The third stop of our trip was to Gros Morne National Park. When I was reading about places to visit in Newfoundland, I came across this quote: “Gros Morne may be the most breathtaking park you’ve never heard of”. Located on the west coast of Newfoundland, the park lies within the Long-Range Mountains and is dotted with beautiful seaside villages, beaches, lighthouses and freshwater fjords.
Read MoreIt was a three-hour drive from St. John’s to our second stop, the adorable fishing village of Trinity. Before checking into our hotel, we drove north to the town of Elliston where they have an incredible puffin colony. There is a short pathway to the site and we could see them pretty close! They are such cute and funny animals and honestly, we had to google information about puffins because I was unaware they could fly. Turns out, puffins are not a type of penguin like I originally thought. Puffins can fly unlike penguins who swim. It was fun watching them and the viewing area was so beautiful.
Read MoreHello from Canada! Alex and I are currently exploring Newfoundland and although we’ve only been here for a few days, this area really does pack a punch in terms of beauty! To get to Newfoundland, we took an early-morning flight (6:20am), had a brief layover in Toronto, and then landed in St. John’s, Newfoundland around 2:00pm.
Read MoreWhile Alex and I were in Toronto two weekends ago, we decided to drive to Niagara Falls for the day. Niagara Falls has been on my New York bucket list for awhile and despite living in New York on and off for almost 8 years, we had never visited. When we realized the falls were only an hour-and-a-half from Toronto, we decided to rent a car and head out there.
Read MoreAlex and I celebrated our 10-year anniversary last week! I still can’t believe it’s been ten years - time please slow down! In honor of our 10-year anniversary we decided to celebrate doing what we love - exploring a new city. We decided to visit Toronto as it has been on our list to visit for awhile and only an hour-and-a-half flight from New York. The plane into Toronto actually lands on an island directly across from the city center. There is a short ferry ride (a whole 2 minutes!) to get across to the main city center and then we were able to walk to the hotel directly from there. I think it may have been the easiest flight to hotel experience we’ve ever encountered in our travels! It was also a fun way to see the skyline right from the get go!
Read MoreWhen I think of Maui, one of the first things that comes to mind is the Road to Hana. After doing a lot of research about this drive, most of what I read recommended to stay overnight in Hana in order to really maximize your time exploring this part of Hawaii. Alex and I ended up doing just that and spent a full day driving the Road to Hana, staying overnight in Hana and then taking an alternative route home where we ended at Haleakalā National Park.
Read MoreAloha! Alex and I just returned from a week long stay in Hawaii. My brother, Chris, and his wife, Melissa, invited a group of friends and family to Maui to help celebrate their marriage. For the majority of the group, it was the first time visiting Hawaii, Alex and myself included. We had such a wonderful trip! It really is a beautiful island with so much to see and explore.
Read MoreI love New York. We lived in Manhattan for seven years and have so many wonderful memories and amazing friends who continue to live there. I still can't believe we left over four years ago! Each time we go back, I always have a list of favorite places and I constantly struggle with balancing visiting our "old haunts" and taking the time to explore new ones. Alex and I have gotten better about trying at least one new restaurant while in the city and then re-visiting all of our old favorites.
Read MoreWe arrived back in Lisbon from Paris last night and only have five full days left in Portugal before heading back home to the States to celebrate the holidays with friends and family! We had an amazing time in France and I'm so glad we decided to fit this in before we leave Europe. It was the perfect way to start the holiday season as the city was lit up in Christmas lights and festive decorations.
Read MoreBonjour! Alex and I are having a great time in Paris - despite not seeing the sun since we've arrived! It is such a beautiful city and we have enjoyed seeing the sights and eating our weight in baguettes and pastries!
Read MoreFor our last road trip while we are in the UK we rented a car and headed to Rye, a 2 1/2 hour drive South East of London. We started our morning at Pett Level Beach. Online, I read during low tide you are able to see stumps of ancient trees which are part of a fossilized forest dating back to the most recent ice age. Luckily we came at the right time and were able to spot a few of these stumps.
Read MoreWe arrived in Budapest after a very rainy bus ride on Sunday afternoon. Luckily, once we made it to the city the rain had stopped and we were able to get and about for a few hours. One interesting fact about Budapest I learned from my research is that it is actually made up of two cities, Buda and Pest which are divided by the Danube River. We stayed in an Airbnb on the Pest side of the city, but easily made our way to Buda as they are joined by a number of bridges.
Read MoreAlex and I started our Eastern Europe trip in the Czech Republic by spending three days in Prague. After visiting, I would have to say Prague is one of my favorite cities I've been so far! It is such a beautiful city with amazing architecture and pretty red roofs. As the city itself is relatively small, we were able to walk everywhere and really get a feel for the area.
Read MoreAlex and I were talking last week about how we can't believe we have already been in London for a MONTH!! We decided since we only have a few weeks left we should think about any other day trips we want to take while here. We are going to Eastern Europe next week for 9 days, so when we get back, we'll only have two weeks left in London before heading to Portugal.
Alex brought up Stonehenge which initially was not on my list as a top choice to visit. As my mom pointed out, I'd already seen Carhenge near the Sandhills in Nebraska! Ha!! Alex was convinced this was a place we should see, so I gave in and we rented a car and drove there this past Tuesday.
Read MoreWhen my parents decided to visit us in London (they had never been before), one of the things my mom really wanted to see is the White Cliffs of Dover. It is about a two-hour drive from London, so on Sunday, we loaded up into the rental car and headed out east.
Read MoreWhile in Amsterdam, we decided to take a day trip and chose to visit the small canal-town of Delft in the western part of the Netherlands. It is known for being the birthplace of the painter, Johannes Vermeer, and for Delftware, which is hand-painted blue-and-white pottery. We took an hour-long train ride from Amsterdam and arrived in Delft by mid-morning.
Read More
We found out last weekend our shower was leaking into the apartment downstairs (luckily, no one is living there currently) and a plumber was going to have to do some repair work which meant we would end up without a working bathroom for two days. We decided since we had to vacate the apartment anyway, we would head to south central England to visit the Cotswolds.
Read MoreWe spent the afternoon in Fitzrovia which is an eclectic neighborhood about a mile from Trafalgar Square. We started the day eating at a Taiwanese restaurant which was delicious and then meandered through the streets and mews admiring all the old buildings and churches. Fitzrovia is a neighborhood with a mixture of retail shops, commercial buildings and residential homes. There were a lot of side streets and alley ways which we enjoyed exploring.
Read More