48 hours in Paris

Paris, j'taime. You cannot go to Paris and not feel simply fabulous from the moment you arrive. It just is not possible. While the Parisians themselves may have an unflattering reputation (as an American girl I usually do not notice this), you will immediately get swept away in the romance and glamor of it all. From the architecture to the food to the style, you simply cannot go wrong.


Where to stay: Chanel, Hepburn, Hemingway- they all made the Ritz THE place to stay in Paris. Fantastic central location, grand over the top decorations, I dream of staying here one day. Of course only a very lucky few stay here...

Each time I have gone to Paris all the places I have stayed have been lovely but not remarkable in my mind (minus the time we stayed at Euro Disney). Once we found one off the Champs Elysees on lastminute.com another time we stayed near the Opera House in a strangely modern but cute little hotel. A friend stayed at and enjoyed the Meridien Montparnasse (huge hotel). I think the best thing to do is to research the different neighborhoods and decide which suits your character best. I think the most important thing to remember is that this is a major European city so your money will not go as far as you want it to, the rooms will probably be a little smaller, and your bathroom might be antiquated (unless you stay in a Hilton or other American run chain). Also if you are not staying at a high end resort, be prepared to have a shower in the hall. It is fairly standard in Europe.


Day One: Begin your day with a pastry, no the French do not really do this but frankly they are good and the French are missing out! Begin your day at the Louvre (the earlier the better) and unless you are an art fanatic hit the majors and resign the rest (you probably could not see all of it in 48 hours anyway!) Follow this with a lovely stroll through the gardens until you reach the Musee de l'Orangerie. This is an absolute must as it hosts the famous Monet waterlily paintings that stretch around the room.



Follow this with one of the best crepes you will ever have at La Creperie St Germain (http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g187147-d1900028-Reviews-La_Creperie_Saint_Germain-Paris_Ile_de_France.html) While the decor reminds me more of Gaudi than Paris but the food and atmosphere is fantastic. This will position you well to spend some time after lunch shopping in the St Germain area before wandering over to the Jardin du Luxembourg to relax and people watch. After freshening up in your hotel, drinks at the Bar Hemingway at the Ritz are insanely expensive (30 Euro a pop) but an absolute must. The bar has very limited seating so try to arrive within 15 minutes of opening. Also if it is any consolation, my boyfriend and I checked all the other Ritz menus and the drinks are just as overpriced at all the other bars so you might as well enjoy a bit of history at the same time! For dinner my best recommendation is to walk as far from a metro as you can and find a hole in the wall. It is pretty much all we ever do and it usually works for the best this way. We also actively try to find a place that does not have english menus because then we know we really have arrived! (Bring a dictionary).


Day Two: Begin with more Eclairs (you are on vacation after all). Spend the morning heading over to the Basilique du Sacre-Coeur. Feel free to climb the steps in order to burn off breakfast and avoid the men trying to sell you friendship bracelets! The biggest reason to do this is that it is on a hill giving great views of the city and free (unlike climbing the Eiffel Tower). After that make your way over to the grounds beneath the Tower and stop at a grocery store for a stereotypical French meal of wine, cheese, & bread. Enjoy this under the shadow of the tower before heading over to the Les Invalides to see where Napoleon was buried. Finally, no trip to Paris would be complete without at least window shopping the big names. Head over to the Arch de Triumph and wander down the Champs Elysees for some fabulous shopping!

All inclusive resorts

This recent article from the Washington Post totally speaks to me: http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/travel/how-i-learned-to-stop-worrying-and-love-the-all-inclusive-resort/2011/10/04/gIQAx6i5jL_story.html

I have been to two all inclusive resorts in my travels and have had very different experiences. My dad and I accidentally ended up at one on the Greek Island of Rhodes and wanted to leave within moments of arriving. You were required to wear a bracelet, I watched grown fat men bring plates literally stacked with six dinner rolls for themselves back from the buffet and the next morning at 7am EVERY chair by the pool was already claimed, despite everyone already being a shade of lobster red. The resort also provided no way to get to the culture at the other end of the island (Old Town) so my dad and I got on a public bus. Then in Zanzibar we stayed at one on the coast because, well outside of Stone Town you cannot really just wander to any restaurant you want. This was slightly not inclusive in that beer and lunch were still charged (at least on our package) but it was so so much better. The breakfast buffet was full of fresh fruit and each night was a different theme at the restaurant. They altered between buffet themed nights (like local fair) and sit down menus (one was themed like a gala with a band and dance floor). This meant not facing the same drab buffet nightly which made it o so so much better. Plus being in the middle of no where it was more practical.

A day in Oxford

Hi everyone,

Sorry that I am failing at posting recently. Having an internship and looking for a real job takes up entirely too much of my time. Please excuse the informality of this post, a friend had asked me to tell her what to do for a day trip in Oxford so I am going to re-paste the email below. Maybe in the near future I will have time to clean it up!

1) The ORIGINAL Ben's Cookies is in Oxford in the Oxford Covered Market (it is a bit hidden off the high street so might be best to ask someone, one entrance is near boots). The high street it is off of is Cornmarket http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&um=1&ie=UTF-8&q=the+covered+market,+oxford&fb=1&gl=us&hq=the+covered+market,&hnear=0x48713380adc41faf:0xc820dba8cb547402,Oxford,+UK&cid=0,0,6404221355595297140&ei=FcpoToDQJura0QGRlM2EDA&sa=X&oi=local_result&ct=image&ved=0CAQQ_BI. The covered market is also cool in general and has a really popular shake shack as well.

2) The Garden Pub. If you do not have lunch here you are really missing out. This is a strictly vegetarian pub but it is so freaking good that my boyfriend an avid meat lover would make us go on the weekends specifically from Reading for lunch some weekends (he was lamenting about not having it the other day). It is in Jericho which is a really trendy neighborhood but a little out of the way so either write down directions or take a cab. http://www.thegarden-oxford.co.uk/

It is also a quintessential academic/ country pub.

3) The Oxford University Press, can't go in but it is big and impressive (also in Jericho).

4) Christ Church, this is 'the' elite college of Oxford you pretty much have to be someone to get in. It is also where a lot of Harry Potter was filmed. You do have to pay to go in (which I have never done since I could care less about wizards) however the grounds themselves are also amazing and you can walk down to the river and see some of the crew clubs as well.

5) The Eagle and Child is a famous pub where previous famous oxford students used to go. (Tolkien, C.S. Lewis).

6) The best yet most impossible pub to find (once again ask because I can barely find it just wandering and cannot possibly hope to give directions- just know you have to walk down a really really narrow alley near the bridge of sighs for one of the two entrances - both of which are down narrow alleys) is Turf Tavern. This is another famously frequented pub and is allegedly where Bill Clinton 'did not' inhale. http://www.theturftavern.co.uk/

Other than that Oxford is a city with a university unlike Cambridge which is a university with a town so you can fill your day fairly easily. All the 'big' tourist attractions however are doable in a day. I personally recommend arriving in time for lunch, going to Garden Pub walking through Jericho to get back to the center, ambling around, having Ben's Cookies as a snack and ending the day at Turf Tavern.

New York, New York

New York! Who does not love 'the City'? Well for a start I used to hate it. I hated that I never saw the sky, hated how slow and fat all the tourist were who were in my way of walking at a nice brisk pace. Hated the noise, hated it all. Then I moved there. Living in Brooklyn helped me see the sky and the rest of it... well it grew on me.

As I did with London I am not going to bother listing all the very famous things you can do in New York since unless you live under a rock you are fairly familiar. I will say this though, if you decide you want to go to Ellis Island or the Statue of Liberty book well in advance and try and get on the first boat of the day. The security lines are absolutely ridiculous.

I do not claim to be anything close to a New Yorker (too much Southern in me) but here are all the helpful tidbits and suggestions I can think of from living in there!

Culture:
In New York some museums are 'free' while others are not. Both the MET and the Natural History museum are technically free- they just suggest a donation of $20. I do not have that much money so I usually just give $5. As for other major ones both the MoMa and Guggenheim have free evenings (otherwise you MUST pay $20) for the Moma it is Friday after 4pm while the Guggenheim is on Saturday after 5pm. Obviously they are more crowded then but if you would rather spend the money at Barneys it is a good way to avoid paying for it.

As for gardens, obviously everyone knows about Central Park (well hopefully). The best way to see it (in my opinion) is taking a nice jog around it. Another great park is the East River Park in Williamsburg (Bedford Ave on the L) which will permit for fantastic photos of the New York skyline....


Finally a great little piece of nature is the High Line over in Chelsea/ Meat Packing district. It used to be a rail track that was used to shuttle the meat about from the docks to warehouses and the like but now is a nice stretch of park.



Neighborhoods:

While most tourists spend a lot of time wandering around the Upper East side (most museums are off of 5th Ave) and mid town (Empire State building, Times Square, Grand Central) these are not the most enticing neighborhoods.

Obviously everyone pretty much knows about Chelsea/ Meatpacking district as the IT neighborhoods but they really are worth exploring. The Chelsea market for example is a fabulous place to get baked goods, food, or knick knacks.

Union Square/ East Village is a great area with character too, the Union Square market (which is biggest on weekends) has loads of great unique things (and token NY photos for sale as well).

Brooklyn Heights has cute little stores and amazing brownstones. It would be a great place to go grab a coffee and waste an afternoon.

Williamsburg (Bedford Ave and Berry in particular). This is where I lived so I am partial but I love love love Bedford Ave. In my humble opinion brunch should only be done here.

Drinking:
Drinking in New York can be expensive and pretentious. Tragically I failed to find any good wine bars while living there but if you like good beer I have the list for you!

In Manhattan: The Gingerman in mid-town is phenomenal. You drink it, they most likely have it. German, Belgium, micro brew. You can even get beer to go! http://www.gingerman-ny.com/

Blind Tiger, near NYU this has loads of good local choices, sadly it is pretty small so it can be tricky getting a table.

Brass Monkey: If you find yourself in the meatpacking district and do not wish to have a $20 cocktail then this is the place for you. Good European selection, loads of space (also great on a week night since not a lot of offices near by). Load music on the weekends with a large amount of debauchery.

Outside of Manhattan:
I did not really venture outside of Manhattan other than Bedford Ave because frankly I did not need to. The list is endless as to the great places that you can drink there. First there is Berry Park which is done in German Beer Hall style (with the beer to match) and a roof garden. http://www.berryparkbk.com/
Then there is a DBA with a bigger selection than I could ever know what to do with. Off Berry there is a giant oktoberfest hall (apparently full of those from the island since all hipsters feel the need to go to the one in Queens): http://www.radegasthall.com/. Lovin Cup and Teddy's are also a great time on the weekend.

Food:
Please avoid the standard hotdog stands on the street. There are great food carts about but if you are out front a tourist attraction it is not a real food cart. Just saying.

As for pizza I have been to both John's Pizza (on Bleeker)http://www.johnsbrickovenpizza.com/ and Lombardi's (Soho)http://www.firstpizza.com/ - frankly I was not terribly impressed with either. Getting a slice from any mom & pop will most likely cover you on the cheap with less lines and less money spent.

Posh digs:

Since I am poor I cannot comment on too many of these. One great place is the 21 Club but I am fairly sure you have to be a member to eat there (worth checking though). Rosa Mexicano is expensive but amaaaazing Mexican. Their pomegranate margaritas are to die for and they make the guacamole fresh in front of you! They are perfect for a pre-ballet meal as one of their locations is right off Columbus Circle. http://rosamexicano.com/

Finally I cannot recommend Spice Market enough, I have been to a lot of places in the Meat Packing area and they are the least pretentious. They will give you great service regardless of who you are and if you are careful you can dine for a reasonable amount. Also the food is amazing. Get the green tea sunday or mango sorbet for dessert.

Also while you are in the meatpacking district be sure to go to The Lobster Place in Chelsea market and get a lobster roll. You will thank me later.

Williamsburg:
Since I lived there and all...
Perhaps my absolute fav would be An Nhau a fabulous Vietnamese place on Bedford Ave. The girl I lived with used to live in Vietnam and said it was all totally authentic. The restaurant also owns a Vietnamese sandwich shop next door (cash only) which frankly is the best sandwich you will ever have.

Juilette's is a great little place off Bedford that does french food really well and is another dinner option I cannot recommend enough (you can even roof dine). Meanwhile Berry Park has great food along with good beer.

Brunch:
Brunch might be my fav thing ever. Brunch in Williamsburg is even better. So raking them in order of my most favorite to still a favorite ....

1) Rabbit Hole (a bit of a walk from the subway stop but o my gosh their scones and pankcakes and french toast!)

2) Teddy's. Pancakes are also fantastic. They also do not skimp on their Mimosas unlike some brunch places. One is all it takes for me to feel it.

3) 5 Leaves (once again a bit of a walk, past the park) and there is always a line. Their brunch strays a bit from your typical brunch menu though and makes it worth it. Apparently some actor from Gossip Girl was even spotted here so you know it is good.

4) Cafe Collete - cute diner style inside, not a huge menu but still super tasty.

5) Julliette's probably only ranked this low because the day that I went I really wanted French Toast and could not get it for some reason I cannot remember.

Also in Bedford Ave is the o so famous 'Egg'- I have been, I was not impressed. Mostly bland egg dishes in my humble opinion.

Now that I have spilled all of my knowledge into this slightly disorganized blog I will say this, New York is really about exploring, my favorite thing to do is just wander until I see something good (like Pomme Frites in the East Village, o my gosh yum!)

The other great thing is that you can pretty much spend as much or little money as you want to so enjoy the town!

Good travel tips!

I saw this on CNN, I have definitely already done several of the suggestions myself and think they are great while others I have not tried. Either way they are worth a read! (PS a lot of these are more for traveling in the developing world than developed world)


http://edition.cnn.com/2011/TRAVEL/05/20/80.tips.before.traveling.matador/index.html?hpt=C2

Having a successful African Safari

There are two ways to do a Safari (as far as I am aware) and I have done both. One way is camping out in the parks themselves, the other is staying at lodges inside or near by the camps.

Before deciding to be thrifty and camp out it would be worth while to find out if you are camping in a fenced in area (or if the guides fence in the area themselves). If not you might be like me and wake up to animals trying to get into your tent (more specifically a zebra smacking my head with his mouth). If the area is fenced in, you are less likely to be bothered or feel nervous getting up and walking to the bathroom in the middle of the night (most of us took the approach of peeing immediately outside the tent).

If you stay in a lodge however, you get a real bed, often an attached bathroom, and a little bit more shelter from the animals. I did this while in Zambia on the cheap and it was fantastic (Marula lodge). You still see animals from your room (hippo munching outside your window) and have elephants walking through the property etc.

Timing is the other key factor in deciding to do a safari. In places like the valley in Zambia, you want to go in the dry season when the animals cannot hide behind all of the various trees and plants in full bloom. Meanwhile the Serengeti is a vast open range so much easier to see animals in the rainy season. The best thing to do would be to consult a company about the best time to go since each area will have a different climate and have different times for best viewing.

Either way you will have a fantastic time!

Smart choices while traveling

I have never met a single person I didn't like while traveling through Africa (that is a lie, I hated one guy but he was British so it does not count). I have found that unlike those of us in the west who are very inward focused, people in Africa will give you help when you need it and genuinely look out for you (a guy tried to steal this kids phone in Moshi and the crowd beat the crap out of the thief).

All that being said, Africans are poor and are looking for ways to feed themselves and their families. It is unlikely that you are going to be straight up robbed in a harmful way but if you are not being smart people will take opportunities (just like they do everywhere else, had things stolen in New York and London but never Africa). The guy who nearly had his phone taken was walking down the street and texting not paying any attention what so ever to what he was doing, making himself an easy target. If you count a wad of cash in public and haphazardly stuff it in your wallet in your back pocket and meander into a crowd, you might find it missing. Put your bag full of valuable things to sell on the back of your chair and it might not be there when you turn around (don't do this anywhere this is how I lost everything at a pub in London). In short if you are aware of your surroundings in Africa just like in any big city, you will be fine.

Also don't be crass and show off your wealth. I did not take my very lovely Michale Kors watch with me because one it is white and it would not come back as such but two because I had a perfectly good $10 target watch I could take instead. Africans have a tendency to think because you are white you are as rich as Bill Gates so a lot of people might ask you for money (don't take offense). So if you make yourself super flashy you are going to be a bigger target (kind of true everywhere).


Something else I do is take a crap phone. I have a lovely little hot pink phone that is unlocked. When I get to the airport I just buy a local sim and pop money on it. So much easier than dealing with roaming and so much cheaper too.

Other handy things to pack include face wipes (not always able to wash your face in a sink), hand sanitizer (this saved me and Claire in ghana when we had no water with which to wash our hands), for those roughing it toilet paper is soooooo helpful. Also re-hydration and tummy meds for when the local food does not agree with you 100%.

When I was reading hotel ratings on trip adviser before going to Zanzibar I wanted to tell all the negative reviewers one thing:This is Africa. Your internet is going to be slower, you wont always be able to drink out of the sink, sometimes you might encounter a long drop without any toilet paper (or running water for hand washing). That does not make the experience any less amazing what so ever. As long as you go in with the attitude that it is Africa and that it will be different, you will complain less. That being said where we stayed in Zanzibar was pretty much five star every way it could be, amazing staff, AC, TV, drinkable tap water (at least for me), business lounge spa. I am just saying don't let the idea of a long drop keep you from going on one of the most amazing trips you could ever hope to take.