Author: lifeafter9to5

Photo of the Week: Books

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IMG_4756Dublin, Ireland

This picture was taken in the Long Room, the main chamber of the Old Library at Trinity College in Dublin. This is the largest library in Ireland, built back in the 1700s.  Along the corridor, there are 14 busts of great philosophers, writers and men who supported Trinity college throughout the years. To the left of the entrance, you’ll see a very ornate iron spiral staircase that people used to go up to the second level.

Inside, shelves are filled with old books from floor to ceiling, all organized alphabetically. The most famous book housed here is the book of Kells, a famous 9th century gospel manuscript.  

This is my idea of heaven, something I aspire to have one day.  A special wood-paneled room filled with books, where I can curl up and read all day.

Every Monday of each week, I’ll share a photo with you from my adventures around the world and at home.  Most of my photos have little or no post processing.  If you would like to see more, please click the ‘Follow’ button.

Sydney: Hiking Blue Mountain

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We were excited to explore the rugged Australian wilderness and its spectacular natural beauty. One of those places is the Blue Mountain National Park,  a designated World Heritage site, located about 95 km from Sydney. The mountain got its name from the distinctive blue haze in the surrounding atmosphere as a result of the densely packed forest of eucalyptus trees. Aside from the breathtaking view, the Blue Mountains also have many walking tracks perfect for hiking.

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Sydney: Graffiti

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Sydney, like many other great cities around the world, has some incredible street art.  The difference between Sidney and other cities is that they have a strict policy against graffiti.   For the past decade, the city has continually inspected “hotspots”and removed many great murals as they get made. The government has a zero tolerance for street artists, and it is against to law for anyone to sell spray paint to a minor. It’s also against to the law for a minor to have any graffiti tool in their possession, and violators will be fined heavily. The stakes are high for these artists who wander the Sydney streets at night armed with spray cans, wanting to express themselves.  Continue reading →

Photo of the Week: Spring

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IMG_4560New York Botanical Garden, Bronx, New York

Spring is here and yet the weather is still cold and dreary.  So what’s a better way to remind ourselves of spring than with a picture of this stunning orchid in bloom.  Last weekend, I trekked up to the Bronx to go to the annual Orchid Show at the New York Botanical Garden. As you enter the conservatory, you’re hit by the intoxicating smell, heat, and humidity that clings to your skin and fogs up your camera lens.  It transports you from the bitter cold of New York to a tropical paradise.

Every Monday of each week, I’ll share a photo with you from my adventures around the world and at home.  Most of my photos have little or no post processing.  If you would like to see more, please click the ‘Follow’ button.

Eating in Sydney

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I can’t believe it’s been four months since we set foot in Australia.  I am excited to finally be able to share about our trip down under.  A little bit about me before I dive into all the great places to eat in Sydney, I LOVE MasterChef Australia.  I can’t emphasize this enough.  I’ve watched every episode religiously, usually over dinner.  It’s basically the only time I can watch the show without salivating and craving all the food.  We could not wait to go to the restaurants that appeared on MasterChef and taste the wonderful, crazy concoctions ourselves. When we were planning our trip to Australia, we knew that food would be a major component of our overall experience.  I’ve always felt that food is the heart and soul of a city.  When you go to a new city, a great way to immerse yourself in the new environment is to venture out and try the food that locals eat. It’ll give you a great appreciation for the place and people.

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Photo of the Week: Overgrown Roots

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IMG_5038Siem Reap, Cambodia

I’ve seen many iconic images of overgrown roots spreading over dilapidated temples in photographs and movies like Tomb Raider over the years.  So when I finally got to see it with my own eyes, I was beyond excited. So excited, in fact that I jumped over a step leading into the temple, tripped and came tumbling down, camera and all. I got a nasty bruise, a few scrapes, and hundreds of pictures to remember this place by.

Ta Prohm is one of the many Angkor temples that was abandoned and reclaimed by nature when the Empire fell in the 17th century.  When it was rediscovered later, this popular temple was left untouched by archaeologists, leaving it in it’s natural state.  Massive silk-cotton trees grew tall over the broken down buildings, their large canopy blocking out the sun and the rest of the world. The gigantic gnarly roots twist over the grounds reaching through walls and windows, intertwining and becoming one with the temple. The weight of nature sits heavily on the man-made building causing it to bow down from the burden over centuries ago.

As you walk through the rubble and climb over trees, you can’t help but feel like one of the early explorers. This strange, haunted place indelibly made an impression that will forever be etched into my mind.

Every Monday of each week, I’ll share a photo with you from my adventures around the world and at home.  Most of my photos have little or no post processing.  If you would like to see more, please click the ‘Follow’ button.

Trip Report: Austria

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screenshot-www.travellerspoint.com 2015-03-12 10-40-51

What started as a cheap flight booked on a whim turned into a great trip to Austria. Austria has a little bit of everything, from the spectacular pristine landscape to a bustling city rich with history and culture.  Vienna transports you to another time and place where you get to immerse yourself in a different era. During its peak, Vienna was the epicenter of a grand empire, where Mozart and many other notable musical prodigies called home.  Today, this metropolis continue to thrive, integrating contemporary designs and historic buildings. This trip report summarizes all the blog posts related to our trip to Austria and provides a break down of the cost.

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Photo of the Week: Souk

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IMG_2527Marrakech, Morocco

This picture was taken inside the biggest souk in Marrakech, off of Jemaa el Fna square.  The market is a massive labyrinth with many crisscrossing walkways, each filled with stalls selling everything from leather goods, to rugs, to spices, to almost anything you can think of.

I picked this picture because the other day we met up with some friends for brunch and got to reminiscing about our ‘super duper fun’ trip to Morocco. Did you picked up on my sarcasm there with the air quotes and the italic fonts?  Seriously though, it was a memorable trip, but for all the wrong reasons. Basically Murphy’s Law was at play, where anything that could go wrong, went wrong for us. The weather was awful the whole time with continuous rain and freezing temperatures…in Morocco! We almost got stranded in the Atlas mountains because of a freak snow storm…in Morocco! We had to cancel part of our trip because we couldn’t drive over the mountain.  Then to top it all off, we almost got carbon monoxide poisoning in one of our hotels.

The sad part was, we’d all heard so many great things about Morocco and could not wait to go on this two week long trip! Our experience did not live up to the expectation and we pretty much had cabin fever after a week and could not wait to return home. One day I would want to go back to trek into the Sahara desert and camp overnight under the stars; something we weren’t able to do. Hopefully it’ll erase all the bad memories from the first trip.

Every Monday of each week, I’ll share a photo with you from my adventures around the world and at home.  Most of my photos have little or no post processing.  If you would like to see more, please click the ‘Follow’ button.

Cheap Flight Alert: NYC to Moscow

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[photo credit: frompo.com]

A few days ago, I saw a deal for flight from NYC to Moscow and dismissed it out of hand because Russia was not on the top of our travel list this year.  After thinking about it some more, I’ve gradually come around to the idea, given how strong the dollar is performing against the Russian Ruble.  Delta is currently offering direct flights from NYC to Moscow for $373, including all taxes and fees.  Continue reading →