SANTORINI DREAMING

Destinations

Views views views! Santorini is a gorgeous romantic place that cannot be missed when going to Greece. We took a direct flight from Amsterdam (only leaves on Fridays via Transavia Airlines). We were 5 people and stayed at Agnadema Apartments in Firostefani. Santorini could be extremely expensive but with a big group an apartment style hotel was the best option for us!

 

 We went to Santo Wine Winery which I highly recommend. There are multiple types of packages to buy and can be purchased via their website, don’t think you can go wrong with any! The food here was delicious as well!!
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We took a sunset catamaran cruise that had unlimited alcohol to the red beach! I highly suggest doing some sort of catamaran cruise while you’re here!

 

 We did a really nice hike from Fira to Oia which was simple and easy to find. Once getting to Oia we just took the bus back. But here were some stunning views along the way!

 

 Santorini is a place I’ll always remember since that is where my fiancé proposed to me! We were having dinner at Astarte Suites which was the most stunning view overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. For any guys reading this… you should probably bookmark this post 😉 I’m sure you current girlfriend won’t turn you down here!!

 

 

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HIGH-LIGHTS IN AMSTERDAM

Destinations

Amsterdam is one of the prettiest cities I’ve ever been to! It really blew all my expectations. We stayed in Hampshire Hotel- Amsterdam American for 3 nights. It was a really cute hotel prime location near all the museums excellent luxury shopping and really walking distance to everything we wanted!

There are many things to do in Amsterdam! If you’re into museums I suggest visiting the Van Gogh Museum and  Rijksmuseum and of course the Ann Frank Museum. The Ann Frank Museum is not like any other museum, it was so touching and really something that everyone should see and witness! The museum was beautifully put together and really got the history and message across.

 Other popular things to do there is the Heineken Tour which was fun but not my favorite thing. A canal cruise is a really cute way to enjoy the scenery Amsterdam has to offer. On Viator they have many museum combo tours that offer skip the line tickets and is really reasonably priced!

We stumbled upon the Banksy museum which was really cool if you’re into graffiti art. It was one of my favorite things in Amsterdam!IMG_0007

Amsterdam is a walking city, so just walk around, get lost and admire all of its natural beauty!

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Food Recommendations for Amsterdam:

1. FOOD HALLEN (highly recommend)
2.Upstairs Pancakes
3. The avocado Show
4. Jansz
5. Greenwoods Keizergracht (was my favorite for brunch)
6. The Harbour Club Amsterdam Oost
7. Izakaya Asian Kitchen and Bar
8. G’s Brunch Boat
9. Café Van Zuylen
10. Moeders

 

Tips for Amsterdam:
1. If you’re going in April make sure you go to see all the beautiful tulips
2. If you’re crazy enough rent a bike and bike around Amsterdam!!
3. Watch OUT for bikers… they will run you over if you are in their way!
4. Take a stroll to Red Light District and see what it’s all about
5. Vondel Park is the Central Park of Amsterdam its beautiful and worth walking through
6. Check out Sandman Free walking tours
7. I did not have a chance to go but check out A’dam lookout which is this cool swing overlooking Amsterdam!

CZECH OUT PRAGUE

Destinations

I stayed in Prague for about 3 days which I found to be plenty! I stayed in Hotel UNIC Prague which was this cute hotel VERY reasonably priced and right near the Old Town in Prague 1 which is where you typically want to stay.

We walked to the Jewish quarter which was about a 5 minute walk from our hotel

I highly recommend you visit the Spanish Synagogue and the old Town Square which is where you’ll see the astronomical clock.

The astronomical clock was under construction when I went but still visible. There is supposedly a little show on the hour but I didn’t get to see! I did not go to the top because of the construction but that is something you can do!

We walked along the river to the Dancing House which was really cool to see and theres a awesome café on the roof and a cool view I highly recommend

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We did a tour of Prague Castle which I booked on Viator

After the castle we walked about 18 minutes to the Lennon Wall which I highly recommend.

There is a famous artist in Prague named David Cerny who is known for his controversial art instillations spread throughout Prague. This is a good guide that talks about his work! Sculptures By Cerny

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Food Recommendations for Prague:

1. Try Trdelnik anywhere you can! They are delicious and each place I found tasted slightly different!
2. Café Louvre- its famous for being the café where famous writers, musicians and scholars went to such as Franz Kafka, Albert Einstein and Karel Capek
3. Café Savoy
4. Lokal- Czech cuisine
5. Al Tagliere if you want some Italian food
6. Cantina- the best Mexican food but requires reservations and only takes their currency!
7. Triton Restaurant- cool restaurant that’s basically in a cave
8. Terasa U Prince- food was decent but the stunning views made up for it
10. Grand Café Orient

Other Recommendations for Prague:
1. Church of Our Lady Before Tyn
2. St Nicholas Church
3. Jerusalem Synagogue
4. Charles Bridge Tower
5. St. Vitrus Cathedral
6. Garden on the Ramparts (royal garden)
7. Petrin Tower
8. Letna Park
9. Vyshehrad
10. TV tower
11. If you have time I highly recommend Cesky Krumlov day trip looks like a fairytale! (can be booked on Viator)

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MALIBU with my boo’s

Destinations

Malibu was the perfect girls weekend getaway. We landed in LAX and drove to our air bnb in Malibu.

Our first stop that day was Malibu Wine Safari. We pre booked this 1-2 months before going which I highly recommend because eventually the tickets sell out! We chose the wine tasted with Stanley the giraffe combo. This place was beautiful and highly recommend!

We wanted to do something fun during the day so we went to The Broad Museum. There were a lot of cool exhibits and the infinity room being one of the most popular rooms. Once you get into the museum you have to put your name on a list in order to get a time slot for the infinity room. You can only be in there for a minute but that’s honesty all you need.

Nobu Nobu Nobu. You can’t go to Malibu without going to nobu. It has stunning views of the ocean and way nicer than the Nobu in NYC. Also didn’t hurt that kris Jenner and her boo Cory, Leanne rhymes and her family were at the restaurant too 😉. I feel like it’s one of those celeb hot spots where you’re always gonna see someone which always makes your night more interesting.

Our air bnb was about 2 minutes from Zuma beach. We went in May so the weather was high 70’s but it was perfect for the beach.

I’m really big into fitness and there’s a class offered in LA that they don’t have in NYC. It’s a versa climber class at Rise Nation which is this awesome machine that I am obsessed with! We drove an hour from Malibu to LA for this 30 minute class and it was everything I knew it would be. The shades are down, strobe lights are on and you feel like you’re in a club only to  remember that it’s 7 am….

Would highly recommend if you’re looking for a sick workout! It was like $20 for one class and you can reserve a week before.

This was first time to Cali and most definitely not my last. Stay tuned 😏😏

Restaurant recommendations:
1. Nobu Malibu
2. Beauty and Essex LA
3. Malibu farm
4. Geoffrey’s Malibu
5. Catch LA
6. Afternoon tea at the peninsula Beverly Hills
7. Urth cafe
8. Polo lounge at the Beverly Hills hotel
9. The nice guys

Tips for Malibu:
1. Depending what you’re doing you may want to rent a car
2. If you’re going to trendy places make sure to make reservations in advance!
3. If you’re into fitness check out Rise nation! For the best workout of your life

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Afternoon Tea at the Peninsula Hotel, Beverly Hills

Cape Town Chillen’

Destinations

19.5 hours later new continent, who dis? I got on a plane with my fiancé and two of our friends from JFK to Cape Town on South African Airways in January 2017. This is considered their summer month and was the perfect time to escape NYC.

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Theres so many cool things you can do in Cape Town some epic hikes, a beach with penguins🐧 , abseiling off a mountain, and you can’t go to Africa without doing a safari.

Welcome to Camps Bay aka the Hamptons of cape town. We stayed at Glen Apartments (booked on expedia.com)  which way more affordable for a group of four. The Glen apartments also gives access to The Bay Hotel which is a really trendy chic hotel on the beach of Camps Bay

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The Bay Hotel, Camps Bay

Table Mountain is a hike not to miss! It takes about 2 hours to get to the top but be prepared for some uphill steps essentially but the views are most definitely worth it. I did a guided hike + abseil combo that I booked through ABSEIL AFRICA .

 

Lions Head is another epic hike! I think this one is slightly more challenging than Table Mountain. We took an uber to the start of the trail and did it ourselves! There are some epic views along the way that are truly surreal

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If you’re crazy like me and have a fiancé who will go along with your crazy ideas than Wallys Cave should definitely be on your bucket list.  I did a lot of research on it and found forums and watched videos how people go to it since it is off trail of Lions Head. There were moments I saw my life flash before my eyes 😂 but it was worth every moment. I found this blog to be most helpful on how to find WALLYS CAVE.

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Wally’s Cave, Lions Head

If you’re trying to brighten up your day you can go to Bo Kaap which is this cute neighborhood where all the streets have different colored houses!

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Bo Kaap

Boulder Beach is where your dreams come true or at least mine did… It is about an hour and half outside of camps bay. We took an uber which was reasonably priced! You have to pay to enter and you can either view the penguins from a distance orrrrrr you can make your way to the beach and get up close and personal with these cuties.

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There are many safaris in South Africa some seem really cool where you go for a few nights. For lack of time we went to Aquila Safari Private Game Reserve for the day, which was only about a two hour drive and very affordable for a safari! I booked this through Viator but you can also purchase a tour on their website itself.

 

Obviously you think of animals when you hear Africa.. but wine was definitely calling our name! They have awesome wine tasting tours that I would highly recommend! We booked through African Story Wine tours which took us to multiple wineries in Stellenbosch, Paarl, and Franschhoek

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Afternoon tea is always a thing of mine so if a place is known for  it chances are ill be there! The Belmond Mount Nelson Hotel is where it’s at if you have a crazy sweet tooth. The dessert just never ends 😍  and the garden in the back is absolutely beautiful! I highly recommend it is very affordable compared to afternoon tea in other places like NYC or London! Check it out and definitely book in advance

 

Recommendations to eat:

  • Nobu Cape Town
  • The restaurant at Waterkloof
  • Mynt Cafe
  • Cafe Caprice
  • Zenzero
  • Azure Restaurant
  • Mezeopli Meze wine & bar
  • Barbour House V& A waterfront
  • Grand Africa Cafe & beach
  • The Bungalow

Top Tips for Cape Town:

1. Uber it everywhere its so cheap!!
2. Restaurants are clean, delicious and so cheap
3. Look up what vaccinations are recommended by the CDC prior to going on your trip! I personally just had to get Hep A Vaccine because that wasn’t something I got in the past
4. You do not need a Visa from the US to go to South Africa
5. You should exchange money to their currency just to have but every restaurant we went to accepted major credit cards!
6. Check out Two Oceans aquarium and their botanical garden if you have time!
7.  Make sure you catch a Cape town Sunset it is unforgettable

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Camps Bay, Cape Town

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