Skip to content

Grab our free checklist: 10 THINGS YOU SHOULD NEVER TRAVEL WITHOUT

  • About MeExpand
    • About
    • Contact
    • Work With Us
    • Press & Portfolio
    • Privacy Policy
Instagram Facebook Pinterest TikTok YouTube
Destination Map
Tilted Map - sustainable travel and sustainable living blog, with eco-friendly travel tips for Europe and reviews of plastic-free products.
  • Sustainable Product ReviewsExpand
    • Plastic-Free Skincare & Beauty
    • Travel Gear Reviews
    • Small Businesses
    • Home & Kitchen
    • All Reviews
    • By Brand
    • Best Products + Discounts ✨
  • Sustainable TravelExpand
    • Destination Guides
    • Climate + Travel
    • Trains & Ferries
    • Packing Better
    • Experiences
    • Hotel Tips
    • Italy Trip 2024
    • Food Culture & Recipes
    • Booking & Discounts ✨
  • DealsExpand
    • Top Sustainable Products & Discounts
    • Travel Booking Recs. & Discounts
    • Blogging Resources
Search

Grab our free PLASTIC-FREE TRAVEL TOILETRIES CHECK LIST!

Tilted Map - sustainable travel and sustainable living blog, with eco-friendly travel tips for Europe and reviews of plastic-free products.
Home / Living Abroad - Page 2

Living Abroad

Offline shopping in China – a man delivering good on an overloaded bicycle. ©KettiWilhelm2015
China | Travel Stories

“Singles’ Day” in China: NO MINGLING, I’m Online Shopping.

Communist leader Mao Zedong as a decoration on the dashboard of a Chinese taxi.
China | Sustainability | Sustainable Travel | Travel Stories

Pollution, Communism & China: Teaching the Documentary “Under the Dome”

Part of college life in China: I asked my Chinese students, "Why do you want to learn English?" My favorite answer was basically, "to talk to a shuai ge." ("I want to learn how to chat an English man.") Some things about college student life are the same everywhere. ©KettiWilhelm2014
China | Travel Stories

What I Learned Teaching About My “Hot Brother” in China

A kid playing by a canal in Jinan, the city where I work as an expat teaching English in China. ©KettiWilhelm2015
China | Travel Stories

Curfews, Students Named “LeBron,” & More About College Life in China

Burning oil candles at a temple in Jinan, China. ©KettiWilhelm2014
China | Travel Stories

A Toast to Finding Myself in China… and to Beer

Looking in the window of a traditional tea shop in Suzhou, China. ©KettiWilhelm2015
China | Travel Stories

The Truth About Culture Shock and Why I Love It

Trying to learn Mandarin from poetry written with a wet mop in a public square in Jinan, China. ©KettiWilhelm2014
China | Travel Stories

Learning Mandarin in China: “No Really, I Don’t Understand”

Page navigation

Previous PagePrevious 1 2
Come hang out on Instagram!

Tell me if you agree, but in my feed, the Black Fr Tell me if you agree, but in my feed, the Black Friday conversation is an extreme division between: - 🚫 BUY NOTHING. It’s the only solution. Otherwise you’re ruining the planet. - 🛍️ Buy EVERYTHING. We’re having a sale! Don’t miss out! Especially for clothing. Are you seeing this, too? —————— 🤔 I don’t think that *realistically* wins over many people to make more sustainable shopping choices. ✨ So here’s a little inspiration for an alternative kind of shopping – mostly buying what already exists, instead of things that are made new. I don’t mean ALL the time, because… YOU DON’T HAVE TO BE PERFECT and buy NOTHING that’s new. For example: 👕 I shared a reel earlier this week about @unboundmerino and how we use their clothes to pack lighter on our travels. 🆕 They’re pretty much the only brand whose clothes I’ve bought *new* in the past couple of years! (Yes, they’re having a Black Friday sale, and it’s one of the few I recommend.) ♻️ Everything else? Thrift stores, vintage stores, and consignment stores like this one in Norway. @slitanbergen This reel is an intro to that world – and how much fun it can be to support sustainable small businesses, and hunt for unique, vintage items on my travels & at home! 👉 Is this a topic you’d like to hear more about from me? #blackfriday #ecofriendlygifts #deinfluencing #consciouscapitalism #choosetorefuse #sustainablebrands #sustainableliving #climateleadership
Send this to a friend who’s stuck in traffic/ at Send this to a friend who’s stuck in traffic/ at the airport today. 😆 Happy Turkey Day! This clip has been waiting since my Utah trip in April to make its appearance. TRAVEL TIP: 📍 We had a great time pedaling through Zion National Park with @greaterzion_ebikes — but make sure you check when spring break is, especially in California, and avoid those weeks if you can! Otherwise it’ll be a LOT busier than this. 👉 If you’re passionate about sustainable travel, avoiding crowds & e-biking, follow @tiltedmap for more! (We’re hosting another e-bike trip in Italy in 2025! 🇮🇹) —— PERSONAL: 🙏 I’m thankful that I get to get up every day and work on a business that I love and believe in — and that more and more I get to do it with the person I love. ❤️ (See yesterday’s photo post for a bit of our story!) 🦃 Personally, I’m more about the sides 🍠🥕and this year we’re hosting a vegan Friendsgiving here in Boston! (We’re not fully vegan — I guess you’d call us flexitarian? Plant-forward? 🌱 I don’t guarantee I’ll say “no”to anything, but I mostly eat plants for environmental, climate & health reasons. Anyone else?) #thanksgivingtravel #thanksgiving #thanksgivingmemes #travelmemes #holidaytravel #veganthanksgiving #wildlifeplanet #zionnationalpark #ebiketour 🔊Audio: it’s fitting for Thanksgiving that the original version of this audio is from an indigenous news network @nitv_au 🙏
Hello! We’re Ketti and Emanuele. We haven’t Hello! We’re Ketti and Emanuele. We haven’t introduced ourselves in a while, so we wanted to do a little catch-up today. A few fun facts you might not know👇 🇮🇹🇺🇸 Emanuele (Lele for short) is from Italy, and I’m from Montana (USA). 🇨🇳 We met playing capoeira (a Brazilian martial art!) in Shanghai in 2015, when we both lived in China! 👩🏼‍💻 I (Ketti) started Tilted Map back in 2019 as a sustainable travel blog. My background is in journalism. 🎥 Lele has been making videos as a hobby since before we met, and this year, he’s been getting involved with TiltedMap! He now makes a lot of our reels you see here… and you’ll be seeing him more! ⚡️ He’s also an energy engineer! But more of a chatter than most engineers I know. ;) 🎬 We have a YouTube channel! It’s all about sustainable travel & reviews of sustainable products. 🚐 In 2020, we converted in a 1996 Chevy van together. His idea. Never again. 🚙 After we met in China, we traveled together full-time for 6 months “to get to know each other.” Let me tell you, if you live in a mini van with someone for 2 months in New Zealand 🇳🇿, you know whether it’ll work or not! 🇮🇹 After that, we moved to Italy, where I learned Italian (I’m actually fluent now!) and went to grad school. 👩🏼‍🎓 My master’s degree is in Sustainable Business & Energy… but when I finished, I knew I didn’t want to be a business consultant… 💚 …So I went back to writing about travel, adding in everything I’d learned about sustainability. That’s when Tilted Map was born! 💍 We got married in Milan in 2017! I wore a green dress (not as some kind of eco statement, but because I loved it & was never all that into the white dress idea!) 🤸‍♂️ We both love the outdoors & anything that gets us moving. We still play capoeira & teach it to a small group of students here in Boston! 🚴‍♂️ This year, we started leading e-bike trips in a very rural part of Italy – it’s been an amazing experience! We’ll host another one in 2025, so stay tuned for that! Thank you for being here! #sustainabletravel #coupletravel #travelcouple #coupleswhotravel #contentcreatorlife #travelstories
No, my husband doesn’t sponsor my blog, but I di No, my husband doesn’t sponsor my blog, but I did hire him. 🤭 (Here’s how I actually make money👇) I’m 100% aware that most people have NO idea how Instagrammers or travel blogs make money… but is THIS really the way to ask it? 🙄 (Yes, this is a real quote from a man I’d just met.) My main REVENUE sources as a blogger, if you’re wondering how it works: 🔗 Affiliates - AKA, when you click a link to buy a product or book a hotel on my website, or here in my stories, I usually earn a commission on that sale – at no extra costs to you. - It’s usually cheaper way for companies to find new customers this way (vs. through traditional ads), so it costs them less and the commissions are built into pricing. - Clearly marked with the AFFILIATE hashtag. (Legally required, and mine always are.) 💰Sponsored Content - I work with brands & destinations that *share my focus on sustainability* to help them find a new audience - eg: see my reel yesterday about my favorite travel clothes. (And if you want to support me, leave a comment, share it, or save it!) - Clearly marked with the AD hashtag. (Again, legal and ethical!) 📢 Ads - On my website, I make a few cents per pageview (exactly like the ads you see on most news websites). - Same goes for views of videos on this & all the other video platforms – creators get a small cut of the ad revenue. It’s not much, but it can add up. - This is the smallest category for me, but every content creator’s business is different! And YES, you will be seeing more of my husband, Emanuele, on this channel! He’s joining the business to make more videos because this little blog on sustainable travel is WORKING. 🔥 👉 New here? Follow for more realistic sustainable travel inspiration, and ethical shopping ideas! #womeninmalefields #creatoreconomy #travelbloggervibes #shetravelz #thetravelwomen #traveldames #travelette #womenwhotravel #femaletravelbloggers #girlswhotravelsolo
Are you going somewhere cold this winter? 🥶 SAV Are you going somewhere cold this winter? 🥶 SAVE this for my mini guide to packing light for winter travel: ↓ —— New here? Hi, I’m Ketti! @tiltedmap helps you find more sustainable travel options anywhere & more ethical shopping choices. Follow if you’re passionate about sustainability! —— #ad I’ve been wearing @UnboundMerino for 3 years & recommend them to everyone! This is how I travel carryon-only with their clothes in the winter: 🍰 DRESS IN LAYERS - Light layers are your friend! They’re versatile & give you more options with less bulk. 👖 MIX & MATCH - Don’t pack any item of clothing that only works with 1 other item. Think of a capsule wardrobe for travel – a small collection of interchangeable items you can mix & match.   ❄️ PACKING LIST FOR WINTER TRIPS - 2 pairs of pants (notice I’m wearing the same jeans in the whole video?), - 1 pair of merino leggings to wear under the pants for warmth, - 3 long-sleeve merino tops that ALL go with BOTH pairs of pants, - 1 warm zip sweater to layer on top 🔁 REPEAT OUTFITS - This is the 1st point on my full Guide to Packing Light on the blog – because it’s the one most people REALLY need help with! - Use your trip as an opportunity to let go of the idea that you need to wear something different every. single. day. 🧺 DO LAUNDRY ON THE ROAD (OR DON’T). - One of my favorite things about @UnboundMerino ? Their clothes DO NOT SMELL even after wearing them for WEEKS at a time. (Yes, I’ve done it many times. I’m amazed by how long it takes before they get stinky.) ✌️EVERYTHING IS TEMPORARY. - Packing light can be scary at first. It requires rethinking habits that are culturally ingrained, and that’s not easy. - Feeling awkward about repeating outfits? It’s okay & it’s temporary. (You’ll be back to your full closet soon.) - And who knows, you might even start loving the freedom of less stuff. 💰 DISCOUNT - @unboundmerino is having their ONLY sale of the year now thru Dec. 2 with up to 40% off - And save 10% anytime with my affiliate promo code TILTEDMAP #packinglight #wintertravel #packinglist #wintervacation #traveltips #packingtips #merinowool #winteroutfit #unboundmerino
🇪🇸💍 Our first Spanish wedding! Weddings a 🇪🇸💍 Our first Spanish wedding! Weddings abroad are a fun way to get to know a different culture. I’m lucky to have been to several in Italy, China, Belgium and now Spain! Highlights (iPhone) & landscapes (Sony mirrorless), including: 💋 “Puedes besar al novio” = “You may now kiss THE GROOM.” How cool is that?? I felt so seen hearing a ceremony where the woman got to be the protagonist, just because. 🍸Insight: vermouth is a perfectly excellent beverage without being mixed with anything but an olive 🫒 + orange 🍊 slice (red vermouth) or a lemon 🍋 slice (white vermouth). How did I not know about this? Not sure, but I do know what I’ll be sipping next summer. 🦐 The FOOD. I studied abroad in Spain years ago, and all I can say is “I forgot.” 🧳 Having my luggage lost for 3 days (on a DIRECT FLIGHT from Rome, after the airline forced me to check my CARRY-ON SIZED suitcase) = being a wedding guest with zero makeup or jewelry for the first time. 🚫💄😳 And guess what? I had a great time anyway, and no one thought I looked weird. Or least they didn’t say so. Have you been to a wedding abroad? #europeantravel #willtravelforfood #foodoftheworld #foodieparadise #bucketlisttravel #travelwithpurpose #valencia #spanishwedding
Would you enjoy a boat trip like this, or just wan Would you enjoy a boat trip like this, or just want to get back to dry land? The swarms of dolphins (herds? packs?) were gorgeous, too, but we didn’t find any whales on this tour… we just got really wet. And that’s okay! Some whale watching outfitters bait wildlife to make sure tourists get the experience they “paid” for – which teaches those wild animals to depend on humans, and that never goes well for them. I’m happy to not see whales and just let them be. ↓ Mini guide to visiting the Azores with the hope of seeing whales: 🐳 WHAT KIND OF WHALES? - Dozens of species of whales & dolphins pass through the Azores at different times of the year! (See below.) - The Azores are MOST famous for sperm whales. 📆 WHEN TO GO: - March - June: Spring is when the biggest whales (blue whales, fin whales & sei whales – all endangered species) migrate from their tropical winter homes to the North Atlantic (around Iceland & Norway) for summer. They pass through the Azores on the way, making spring the best time to spot them! - Spring is also the best time to see the more common minke, humpback & sperm whales. - Summer: The best season to see dolphins! You’ll find the greatest variety of species (bottlenose, spotted & Risso’s dolphins) and might see them with their babies, too. - Fall: Definitely not peak whale season in the Azores, but you can still see lots of dolphins (as we did in September!) & even sperm whales. 🚤 WHALE WATCHING TOUR AGENCIES: - We went with @picosdeaventura , a local company that’s been around for decades. It was a fun experience despite the waves – but don’t expect to stay dry! - In Terceira, you can compare options from the line of local shops by the city beach in Angra do Heroísmo. 🐋 TRIVIA: - It was legal to hunt whales in Portugal until 1984. Whale watching has since (thankfully!) taken over that industry. - Many swimming holes on Terceira (like the one in my reel that starts with the map – 2 days ago) are former whale hunting ports. Check the reels tab @tiltedmap for our mini Sustainable Travel Guides to Terceira & follow for more! #dolphins #oceananimals #iloveazores #naturetravel #sustainabletravel #visitazores #portugal
What’s YOUR favorite color? Mine is *this* shade What’s YOUR favorite color? Mine is *this* shade of fresh, healthy, glowing green. ↓ Our mini sustainable travel guide to Terceira Island, part 2 (#ad): —— New here? Hi, I’m Ketti! @tiltedmap helps you find more sustainable travel options everywhere. Follow if you’re passionate about sustainability! —— ✈️ HOW TO GET THERE? - Direct flights from the East Coast in new, fuel-efficient airplanes with @sataazoresairlines_official : - from JFK, Boston & Toronto → Terceira - from JFK, Boston, Toronto & Montreal → Ponta Delgada (the Azores’ largest city, on São Miguel island) - Summer direct flights (hopefully returning in 2025🤞) from Oakland, California → Terceira ⏱️ HOW LONG TO SPEND? - You *could* see the major sites in Terceira in 3-4 days, if you pack a lot in, but it’s easy to spend 7-10 days (as I did). - Terceira is becoming known as a slow travel & honeymoon destination. Taking it slow is a good vibe for the island. 🇵🇹 TOUR GUIDE: - Our local guide on Terceira, Pedro, is an EXCELLENT storyteller. (@pedro.silva_tourguide ) I’d recommend booking at least a day-trip with him for a primer on local geography, history & culture. (→ book through the 🔗 in my Terceira guide blog post.) 📆 WHEN TO GO? - June - September = the busy season in the Azores. But when I was there in early Sept, it already felt quiet. - Pedro suggested May/ June or October for good weather + fewer tourists. 🌆 WHERE TO STAY? Terceira has 30 small villages and 2 main towns: - Angra do Heroísmo = the main hub for history, monuments (like the famous Spanish fort, Fort São João Baptista), a beautiful port where whale watching tours depart & a small but lovely city beach. - Praia da Vitória = Terceira’s beach town (praia means beach in Portuguese!), but w/o many historical monuments. It’s also where cruise ships dock when visiting Terceira (in Feb, March, April, Oct & Nov). 1️⃣ See Part 1 for Terceira HOTELS, ACTIVITIES & RESTAURANTS LOTS more tips in my 2 blog posts on the Azores → 🔗 in b!o @tiltedmap 👉 Have YOU been to the Azores, or do you want to go? #azoresairlines #experientialtravel #iloveazores #europeantravel #sustainabletravel #visitazores #portugal
Follow on Instagram

  • Blog
  • About
  • Contact
  • Work With Us
  • Privacy Policy
YouTube YouTubeInstagram InstagramFacebook FacebookPinterest PinterestTikTok TikTok

© 2014 - 2024 Tilted Map and Ketti Wilhelm Communications LLC • All rights reserved

Scroll to top
  • Sustainable Travel
    • Climate + Travel
    • Hotels & Places to Stay
    • Trains & Ferries
    • Packing
    • Experiences
    • How to Book
  • Product Reviews
    • Travel Gear
    • Lower-Waste Everything
    • Plastic-Free Skincare & Beauty
    • Small Businesses
    • Top Products ✨
  • Home 🏠
  • About Me 👋
  • Italy Trip 2024! 🚴‍♀️
  • Destination Map 🗺️
  • Index & Search 🔎
TiltedMap.com uses cookies to function. 🍪 By using this site, you're acknowledging you're okay with that.Got itPrivacy policy