Weekend Getaway: Boston Highlights

This time last week, I was back on the East Coast enjoying the pouring rain and freezing weather. I was in America's walking city, The Hub; Boston, Massachusetts! I was there for the Women in Travel Summit and had an amazing time. This being my first time in Boston, I tried to do as much exploring as I could in my packed weekend. Also, the fact that Boston is such a compact city made this a lot easier for me. Just about everything is within walking distance.

So, without further ado, here are my weekend in Boston highlights!

Logan Airport

Now, you're probably thinking "why is she including an airport?", BUT I am a sucker for a cool airport location. Flying into Boston's Logan Airport, you first have to go out and fly over the Atlantic before landing. I love those types of landings. During those few minutes of flight over the ocean, you get a gorgeous view of all the small islands off of the Massachusetts coast. Great for people who love to take a million photos while flying.

Hostelling International USA, Boston

This weekend was my first time staying in a hostel. I was not expecting much at all, but HI Boston blew me away! It was one hell of a hostel! With free breakfast every morning, free wifi, a TV room, and loads of comfy places to hang out, it's the perfect place to chill out after a day or night of exploring the city. And the staff was really nice as well. But now I have to lower my expectations for all the other hostels I'll be staying at in the future! If you are ever in Boston, I very highly recommend staying at HI Boston.

Fire & Ice Restaurant

Located on Berkeley Street, this restaurant was a great place to start my weekend in Boston! My cousin came down from Maine to go to dinner and a movie with me and she took me here to eat. I loved the feel of the restaurant and the way that it functioned. You pick out all of the ingredients that you want (any kind of pasta, meat, vegetables, grains, anything you could think of!) for your dish, put them in a bowl, then pick out any kind of sauce or seasonings that you want, put them in a separate bowl, then give them to the cooks working in the big circle grill in the middle of the restaurant to cook up for you! And you could go back for as much food as you want. The food was delicious and so was the dessert! 

On Location Tours: Boston TV and Movie Sites

If you ever wanted to see the city of Boston and all of it's TV and movie history, On Location Tours is definitely for you. It is about a 3 hour bus tour that goes all around Boston to all of the sites of your favorite movies or TV series. The tour guides really know what they are talking about, and they take you to the famous L Street Tavern for some mid-tour drinks! Since I was only in Boston for a short amount of time, I felt like I got to see a good portion of the city because of this tour. They also host their tours in New York City! Visit http://onlocationtours.com/tour/boston-tv-movie/ to book your tour today!

Boston Common

I had one morning where I was free, so I decided to take a stroll through the snowy Boston Common. Boston Common is the oldest park in the country and is where the Freedom Trail starts (while I did not get a chance to actually walk the Freedom Trail, I heard it's great especially if you're a history fanatic). The park is beautiful and a lovely touch of greenery in the city. It was great to be able to explore the park on my own before spending the next two days in conference sessions.

Our Lady Of Victories Church

This church was one of the most beautiful churches I have ever been in. I went to mass here on Saturday evening and was in awe when I walked in. From the outside, the church doesn't look like much, it almost blends in with the other houses around it. But once you get inside it is amazing. Every little detail is unique and makes the church beautiful. This church is tucked away on Isabella Street and is definitely worth a visit.

Winsor Dim Sum Cafe

In the heart of Chinatown on Tyler Street, is some of (in my opinion) the best dim sum you can get in Boston! Oh, and it's super cheap too! Myself and 3 of my roommates went out to Winsor one night, ordered a bunch a food, and the bill all together was only $40 with tip. How incredible is that?! I highly recommend.

Trident Booksellers & Cafe

If you love food and books, this is the place for you. Trident is a book store inside a cafe. It was so nice to eat while being surrounded by thousands of books! While waiting for your table you can browse around for your favorite book upstairs and downstairs. If you ever get the chance to visit Trident, I recommend getting a freshly squeezed lemonade and the deluxe grilled cheese (yes, it is as good as it sounds). This book cafe is on the enchanting Newbury Street in the Back Bay area of Boston.

Picco Restaurant

A pizza place like no other! In the South End on Tremont Street, Picco has some of the best, most unique pizza I've ever had (and I'm a New Yorker!). If you want a pizza with a bunch of delicious toppings and a super crispy crust, go to Picco!!! They also have a large selection of beer and wine. Oh and they make their homemade ice cream right in the back of the restaurant! I found it was a super unique twist on normal pizza and ice cream. Next time I'm in Boston again I will definitely be back for some delicious food and dessert!

And there you have it! I loved the time that I spent in Boston, and these places and experiences just made it even better. If you have ever been to Boston, what are some of your favorite places to enjoy the city?!

"A Budget Traveler's Bible"

Hello! I feel like it's been quite some time since I wrote a post. But here we are now!

On Friday, I went to this cute little bookshop in Houston to attend a book signing/talk for Matt Kepnes's (Nomadic Matt) book, "How To Travel The World On $50 A Day", and it was pretty awesome.

I've been a reader of Matt's for a few months now. Once I found his site, I literally spent weeks reading every post on there. Anything that I had questions about, or was concerned about when it came to traveling, was all in his posts. When I needed to decided which travel credit card to get, the first place I went was to Matt's post on credit cards. When I was trying to pick out a backpack to travel with, the post on how to pick a good one helped lead me to my perfect match.

Also, when I was very much doubting myself and considering not taking the year off to travel, because no one was supporting my decision, I emailed Matt and he very quickly responded and calmed my nerves. He probably doesn't know this, but he gave me that little push and boost of confidence to follow through with what my heart was set on, even if no one was supporting my decision at the time. (Now my family thinks that it is the best idea ever and are behind me 100%!)

So, as you could imagine, I was pretty excited to go to this book signing. I met some cool people there who are all on different travel journeys of their own. Some where very seasoned travelers, while others, were just about to start their journey, like me. Oh, and there was free wine!

Before signing everyone's books (there was quite a large turn out!), Matt gave about an hour talk on the book and just traveling in general, and then let us asks questions. I really enjoyed this, because it was much more personal. He told us some awesome stories about some of his early adventures as a traveler, and the mistakes that he has learned from. Hearing Matt's stories and knowing that he started out just as some of us have, made me really feel like I can do this.

Oh, and we also talked about our favorite places in New York to get pizza! No one can top NY's pizza! (And bagels, but that's another story..)

The whole event was great. I left there feeling more inspired and confident in my decision to travel then ever before. And when I got home that night, I nearly finished the book.

One of the praises for the book says "The bible for budget travellers.", from BBC Travel, and they could not have summed this book up any better. If you are trying to travel on a budget, whether it be for 2 weeks, or a year, this book is your go to for everything you need. It is broken down into 3 parts; Part One: Planning Your Trip, Part Two: On-The-Road Expenses, and Part Three: Breaking It Down By Region. And it also has appendix's for travel companies, a suggested packing list, and vaccinations. The book shows that even if you are not rich and don't have a lot of money, you can still travel! It all comes down to budgeting, saving, and learning how to find everything at a price you can afford, while still being comfortable.

All in all, this book is amazing. If you need tips or suggestions on almost anything while planning a trip, I highly recommend getting Matt's book AND reading his blog. It's pretty cool how someone can run a successful blog and write multiple books just by living out his dream.

To any traveler out there who hasn't read any of Matt's stuff, you're missing out on some of the most helpful tips you can get! Thanks for all the inspiration and help, Matt! See you on the road!

xx

21 Reads of 2014

Ah, hello! So, yesterday I was on YouTube just taking in my social media for the day, when I saw a video posted by one of my favorite YouTubers and my book and hair inspiration, Carrie Hope Fletcher. She is a YouTuber and actress who plays Eponine in Les Miserables in London's West End (jealous!!!). She is remarkable! Anyway, she posted a video of all of the books she has read in 2014, and that gave me the idea to count all of the books that I read in this past year as well. 

It turns out that I read 21 books in the year 2014. And now I will share them with you!


2014 Reads
1. Divergent - Veronica Roth
           Veronica Roth is an amazing author. I read the entire Divergent series in a week's time. I wasn't going to read the books at all, I was just going to see the movie. But a few days before the movie came out I decided that it would not be right of me as a lover of books to see its movie without properly reading the series first. Best decision ever. I thought that the film was amazing, but I of course, the book was much better. I feel like I would have enjoyed the movie more if I didn't read the book first, but I'm glad I did!

2. Insurgent - Veronica Roth
       I think you got the point that I thoroughly enjoyed this series .. also I can't wait for this movie!!

3. Allegiant - Veronica Roth
       I'm not sure if the ending of this book was the absolute worst ending of any series ever, or by far the best ending ever possible to create for a series. I won't say anymore so that I don't spoil it for anyone!

4. Four - Veronica Roth
       Four is number 4! I loved that this story is told in Tobias' point of view and that we get to read all about his background and his life before Tris came into it.

5. Maybe Someday - Colleen Hoover
       This book was suggested to me by my cousin and it was one of the coolest books ever because it actually had a soundtrack to go along with it. I know, weird right? Well the author, Colleen Hoover, teamed up with singer/song writer Griffin Peterson to create actual songs that would appear in the book. And the songs are actually good! It's an amazing story line, that has quite the twist in the middle of the book!

6. My Drunk Kitchen - Hannah Hart
       First off, I love Hannah!!! She is so funny and I love her YouTube channel! So this book was an absolute blast to read.

7. Paper Towns - John Green
       This man writes like no other! He is one of my favorite authors ever. His writings just keep getting better and better. AND they just keep getting turned into more and more movies!! Paper Towns was such an incredible book with the most interesting characters. I am a huge Margo fan and cannot wait to see Cara Delevingne play her in the movie. Also, Nat Wolff is the only person that I can ever picture playing the part of Q so, I am highly excited about that! Plus he is a great actor! Give me June already!!!

8. Looking For Alaska - John Green
        Yes, I'm totally aware that I am late to the Looking for Alaska party, but at least I got here! This book was truly incredible. Alaska is one of my favorite book characters because she is so interesting and is so different than many other characters. I had to re-read that last few chapters of this book several times. Also, happy 10 year anniversary of Looking for Alaska!

9. An Abundance of Katherine's - John Green
       While I did enjoy this book, it was definitely my least favorite book of John's. I felt like the beginning was really slow, but once it picked up, I started to like it more!

10. Will Grayson, Will Grayson - John Green & David Levithan
       Ah, yet another gem from John! And also David! I loved the storyline of this book and how two completely different people leading completely different lives have the same name and somehow find each other while looking for something else.

11. This Star Won't Go Out  - Esther Earl, with Wayne & Lori Earl
       This book means the world to me. Esther Earl was a friend of John Green's. The Fault in Our Stars was written for Esther. Unfortunately, she never got the chance to read it, as she passed away before it came out. This Star Won't Go Out is a collection of Esther's journal/blog entries and drawings, and entries from her parents. Reading this book has changed my life forever in a way that I cannot explain. The only way to understand how amazing this book and Esther are is to read this book. It will quickly change your outlook on life..

12. The Maze Runner - James Dashner
        This book had me on the edge of my seat the entire read. It was so action packed and there was never a dull moment. Also, Dylan O'Brien was amazing in the movie!

13. The Scorch Trials - James Dashner
        The second book to this series actually took me quite a while to finish. I found it to be somewhat of a slow read in the beginning, but once it picked up, I was thrown right back into that feeling that the first book gave me.

14. The Mortal Instruments: City of Heavenly Fire - Cassandra Clare
        The Mortal Instruments series as a whole was just magnificent. And this book, being the final book of the series, did not disappoint one bit! Cassandra Clare stole my heart the minute I started reading City of Bones and continued all the way through this series and The Infernal Devices series. I cannot wait for her new series about Emma and Julian!

15. Identical - Ellen Hopkins
       Okay, I'm gonna be honest, this was the one book that I actually didn't finish this year :x I know, I know, I shouldn't count it as a book that I read in 2014 if I didn't finish it, but I am determined to finish it up! From what I did read, I loved it! It's a very dark and weird book, but in all the good ways! I just got very caught up in life an ended up forgetting about it.

16. Hey, Let's Make a Band! - 5 Seconds of Summer (Ashton Irwin, Calum Hood, Michael Clifford, Luke Hemmings)
       I am a HUGE 5SOS fan, so this book was like heaven for me. And it was awesome because it was entirely written by the boys themselves. It tells their story of how they became a band, what it was like touring the world with One Direction twice, and stories about their lives before 5 Seconds of Summer became a band. For a 5SOS fan, this is the best it can get!

17. One Day - David Nicholls
       I saw this movie about 3 years ago or so and was completely in love. But then a few months ago, I was watching a video of Carrie's and she mentioned it, so the next day I went to the bookstore and got it! The book, as always, was SO much better than the movie. I fell in love with the characters and their tragic story.

18. Eleanor & Park - Rainbow Rowell
        This book was one of my favorites in 2014. This love story was so incredible. I love how it was centered around music as well. And Eleanor and Park are both so awkward, but in the best way. Some of the moments were so cringe worthy, but it was because they were so real. I highly recommend this book to every soul!

19. If I Stay - Gayle Forman
        Amazing. Incredible. I could not put it down at all. I saw the movie before I read the book, and I'm happy that I did because I felt like I already knew the characters when I started reading. Adam and Mia's was my favorite love story that I read about this year. The way the book was written was also incredibly clever, with going from flashback to present to flashback and so on. And I have to say, Chloe Grace Mortez is magnificent.

     
20. Where She Went - Gayle Forman
        This sequel was just as good as its first book. What I loved about this story is that it was told in Adam's point of view and we got to know Adam and what happened to his life once the accident occurred. 

  

21. Grace's Guide: The Art of Pretending To Be A Grown-Up - Grace Helbig
        Let me just start off by saying Grace Helbig is one of the funniest people ever. And she actually does give some pretty cool advice! I've been watching Grace on YouTube since the DailyGrace days and she has just become more funny and successful as the years go on. This book was such a fun read, with all of her personal stories and even some advice from her mom.

And there you have it!! Every time I read I book, I always like to think about if there was anything that I can take away from the book. And there almost always is. All of these books have stolen a little piece of my heart and have given me a little piece of theirs. It was definitely a successful year of reads for me! I'm hoping 2015 will be even better! I'm already on book number 3, so it's looking good! Has anyone else read any good books this past year?

Some pretty fun travel posts coming up soon, stay tuned loves and thanks for reading!!
xx


*All pictures from Google