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October 25 - October 28, 2018; Paris, France
For the rest of the reading week (Fall Break), my friend Katie and I went to Paris for four days. On our first day in Paris, we went to see the Eiffel Tower, sat down at the park while eating crepes until sunset. As soon as I saw the Eiffel Tower, I couldn't take my eyes off of it because it was just too beautiful to look at during the daytime and nighttime. On our second day, we went to see one of the famous moments in France called, Arc de Triomphe. After visiting the Arc de Triomphe, we went to visit the Louvre Museum, where we purchased our 13 euros ticket in order to go inside. Inside the museum, we got to see the original painting of Mona Lisa and other famous paintings as well that are originally from other countries such as Greece and Spain. On Saturday, the 27th, we went to see the Notre Dame Cathedral. It is one of the most famous cathedrals in the city of Paris, France. There were lots of people visiting the cathedral and at the same time, we had to be extra careful with pickpockets because France is a well-known country for pickpockets. Therefore, you just have to be extra cautious when visiting a foreign country because anything can happen. However, everything about Paris was truly amazing!! It is definitely a great city to visit for a couple of days. Paris is one of the top cities on my list that I have always wanted to visit and I am beyond thankful that I got to visit the city and went to all of the famous landmarks there. |
November 9 - November 11, 2018; Reykjavik, Iceland
My friends and I went to Iceland this past weekend and it was one of the best trips I've ever been to in my life!! On our first night, we went to eat at this restaurant and I had one of the most delicious bacon pasta ever! On Saturday, the 10th, which was our first full day in Iceland, we went to visit a lot of amazing places! First stop was at Thingvellir National Park, then to Geysir Geothermal Area, and lastly at the Gullfoss Falls. It was quite a very busy adventurous Saturday for us, but we definitely had a blast!! On our last day, we went to visit the Black Sand Beach, Skoogafoss Falls, and Seljalandfoss Falls. All of the beautiful falls we went to was truly breathtaking!! I was truly amazed at everything we went to. Although Iceland is freezing cold, it is definitely full of great spontaneous adventures. If I could ever go back there, I definitely would love to go back again and visit other popular places that I didn't get to see. |
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November 15 - November 17, 2018; Funchal, Madeira
Two of my friends and I flew to Funchal, Madeira this past weekend. We arrived there on Thursday morning and once we got there, we were the happiest people ever because of the warm sun and the sound of waves near the airport. Funchal truly reminded me of home so much! It was a very short vacation, but everything went well and it was so worth it! It was such a great time to be away from the cold weather back in London. I definitely enjoyed the warm sun and being surrounded by the ocean was truly amazing. Overall, I honestly would love to go back to Portugal and explore the other parts of the city since we only had about two days to explore Funchal. |
November 22 - November 25, 2018; Barcelona, Spain
I flew over to Barcelona, Spain to spend Thanksgiving weekend with my friends, so I just got back today from Barcelona (Nov. 25, 2018). I actually had so much fun with my friends in Barcelona, most especially because I finally got to visit Barcelona (one of the places on my checklist) and was able to communicate in Spanish with the locals. I got to visit some of the famous landmarks in Barcelona, such as the Arc de Triomf, Park Guell, Barcelona Cathedral, and La Sagrada Familia. Each landmark is beyond amazing! All of them are must-see if you ever plan to visit Barcelona in the future. Of course, I can't forget about the delicious food I had in Barcelona. Paellas and Tapas are the most popular type of food in Spain. Paella is known to be the most known rice dish from Spain and it is also a must try when visiting Barcelona or other cities in Spain. Tapas include a variety of appetizers such as fries, croquettes, chicken wings, cheese balls, onion rings, and more.I got to try both Paellas and Tapas, but I'd say Tapas was my favorite one. Overall, my trip to Barcelona was breathtaking and I would definitely go back again in the future! |
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November 29 - December 01, 2018; Amsterdamn, Netherlands, Copenhagen, Denmark, and Malmo, Sweden
I just got back on campus early Sunday Morning (Dec. 02). My friends and I went to visit three different countries in 3 days. We flew to Amsterdam on Thursday morning (Nov. 29th) and spent that day there eating, see Anne Frank's house, and got to visit Van Gogh's museum. I remember reading about them when I was in high school and now I can finally say that I got to see where their landmarks are located in Amsterdam. On that Thursday night, we took the bus from Amsterdam all the way to Copenhagen, Denmark. It was a long journey, but it was fine since I slept throughout that whole night. When we got to Denmark, we went to a park called 'Orstedparken', which was beyond beautiful and very peaceful. That same day, we went to a marketplace for lunch and food was delicious!! On December 1st, we took the train from Copenhagen to Malmo, Sweden, which only took about 40 minutes to get there. When we got out of the train station in Malmo, it was freezing just like the other countries we visited. Malmo, Sweden was a lot less crowded compared to Amsterdam and Copenhagen, but the environment from each one looked very similar to one another. In Malmo, we went to another park called 'Kunsparken' and it was very gloomy and dark, but the environment was truly pleasant. Later on that day, we went back to Copenhagen, where we departed from to go back to London. It was definitely such a great experience to be able to travel to three different countries in just three days!! I never thought I'd be able to pull through such thing, but it's over and the memories that my friends and I have made throughout our trip is one thing that I'll forever cherish in my life. Sweden is the last country that I visited before I head back home to Hawai'i and it ended just what I expected it to be. |