wandering educators

Jessie: The Story Behind Wandering Educators Travel Community

By: Author Lillie Marshall

Posted on Published: January 18, 2011  - Last updated: December 3, 2021

TeachingTraveling.com : Hip hip hooray for our esteemed guest today, Dr. Jessie Voigts of the wildly successful teaching-traveling community, Wandering Educators.com . Welcome, Jessie!

Jessie: I’m excited to share our resource for global educators, Wandering Educators, with the readers of Teaching Traveling. I’d also love to share what I’ve learned on my journeys about teaching, living in different cultures, and the power of culture in shaping worldviews.

TT: Excellent! Please begin by telling us about WanderingEducators.com.

J: An international community of traveling educators, Wandering Educators is a resource for discovering extraordinary travel destinations, fascinating people, and global artists and photographers, among our many published articles. Wandering Educators is the largest source of travel guide reviews on the internet.

Lastly, WanderingEducators.com is the largest source of international jobs, internships, and academic conferences for educators around the world.

We have almost daily Teaching and Traveling job postings , and a growing number of TESOL opportunities . We also have great ESL articles .

Who is a wandering educator? Our audience is diverse: travelers who are K-12 teachers, homeschoolers, students, higher education professors and administrators, and life learners… all are welcome!

TT: Fantastic. How did you come to begin this website?

J: Creating a resource for global educators is the culmination of an exciting and lifelong journey. My family raised me to believe in the importance of travel and international experiences.

When I was in 7th grade, we hosted a young girl from Japan, through our local 4-H club. The next year, I went and visited her family for the summer. It changed my life. From then on, I was excited to learn and experience as much as I could about the world.

In college, I studied international economics, and had a chance to go work in Japan for a year. Living overseas for an extended period of time was an extraordinary and extremely impactful experience.

One of the most important things that I learned in this year overseas was that we are all teachers – whether small children helping with language, or the shopkeeper who helps figure out what you want and teaches you about the culture and the roots of the products you are buying. Be open to learning from everyone, especially while you’re in a different culture.

After I returned, I went for a Master’s Degree in Cross-cultural Communication. I wrote my Master’s Thesis on intercultural adaptation, and worked at Michigan State University’s Study Abroad office. I LOVED this job! It was amazing to touch so many people’s lives, and to facilitate their intercultural learning experiences.

One of the most important things I learned from working in Study Abroad is the power of culture to truly shape an individual. You can prepare someone for being in a different culture all you want, but until they are actually experiencing another culture, no true intercultural learning can take place.

I worked in London one summer, directing MSU’s Summer London Study Abroad Programs. This, more than anything, led me to truly believe in the transformative power of living and learning in a different culture. I saw firsthand the value of study abroad and international education, with a large number of college students.

I received my PhD in International Education from the University of Minnesota. This was an incredible experience. I learned from many educators, including Dr. Michael Paige, who wrote the book on adaptation and intercultural sensitivity; Dr. Josef Mestenhauser, who has changed the face of international education both here in the US and abroad; Dr. John Cogan, who taught the importance of internationalizing the school curriculum; and Dr. Kay Thomas, who led by example, in that she welcomed thousands of international students to the University of Minnesota.

The most important thing I learned from being with educators and students from around the world was that true intercultural learning can take place at any time, and anywhere. You’ve just got to be open to it.

Although several disabilities have precluded my working in international education in a university environment as I had planned, I wanted to make an impact in the field of international education. Family discussions about life goals narrowed our main priorities as travel and intercultural learning. We decided to create a website for international educators, and thus Wandering Educators was born.

It’s truly become a family business, with our 8-year old daughter writing on the site (and learning through travel), as well. We’ve been lucky enough to travel and share our experiences on the site.

We’ve also shared thousands of great resources for travel and international education, from jobs to lovely places to stay and learn, all around the world. It’s incredible, the people we’ve met, and their lifework that we’ve been lucky enough to share with our readers.

TT: What a journey. What advice do you have for prospective teacher-travelers?

J: One of the most important things I’ve learned from Wandering Educators is that when you travel, it’s the people that matter, not the place. Live with and learn from locals. Find local businesses before you go, or while you’re there. Support people’s passions, whether it is making textiles, sharing their love of their home through being a tour guide, or cooking. It makes a difference.

TT: Very true. How can interested folks use and become involved with Wandering Educators?

J: We’ve found a wide array of extremely knowledgeable editors, each sharing their worldviews and expertise. If someone has a passion about a national, geographic, or topical area of interest, and are interested in sharing it with our readers, please think about becoming a WE Editor! Email me at: jessie [at] wanderingeducators dot com.

We LOVE our editors. We have over 35 editors from around the world, on a variety of topics, from ESL to Pet Travel to Living in Italy Editors.

There is *always* room for more editors at our table, the more resources we share, the better!

What do we need? A regular commitment to share your expertise on the site, articles of at least 400 words, and photos are also helpful to attract and maintain readership.

I am also always looking for book reviews – if you’ve got a great book you’d like to share with our readers, please contact me. We’ve also had many guest posts, from readers that want to share their intercultural experiences. I feel honored that we can share the worldview of so many creative and intelligent people on Wandering Educators.

TT: Great! What closing thoughts do you have for us?

J: Although international education and travel have been two of the main tenets of my life, with Wandering Educators we can reach a larger number of global educators than I can by myself. By sharing travel resources, books, jobs, and the joys of living an intercultural life, I hope that we’ve made an impact on international education.

To all of the explorers of the world, I suggest: GO! Learn. Explore. Be open to what others can teach you. Be gentle with yourself.

And love! Love what you’re doing, where you are, the people you are with. You’ll change yourself, others… and the world.

TT: Thanks so much, Jessie! You and your site are such wonderful contributions to the teaching-traveling community!

The author, Lillie Marshall, is a 6-foot-tall National Board Certified Teacher of English from Boston who has been a public school educator since 2003. She launched TeachingTraveling.com in 2010 to share expert global education resources, and over 1.6 million readers have visited over the past decade. Lillie also runs AroundTheWorld L.com Travel and Life Blog, and DrawingsOf.com for educational art. Do stay in touch via subscribing to her monthly newsletter, and following @WorldLillie on social media!

  Check this box to receive email notification of follow-up comments!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

ikaistyawati

Sunday 8th of February 2015

its lovely pictures,,I wish I could be there,,here I Indonesia there are some beautiful object which is very unique culture as well,,please come and visit Samarinda.I love to be your guide.

Wednesday 19th of January 2011

It's great to know how Jessie got started in her career and with her great website which so many of us enjoy.

Wandering Educators

Tuesday 18th of January 2011

thanks, lillie, for sharing our site with your readers! we hope many of them click through (welcome, adam!) and get involved. the best thing i've EVER done is to travel, and learn. :)

Wow, what a great interview Lillie and Jessie. Very inspirational for both teachers and travelers. Sounds like Jessie has led an amazing life, and as someone who is still pondering his future as both a teacher and a traveler, I am eager to check out his site. Great job!!

An Interview with Jessie Voigts of Wandering Educators

What path led you to the position you have now? What's your background?

I’ve always loved travel and learning about other cultures – it’s a family tradition! From international exchanges as a teen to working overseas and in study abroad (and directing Michigan State University’s Summer Study Abroad Programs in London),  travel has been an integral part of my life.

But something was missing for me – I wanted to dig deeper into why people travel,  about the changes that people experienced after living abroad, and how intercultural adjustment could be understood and made easier. I discovered the PhD program in Comparative and International Development Education (CIDE) at the University of Minnesota, and packed my bags! I learned about Bennett’s model of Intercultural Sensitivity and so much more, from thought leaders in the field. I thrived in such an engaging, intellectual, intercultural atmosphere (and yes, Minnesota winters are extremely cold…but it is an incredibly diverse and exciting place, worth freezing for).

Because I have CFIDS, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, I am not able to work full time. My husband and I pondered ways to include my experience, education, and passion for teaching about the world in a project that we could both work on–and include our daughter (now 18). He’s a marketing guru and email deliverability expert, and has taught classes, written books, and helped small and large businesses for decades. We combined my love of sharing the world and his business experience and started WanderingEducators.com in 2008. It’s a travel library – a community of global educators, sharing travel experiences. We love it.

How much of your income would you say comes from travel writing and blogging? In your opinion, where do you see the industry heading in the next few years?

When we first got into this business, we made an exceptional living from affiliate marketing. As everyone knows, changes in the way the search engines rank sites have made search engine marketing unpredictable. We’ve moved toward a more corporate partnership model, which has less dependency upon our search engine rankings and focuses more on the genuine relationships that we build with our core audience. That happens through social media, direct interactions with different organizations in our niche, and, of course, being a trusted resource for our readers.

The travel blogging industry is expanding exponentially and gaining credibility, while at the same time, the field is becoming SO crowded. We all need to take this responsibility seriously. It is more cost-effective for destinations, service providers, and product manufacturers to work with travel bloggers than traditional advertising channels (e.g., tv, print, and celebrity endorsements). Travel bloggers see themselves as independent journalists, but to make a living, they are going to have to become partners with these destinations, service providers, product manufacturers, and other travel bloggers. They will need to find new ways to make money and grow their audience, including creating their own products and books.

What can you share about SEO and social media promotion? What do the most successful sites like yours do to get and maintain good exposure?

SEO comes down to onsite and offsite optimization. You need to do both to succeed.

Social Media promotion is about building relationships. It’s all about your personality, which can’t be effectively outsourced. There is not enough time in the day to be truly effective in all of the major social media channels that are out there. You need to pick and choose the ones that you want to pursue (and become good at). Focus on one or two, build relationships, and be honest and genuine.

The most successful sites do well at this. They frequently refer their readers to other great sites, write quality guest posts, work together on projects, and are flexible–adapting to change well. The key thing is to not isolate yourself, but to connect with other like-minded people, learn from each other, and work together. Find a synergy with people...one phone call, and you’ll know right away who you want to partner with and create something together.

Jessie Voigts is a mom who has a PhD in International Education and is constantly looking for ways to increase intercultural understanding, especially with kids (it’s never too young to start!). She has lived and worked in Japan and London, and traveled around the world. Jessie and her family live on a lake in Michigan, enjoying the summers swimming, kayaking, and sailing, and planning travel for the winter months! Jessie is the publisher of Wandering Educators, a travel site for global educators .

In addition to writing about learning and exploring the world, she is passionate about sharing stories of family travel and travel with disabilities – her work has appeared on countless travel sites.

Interview conducted in April, 2021 by Tim Leffel

No related posts.

About Author

Tim is the author of Travel Writing 2.0 as well as several other successful books. His work has been recognized by SATW, NATJA, and the Solas Awards. He has contributed to more than 50 publications as a freelancer and is the editor of five websites and blogs, including the "Best online travel magazine" and the popular Cheapest Destinations Blog , established in 2003.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed .

• *JOB BOARD*
• WHY WORK WITH REACH TO TEACH?
• WHY USE A RECRUITER?
• Privacy Policy
• TAIWAN – FAQS
• TEACHING LOCATIONS IN TAIWAN
• TAIWAN COUNTRY GUIDE
• TAIWAN TEACHER REVIEWS
• FAQs – TEACHING IN KOREA
• TEACHING LOCATIONS IN KOREA
• KOREA COUNTRY GUIDE
• KOREAN PRIVATE SCHOOL APPLICATION PROCESS
• TEFL DIRECTORY
• ADVERTISE ON OUR JOB BOARD

Wandering Educators: A Global Resource for Teachers and Travelers

• by Carrie Kellenberger
• in TEACHERS ABROAD BLOG
• on January 21, 2011

An international community of traveling educators, Wandering Educators is an online resource for discovering extraordinary travel destinations, fascinating people, and artists, photographers, teachers and travelers on a global level.  With over 35 talented editors from nations around the world, Wandering Educators is proud to be one of the largest sources of travel guide reviews on the internet, offering a massive amount of information on intercultural and travel-related areas. Furthermore, WE posts information on international jobs, internships, and academic conferences for educators around the globe.

Who is a wandering educator? Global travelers or educators in the ESL industry, gap year programs, student ambassador, public or private school teacher, student, professor, administrator or life learner are all members of Wandering Educator’s diverse audience.

Reach To Teach is a proud partner of Wandering Educators. As such, we are putting a call out to all of our Reach To Teach teachers who want to share their experiences, activities, travel adventures or geographic places of interest. Furthermore, we urge you to stop by Wandering Educators for a look around. Contact [email protected] for more information.

On a personal note: I have been a Wandering Educators editor for almost two years and I have really enjoyed contributing articles to the site and meeting other educators from around the world. Feel free to read up on some of my ESL articles .

Tags: ESL resources , global educators

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Yes, add me to your mailing list.

SEARCH OUR SITE

Job opportunities.

Click here to complete your application to teach abroad with Reach To Teach.

More About Us!

• JOBS – APPLY TODAY!
• OUR PROGRAMS
• PROGRAM FAQs
• TEACHER VIDEOS
• INTERVIEWS WITH TEACHERS
• ADVERTISE ON THE REACH TO TEACH JOB BOARD

Need a TEFL/TESOL Certificate? Learn More Here!

Welcome to Our Community Blog!

Check out our community blog.

• Unique Experiences in Seoul That RTT Teachers Recommend
• The Ultimate Thailand Bucket List – What Will You Try?
• Moon Festival – How Do Asian Countries Celebrate?
• The Differences In Teaching In Taiwan Compared To South Korea – 2023
• 8 Compelling Reasons For Teachers To Move To Taiwan

Learn About Hot Jobs When We Publish Them – Sign Up For Our Newsletter

Sign up for our newsletter.

Sign up today to receive our Job Board updates and for information on teaching abroad with Reach To Teach Recruiting.

We use Elastic Email as our marketing automation service. By submitting this form, you agree that the information you provide will be transferred to Elastic Email for processing in accordance with their Terms of Use and Privacy Policy .

Search Our Site

• Seoul, South Korea
• Taipei, Taiwan

Reach to Teach Recruiting

©2005-2024 Reach To Teach Recruiting

@wanderingeducators

Wandering Educators

Why Teachers Are Natural-Born Leaders

Read This Adorable, Informative, Delicious Book: The Soil in Jackie's Garden

Changing Cities, Changing Countries, and Changing Ourselves

Traveling Slow

Connections and Community: Inspiration Through Music

The One Thing That’s Even More Important Than Teaching Curriculum

Through the Eyes of an Educator: The Long Game

Eternal Sunshine Of A Spotless Mind: Why it is worth seeing

Read This: Keith Taylor's All the Time You Want: Selected Poems, 1977 - 2017

Read This: Secret Michigan: A Guide to the Weird, Wonderful, and Obscure

Music for Change, Resilience, and Hope in this Season of Spring

Please don’t sugarcoat history

Read the book that will change your life: After Everything

Through the Eyes of an Educator: Bridges, Change, and Transitions

Cicero Learning: An Improved Ancient Educational Model For Today's Kids

D-Day Landings: A Travel Guide to Normandy’s Beaches and Battlegrounds: Sainte-Mère-Église

Music for Wisdom, Hope, and Connection

Through the Eyes of an Educator: Inspiration is Everywhere

Travel your home: How to experience your city in a new light

Watch This: Baigal Nuur - Lake Baikal

Music for living through changing times

Northwest Battle Buddies and the Transformative Power of Service Dogs in Veteran Travel

Through the Eyes of an Educator: To Thrive

Music for December, a time of hope and reflection

Lillie’s Loved Books for November-December

Read This: Agricultural Treasures Guidebook

A Taste of Viennese Christmas

The Crown Jewel of the Great Lakes: Mackinac Island (aka Turtle Island)

Through the Eyes of an Educator: Shine Your Light

Redefining Aid: Unpacking the Insights of ‘Refugees, Self-Reliance, Development: A Critical History’ by Evan Easton-Calabria

The Beauty of Traveling in Games 2023

The Best, Most Unique Gifts: Xplorer Maps

Invisible Struggles: The impact of COVID-19 on Migrant and Refugee Communities

What To Do, See, And Eat In Frankenmuth, Michigan’s Little Bavaria

Farm to Table: How Sorgho Squad Brings Sustainability Education to Life

Music for Peace, Reflection, and a Cup of Tea

She Belongs: The Integration of Female Migrants and Refugees

Through the Eyes of an Educator: A Path Forward

Forth Valley Welcome: Promoting Inclusivity and Community Spirit for New Scots

This Week! Titanic the Musical in Theaters is a Must-Watch

All You Need to Know to Teach Dia de los Muertos, Day of the Dead

Patricia Leavy’s Second Must-Read Book of The Year

Insider Overview: Ukrainian migrant integration in Scotland

Autumn's Music: Reflection, Community, and Connection

Children’s Human Rights: An Overview

Through the Eyes of an Educator: Life lessons from a paddleboard

Read This: Fierceness, Persistence, and Finding Joy in Brave-ish

Meadows Museum’s Spanish Light: Sorolla in American Collections

Celtic Colours: Celebrating Music and Community

Read This: 100 Things to Do in Holland, Michigan Before You Die

Human Rights and Migrant Integration: An Overview

Through the Eyes of an Educator: The Waiting Game – 5 minutes and forever

Cheers! We love the Chicago Brew Pass

Want to Connect with Locals? Take a Class

Music for Mist and Brightness

Moscow’s best free city tour

I love Moscow – this charming metropolis, its people, its history and its unique cityscape. I would like to share my passion for this city with you. It is my job to show you the most exciting corners of this fascinating metropolis. That’s why, as a travel specialist and your private tour guide Moscow in Russia, I organize a guided free city tour Moscow – so that everyone, regardless of their budget, would be able to enjoy the insider’s view of Moscow.

You get to see what only Moscow residents know and what other tourist guides keep from you. I am a licensed travel specialist in Russia and would like you to enjoy all facets of the capital of the largest country in the world, without demanding any money from you. I’ll show you the city on my free Moscow walking tour for 1.5-hours on foot.

Everything you need to know:

• My tours take place daily by arrangement, I am the only English-speaking licensed tourist guide Moscow, who offers a free city tour.
• My 1.5-hour free tours Moscow do not cost you a cent, I also offer other great paid tours as well.
• I am an experienced local, I make the tours informative, but at the same time relaxed and not off the plane.

Free Tours Moscow – Daily

My free tours Moscow city starts on Slavonic Square (Kitay-Gorod Metro Station), passes the world-famous St. Basil’s Cathedral, which was built by Ivan the Terrible on the south side of Red Square in the 16th century and where the tsars were once crowned. Then it goes across the Red Square at the Lenin Mausoleum, the luxury department store GUM and with a view of the Kremlin towards the historical museum. Of course, you will also learn more about the stories that once happened behind the thick walls of the Kremlin – from the Tsars and Napoleon to Stalin. Then we continue through the idyllic Alexander Garden.

An advance booking is required!

Practical information:

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 1.5 hours Price: Free Language: English

«First acquaintance with Moscow» – a 2.5-hour city tour in the center of Moscow

This Moscow city tour starts on the Theater Square, past Lubyanka Square and the KGB-building, then through Kitay Gorod district and Varvarka Street, past the world-famous St. Basil’s Cathedral. Then it goes across Zarjadje Park, over Red Square at the Lenin Mausoleum, the GUM-department store and towards the Historical Museum. We walk through the Alexander Garden.

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 2.5 hours Price: 17 $ Students and children: 6 $ Language: English

A 3.5-hour car/bus tour of Moscow.

This is the best tour of Moscow city as all the important sights are visited. I am your Moscow city guide who will walk you through the city explaining the charming history of the city. This tour begins with picking you up from the hotel. 3 breaks are offered for photographing.

First, we will visit the most famous riverside streets and bridges in the center of the city with the most beautiful views of the Kremlin and the Moskva River (e.g. the Kremlin embankment and the Great Stone Bridge).

The first photo break is made at the Cathedral of Christ the Savior. We then pass by the district with numerous museums, Prechistinka Street and the district with numerous medical areas.

We again stop at the Novodevichy Convent, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the other bank of the Moskva River to click pictures.

Then we visit “Sparrow Hills” where you can enjoy a bird’s eye view of the city of Moscow from the observation deck. Then there are the skyscrapers of Moscow-City, the Kutuzov avenue, the New Arbat, Tverskaya Street, the world-famous Bolshoi Theater, the KGB building and Varvarka Street. Here there are ample spots to click pictures.

We then drive past the Kremlin again and finally reach Red Square. We take a short tour of Red Square and say goodbye in the Alexander Garden.

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 3.5 hours Price for a group: 170-200 $ (depending on the number of travelers) Language: English

Metro tour – daily

Palaces for ordinary people – that was what Stalin promised to the people when the construction of the Moscow Metro began between the World Wars. The communist dictator hadn’t promised too much. No other underground system in the world can boast such spectacular architecture – chandeliers, decorations, stucco, paintings on the walls – each station is individually designed. No wonder that Moscow residents love their metro. I will guide you through the bustle of one of the busiest subways in the world and show you the most beautiful stations Moscow city has.

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 2 hours Price: 21 $ Students and children: 17 $ Language: English Included in the price: Metro tickets / the guided tour

Tour of Communist Moscow – every day

After the Communist October Revolution in 1918, Moscow became the capital of the Soviet Empire and was the center of socialist orbit for more than 70 years. This left its mark on Moscow, even if the USSR disintegrated more than a quarter of a century ago. The city streets are full of remnants of the communist regime and the Cold War. This is a walking tour where I will show you the most exciting places in Soviet Moscow: from the notorious KGB headquarters, also known as Lubyanka to the Karl Marx Monument to small hidden remains from the time of hammer and sickle. You will also learn about Stalin’s Great Terror political campaign and the system of the GULAG and how the USSR, the communist Russian republic, became modern Russia.

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 2 hours Price: 21 $ Students and children: 17 $ Language: English Included in the price: the guided tour

Alternative Moscow Tour – daily

Explore the unseen Moscow with your Moscow private guide and discover a range of sights during this alternative walking tour.  Away from the main tourist spots (in the central district of Kitay-Gorod), just a short walk from Red Square and St. Basil’s Cathedral, you suddenly find yourself in one of the trendiest districts of Moscow. This place not only has trendy cafes and green squares, but here you can see the most beautiful spray works (according to Albrecht Dürer), hangout-places of the youth and hipsters, as well as learn what Moscow looked like in the 19th century. Here you will also learn exciting and even bloody stories about famous gangsters, eccentric business people and legends like the wandering preacher Rasputin, who is known in Russia either as the “holy devil” or the mad monk. To learn a little more about Moscow’s culture, this is the tour for you. On my alternative tour, you will get to know Moscow away from the tourist hotspots. This tour is of 2 hours duration and you will experience the following on the tour:

• St. John’s Hill, a quiet oasis right in the center, where time has stopped as it did in pre-Communist times
• Khokhlovka Art Center, where Russian hipsters and street artists hang out
• Samoskvorechye District where you can see beautiful streets and hear stories from old Moscow

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 2 hours Price: 21 $ Students and children: 17 $ Language: English Included in the price: the guided tour / tram ticket

Kremlin tour – daily (closed on Thursday)

With its 20 towers and high walls, the Kremlin rises imposingly over Red Square. This world-famous fortress with its area of ​​28 hectares is home to over 800 years of Russian history. Described as the eighth wonder of the world, this historic fortress complex is the principal symbol of Russia that sits on the banks of the Moscow River. Today the Kremlin still harbors numerous secrets and has palaces and cathedrals, surrounded by Kremlin Wall. The current wall was constructed between the 15 th  and 16 th  centuries, but the original wall was made of wood around the year 1147. The Kremlin Wall became an important symbol of Moscow’s importance in the Russian Empire. This top tourist destination attracts millions of people every year and there are various sights to see. With my Kremlin tour, you will see the oldest square in the city in the heart of the Kremlin, the once largest cannon in the world and the scene of numerous dramas – from Ivan the Terrible and Napoleon to Stalin. You cannot miss this unique experience.

An advance booking and prepayment for tickets are required.

Time: by arrangement, daily (closed on Thursday) Duration: 2 hours Price on request Students and children: on request Language: English Included in the price: Kremlin tickets / the guided tour

Moscow pub crawl – Friday / Saturday

Experience the real nightlife of Moscow with my Moscow Pub Crawl and enjoy 4 pubs/bars plus 4 welcome shot drinks. Move from one bar to another and get to know travelers from around the world as well as the locals. Play fun adventure games and contests in addition to getting perks in the bars. Between the bars, move from one place to another on foot. The routes are organized as such that you will walk no more than 10 minutes between the bars. Visit the most exciting events, parties, concerts, and dance in the bars. Moscow Pub Crawl is a tour that you will never forget.

This tour runs every Friday and Saturday evening at 8 PM and you need to bring along your passport or an ID card, comfortable shoes, and wear smart casual clothes.

An advance booking and a small prepayment are required!

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 4 hours Price on request Language: English Included in the price: the guided tour, 4 shot drinks

1.5-hour boat trip on the Moskva River.

Taking a boat tour in Moscow on the Moskva River is a very pleasant experience. It allows you to know the city from a totally different perspective and admire the beautiful bridges. In this 1.5-hour river trip, you will sail past many beautiful sites in Moscow, so you can take the best photos to commemorate this day. The ship makes several stops on the way. The trip starts from the Ustinskiy Bridge near Sarjadje Park and ends at the Kiev train station.

On this Boat Trip, you can see sights such as: the former Imperial Education House, Sarjadje Park, the “flowing”, “floating” bridge, the most beautiful view of the Kremlin, the Great Stone Bridge, the legendary House on the Quay, the Christ the Savior Cathedral , the monument to Peter the Great on the ship, the central sports arena Luzhniki, the Sparrow Hills, 240 meters high Lomonosov University, the numerous architecturally spectacular skyscrapers of Moscow-City, the Novodevichy Convent, the building of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs etc.

Time: by arrangement, daily Duration: 1.5 hours Price on request Language: English

A military tour – riding on tanks in Stupino (Moscow region)

Russian Military is one of the largest military forces in the world formed in 1992. With my Military Tour experience what it likes to be in the Russian military, shooting guns, ride the Tank T-34 and various models of German tanks from the Second World War, as well as armored personnel carriers and vehicles. You will also shoot from the AK-47 and another combat weapon.

The tour will begin with your private tour guide Moscow in a Soviet army van accompanied with some tasty snacks and tea for a tasty start. Upon arriving, you will have to put on the army safety clothing and climb the Russian armored vehicles. The tour will take you on the noisy, smoky tank, driving through mud roads. All participants will get the chance to drive the tank which is coordinated by the Russian military.

Time: by arrangement, daily Price on request Language: English

Alexander Popov

Welcome to Russia! My name is Alexander, I was born in Moscow and I'm a passionate tour guide. I want to share my passion for Russia and my hometown with you. On my website you will find useful information to make your individual trip to Russia as interesting as possible.

Gorky Park and Sparrow Hills: Green Lungs, place to relax and meet

The travel voucher for the russia visa, you will also like, everything you need to know about russia: included..., traveling‌ ‌in‌ ‌russia‌ ‌–‌ ‌how‌ ‌safe‌ ‌it‌ ‌is‌..., choosing the best guide for a free and..., how do i exchange money in moscow, eating out in moscow, the best time to travel to russia, how do i get from moscow airports to..., the best taxi services in moscow, moscow’s top 13 – the main attractions of..., with sim card purchase in russia: use whatsapp,..., leave a comment cancel reply.

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

@2019-2020 - Moscow Voyager. Alexander Popov

We use cookies to provide you with a better experience. By continuing to use our site you accept our cookie policy. Accept Read More

• Connections and Community: Inspiration Through Music
• Through the Eyes of an Educator: The Long Game

Search form

The Best Ways to Learn a Language Abroad

Although it can be among the toughest things to do, learning a language can give individuals a sense of achievement like none other. A lot of work, patience, effort, and dedication goes into getting to grips with a new dialect, but it can be gratifying once it has been achieved.

• Read more about The Best Ways to Learn a Language Abroad
• Log in to post comments

Your Must-Read Guide: Bridging the Humor Barrier: Humor Competency Training in English Language Teaching

If you’re an English language educator , I’ve got the book for you . Humor is one of the most difficult things to teach in a different language—and this book helps you teach just that! Edited by educators John Rucynski, Jr. and Caleb Prichard , this is JUST the book you need to help your students navigate and understand humor.

• Read more about Your Must-Read Guide: Bridging the Humor Barrier: Humor Competency Training in English Language Teaching

2021 CARLA Summer Institute Program for Language Teachers

The Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) at the University of Minnesota has provided high-quality professional development for language teachers for over two decades. Launched in 1996, this internationally known program reflects CARLA's commitment to link research and theory with practical applications for the classroom. Each institute is highly interactive and includes discussion, hands-on activities, and networking.

• Read more about 2021 CARLA Summer Institute Program for Language Teachers

2020 CARLA Summer Institute Program for Language Teachers

It is time to sign up for a CARLA summer institute! CARLA offers a wide range of institutes targeted at foreign/world language, ESL/EFL, heritage language, and immersion educators from a variety of teaching levels and contexts. Each institute is highly interactive and includes discussion, hands-on activities, and networking. Join the more than 6,300 language educators who have participated in this acclaimed professional development program.

• Read more about 2020 CARLA Summer Institute Program for Language Teachers

How to Teach Languages Online

Learning how to teach languages online requires you to understand the human learning process. At any age, anyone can learn a foreign language. Learning, however, for children is far more natural than adults, as they rely on the deep motor area of their brain. This area acquires information quickly and works in combination with the hippocampus to memorize information–and thus enables language learning among kids.

• Read more about How to Teach Languages Online

Learning Literacy: How Teachers Can Affect Reading Skill in Low Socioeconomic Students

Educators know better than anyone: Not all students are created equal. A student’s interest and ability to gain skills and information are highly affected by that student’s home life — if parents or guardians aren’t engaged in their child’s education, the child likely won’t be an enthusiastic or effective learner. This is especially the case with fundamental skills that should be practiced early and often, like literacy.

• Read more about Learning Literacy: How Teachers Can Affect Reading Skill in Low Socioeconomic Students

Building Language Skills with a Foreign Penpal

Only 10 pieces of personal mail are received each year by the average American household. With that number including holiday cards and invitations, there isn’t much room left for letters. It is no longer commonplace for one to write or receive a handwritten letter in the mail, but many believe it is a beautiful gesture.

• Read more about Building Language Skills with a Foreign Penpal

2019 CFP: Society, Identity, and Transformation in Language Teacher Education

CFP: Society, Identity, and Transformation in Language Teacher Education 11th International Language Teacher Education Conference

May 30–June 1, 2019 The Graduate Hotel Minneapolis, MN

Call for Papers Deadline: January 18, 2019

• Read more about 2019 CFP: Society, Identity, and Transformation in Language Teacher Education

CFP: Society, Identity, and Transformation in Language Teacher Education

CFP: Society, Identity, and Transformation in Language Teacher Education Eleventh International Conference on Language Teacher Education

• Read more about CFP: Society, Identity, and Transformation in Language Teacher Education

With these learning practices, you'll never make ESL writing mistakes again

• Read more about With these learning practices, you'll never make ESL writing mistakes again

Popular Tags

Wandering Educators

Music for Shifting Times

Through the Eyes of an Educator: A Compendium

Exploring Michigan's Coasts: A Compendium

Generation Study Abroad Commitment Partner

I'm a White House Travel Blogger

Wandering Educators Youth Travel Blogging Mentorship Program

Travel with Awe and Wonder: A Compendium

• Accommodations
• Books & Film
• Global Citizenship
• Intercultural Education
• Marketplace
• Opportunities
• Performing Arts
• Southeast Asia
• Special Interest
• Transportation
• Travel Planning
• Travel Tips

Recent posts

No idea what to see in warsa..., why teachers are natural-bor..., 3 types of meaningful holida..., 6 tips for navigating family..., tips for enhancing leadershi....

• Request new password

• Share full article

Advertisement

Supported by

Critic’s Notebook

A Wanderer, Ravel and Suzanne Farrell: Life Is Good at City Ballet

The spring season at New York City Ballet opened with an all-Balanchine program and a vintage miniature from 1975: “Errante,” staged for a new generation.

By Gia Kourlas

With certain dancers, there is an interior drama, an intimate dialogue between movement and music that manages to quiet the air around them, pulling them into greater focus. Mira Nadon, the young New York City Ballet principal , is growing into that place of spellbinding luminosity.

We’ve seen her unflappable elegance, her cool sensuality and her creamy elasticity. But dancing in “Errante,” on the opening program of the company’s spring season that began Tuesday, she displayed a new kind of dancing courage. The ballet, originally known as “Tzigane” after its score by Maurice Ravel, was revived this season with a staging by Suzanne Farrell and a new name, “Errante,” or wandering.

Created for the company’s 1975 Ravel Festival, it was the first ballet George Balanchine choreographed for Farrell upon her return to City Ballet after a rift with Balanchine and time spent in Europe. In Farrell’s restoration, “Errante” is a passionate musical adventure — rich with play, mystery and seduction — that opens with a five-minute solo for its female lead.

As solos go, it’s headstrong and questing, revealing a dancer’s rebellious streak in the choreography’s defiant twists and turns. As for the title change? Tzigane, a word that refers to Romani people, is now considered derogatory. Farrell, who holds the rights to the work, selected “Errante”; the decision to rename was made by Farrell, the George Balanchine Trust and City Ballet, which hasn’t staged the ballet in more than 30 years.

Of the ballet and Farrell, Lincoln Kirstein , a founder of the company, wrote, “Was part of this an echo of her own wandering, of the fact that she had at last returned to her tribe’s encampment, while proclaiming her own increased identity and independence?”

It feels, especially now, like a stand for female autonomy. Starting with Nadon’s casual entrance — a detached, loose walk across the stage as her hands come to rest on the hips — the ballet has a smoldering perfume that heats up over time. Nadon’s sighing shoulders lead her on a path of self-discovery that she fills in with lustrous details. Her elbows rise above her chin like a veil. She flings her arms wildly yet with surgical precision. She arches backward with a rapid shudder of her shoulders.

Ever the wanderer, Nadon seems to be etching her identity onto a role made years before she was born. And like Farrell, she looks great in red, cutting a blazing figure in Joe Eula’s skirt of shredded ribbons, offset by a burgundy bodice with creamy sleeves.

Nadon occasionally snaps her eyes to gaze at the audience. Throughout the violin solo, performed by Kurt Nikkanen, she is a wonder of brazen poise. After stretching her hands forward and slowly wrapping the fingers of one around the pointer finger of another, she whips into tight chaîné turns, pausing to reach and lunge with a daring that seemed to grow from one performance to the next.

When her partner finally appears on the opposite diagonal — Aarón Sanz, dancing with admirable fullness and focus — Nadon has her back to him. Gradually they shift closer until Sanz embraces her around the waist, close but not quite touching.

With whiffs of Hungarian folk dance, they rock on their toes and heels and, eventually, are joined by four couples as a more wild energy overtakes the stage. Nadon spins into a backbend, dangling herself over Sanz’s arm, where she remains as she walks, no, trots — en pointe — across the stage. In moments like these, “Errante” is a rebirth: not a dusty character study from the 1970s, but a vibrant Balanchine miniature imbued with the spirit of the modern world.

On Tuesday, another happy surprise occurred when Farrell, her arm linked in Sanz’s, slipped onto the stage for a bow. Nadon and Sanz, in awe, backed away to applaud along with the crowd. Her appearance was a reminder that preserving Balanchine ballets is a race against time: Former dancers must coach current ones. They knew Balanchine. They knew his counts, and that is everything.

While I could have done without “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” — I don’t need to see a Christmas tree onstage for many more months — the program was a bright start to the season. Despite some rough patches in “Bourrée Fantasque” on opening night, it remained witty and rambunctious, especially the pairings of Emily Kikta and KJ Takahashi, and Emilie Gerrity and Gilbert Bolden III.

Many performances were eye-catching, but Sara Mearns was astounding in the second movement of “Symphony in C” — her dancing now seems to be getting to the essence of a dance — and Alston Macgill and Harrison Coll, making their debuts in the fourth movement, were superbly free. Not every program can end with a ballet as dazzling as “Symphony in C,” but when it does — what a rapturous experience to be listening to Bizet while watching a sea of dancers leaping and spinning in choreographic harmony. It’s not a special effect! This is what human bodies are capable of, and it always blows my mind.

New York City Ballet

Though June 2 at the David H. Koch Theater, nycballet.com

Gia Kourlas is the dance critic for The Times. She writes reviews, essays and feature articles and works on a range of stories. More about Gia Kourlas

Stepping Into the World of Dance

As Harlem Stage’s E-Moves dance series turns 25, Bill T. Jones and other major choreographers discuss its impact on Black dance  in New York.

“We the People,” Jamar Roberts’s first dance for the Martha Graham Dance Company, finds the rage and resistance  hidden in an upbeat score by Rhiannon Giddens.

In “Nail Biter,” a New York City premiere, the exacting choreographer Beth Gill explores her ballet roots  and how to be in her body now.

The choreographer Emma Portner, who has spent her career mixing genres and disciplines , comes to ballet with an eye on its sometimes calcified gender relations.

A childhood encounter with an American soldier in Iraq led Hussein Smko to become a dancer. Now the artist performs on New York stages .

“Deep River” is in many ways an apt title for a dance work by Alonzo King, a choreographer fixated on flow .

• Category: Games

Manor Lords: How to Survive Your First Harsh Winter

• Manor Lords is out today on the Microsoft Store and via PC Game Pass (Game Preview) .
• As a newly appointed ruler of the land, it’s important that your people survive their first winter.
• Here are some top tips and tricks on establishing yourself as a new Lord and keeping your settlers happy.

Manor Lords , out today , is a city-building and strategy game that focuses on sandbox gameplay and intimate historical details. Yes, this means authentic building designs, workplaces, and even fashion. However, Manor Lords , goes several steps further with its authenticity – your people will starve if you don’t adequately prepare for the colder months too.

Your first year in game will be the hardest – luckily, we’ve collected some top-tier advice from other wizened barons and traveling merchants to help new players with their early settlements and ensure stability in the years to come.

Location, Location, Location

Each start in Manor Lords is unique – every time you begin a new game, you could end up in any one of eight regions that make up the game’s fictionalized slice of medieval Germany. The resources around you will also change. Even if you roll the same region several times in a row, the nearby resources will always spawn differently so you may start with rich sources of Iron or Clay in one game, and another may see you awash in berries or fertile fields, which are paramount to keeping your villagers fed.

Planning around what you have is key, and will affect everything from what industries you should focus on first, to what development branches you invest in. If you have a rich source of iron, building a Bloomery and Smithy will let you create lucrative trade items like Tools, and you’ll want to choose a Charcoal Kiln, and the Deep Mining upgrades. The latter ensures you never run out of raw materials. Other resources have their own strategies as well so make sure you look at all your options.

Location also has a more grounded meaning – the time a citizen takes to travel between their house and place of work, or the time it takes oxen to lug that heavy log from the pile to the building site can have a profound effect on the game’s pacing and logistics.

Food & Fire(wood)

Manor Lords works on a system of “needs”- access to water, food variety, and so on. If you meet the needs of one tier of “Burgage Plot” ( Manor Lords’ name for a house), then you can upgrade it to a higher tier, which will have more complex needs. Meeting these needs keeps your citizens happy and stops them from leaving. But regardless of tier, two things are universal – access to food and firewood. 

While higher-tier housing likes to see a variety of food at the market, as long as they have enough to feed themselves (and access to water), they’ll be happy.

There are a number of ways of meeting your initial food requirements:

• You will likely start with a deposit of berries and/or a deer herd nearby. Build the Forager’s Hut or a Hunting Lodge respectively to start harvesting. 
• You will start with some initial funds in your village’s coffers—these can be spent on backyard extensions like a Chicken Coop or a Vegetable Garden. We suggest choosing the Chicken Coop first, as it starts generating eggs right away and is not dependant on free labour.
• Micro-management can be your friend if you’re short on spare families. As berry deposits are seasonal, consider having the same family harvest berries in the summer, and hunting deer in the winter.

After your first year, you’ll want to think about farming – there is an overlay to see how fertile the surrounding land is, the more ‘+’ symbols the better. It might be worth looking at this when you first start the game, and pick a spot nearby to come back to later. You can border it with roads (or just put down a field) and then spin-up farming when you have the population and capacity to go down this route.

Firewood is a lot simpler to sort out. Your citizens need to light their fires and stay warm, with firewood consumption doubling in winter. You will need a Woodcutter’s Lodge with a family assigned to it so they can generate firewood for the village. Excess firewood will get stored in your Storehouse, and the Market will hand out firewood to the citizens.

At any point you can check out how much food and firewood you have in reserve by looking for the handy barrel symbol along the top info panel — it shows you the how many months your citizens can survive if everything grinds to a halt. Hover over it with the mouse, and it will break things down separately into fuel and food reserves.

In This Economy?

Trading is crucial in Manor Lords . You’ll need to import goods to meet any shortcomings; perhaps you need more Hides, or you need to import Iron because there are no deposits near your starting settlement. You’ll also need funds to hire more work animals or build backyard extensions.

Luckily, you exist within a vast civilized polity, and wandering traders feel safe enough to travel up and down the King’s Road peddling wares and looking for opportunities to turn a profit.

Once you’ve met your initial needs and identified your starting industry, it’s time to start making some money! You’ll want to build a Trading Post and then assign a family to work there. By this point, you’ll have probably expanded beyond the initial five families you started the game with and have enough provisions to keep them happy.

Identify what you have in excess, or at least what you can afford to sell to gain some short-term funds. Hides, while needed to promote Burgage plots to tier 2, are not an essential requirement, so you could sell early harvests of Hides. Certain “high-tier” goods require you to pay a large sum of money to establish a trade route, so selling lower-tiered items is easier provided you have enough excess to earn what you need. There is also a development tree upgrade that helps with trading.

Law & Order

Your lands are not completely safe – a powerful rival lord will try and stake his claim across the other regions, and roaming bandits will be a constant nuisance. Once you’ve survived your first year, you’ll want to turn your eyes towards the surrounding countryside and establish your right to rule. Some final tips to keep in mind:

• The default scenario includes a bandit attack that, depending on the settings, will not kick in for at least two years, which gives you time to prepare.
• Other bandit camps dotted around the map won’t attack you directly, but while they exist they will periodically steal things from you.
• You will see the rival lord marching around with his armies. You don’t need to worry about them until you’re ready to challenge him for real.

Your first year in Manor Lords will be the hardest, but once you’ve survived there is plenty more to do and see. You can explore farming, other industries, and start arming your militia to take on the threats around you. These lands are yours to claim, my Lord – good luck!

Manor Lords is available on the Microsoft Store (Game Preview) and day one in PC Game Pass.

Manor Lords (Game Preview)

Hooded Horse

Woman nearly lost dog to adoption after deputy falsely said it was a stray, lawsuit claims

Dallas County law enforcement officers didn't just wrongly arrest and mistreat Lisa Cretsinger in 2021, she alleges. They also tried to steal her dog.

Cretsinger, 60, alleged in a 2023 lawsuit that De Soto police officer arrested her after a traffic stop even though sobriety and breath tests showed no alcohol in her system. She also accused the officer, who she said lacked the legal credentials to be a sworn peace officer, of unnecessary force and threats, and said he kept her for more than an hour in a city shed, making her fear for her life, before transporting her to jail.

All charges except a traffic ticket were later dismissed.

But Cretsinger also brought claims against Dallas County for the actions of a deputy sheriff who assisted at the scene, and last month, federal Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger allowed some of those claims to move forward.

Ebinger found the allegation that Deputy Aaron Sanchez took Cretsinger's dog from the traffic stop and falsely told an animal shelter it was a stray, nearly resulting in the dog's adoption, could amount to an unlawful seizure or civil theft, and called Sanchez's reported conduct "egregious."

Attorneys for Cretsinger and Dallas County did not respond to messages seeking comment.

More: No qualified immunity for Des Moines police officers sued in 2018 traffic stop, judge rules

Woman says dog put up for adoption after arrest

According to court filings, Sanchez arrived at the scene to assist DeSoto Officer Brandon Carter. As Carter arrested her, Cretsinger asked what would happen to her car and her dog, a 10-pound Havanese named Norman. She said she was told her car would be towed and that Sanchez would take the dog.

Sanchez turned Norman over to a nearby animal shelter, Cretsinger said, allegedly telling the staff the dog had been found wandering loose on the highway and that the owner was unknown. Although Cretsinger said Norman was wearing a collar with vaccination tags before her arrest, he reportedly arrived at the shelter with neither.

Believing Norman to be a stray, the shelter posted a picture on social media and stated he was available for adoption. After her release from jail, Cretsinger saw the post and was able to reclaim her dog, but said the shelter staff told her they'd received several inquiries and that Norman would have been placed with new owners soon had she not found him first.

Judge: Conduct alleged would be 'egregious'

In court filings, the county argued Sanchez acted properly and that Cretsinger suffered no harm as a result, and sought to dismiss all claims against it and the deputy.

Ebinger dismissed claims accusing Sanchez of wrongdoing related to Cretsigner's arrest. But she did not dismiss the claims related to Norman.

Previously: Judge finds Newton officers lacked cause for controversial 2022 OWI arrest; city appeals

Not only did Sanchez allegedly lie to shelter staff, Ebinger wrote, but did so after refusing Cretsinger's offer to have a family member pick the dog up instead, and may have removed his collar to make him harder to identify.

"Cretsinger’s allegations that Deputy Sanchez falsely represented that the dog’s owner was unknown and that the dog was found wandering along the highway, along with the inference that Norman’s collar and tag were removed prior to being received by the animal shelter, are sufficient to demonstrate Deputy Sanchez’s actions were improper," she wrote.

As for the county's argument that Cretsinger recovered her dog and thus suffered no harm, Ebinger wrote that the time and expense of retrieving the dog, and the anguish of finding him missing, are sufficient to support a claim.

Case continues against county, city

Ebinger's ruling means Cretsinger can continue seeking to bring her dog-related clase against Sanchez and Dallas County to trial.

Cretsinger's claims against De Soto and Carter, who no longer works for the department, also remain active, according to court filings. The case is scheduled to go to trial in August 2025.

William Morris covers courts for the Des Moines Register. He can be contacted at  [email protected]  or 715-573-8166 .

NFL draft 2024: Winners and losers, from J.J. McCarthy to creme pies to Kirk Cousins

We did it, Detroit.

More than two years of NFL draft planning culminated in, well, more than a little weirdness wandering the streets downtown. From purple-and-gold stormtroopers —“SKOL Troopers,” we guess — to countless suits made of NFL-branded fabric to, well, whatever the super fans in the front rows of the draft theater were wearing all weekend, the Motor City spent its weekend cosplaying as the center of the NFL universe.

Oh, and 257 players found out where they’ll be starting their NFL careers, from USC QB Caleb Williams at No. 1 to the Chicago Bears to Alabama safety Jaylen Key at No. 257 to the New York Jets. In all, there were plenty of winners and losers from the weekend; here’s a few that stuck out to us:

City of Detroit

Motown’s week went almost flawlessly — other than a too-full first day, a couple of arrests and a few wind-induced broadcast flubs on Saturday afternoon — complete with a pizza competition (between Detroit-style and NYC-style, of course), a giant rendition of the Tamia Hustle and, most importantly, an NFL draft record for attendance ( 775,000, nearly 30% more than the 600,000 who attended the 2019 draft in Nashville, Tennessee ) that showed just how eager the city is to witness football success. (You’re on the clock, Lions.)

The icon of the Lions’ resurgence got even more love with the impromptu “JA-RED GOFF!” chants led just before Thursday’s Round 1 (and the chants that popped up all over downtown during the weekend). He also got to show off his L.A. roots — and his comedic timing — with a starring role in the hype reel for Netflix’s “Beverly Hills Cop” sequel, “Axel F.” We’re just waiting for next season’s chant: “JA-RED (EXPLETIVE) GOFF!”

J.J. McCarthy

Michigan’s star — arguably the program’s best QB ever, by his college numbers — didn’t go in the top five, as some mock drafts had him, but he did wind up in the top 10, as the fifth of six first-round QBs . The Midwesterner should feel right at home with the Minnesota Vikings, with two games a year against the Chicago Bears and the Detroit Lions — and right at home throwing to Pro Bowlers T.J. Hockenson and Justin Jefferson, plus up-and-comer Jordan Addison.

Parking lot owners

The pedestrian-only status for most of the main streets in the Central Business District — and the takeover of most of Greektown’s parking lots by draft production crews — made for a bonanza for the surface-street flagwavers, with prices hitting $100 in spots . At that rate, they could actually afford to grab a drink within the draft area.

Lions pass defense

Just in case taking an All-American cornerback (Alabama’s Terrion Arnold) in the first round wasn’t enough, Lions GM Brad Holmes went back to the well with another corner in Round 2, Missouri’s Ennis Rakestraw Jr. (Holmes also grabbed a safety, Utah’s Sione Vaki, in Round 4, but he may play running back instead.) Rookie cornerbacks can be hit or miss — for every Devon Witherspoon or Sauce Gardner (both Defensive Rookie of the Year finalists), there’s a Jeff Okudah (who lasted just three seasons in Detroit as the 2020 No. 3 pick) — but with a defense that ranked 27th in passing yards allowed last season, every bit helps.

TRADER BRAD: 'Let's not mess around:' How Brad Holmes worked his trade magic on Day 3 of NFL draft

Little Debbie oatmeal crème pies

When it came time for the ABC on-air crew to refuel late in Friday night’s broadcast, they passed on Motor City delicacies like coneys or Detroit-style pizza in favor of a Down South staple from Little Debbie. Blame former Alabama (and Michigan State) coach Nick Saban, who reportedly fueled his legendary reign in the SEC with a couple of oatmeal crème pies every morning , and shared the treats with the crew. What, they couldn’t get any Crazy Puffs delivered?

Texas & Washington

Well, we all expected a huge draft class from ONE of the CFP teams in the College Football Playoff, right? It just turned out to come from the soon-to-be-SEC squad from Austin, as 11 Longhorns were nabbed by NFL squads. That’s the program’s most since 1984 and tied for sixth-most in any draft. And then there was the not-quite-yet-Big-Ten squad from the Pacific Northwest; The CFP title game losers sent 10 players to the NFL (including three first-rounders). Of course, the Huskies also lost their head coach to Alabama and their offensive coordinator to the crosstown Seahawks, so that August entry into the Really Big Ten could be a little, uh, rocky.

The Wolverines

Hey, didn’t anyone remember who WON the CFP title game? With great success comes great expectations, and former U-M coach Jim Harbaugh’s belief that his Wolverines would set a draft record for picks from one program — set by Georgia’s 15 in 2022 — wasn’t quite validated; U-M sent only 13 players to the next level. (Though we’ll note that Harbs did his part; his L.A. Chargers nabbed linebacker Junior Colson in Round 3 and wideout Cornelius Johnson in Round 7.) That was still tied for No. 1 this year, and the fourth-most ever, behind Georgia, Ohio State (14 in 2004 and LSU (14 in 2020) — but far short of the 18 players U-M had in March’s scouting combine.

Wait, can the Michigan QB be on both lists? Hey, if the NFL draft can come to Detroit, anything can happen. And so we'll note that it was a bit of a bummer for the state's top prospect not to make an appearance downtown during the weekend. (And no, we're not counting his appearance on the big screen to introduce his national championship teammates before Round 2 on Friday night.) It also stings a bit that his visit to Minneapolis brought a resurgence of his love of hockey — and an ignored phone call from Wayne Gretzky. J.J., we get it: They're the "State of Hockey." But this is Hockeytown .

Kirk Cousins

What about the Spartans? Everyone’s favorite ex-Michigan State QB ( Philadelphia excepted ) was blindsided by Atlanta’s use of the No. 8 overall pick on Washington QB Michael Penix Jr. , just a few weeks after Cousins signed a $180 million deal with the Falcons. Then again, Cousins is still due $100 million guaranteed over the next two seasons, regardless of whether he or Penix is throwing passes for the Dirty Birds — that’s a lot of Crazy Puffs.

For one weekend, at least, we became the (Un)Motor City, with road shutdowns snarling traffic on the outskirts of downtown, and those parking lot costs encouraging footpower over horsepower.

Pizza contests

OK, there was only one of these — on the main stage in the middle of Day 3 of the draft, featuring Mootz Pizzeria + Bar's New York-style 'za vs. Detroit Pizza Bar's, ahem, Detroit-style 'za — but at least we'd finally get an answer to the age-old debate, right? Not so much, even with the Lions' Alim McNeil and New York Giants QB Tommy DeVito judging. Instead, we got this no-decision: "While there was no 'winner,' both local businesses took center stage to show their stuff in front of tens of thousands of fans and both restaurants received high praise by the judges." C'mon, even the NFL at least tries to avoid ties.

Saban haters

There’s still more than a few Michigan State fans sore about the coaching legend’s departure from East Lansing for LSU back at the turn of the century. Hopefully they had their TVs turned to NFL Network, as ABC & ESPN’s coverage of the first two days heavily featured the seven-time national champion’s breakdowns of prospects — a harbinger of his future role on ESPN’s “College GameDay” this fall.

Nothing against Detroit’s NFC North rival — beyond the usual, cheeseheads— but next year’s draft hosts will have a lot to live up to, and a lot less space to fit hundreds of thousands of people into, with the draft set for the area surrounding Lambeau Field beginning April 24, 2025.

Contact Ryan Ford at [email protected] . Follow him on X (which used to be Twitter, y’know?) @theford .