Our first day in Europe was spent relaxing in rural Duisburg. Spending the morning at the farmer’s market, we had casual conversations with the friendly vendors as we wandered around, picking up fresh fruits and beautiful hydrangeas. The strawberries sold here are not the typical overgrown, hormone-induced variety that we often see at home. They are quite small but packed with loads of flavor, a perfect balance of sweet and tart.
After a long hiatus, I am finally back on the road, but what makes this trip special is that I am going with my baby sister. Even though we are 12 years apart, we are always on the same wavelength about everything…except when she is trying to convince me to go to a rave and I am convincing her to go to a lecture at the Reichstag. LifeAfter9-5 will be featuring Kim as a guest blogger, describing her travel experience from a student’s perspective.
Unlike my cultured sister, I am unfortunately not as worldly when it comes to travelling. I’ve been to Asia a few times but my parents tend to do all the planning, and I just have to show up at the airport. Being 22, I don’t have a lot of experience organizing big trips (yet), but I’m hoping to change that this summer. Without too many daunting obligations and a year’s attempt of saving money, I’m planning on visiting a few countries. The first stop? Germany and Czech Republic with Caitlin! While preparing for my first major trip, I’ve learnt a few tips and lessons for other aspiring travelers. Continue reading
Dublin, 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.
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.
A while ago I wrote about Hallstatt as one of the places I wanted to see; so when we booked our ticket to Vienna, I knew we had to make a little detour. After doing some research, I found out that this picturesque village was only a 3 hour train ride from Vienna. We decided to make a day trip through the Austrian countryside.
I love planning and I love making maps. So one of the things I always do before every trip is to read up as much as I can and list out a handful of things I want to see or do while touring the city. Then I go into Google Maps and create my very own personalized walking tour. Vienna is such a beautiful city, rich with history, and filled with culture and grand architecture. I’ve compiled a list of the top 10 places to visit while in Vienna. Most of the places are within the Ringstrasse, the main tourist area of Vienna. The whole city of Vienna is quite big, but the core area is definitely walkable. It took us two and a half days to visit all these sites. Our hotel was right across from the opera house, so we started from there and followed the path to see the notable sights. Hopefully this will give you an idea of what to do when you’re planning your own trip.
Vienna’s State Opera House (Wiener Staatsoper) is one of the most prestigious opera houses in the world. It is the epicenter of Vienna’s rich musical history. Completed in 1869, the opera house opened its doors to the public debuting with Mozart’s Don Giovanni. It is known for having one of the largest repertoires in the world, featuring 300 performances per year. With over 50 operas and ballets each season, there is a wide selection for people who wish to immerse themselves in Viennese culture.
It’s almost a given that everyone shops when they travel. Whether it’s for colorful little trinkets, indigenous artwork, or ethnic clothing, we all have our share of stuff that we’ve brought back from each trip that we thought we couldn’t live without at the time, but never seem to use at home. Somewhere along the way, we started to run out of room in our tiny 1 bedroom apartment so we switched gears. Now when we go away, instead of buying knickknacks that take up space, we head to the local supermarket to buy our souvenirs. I love perusing the aisles to pick out all the unique items that you won’t be able to find back at home.
Madrid, Spain
This week, I am showcasing the beautiful crystal palace located in the center of Retiro Park taken on our trip to Madrid, Spain. This beautiful building is made entirely of glass, surrounded by a detailed iron framework. It was initially used as a greenhouse, but now functions as an art exhibition. When we were there, the space was empty and we just wandered around the open design while marveling at the blue sky shining through the latticed glass façade.
The front entrance of this beautiful palace leads to a small pond filled with floating trees with their willow-like leafs hanging low over the water that reminded me of the bayou. Weaving through the trees are a family of black swans that have made the lake their home. Altogether, it creates quite a picturesque image reminiscent of something straight out of a fairy tale.
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.
Sultanhani, Turkey
On our tour around Turkey, we stopped by the Sultanhani Caravanserai, one of the finest caravanserais of its kind. It was built by the sultans in the 1200s and has been preserved to this day. Prominently located on the main trade route through Turkey, it was an important stop for traders and travellers. Weary merchants of the Middle Ages would stop in to eat and rest before continuing on their journey from Asia to Europe.
Inside, there is a prominent courtyard surrounded by rooms. The caravanserais are built like fortresses, with walls constructed from volcanic rocks. The sturdy designs have kept them preserved for many centuries.
During our visit, we stopped here for lunch and got to explore the many rooms inside the caravanserai, most of which are empty now. In one of these unoccupied darken hallways, we saw these beautiful rays of light filtering through the small window openings at the top.
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.
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