Europe
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Only Lyon: France’s Best Kept Secret
What I love most about France is that each region of the country is so different from the next. There are so many different cultures and traditions within this country alone! Lyon is the third largest city in France, behind Paris and Marseille. Situated in the middle of the Rhône-Alpes region, this city is a UNESCO World Heritage site. It used to be an important site for silk production. Lyon sits right where the Rhône and Saône rivers meet. Plan your visit and check out my hotel recommendations! The Fête des Lumières takes place in Lyon every winter. Another interesting tidbit involving the term Lumière – Lyon was home of the…
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Travel Tips: Planning a Cheap Trip in Europe like a Pro
The best part of being in Europe is taking advantage of how close and accessible all the different countries are! Getting to Europe and back from the States may be a long and pricey flight, but once in Europe it’s super easy to frolic around for cheap! During my semester studying in France, I became familiar with some of the resources for cheap travel. Now that I am working in France for 8 months, I am taking advantage of all these resources ! Here’s how I typically plan out a trip. 1. Pick a destination Sometimes I choose my destination based on an event or time constraint. How long of…
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A Day in Luxembourg City
In my New Year’s post, I mentioned briefly that I visited a new country in December! I visited Luxembourg City. Luxembourg is the small country at the intersection of France, Belgium, and Germany’s borders. The country is only 2,586 sq km! I was curious about the size ranking so I looked it up and apparently Luxembourg is only the 28th smallest country! I thought it would be higher on the list. Anywho, I went to Luxembourg City, the capital of Luxembourg, with my momma in tow. This was one of the stops we made on our little Christmas week voyage. I partially chose the city just to break up one…
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Lyon’s Fête des Lumières: A Celebration of Lights
Every year, Lyon hosts the amazing Fête des Lumières (Festival of Lights). It takes place over a three day period on a long weekend. About a month ago, I headed south to Lyon with a friend to explore the city by day and the lights by night! The Fête des Lumières website provides an idea of the different installations there will be ahead of time. Before arriving, my friend went through the info on the website to make a list of the installations she wanted to see. I didn’t have time to check out the website beforehand, but luckily all the hostels in Lyon are prepared with tons of pamphlets for…
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Iconic Amsterdam: Canals, Coffee Shops & Culture
Amsterdam is one of the most iconic port cities in Europe! Famous for its beautiful canals, red light district, and coffee shops, this city was at the top of my bucket list. I visited Amsterdam while studying abroad in 2013, and I was happy to revisit the city in 2016! Walking Tour During my first visit to Amsterdam, I went on my first ever Free Walking Tour. After enjoying it so much, I began seeking similar tours in other destinations. It sounds like it’d be redundant, but I decided to start off my second stay in Amsterdam with another walking tour! I used the same company, but obviously I had…
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Rotterdam, Netherlands: Highlights of the History and Modern Architecture
Rotterdam is a major port city in the Netherlands. I knew close to nothing about this city prior to visiting during my Vacances de Toussaint in 2016. I enjoyed the city so much, I revisited just three months later! I decided to visit Rotterdam because it was right in between Antwerp and Amsterdam! As it turns out, this city is extremely young with impressive modern architecture! Rotterdam was bombed during World War II and nearly the entire city was destroyed. There is an incredibly moving statue beside the Maritime Museum, by Ossip Zadkine, named “The Destroyed City.” He said that when he arrived to Rotterdam after the war and saw…
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Three Days in Ghent, Belgium
For my first vacation of my teaching term, Vacances de Toussaint, I booked a ten-day trip through Belgium and the Netherlands. My first stop – Ghent (or, in French, Gand)! While in Dublin the weekend before this, a fellow traveler I crossed paths with told me that this was his favorite city in Belgium and highly recommended that I check it out. According to Google, most travelers spend about a day or two in this city. I didn’t intend on staying more than two days, but the only open hostel that weekend had a three night minimum (benefits of booking a trip 24 hours in advance). So three days it…
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A Weekend in Dublin: Guinness, Castles, and Irish Charm
Dublin is the capital of Ireland, located on the Eastern Coast of the country. This city boasts many amazing attractions! I spent a solo weekend in Dublin in the fall of 2016. These are my highlights of this charming city: Pro Tip: Grab a rain coat or compact umbrella for your visit to Ireland – you never know if you will get stuck in a rainstorm! I started my weekend in Dublin by going on a Free Walking Tour, exploring the south side of the city. This worked out especially well for me because I had zero game plan when I arrived. The tour starts near the Dublin Spire, then…
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Finding a Residence in Lille
I wrote in my last post how my friend very graciously allowed me to stay with him in his Paris apartment for ten (yes ten!) whole days before I moved to a residence in Lille. Honestly, I’m shocked he is still speaking to me! I’m not sure if I could even live with myself after sharing a bedroom like that! Anyways, I gave myself a 24-hour period upon arrival to not stress out about the fact that I still didn’t know where I was going to live. Immediately following that 24-hour period, I entered near-meltdown-mode! Shakka patiently helped me draft a 2-3 sentence message that I could send to potential leasors.…
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Paris is always a good idea.
“That Paris exists and anyone could choose to live anywhere else in the world will always be a mystery to me.” I may not have given myself very much spare time off of work in the US, to prepare for my big move (spoiler alert: I packed the day before my flight) BUT I made sure that I flew into France early enough to give myself some time in my favorite city before moving to Lille. I still had no idea where I was going to live in Lille when I arrived in France. However, arriving early really played to my benefit! During my time studying abroad in Paris between 2012-2013,…
