travel – Page 9

Photo Diary: The Wizarding World of Harry Potter

Published on August 15, 2017January 8, 2025 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

I recently spent two days in Orlando, Florida’s Universal Studios. Universal is a huge amusement park but I was most interested in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. My family and I have always been big fans of J.K. Rowling’s books and films. There are two parts of the Harry Potter World in Universal Studios. One is Diagon Alley and has multiple stores and restaurants featured in the books and movies. The second section is the small town Hogsmeade which has more stores and restaurants featured in the books and movies. And of course, visitors can stare at the amazing castle of Hogwarts which is just outside of Hogsmeade. Both sections are connected by none other than the Hogwarts express train. Visitors can ride the train and feel like a Hogwarts student along the way. There are also three roller coasters based off of the Harry Potter books and movies. Even if you aren’t a fan, I would still recommend visiting the Harry Potter World if you are ever in Orlando, Florida. I was highly impressed with how real and accurate everything was compared to the movies.

P.S. Don’t forget to try a cup of butterbeer, which is the drink featured in the movies. It’s non-alcoholic, only sweet and delicious!

Photo Diary: New York City

Published on August 9, 2017March 12, 2018 by Skylar M. Beck3 Comments

NEW YORK CITY. Out of all the cities I have been to, especially in the last two months, New York City will always hold a special place in my heart. I have been many times and every time I go back, there is always something new and exciting to see and do–which has to be my favorite part about NYC. I was there for the past four days visiting design centers and the New York School of Interior Design. I will be sharing my experience in the NYC design world in another post. For now, here are some of my favorite pictures I took while in the city.

Europe Reflections

Published on July 17, 2017March 12, 2018 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

07. 17. 17.

It’s hard to believe that I have been home from Europe for almost a week now. It’s even harder to believe I spent the past two months living in Europe. Words can’t described how blessed I feel for the experiences and adventures I had while in Europe. I recently came across the quote “Traveling is only thing you buy that makes you richer.” I think there’s a lot to be said about that quote. Traveling opened my eyes to the big beautiful world we live in. There is so much more to see and experience compared to what we are used to seeing and experiencing every day. Personally, I think it’s easy to get stuck in a routine that we repeat day after day, month after month, even year after year; and at some point we start believing this is our life. But stepping outside of the routine showed me that life and the world in general are so much more than familiarity and what I was comfortable with. Traveling allowed me to take risks, be scared, be excited, and change in some of the best ways. I think traveling for the past two months was the best gift I could have given myself. I now know what I am capable of and what I am capable of accomplishing alone. Once you prove that to yourself, other things that once seemed scary suddenly don’t. Was it always easy traveling alone? Of course not. But the experiences I had were well worth some of the challenges I faced.

It’s strange being home. Even though I was only away for two months, that’s a long enough time for me to feel adjusted to a whole other world. Now being home feels slightly foreign. But with time the strange feelings I’m now experiencing will fade. The memories and lessons I learned in the last two months will stay with me for much longer and continue to shape the way I view my life. I’m already looking forward to my next adventure!

Day Tripping: Verona, Italy

Published on July 11, 2017March 27, 2019 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

Verona was one of the last cities in Italy I wanted to make sure I visited before heading back home. I’m sure many of you first heard of this small town in Northern Italy from the movie, Letters to Juliet…or maybe that was just me. Verona is home to Juliet from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Although, apparently this may not have actually been her home but since her family lived in Verona, this quickly became a tourist destination. In the courtyard there is a statue of Juliet and small gift shops. Tourists are allowed to take a tour inside the home and go out onto the balcony that is attached to Juliet’s bedroom. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to walk through the home but spending time in the courtyard was enjoyable. I made sure to write a letter to Juliet and leave it in the mailbox. Other tourists leave small notes in the walkway in unique ways…some are written on bandaids!

With the short amount of time I had, I also made sure to hike to the top of Castel San Pietro. The view from the top is stunning!

A Day in Prague, Czech Republic

Published on July 9, 2017March 27, 2019 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

If I had to describe Prague in one word it would be magical. I was only able to visit Prague for about 24 hours but the whole time I felt like I was in a fairy tale. The architecture of the buildings give such an enchanting feeling and of course the Prague castle was enough to sweep me off my feet. Surprisingly, I was able to see a lot of Prague in a day. My favorite sites were the Prague Castle, Charles Bridge, the John Lennon Wall, and Old Town Square. Also, for food I recommended trying a glass of beer and one of their desserts…my favorite was the donut with ice cream inside.

Amsterdam For Coffee Lovers

Published on July 8, 2017January 9, 2025 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

As I mentioned in my previous post on Amsterdam, I had some amazing food throughout my entire visit. Therefore, I thought a separate post dedicated to all of the delicious cafes I found was necessary.

Pluk

I could not get enough of Pluk. It was SO good. Not only was the food and coffee delicious, the interior of the cafe was so cute, it made me want to stay all day. They also sell products such as small decor things and stationary items. My favorite meal to order was their smoothie bowls, they were amazing…so much so that I went back multiple times during my two days in Amsterdam.

COTTONCAKE

COTTONCAKE also sells products inside similar to Pluk, but they also sell clothes. The shop is downstairs and the cafe sit down area is upstairs. The atmosphere here was so calm it was a nice stop to relax at after a morning full of walking. COTTONCAKE also uses organic products and everything is made fresh everyday. I tried their fresh orange juice, avocado toast, and banana bread. It was all so yummy.

Pancakes Amsterdam

Pancakes Amsterdam was right next to the Anne Frank house so I decided to try it for dinner after my visit. They give you the option of ordering typical American pancakes or Dutch pancakes. I wanted to see what a traditional Dutch pancake was like. As you can see, they are huge! I wasn’t expecting it. I added bananas inside mine and it was so great. It was filling but the good news is Dutch pancakes are very thin so it is possible to finish the entire plate without feeling sick.

Stach

Stach is located all over Amsterdam, there are multiple especially in the center of the city. It’s an easy stop to grab coffee and a pastry to go. Their coffee was so smooth, I loved it.

Some other coffee cafes I loved:

Il Momento

Screaming Beans

Sweet Cup

Kessens

48 Hours in Amsterdam

Published on July 7, 2017March 12, 2018 by Skylar M. Beck1 Comment

Amsterdam…the city of bikes. For the longest time I have always wanted to visit Amsterdam and I’m so thrilled I was finally able to. Amsterdam had so much to offer. Some of my favorite things to do were visiting the Van Gogh Museum, the Anne Frank House, and walking down the canals admiring all of the houses. I was also pleasantly surprised at how amazing the food was. I don’t think I had one bad meal! Definitely a trip to remember.

Photo Diary: Dublin, Ireland

Published on July 4, 2017March 12, 2018 by Skylar M. BeckLeave a comment

I’ve spent the last two days in Dublin, Ireland and have loved every moment. Dublin is a beautiful city with great people, great food, and great things to do. I highly recommend visiting the Book of Kells exhibit located on Trinity College’s campus. Also, try a Guinness…I honestly did not think I would enjoy the taste at all but with a good burger I actually enjoyed it. Can’t go wrong with an Irish pub!

A Day Trip Across Ireland

Published on July 3, 2017March 12, 2018 by Skylar M. Beck4 Comments

Happy Monday! I left Paris yesterday and took a short flight to Dublin. Today, I went on an incredible day trip across Ireland. I was able to see the Cliffs of Moher, Doolin, Burren, and Galway all in one (long) day. I booked a bus tour through Irish Day Tours. I usually never prefer to site see by bus tours because most are strict with time because of the schedule and there are a lot of other tourists involved… which can sometimes take away from the experience. However, I was pleasantly surprised with this bus tour, it was wonderful. My tour guide/driver told Irish stories along the way and talked about the history of Ireland. If you are planning to visit Ireland, I highly recommend the Irish Day Tours company. They offer a lot of other tours throughout Ireland, but I was most interested in seeing the Cliffs of Moher.

Speaking of, the cliffs were INCREDIBLE. I have never seen anything more beautiful. As I mentioned, the tour consisted of other stops after the cliffs, which were equally amazing. Burren has a lot of rocks and smaller cliffs along the Atlantic, so extremely beautiful. Galway was the cutest town. We didn’t stay here long but I did have some time to walk around the city center, I instantly fell in love.

Ireland’s beauty is beyond what I imagined, I am in awe.

Cliffs of Moher