Berlin
Favorite Activity: Berlin, you got me. I can't come up with a favorite activity because I loved them all. But, if I had to choose, I would have say the Jewish Museum. The part that stuck the most with me was the bottom level, which was dedicated to the Holocaust and its victims. The emptiness and daunting feeling inside of the Holocaust Tower was indescribable. I also couldn't believe how terrifying of a noise the metal faces made when clanking together in the Fallen Leaves room. It really made me think about how many lives were lost and how the world has suffered since.
Favorite Restaurant: With all that Berlin had to offer, its restaurants did not disappoint. Everywhere we ate was unique and delicious, but the best was Chipps. We went for breakfast and it was the perfect start to our day. The restaurant was very modern in design, with shades of gray and clean cut edges throughout the space. This might have been the best breakfast I had the entire time I was in Europe.
Amsterdam
Favorite Activity: Without a doubt, Anne Frank's House. We were told by multiple people to go early, so we heeded their advice and woke up hours earlier than we normally would, resulting in a small 15-minute line. Walking through the house where her diaries were written was unbelievable. I walked through trying to soak everything in, but it was all so beyond belief that it left me breathless the entire hour I was inside. The best part of the tour was her room, which they prefaced with a quote from her diary, “Our little room looked very bare at first with nothing on the walls; but thanks to Daddy who had brought my film-star collection and picture postcards on beforehand, and with the aid of a paste pot and brush, I have transformed the walls into one gigantic picture. This makes it look much more cheerful…”
Photograph by Anne Frank Museum
Favorite Restaurant: One morning, all we wanted was brunch, as brunch is the best meal ever created. So, we looked up the best brunch in Amsterdam, and we were not disappointed. The restaurant, Fraîche, was adorable and had a happy, young vibe going on. The food was great and we left much happier than we came.
Paris
Favorite Activity: We only had two days in Paris, so we didn't have all that much time to explore. However, being the first-time-to-Paris tourists that we were, Hailey and I had to climb the Eiffel Tower. We weren't going to take any of that elevator nonsense, so we trekked up the 710 stairs to behold the amazing view that was waiting for us at the top. After we spent a good five minutes catching our breath, we walked around looking at the maze of beautiful French buildings surrounding us as far as they eyes could see.
Favorite Club/Bar: Hailey and I didn't know much about the night life in Paris, so we did what we thought would be the best idea: ask our Parisian concierge where to go. He seemed to be around our age and was always very friendly when we walked into the hotel, so we asked him. After talking to him, we struck out with our instructions to "walk down the street until you see Gap, take a left, and you'll see a crocodile on a wall." Turns out, we were directed to an Australian bar, Café Oz, that was filled with people dancing everywhere. The dance floor, on tables, on chairs, everywhere. Needless to say, Hailey and I spent the entire night laughing and dancing until we couldn't dance anymore.
Marrakech
Favorite Activity: Marrakech was unique because my grandmother hired a guide for us for the entirety of the trip. And when I thought Berlin was different, man was I wrong. Marrakech was unlike any place I had ever been, which made everything that much more magical. I don't think I would ever be able to pick a favorite because it was all so amazing. Abdul, our guide, took us to the souks, the Atlas Mountains, traditional Berber medicinal markets, old palaces, Ben Youssef Madrasa, Jardin Majorelle, and to an open expanse of desert in which we got to ride camels. However, I think the experience that stands out the most is when Abdul took us into this tiny opening in a wall on a random street. Standing from the outside, you would never know that anything could even be inside that wall. However, we walked into this dark room with a giant fireplace where two old men were baking bread. Abdul told us that all of the women in the neighborhood would make loaves of bread in their kitchens and their children would take the bread to be baked in this bakery. When the children came home in the afternoons, they would pick the bread up and bring it back to their families to eat for dinner that night. What was even more fascinating was that the children knew what all of the neighbors' bread cloths looked like, and would bring their bread home for them if it had not been picked up yet.
Favorite Restaurant: When we were in the Atlas Mountains, Abdul took us to his friend's restaurant that was situated on a lake and overlooked the other half of the mountains. It might have been my favorite view of the trip, as it was stunning. We all ordered traditional Moroccan plates, which were brought out in beautifully decorated tagines. I took the most amazing pictures of our view, but my puppy, Pearl, decided my SIM card would be her chew toy for the day, so I lost them all. This picture from Google will have to suffice for now.
www.bugbog.com
Favorite Activity: While we were in Italy, we spent most of our time learning about the history of the cities. In Rome, we had a tour guide take us around the city, which was the best way we could have possibly immersed ourselves in the city. Without his extensive knowledge, we would have no idea what the old rocks we were looking at used to be. I loved how condensed the city was. You could walk from the Pantheon to the Colosseum in twenty minutes and pass six other ruins on the way there. In Florence, our hostel was a five minute walk from the Duomo, so we were able to get everywhere in less than ten minutes. One day, we decided to walk up what felt like a million steps to a mountain that overlooked the entire city and we couldn't believe how beautiful our view was. That's another view that I will never forget.
Favorite Restaurant: The absolute best restaurant I have ever been to in my entire life is in Florence, Italy. And that's not an exaggeration. I was told by a family friend that they knew of a restaurant in Florence that we had to go to and that we were required to order the Pear and Gorgonzola Ravioli. Not something I would normally choose off the menu. However, on our last night in Florence, we obliged, went to Coquinarius, and all five of us ordered the ravioli. The owners of the restaurant ended up giving us a free appetizer to accompany the two other appetizers we ordered and a plate with five pieces of a different ravioli so that we could all try another dish on the menu. Appetizers: great. Other ravioli: delicious. Pear and Gorgonzola Ravioli: words cannot describe how heavenly this dish was. The sweet of the pear and the bite of the Gorgonzola created a taste that is incomparable to anything I've ever eaten.
http://eatmoredrinkmore.com/2014/01/06/a-week-in-florence-italy/
Barcelona
Favorite Restaurant: When we were in Spain, we decided to do as the Spaniards do and sleep until noon, eat a lot of food, and go out until the sun was threatening to rise. We ate at a lot of restaurants and I have to say that the tradition of tapas is not my favorite that I've experienced. That being said, my favorite restaurant was Rosa Negra, which was not a tapas restaurant. Instead, it had margaritas for €3.50, which was a huge selling point for us. The food was good too, which was a plus. My favorite thing about Rosa Negra though was the decor. One word that would describe it would be kitsch. Bright colors, flip flops hung on walls, sombrero chandeliers. Everything just worked and gave the restaurant a very fun vibe.
Favorite Club: If there was one area of Barcelona that we thoroughly explored, it was the club scene. Without fail, we took a cab to the beach and hit up the clubs every night. The one I had the most fun at was Opium because it was always just packed with people. The music was great, the view was great, and we couldn't have had more fun dancing all night. Plus, we were able to take late night walks on the beach, which was always the perfect way to end our night.
As cheesy as it is, this entire experience was the greatest thing that has ever happened to me and I'm literally counting down the days until I get to go on some other grand adventure somewhere in the world. Who knows what that will be, whether I make an impromptu road trip to Enchanted Rock or I fly across the world to Australia. Either way, you can be sure there will be a post about it!
Ciao for now!
x
