Photos: Chillin in Cesky Krumlov

August 12, 2016Leave a comment

I think this small town in the Czech Republic may have just topped Bruges as my favorite small town I’ve visited so far. The adorable winding cobbled streets, the wedding cake like castle tower, the rambling river, the daily crafts market, not to mention having half the amount of tourists as Bruges and significantly cheaper prices. I only spent two full days in this charming town but it would have been an excellent place to stop and rest for longer. The hostel, as advertised, was more like a house then a hostel- they even insisted guests remove their shoes at the front door. Krumlov House made me feel right at home and gave me lots of interesting suggestions for how to spend my short time in Cesky Krumlov. My favorite suggestion was the relaxing four hour rafting trip where a few friends and I floated down the Vltava River on a sunny afternoon. Here are a few pictures from the weekend to get a taste of my visit. Please excuse my obsession with the castle tower, it was just so pretty!

Photos: Darling Dresden

August 5, 20161 Comment

Dresden was a wonderful contrast to Berlin. The old town was all bundled together in one compact section, it was much smaller and felt like a mix between a university town and the suburbs. I experienced more kindness from family members who I was only meeting for the first time. I stayed with my grandmother’s cousin’s niece Martina and her husband Gert who opened their doors and arms to me, treating me as a daughter during my stay. I could not be more thankful for their generosity and hospitality. I had a truly wonderful time. We spent many evenings sitting on their back porch, overlooking their flourishing garden, sipping rosé, while they patiently answered all of my many questions about Germany. In pictures, here’s a bit of my time in scenic Dresden.

Day 1: Fabulous authentic German lunch and tour of the old town

Day 2: Tour of the Historic Green Vault and walk along the shore at sunset during the Kaiser Mania concert to observe crazy Roland Kaiser fans. On our way home we saw hundreds of rollerbladers; apparently Dresden shuts roads every Friday during summer for this large group to safely skate the city.

Day 3: Sachsische Schweiz National Park, biergarten (beer garden) lunch, Japanisches Palais (Japanese Palace), and in the evening met Gert and Martina’s son Jurge

Day 4: Tour of Semper Opera House, Zwinger exhibits- Old Masters Picture Gallery, Porcelain Collection, and Mathematisch-Physikalischer Salon, tour of places my parents visited when they were young, met Gert and Martina’s son Frank, coffee with Gert and Martina’s daughter Enis and a snitzel dinner (YUM!)

I sincerely hope to come back to Dresden one day!

Photos: Welsh Castles and Coastlines

July 12, 20161 Comment

I’ve been so busy my time in Wales and England flew by! We arrived in Paris this morning and I’m very excited to explore this new place. It’s the first one where, as an English speaker, I feel a little bit out of my element. But more on that later, I want to share some pictures from the past week. There is just so much to show I need to break it up into two segments. This post will be of Wales, the next post of England.

Caernarfon, Wales:

Low tide

Castle at sunset

Little light entered the dark cold castle

Really steep, windy stairs

View from the castle tower of the wall surrounding the city

Happy horses

Top of a turret!

Awesome old gate

Sunset on the water

Roses

Looking down into the tower

Stained glass

Huge doors to Caernarfon Castle

Castle courtyard

The castle courtyard

Skinny windows used to shoot from

The castle courtyard

Inside a castle tower that no longer has floors. The indented space on the left use to be a fireplace

Entering Eagle tower at Caernarfon Castle

Another gorgeous sunset

Beautiful tracery

Church silhouette

Castle courtyard

Low tide

First rainbow I’ve seen on this trip!

Welsh flag proudly flies on the tower

Castle at sunset

Aberystwth, Wales:

Chepstow, Wales (and the Wye River Valley):

The streets of Chepstow

Tintern Abbey

Chepstow Castle

Beautiful flora

In Chepstow the tide goes out 30+ feet!

The town surrounding Tintern Abbey

High tide in Chepstow- a truly dramatic difference

The view from our hike to Devil’s Pulpit looking down on Tintern Abbey. It was said the Devil would stand here on the hillside and try to lure the monks away.

Hiking up to Devil’s Pulpit

View from Devil’s Pulpit

Bridge across the river the the trail head

The rock in the bottom right is Devil’s Pulpit

Still amazed by all the green!

Another adorable Chepstow house

Me standing on the boarder of Wales and England!

Irish Street Art

June 30, 2016June 30, 20164 Comments

I’ve been finding really cool street art all over Ireland. In every town we’ve stopped in there have been quirky, random, sometimes beautiful pieces covering the walls. No Banksy’s yet but UK here I come! Below are just a few I caught to share.

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Photos: Delightful Dublin

June 23, 20164 Comments

From the people to the music, to the food, to the sights, Dublin exceeded my expectations! Here are a few of the best shots from the past few days.

Flowers growing everywhere!

First glimpse at the city

New & old collide- a constant trend in Dublin

The Liffey River

Walking up to Christ Church

Christ Church

Dublin Castle

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

locally crafted beer- all gone!

The famous Temple Bar

Live Irish dance & music!

Trinity College Library- 38 busts

Trinity College Library

Flags everywhere showing Irish pride for EURO 2016

More Irish pride!

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Umbrellas and whiskey in case of rain

Trinity College Berkeley Library was named after George Berkeley- the namesake of my school (UC Berkeley) and the city of Berkeley.

Trinity College and UC Berkeley have a lot in common including this art installation by Arnaldo Pomodoro.

Another installation at Trinity College whose sister is located at UC Berkeley. This one is called the Cactus!

Performance art on Grafton St.

Flower market!

Beautiful churches around every corner!

Another example of the juxtaposition between new and old.

Inside St. Patrick’s Cathedral before sung service

The entrance to the archeological museum of Dublin

Am I a Riverdancer yet?!

Brilliant performance of Irish dance by Riverdance. It blew my mind how fast their feet move! And the music was out of this world!

The Liffey River at night.

Another hidden architectural wonder

I found a leprechaun on O’Connell St.

Street market

These ivy houses are so cute!

I need a whole other album for beautiful Irish doors!

Fairy house in the basin park

Fairy house

Fairy neighborhood

Spring Break 2015: England

June 18, 2016June 20, 2016Leave a comment

I am SO excited to be going back to England! I had such a great time visiting during spring break of 2015. Here are a few photos from my time in London.