Planning: Eurotrip
Posted on: January 16, 2012
- In: Europe | Travel Plans
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I am so excited to begin planning a trip overseas. I have been dying to travel extensively ever since I got back from my Morocco, Rome, and Paris trip in 2009 (the whole reason I started this blog). A number of months ago, my mom mentioned that she and my dad were planning a trip to Europe for their 30th anniversary and asked for my two-cents on locations to visit. We batted around ideas like Prague, Northern Italy, Germany and France, among others, and then didn’t talk about it for a while. My mom and dad settled on taking a two-week road trip in Paris, Belgium, and England and invited us to join them for at least part of the trip. Naturally we were delighted at the prospect and immediately began saving a few hundred dollars a month (not easy, especially since we’re still making car payments!). We are going this summer so we still have several months to continue saving.
So far, we have a general itenerary for the trip, and here it is:
Day 1: Arrive in Paris (hopefully get an arrival flight at the same time as my parents) and get in a rental car to drive to Trier, Germany. Along the way, stop and see a few sights in Reims and Luxembourg. Stay the night in Trier, the oldest city in Germany, founded in 16 BC!!
Image from Luxemblog. Click to view site.
Day 2: See a German castle, drive towards Belgium, spend part of the day in Brussels. Check in to Vacation home in Bruges. Stay night in Bruges.
Day 3: Sightsee in Bruges, including canal tour, among other things. Stay night in Bruges.
Image from Wikipedia.
Day 4:Â Spend the day relaxing on the beach on Oostende. Every vacation needs at least one relaxing day on the beach, weather permitting. Stay night in Bruges.
Day 5: Part ways with my parents (they will be taking a ferry across to England and staying there a few days). Take a train from Bruges or Dunkirk back to Paris. This day should be a Monday: get to Paris in time to visit Les Puces (Paris’s famous flea market!) Â Stay the night in Paris.
Day 6: Sightsee in Paris, climb the Eiffel tower, shopping, etc.
Day 7: More Paris. There is no such thing as too many days in Paris.
Day 8: Get to the airport on time to sadly bring our Eurotrip to a close.
Originally we had decided to go to Brussels, Bruges, and Amsterdam, but in a moment of clarity decided that just because I’ve been to Paris was an unfair reason to rule it out, especially since that’s where we really wanted to go. This will have been my third time in Paris–I can’t believe what a lucky girl I am. I am determined to see/do/eat new things for me, while at the same time show Doug all the best Paris has to offer–playing tour guide is going to be so exciting!
St Louis (Early Anniversary Trip)
Posted on: June 14, 2011
Our anniversary is coming up on the 20th, but due to the anticipated arrival of Doug’s co-worker’s baby, we decided to take the week before off so as not to cause drama at the lab.
We tried to save pennies by staying closer to home (7 hours is not that far) but ended up splurging for a boutique hotel (the Moonrise Hotel) that I found online and couldn’t resist. We did score a deal by buying two nights and getting one free. The third night (the free one) I probably slept better than I ever have! Haha.
The Moonrise Hotel exterior at dusk.
The first day we were there, we shopped the street the Moonrise is located on–the Delmar Loop. The street really isn’t a loop but with interesting stores and restaurants on both sides, it’s easy to walk up to one end and loop down on the other side. Our area reminded me of Hillcrest in San Diego and had lots of ethnic restaurants; something impossible to find in our town. At one of a few resale stores, I scored a pair of Coach tennis shoes for $24! Actually, it was perfect because I had forgotten a pair of good walking shoes. Providence!! At another store, Doug scored some retro swim trunks because the ones he had last summer seem to have mysteriously disappeared.
The shorts. Actually, he has a v-neck in each of these colors except orange. They go with everything!
The following day we slept in as long as possible–we ended up getting up around 10. We went over to downtown to see the Gateway Arch, but since I had ridden up in it as a child and Doug had done it in 2009, we decided not to spend our money in that way.
At the Arch. Shiny!
Instead, we found out that while the team is away, Busch Stadium offers tours! At first I was skeptical of the $10 cost–not cheap, especially considering that there are two of us, but the tour actually turned out to be one of our favorite parts of the trip. We learned some insider info, including that there’s a buffet section! They offer tickets that include a great seat and access to an all-you-can-eat buffet. The price depends on how popular the Cardinals’ opponent is and what day of the week the game is.
The buffet area was set up for a baseball-themed wedding reception. Cool!
During the tour we got to go in the radio press box, in the fancy area where the players eat after the game, on the field (had to stay off the grass) and in the dugout!! It was very cool, Doug was in sports heaven, and our tour guide was very funny.
On the field! It looks bigger from the stands.
Sunday, we went to the St Louis Zoo (free!) in the morning and drove a couple hours to my Grandma’s in Illinois for the afternoon and evening. Some of my other relatives were there and it was so good to spend time with the lesser-seen side of my family.
Monday, yesterday, sadly, was the day to make the 7 hour drive back home. Unfortunately due to hauling a couch gifted by my grandmother (she got a replacement and this one was lonely in her garage) we drove the truck, a manual shift. This means that poor Doug had to drive the whole time and it was my job to keep him in high spirits. Fortunately, even though it was raining through Missouri, everyone and everything made it back in great condition and we even shaved 30 minutes off the estimated trip time (according to TomTom).
It was so great to get away for an extra-long weekend.
Spring Break Memories: San Fran
Posted on: April 7, 2011
- In: California | Photos | Tourism | USA
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Spring Break 2011 has come and gone for some of us, is slowly approaching for others, and if you’re like me, you’re a “grown up” and don’t get a spring break at all. I thought it would be a good time to practice a little photo editing (actually, the weather was so nice that this trip barely needs any) and compile some “greatest hits” posts from some of my Spring Breaks.
In 2009, before I even knew I was going to Morocco (I traveled so much in 09 my carbon footprint must have been terrible), I jumped in the car with my friend and co-worker Brittany at 11:00 pm. We drove all night from San Diego and arrived at Half Moon Bay at 8 in the morning just in time to get some excellent shots of Pigeon Point Lighthouse:
We stayed in a Hostel, which I recommend due to low cost and high interaction with people from all over the US and the world! At some hostels, you can get a private room (in Spain, we got a room for 3 so we could leave our stuff behind without worrying) but Brittany and I chose to take up 2 beds in a room for 6! We met an interesting girl, I think she was from the East Coast (can’t remember) but she had dinner with us! This dinner was a turning point as I discovered I loved eggplant. Later we roomed with some Europeans and a Chinese girl. We brought little padlocks to put on the lockers underneath the bunk beds so our laptops and suitcases would be safe and sound.
We were joined by our friend (incidentally, the two of them are now married), a Bay Area native, and channeled our inner Princess Diaries moment by visiting the Musée Méchanique on Fisherman’s Wharf, ate clam chowder in a bread bowl, walked the area (we did a ton of walking on this trip). We bought chocolate from Ghirardelli’s (didn’t last long) and did some window-shopping.
Checked out some gorgeous late-afternoon views of the city from Coit Tower:
The next night I had my first encounter with crab. It was delicious. Since that night, I have wanted more. Not even the lobster I had in Maine could top it (blasphemy, I know). We were there for several days, did more than I wrote about here, and ate many, many delicious meals, but I’m just going to leave you with the highlights for now. If you ever get the chance, visit this great city!
Have you been? What’s your favorite part of the city?
De Vivre La Langue
Posted on: February 11, 2011
This video made me laugh out loud and brought the tiniest of tears to my eye :)
I hope you enjoy!
[saw it first on dress design decor]
Kansas Day
Posted on: February 3, 2011
Last Saturday (Jan 29) we celebrated Kansas’s 150th birthday.
To do this, we took a trip out to the Maxwell Wildlife Refuge, where there are buffalo, you know, roaming. What could be more Kansas than driving around in a rusty old truck trying to find buffalo, right? (Or I suppose they could be bison, not sure what the difference is). Thanks to Paul’s trusty binoculars, from the lookout tower we could see some “little dots.” We think they were buffalo.
More important (and very telling of Kansas Culture) was the monument we saw at the wildlife refuge.
Image courtesy of a friend who thinks photo credits are lame.
You read that right–the first known white child to be born in McPherson county. He really had to work hard for that honor, you know.
Do you know when your state’s next big important birthday is?
Washington DC Memories
Posted on: January 29, 2011
Well, just because I’m not on the road as much as I’d like to be, that doesn’t mean I can’t reminisce about my recent (or not-so recent… becoming more distant) trips I’ve taken. In fact, I kind of want to talk about them so I have it written down… I’m not much one to journal while things are happening (maintaining a blog or 2 has helped with this) but even so, I don’t want to forget important times I’ve had.
I’ve been to Washington DC twice in my life and loved it both times. It was just a little over 2 years ago that I went with my PLNU group for the most recent inauguration.
The night my group got to DC I immediately went to a party with my friend who knew some people from his semester in DC experience. There, I met a cool guy from South Africa who had a Led Zeppelin tattoo! This was very cool to me as I had just begun to get into Zeppelin’s music at the time. The next day, we went to the “We Are One” Inauguration concert where I got as close as I’ll ever be to Bono (and the rest of U2) as well as Springsteen, and others. The irony of Irish band U2 playing at a concert days before the American Presidential inauguration was not lost on the performers, but Bono is pretty much as involved in US politics as a rock star can be, so I think everyone let it slide.
The next day, all the Smithsonian museums were packed (not a huge loss, as I’d been to some of them twice), and it was freezing. So after picking up a new hat at Urban Outfitters (and eating at the very same place I had my very first Chipotle burrito in January 2006) we went to the botanical gardens. The rationale was that it would be warmer in a greenhouse–our bet paid off and we avoided the cold for an hour or two.
On the 20th, we got to the National Mall around 5 in the morning. They played the concert from the 18th on a loop to keep us entertained but it didn’t help keep my mind off of my numb extremities. Things finally kicked off around 10AM with the inauguration itself around 11. After it was over, getting to and on the subways was a nightmare. Upon arrival at my hotel room, I took as hot a shower as I could stand and dove into bed for a several hour nap. Got up in time to primp for a nice dinner at Old Ebbit Grill. I don’t remember what I ate (this is why I should blog the day of events!! ) but I do remember it being delicious.
In front of the Capitol building, right after the inauguration. I was a mere one of 2,000,000 spectators.
Finally, my second video to ever grace the internet. Videos made my me are even more rare than Sasquatch sightings.
Oklahoma City
Posted on: January 24, 2011
- In: USA
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We drove right by this! So cool!
I’ve never been to tourist attractions in OKC. The attraction for me is that a large majority of my extended family lives there. This weekend was no different, we did not go to the Oklahoma City Zoo (which I’m told has neat architecture, in addition to the animals) nor have I ever seen the OKC bombing memorial, but that’s OK. (Didn’t mean to add the pun there).
We saw my grandparents, aunts, an uncle, cousins, second-cousins, and it was a lot of fun :)
By the by, we did try to go vintage shopping. Many of the stores were a bust, including Mister Rabbit which was recommended on Design*Sponge but was having a going-out of business sale when we ventured over, but we thoroughly enjoyed Bad Granny’s Bazaar and Guestroom Records. Time was running short so we didn’t get a chance to hit up Goodwill or Sally’s Boutique (Salvation Army). They are always much better in a town bigger than Hutchinson. Oh well! Next time we can see the other half of cousins we missed this time, and maybe the other half of stores we missed too!
