Rachael Marie Collins

Sep 2, 2024 | escapeartist.com | Paul Benjamin Osterlund |Rachael Marie Collins |Joel Nagel |Tiphini Axtell

For most of 2023, my bedroom window looked out onto a 30-foot-tall, blue-gray mural of the heroic Ghost of Kyiv. Word of the flying ace’s exploits spread like wildfire in the days after Russia’s late February 2022 invasion. He was said to have downed six Russian aircraft as enemy forces attempted to take the capital.

Aug 30, 2024 | escapeartist.com | Paul Benjamin Osterlund |Rachael Marie Collins |Joel Nagel |Sean Murphy

One evening late last year, my husband, our three teen children and I found ourselves trudging up a mountain of sand in remote Egypt led by a local man named Fahmi. If I hadn’t been there to see it all happen, I might’ve wondered, how did we get here? We’d left our home in Santa Fe six months before to embark on a family gap year. My husband and I, both in our 40s, had grown tired of our work-life imbalance.

Aug 22, 2024 | escapeartist.com | Paul Benjamin Osterlund |Rachael Marie Collins |Joel Nagel |Sean Murphy

Saudi Arabia is often thought of as backwards, and mostly sand—it even has a district called the Empty Quarter. But a multi-billion dollar push by the government of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman hopes to change that. The early signs are good, as tourist visits and spending ticked up last year. Dozens of influencers have passed through on Riyadh’s dime and highlighted some fascinating places, like UNESCO-designated Hegra and the historic Red Sea port of Yanbu.

Aug 19, 2024 | escapeartist.com | Paul Benjamin Osterlund |Rachael Marie Collins |Joel Nagel |Sean Murphy

There are just ten short weeks before the 2024 presidential election. On November 5th, America will elect its 47th president in what has, up to now, been one of the more dramatic, chaotic, and downright bizarre national political battles we’ve seen in decades. Regardless of the outcome, it’s that time again, when people on both sides of the political aisle begin making that solemn vow to move to a different country if their party and candidate loses the election.

Aug 15, 2024 | escapeartist.com | Paul Benjamin Osterlund |Rachael Marie Collins |Joel Nagel |Sean Murphy

You’ve probably seen that iconic Santorini photo in which a young couple smiles for a romantic sunset selfie overlooking the Greek Island’s white and blue homes —as hundreds of other visitors do just the same thing. It’s summer high season again, and travel hotspots across Europe and beyond are feeling the heat of tourist overcrowding. In Santorini, the irony is that while the island throngs with visitors into the early evening, it’s rather quiet once the cruise ships set sail as darkness falls.