Scotland was the destination for this weekend’s adventure! The first night we stayed in Edinburgh, Scotland right next to the castle! As you can see from my photo the hostel was in an ideal location, which made touring the castle a easy walk. Our weekend was filled with many adventures, even tasting the famous Irn Brew that is more popular in Scotland than Cola; one of my favorite adventures was a day trip to the Highlands and Loch Ness. I must say the views from the bus along our drive were some of the most beautiful landscapes I have ever seen, but unfortunately pictures simply do not do it justice. We took a boat ride around the Loch Ness, and I have to admit that I am a believer in the Nessie the Loch Ness monster after hearing the stories that our boat driver told on our cruise around the Loch. On the final day of our weekend we climbed to the top of Arthur’s Seat which is a dormant volcano in Edinburgh. The top of this volcano gave absolutely incredible views all around us and was one of the highlights of my trip. It only took one weekend, but I fell in love with Scotland!
Paris, France
Paris, France……need I say more? Well I will. I was in Paris this weekend! I traveled from London using the eurostar high speed train and arrived in the beautiful city of Paris in 2 hours, (much better than a 9hr mega bus ride). The city was beautiful, but you may be shocked to hear, I was a little disappointed. Don’t get me wrong the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and the Notre Dame Cathedral were beautiful, but I think my expectations were too high. The beggars everywhere and the people trying to scam you were ridiculous. Women would be carrying around fake babies, while others would try and tie bracelets on your wrist then make you buy them. This constant “scamming” society made me a little turned off to be honest. But despite all of that it was a great trip. One of my favorite things was the hot chocolate and desserts at Laduree. The hot chocolate literally tasted like a melted chocolate bar, it was delicious! The Macaroons were equally as AMAZING, but for most of my meals I was a penny pusher. I would buy a 1 euro baguette and eat half for lunch and the other half for dinner. For breakfast there was a small little bakery around the corner from our hotel where they spoke no English, but each day I would point to a different item in the case to try and nothing I tried was bad. Overall Paris was a beautiful city filled with wonderful desserts, despite the few unpleasant people.
Brussels, Belgium
It has been awhile since I have posted anything new, but a few weeks ago I went to Brussels, Belgium. We had a VERY long journey getting there…all I will say about that is to NEVER take Mega Bus anywhere. Despite the frustrating journey it was a wonderful weekend. The waffles were as good as they claim to be. I had one waffle at a restaurant that was good, but the cheep 1 euro waffle on the street was excellent! As you can see from my picture I had my waffle the way the locals do just sugar and it was divine. In addition to eating waffle I also tried some chocolate! The chocolate was a disappointment to be honest, but that probably because I bought the cheep touristy stuff. Overall it was a fun weekend trip and a nice way to explore another country.
Bath
The Roman baths are located in Bath, England….so original haha, but Bath was truly a beautiful city with its honey colored lime stone. The Roman baths are still running to this day, were able to see the steam rising up from the baths. The Roman baths were not the only thing that impressed, there was an excellent fudge shop located in Bath that just happened to have the most delicious fudge I have ever eaten. But the one thing that was not delicious was the water at the Roman baths.
Stonehenge
So I have checked off my first one of the seven wonders of the world….Stonehenge! Only 6 more wonders to go. It is a privilege to now be able to say that I have visited Stonehenge. They are not sure how Stonehenge got there or what it was used for. There are many theories though, some say it was a place of worship while others say the aliens created it. Either way it is still fascinating to see something so old. Although this collection of stones dates at around 5,000 years old, it was not all fun and games. While we were there it started to hail and rain. The wind was so bad that it broke my umbrella! But I survived the hail to see the sun come out for about two minutes. All and all it was a good visit.
Dover Castle
Dover Castle was Amazing! The white cliffs of Dover were so pretty, however the wind was terrible. I felt like I was going to be blown away at some point, but the views were gorgeous. Dover is located at the narrowest part of the English channel. Thankfully the weather was good, because we could see France in the distance! In addition to the beautiful views there was also a lot of history at Dover Castle. We were able to go on a tour of the Dover tunnels, which were used during WWII as a military command center. Theses tunnels stretched over 4 miles long through the white cliffs of dover. Although we were not allowed to take pictures inside of the tunnels I did post a picture of the entrance to the tunnels, which is surrounded by ivy. Overall Dover was a beautiful place, defiantly worth visiting.
Canterbury Cathedral
This weekend I traveled to Canterbury Cathedral! This gorgeous cathedral was located in the town of Canterbury which was just an hour and a half south east of London. After touring the cathedral me and a few friends stopped to have tea and scones at a little restaurant, they were so good!
Laduree!!!
Macaroons at Laduree….need I say more? P.S. the salted caramel is my favorite 😉
Jack Ryan Shadow Recruit- European Premiere
I was lucky enough to attend the Jack Ryan Shadow Recruit European Premiere! Being this close to Keira Knightley and Chris Pine was no easy feat however. My good friends Sabie and Lauren braved the cold with me in order to be up close to the red carpet. It was definitely a lot of fun, but for the next premiere I think I will wear warmer clothing 😉
Stratford-upon-Avon in 1594
I ate in the oldest pub in the town of Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. This pub was built in 1594! It was crazy to have eaten in a pub this old, although the pub was old the food was not. I had a pulled pork apple and cheese melt which was surprisingly good. Maybe next time I will visit the oldest pub in england supposably built in 1189…..
southerner2londoner 