p>\nThe final photo of the night at 3:00 AM!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nOur Party in Prague<\/h2>\nTwo years after our wedding, Charlie and I decided to do something a bit crazy \u2014 throw another wedding reception.<\/strong> Same destination (Arthur\u2019s Pub in Prague!), same invitees, same details, the only thing would be that we would be celebrating Charlie\u2019s 50th birthday and our second anniversary.<\/p>\nWe invited friends from all around the world, and so many of them came back for round two \u2014 and plenty who missed round one were able to make it this time!<\/p>\n
Well, there were some differences \u2014 namely, it was COLD! We had our wedding in May 2023 because May is the most beautiful month of the year in Prague, and it could not have been nicer \u2014 warm days with blue skies streaked with puffy clouds. In 2025, May was freezing, gray, and rainy. I was actually wearing my long wool coat that month.<\/p>\n
And so the party started off outside but we ended up packing ourselves into the lounge area of the bar, and the bartenders were ON POINT, making endless cocktails, saying to us things like, \u201cYou look like you could use a Cosmopolitan.\u201d<\/p>\n
All in all, it was so nice having so many of our friends back, sharing our city with them, and enjoying all the good vibes a second time around.<\/p>\nClimbing the Grand Tsingy<\/h2>\nWhen it came to visiting Madagascar, I knew that climbing the Grand Tsingy would be one of the coolest adventures of the trip. <\/strong>But I had no idea that I would have to clip in. I have never clipped into a hike, ever, and I\u2019ve always been vaguely terrified of Via Ferrata-style hikes.<\/p>\nThe hike is intense. You need to haul yourself up ledges, put your feet on tiny steps, and there is an actual risk of falling if you don\u2019t step right. You wouldn\u2019t fall to your death, but you might land hard on your harness and break a rib.<\/p>\n
You would think that would be terrifying. But to my surprise, there was nothing<\/em> scary about this hike at all. It was 100% pure exhilaration. I felt so strong and skilled!<\/p>\nEven when I walked across the scary rickety bridge, I only faltered momentarily because it wiggled. Other than that? No problem at all!<\/p>\n
Conquering the Grand Tsingy felt like such an exciting achievement, and I\u2019m so proud of myself for doing it so well!<\/p>\nMardi Gras with Charlie and Nick<\/h2>\nMardi Gras in New Orleans is one of my favorite festivals I\u2019ve ever attended. <\/strong>I experienced my first Mardi Gras in 2014, and it left a bit to be desired \u2014 so I was determined to do things much better in 2025.<\/p>\nI wanted Charlie and our friend Nick to love it, too. I knew Charlie would have a good time in New Orleans \u2014 but if you\u2019ve ever met Nick, you would know he is MADE for New Orleans. <\/p>\n
So yes \u2014 I made sure we did things right.<\/p>\n
We spent three nights gallivanting on Bourbon Street and got on top of a few balconies to throw beads. We took in live music on Frenchman Street. We wandered among the costume-clad festival-goers and went on an all-you-can-drink mimosa and Bloody Mary riverboat cruise on the Mississippi. <\/p>\n
We drank lots of frozen daiquiris and paid far too much for fried chicken at midnight. We headed out to the Garden District to enjoy a parade with the locals. We found a bar with an awesome band and vibe and sang, \u201cEverybody in the bar getting tipsy!\u201d with everyone.<\/p>\n
We ate SO much good New Orleans food, the standout being Dooky Chase and their superb barbecue shrimp, which is perhaps the best thing I ate in all of 2025.<\/p>\n
But you know what the guys enjoyed the most? Arguing with the doomsday preachers telling us we were all going to hell. (There were a LOT more of them in 2025 than 2014.)<\/p>\nSwimming laps for 45 minutes instead of eating birthday cake!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nTraveling through 75 Hard<\/h2>\nIn June, I decided to take part in 75 Hard: a mental toughness challenge.<\/strong> For 75 days, you must do two workouts per day of at least 45 minutes, at least three hours apart, and at least one must be outside. You take a photo of yourself each day, follow a diet of your choice (I did no sugar and no junk food), drink one gallon (3.8 liters) of water per day, read 10 pages of a personal development book per day, and consume zero alcohol.<\/p>\nAnd you cannot mess any of these things up ONCE, or you\u2019ll need to start over.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve never found it difficult to abstain from alcohol, but I knew planning the workouts and meals would be a challenge while on the road. I had a fairly light travel schedule during 75 Hard, but I still had trips to Germany, Slovakia, and Poland.<\/p>\n
And so I rucked on bus layovers in Nuremberg and Poprad, walking for 45 minutes with my heavy backpack on, rather than sitting in a cafe like usual. I packed lunches and ate salads and souvlaki bowls on my concert trips and didn\u2019t touch McDonald\u2019s or chips or Twix bars once. I went a whole summer without ice cream.<\/p>\n
I woke up at 5 AM to do yoga and Pilates, and even had a birthday apple instead of any kind of birthday cake or dessert (TBH, that was a bit sad). I swam laps for 45 minutes in the pool at the Grand Kempinski High Tatras, underneath the chandeliers, as kids jumped in the water around me.<\/p>\n
But I completed the challenge, and didn\u2019t let my travels be an excuse to indulge. In fact, once the challenge was over, I decided to continue avoiding alcohol and sugar through my Mauritius, R\u00e9union, and Madagascar trip. I succeeded on the booze, but gave in halfway through Madagascar and had a few desserts.<\/p>\n
Nowadays, drinking is something I save for special occasions. It\u2019s not part of my regular routine anymore. And I\u2019m very happy for that.<\/p>\nSwimming off the marina platform was SO fun \u2014 especially in gorgeous St. Lucia.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nSwimming off the Royal Clipper<\/h2>\nThere is so much that I enjoyed from my Caribbean cruise with Star Clippers in December, which took us to several different Caribbean islands.<\/strong> But soon I realized that the main character is the ship \u2014 the Royal Clipper.<\/p>\nThe Royal Clipper is an absolutely gorgeous sailing ship that feels like a throwback. Each piece of it is meticulously designed. And some of the best moments are on the ship, like climbing the mast, or standing out on deck as the sails unfurled.<\/p>\n
But for me, my favorite part was swimming off the marina platform in the back of the boat. We would be docked in deep water, but it was the Caribbean, so it was so clear and bright and beautiful.<\/p>\n
From here, we could jump in, swim about, lounge on floats, or do a little bit of paddle boarding. All while enjoying the perfect view of the ship, knowing that we belonged here.<\/p>\n
Swimming out here on a beautiful day was nothing short of bliss. And it was the most spectacular when we did it off the island of St. Lucia, perhaps one of the most visually stunning islands in the Caribbean.<\/p>\nCailin\u2019s Birthday Food Crawl in Krak\u00f3w<\/h2>\nWhen Cailin came over for our party in May, we decided to plan a nearby trip together that would coincide with her birthday.<\/strong> And so we ended up in Krak\u00f3w, Poland! It was her first visit ever, and my first visit in nearly a decade.<\/p>\nAnd we ended up having a really great day! I brought cat birthday candles and cat temporary tattoos, which made the day festive, and we spent a day just wandering around, treating ourselves, and enjoying Polish specialties.<\/p>\n
There were paczi<\/em>, Polish donuts (including, yes, one Dubai chocolate donut). There were zapiekanki (Polish French bread pizzas). There were ten strange flavors of vodka in a tasting. Obviously, there were pierogi! And there was also some market-shopping, cocktail-having, and just sitting in cafes and watching Krak\u00f3w go by.<\/p>\nAnother major highlight was taking Premium Class on the Leo Express from Prague to Krak\u00f3w \u2014 a luxury train experience (only six seats in the car!!) for a surprisingly decent price.<\/p>\nDriving in R\u00e9union<\/h2>\nI\u2019m not the most comfortable driver in the world \u2014 especially when it comes to driving in new regions.<\/strong> I knew I would have to drive on the Indian Ocean island of R\u00e9union, as it\u2019s pretty hard to explore by public transit, so I steeled myself carefully.<\/p>\nBut then I found some of the best driving of my life. The roads in R\u00e9union are buttery smooth. To get on the highway, which runs in a ring around the island, you drive through these winding, twisting onramps that seem to go on forever, as you\u2019re surrounded by spectacular volcanic scenery.<\/p>\n
And I had the perfect music: as I was listening to Rolling Stone\u2019s top 500 albums of all time, it was time for Daft Punk\u2019s Discovery<\/em>. Driving those smooth, gorgeous roads while listening to Y2K-era French dance music was perhaps the best combination of driving and music I\u2019ve ever had!<\/p>\nOne caveat \u2014 I did hire a driver for the drive into Cilaos one day, because I didn\u2019t know how I would handle the steep switchback-covered roads. In retrospect, I could have done it, but it would have been super stressful, and I\u2019m glad I had a guide to show me lots of great photo spots.<\/p>\n
But overall, R\u00e9union\u2019s roads were such a joy that I can\u2019t wait to get back and drive them some more!<\/p>\nKendrick and SZA performing \u201cAll the Stars\u201d in Warsaw.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nBecoming a Concert Traveler<\/h2>\nI\u2019ve never been much of a concert-goer. <\/strong>But you know what changed my mind? The Eras Tour. I\u2019m not a Swiftie in the least, but lots of my friends are, and they traveled across oceans to see Taylor perform in different cities.<\/p>\nAnd honestly, that made me think that I should make an effort to see artists I love, even when they\u2019re not coming to Prague.<\/p>\n
And so I got tickets to see Kendrick Lamar and SZA both in Frankfurt and Warsaw, and Beyonc\u00e9 in Paris. These were also the first concerts I ever went to solo.<\/p>\n
And was it a good idea? Yes! I had a blast at all three concerts!! I liked getting to turn them into mini trips, and it was so nice just basking in the music and enjoying the community. Being solo made absolutely no difference in my enjoyment (not that that should be any surprise to you).<\/p>\n
Next year, I\u2019ve got four concerts on my schedule: Raye in Prague in January, Belle & Sebastian in Berlin in March, Miguel in Prague in April, and Pitbull in Prague in July. And I would LOVE to somehow get tickets to see Bad Bunny somewhere, but those have all sold out several times over.<\/p>\n
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