Barcelona...I can Dream

I have always found the Spanish culture very intriguing. With that, I've been wanting to travel abroad to Spain. More specifically Barcelona, Spain. According to US News, Barcelona is the number two greatest city to travel to! I couldn't agree more! (Even if I haven't actually been there :)

Barcelona is a city full of history and beautiful scenery! There are numberless sacred churches and cathedrals to tons of beaches and laid back bars and shopping!

How beautiful is this? I mean, honestly?!

Things to do in Barcelona are endless! A tourist could begin their adventure by going to the Museu Picasso to see all of Picasso's gallery artwork. We all know those paintings are worth a thousand words and even more dollar signs! Then you could stroll on to local seafood restaurants for fresh seafood right from the ocean! One of the ones that has great reviews is called Botafumeiro. It has a great assortment of seafood served by waiters in nautical themed clothing. Of course, you must learn the flamenco! It is a great dance that many native Spanish people know.

The beaches are something else. They are gorgeous with white sandy beaches and crystal blue water.

The beaches are never ending! I would be there in an instant if I could!

Barcelona...maybe, one day!

Holy Moses!

Every year in the Netherlands, many people travel to see the Dutch Fortress (fort). To get there, you must cross a wide river. Recently, they built the Moses Bridge.

This bridge gives travelers a unique experience in order to reach the fort.

From a distance, it gives the illusion that people are walking on water. It is an act of God, some may say! (Haha!) How neat would this be to go visit???

Netherlands, here I come!



Under the Sea

In Dubai, Hydropolis is in full force. Hydropolis is the world's first luxury underwater hotel. It includes three elements: the land station, where guests are welcomed, the connecting tunnel, which transports people by train to the main area of the hotel, and the 220 suites within the submarine leisure complex. It is one of the largest contemporary construction projects in the world.

While all 220 of the hotel's bubble-shaped suites lie on the floor of the Persian Gulf 66 feet under the surface of the water, the twin domes of the hotel's concert auditorium and ballroom will break through the surface. The ballroom's retractable roof will allow guests to enjoy open-air events, with panoramic views of the coastline and the Dubai skyline when the weather's fine.

All in all, this is a place I would LOVE to visit. Who wouldn't want to stay at an underwater resort with big fishes and sharks swimming all around you? Needless to say, Hydropolis would be an adventure never to forget!

Maybe one day...

Taj Mahal

Something I always admired about India was the clothing style with the bright colors and jewels, but I also admire the architecture! It is so unusual and bright. I could only dream of one day going and seeing it for myself! One of the most influential and most popular architectural structures in India would probably be the Taj Mahal. It was completed in 1653. Needless to say, it is pretty ancient!

The Taj Mahal is actually located in Agra, India. It is known as an Islamic tomb.

The inside has many beautiful things. There is a screen which border the cenotaphs (tomb) that is made from eight marble panels. There are also several tombs where past king and queens reside.

 There is also a 300 meter reflecting pool bordered with flowers, greenery, trees and fountains.

All in all, I think the Taj Mahal would be an unusual place to visit. It would be an awesome experience to witness the different kinds of culture that India has to offer.



Viva Las Vegas!

During Fall Break, I ventured to the wild and crazy place known as LAS VEGAS, Nevada with my family and boyfriend. It was quite the trip to say the least. My parents decided to take me along with my brother, sister-in-law and boyfriend as I was the last one to turn 21. This trip was one to never forget! We stayed at the Flamingo!

It even had REAL flamingos!! Along with some other weird birds...

We did A LOT of sight-seeing as there is much to see in the Fabulous Las Vegas!

Is this the real Caesar's Palace?

The Venetian was GORGEOUS! So much to see and do including gondola rides and shopping at the Forum Shoppes.

We went to Old Las Vegas known as Freemont Street. It was pretty cool! They did a HUGE light show known as the Freemont Experience on screens that line the roof of the walking path. It was so cool!

We did countless other things but that would take up way too long for me to explain it all! Needless to say we very much so enjoyed ourselves!

Enjoy your weekend!

An Ice Place to Visit

I recently came across an article and some pictures about this place in Jukkasarvi, Sweden. I have heard of it and seen it on television, but I had never actually witnessed true and detailed pictures along with so much information explaining it. The place I am speaking of is called Sweden Icehotel. Though this is not necessarily a very creative name, don't let it fool you. This thought of an "icehotel" is anything but normal. The hotel is located 120 miles north of the Arctic Circle. The room temperature is 23 degrees. The walls, beds, chairs, light fixtures, even the glasses used in the bar are made of ice. You can't unpack your clothes because they'd freeze, and the thought of getting out of your sleeping bag to go down the hall to the toilet is enough to keep you awake all night.

Though these conditions are quite extreme and seem more than unpleasant (at least to me!), thousands of people venture to the Sweden Icehotel every year! This year it has 60 rooms and 25 fully decorated suites. These rooms cost anywhere from $291 a night to $653 a night! And to think, to to freeze your buns off and sleep on ice!

Here is one of the fully decorated suites! This is quite crazy and very detailed in the ice sculpting. Bet not many people can say they have slept in an ice bed or experienced anything, even remotely close, to this!

And, of course, being in Sweden, you wouldn't expect anything else less than a lavish Absolut Vodka Bar!

This is quite the unusual place! Even though I am not a fan of cold weather, especially not 23 degree sleeping weather, I definitely think it would be a cool place to visit if I were ever in the neighborhood. Who wouldn't want to say they have seen/stayed in an icehotel? Honestly!

That's all for today! Stay tuned for next week's post! I will be venturing to VEGAS!!! So you know I will have some good information and pictures! Enjoy!

German Excursion

My graduation present from my wonderful parents was a trip to Germany (and Paris, but I already blogged about that one)! My best friend from high school and I traveled to Germany to stay with our foreign exchange student friend and her family. Needless to say, it was quite the adventure! Germany is an awesome place! The people there are so friendly and very laid back. We were able to do so many things while we were there for the month.

The shops and restaurants are just as you see in the movies. Quaint and appealing to the eye. I enjoyed shopping very much. They have so many different items to choose from that are all very German-like!

This is a great picture displaying the shops!

We traveled to Koln (Cologne) to see the Kolner Dom. It is a cathedral that began construction in 1248 and was completed in 1880. It was the tallest structure in the world until the Washington Monument was built. The cathedral sees approximately 20,000 people everyday!

The cathedral was damaged in World War II due to aerial bombing. Some parts of the Kolner Dom are still not open due to this. It has some of the most beautiful architecture I have ever seen in my life. There is not a part of the cathedral that is without intricate detail. It is exquisite.

One of the treasures of the cathedral is that there are three golden tombs inside. They are called The Shrines of the Three Kings. It is traditionally passed on that the tombs contain the remains of the Three Wise Men and there 2,000 year old clothing. There is also a 10.5 ton bell inside! This bell is HUGE! It is the largest of the 11 bells the cathedral contains.

This is the view from the top of the Kolner Dom! It was beautiful and totally worth the 509 steps to the top in a spiral staircase barely wide enough for one person let alone two people passing up and down! It was gorgeous! If only we had seen it at night all lit up! 

Something else we did was hike up a mountain to see the Schloss Drachenburg Palace. It was quite the steep hike but the palace was beautiful!  

It was worth the hike there and back!

We did a TON of other stuff! Germany is such a wonderful place to visit. I would highly recommend it! I could even give you my friend's info and you could have your own tour guide! Thanks for reading my latest post! If you have any question or comment, please write one!

Sie sehen! (See you soon)