When Visit San Antonio first sent me the invite by way of Out Traveler to join them for their third annual River Pride Parade hosted by Bud Light, I had a number of reservations.

That said, however, I found that none of that actually applied. Don’t get me wrong, Texas is still full of anti-LGBTQ+ people. San Antonio, however, is full of queer representation and is a welcoming space cloaked in a hip, upbeat, and very clean city.

Keep reading to hear a little more about my experience.

Puerto Vallarta should easily be on everyone's "must visit at least once" bucket list.

As for me, I headed there for a visit thanks to a press trip hosted by the Cross Border Xpress. I've been writing for RAGE Magazine in San Diego since August 2021, so when they offered me the trip, I couldn't say no!

Everyone told me I was crazy for wanting to travel with a dog. If I had thought traveling alone was hard, how was it going to be when I had a pet? How often would I stop? Where was I going to stay? What if I couldn’t find anything dog-friendly?The questions were endless, but I was determined.

I’d chosen the Travelodge in the city center of Sacramento for two nights. One night was meant to celebrate St. Patrick's Day with my friend, Megan. The other was to see the capitol building and meet up with my friend Morgan to take our dogs on a walk.

It’s no secret that California has had a rough time the last few years.Between the drought, the fires, and the fact that everyone in the world wans to be here, I’ll admit, I started looking at California with jaded eyes.As someone who grew up just outside of the perfection that is Yosemite, I always had an appreciation for nature.