Budapest

While I was in Spain I got an e-mail from my french friend Pierre-Simon telling me that he had got me a ticket to Budapest for 60 euros, so I better be in. Of course I was since seeing Eastern Europe was on my list of things to do and a trip to this amazing city had to be worth every penny! I went with Pierre and his friend, Francios and we had an awesome week! The first thing I noticed about Budapest was how RIDICULOUSLY CHEAP it was. They are on a different currency, but pints equaled out to about 1 euro and 20 cents (not bad compared to the 6.50 I pay in Dublin), not only that, we went to a five star restaurant which was amazing and spent no more than 15 Euros ahead. Our hostel was right in city center, and really it wasn't a hostel at all. It was an apartment with a kitchen, shower and three beds, costing us all a whopping 6 euros a night! It was AMAZING! The three of us, enjoyed our time there, doing all the touristy things like visiting the Parliament (pictured), walking up Gallert hill to see the whole city, and spending time in both buda and pest, the two areas separated by the beautiful Danube river. Also the Budapest Spring festival had just begun so we spent hours at the outdoor market buying amazing souvenirs and eating various hungarian dishes. We took a day to visit the Terror Museum which was about Nazi and Communist occupation in Budapest which was very interesting and definitely pretty scary. We spent nearly everyday at the Baths, relaxing and getting a feel for some real hungarian culture. The baths were beautiful and always full of people rain or shine. It was a perfect way to relax on our last spring break trip before school started.  Unfortunately we weren't able to find much of a nightlife in Budapest, so we spent many of our nights in the same bar playing cards until the wee hours of the morning. It is a beautiful city at night, and the various types of architecture give this place a very interesting appeal. On my last full day, I got a phone call from one of my best friend, who is studying in Prague, telling me that he and our other friend were on a bus and coming to Budapest to surprise me!! It was the best surprise ever since I have not seen them since I was in Paris! We went out the night they arrived and then spent most of the day together before my flight. Exploring, all three of us with our fancy cameras, found an amazing hungarian free market where we took lots of great photos and caught up on each others lives and adventures. Budapest was the perfect place to end my spring break. Relaxing, but full of surprises, and great to be with new friends and old ones who also love to travel!

St. Paddy's Day in Dublin

St. Paddy's in Dublin was pretty low key for me. The city is full of tourist ready to party and absolutely every pub was packed. The festivities in Dublin begin the week before the 17th and there are lots of cool things to see, like traditional music and Irish step dancing. I missed these activities because I was in Spain, but my Irish friends assured me that I didn't miss too much and I'd have plenty of chances to see some Irish culture minus all the American tourist. Most Irish people are overwhelmed by all the tourist and the holiday is definitely not as wild for them as it is for all the Americans that come over to show their love for Guinness. I went out the night before with Jamie and some Irish friends and had a blast! Everywhere was really packed, but it was a lot of fun and everyone was in a good mood looking forward to their day off. I was advised not to go into Temple Bar on Paddy's day and to avoid the parade, so instead I went to a Rugby game with one of my friends and had a great time not being one of those stupid tourists that make fools of themselves in a foreign country. I did however wake up early on Paddy's day to check out town, at 10 in the morning the streets were already filled with people decked out in green, orange, and white with a guinness in one hand and an Irish flag in the other. Some other friends went to the parade and said that there was nothing to see because there were just too many people. For me, it was just another day in Dublin, I saw a great game, and enjoyed my guinness, for all the tourist though it was a crazy drunken escapade and I imagine they don't remember much about their holiday.

SPRING BREAK IN SPAIN

Its been a long time since I have blogged last, but its only because for the last month I have been traveling! I think this Spring Break may have been the best one yet! I left on March 6th for Spain, knowing that I wouldn't be back in Dublin for awhile, happy to see the sunshine and explore I was ready for this adventure! My first stop was Granada, my Irish friend, Shona and I flew to Malaga, and took a two hour bus to Granada. We met her friend, who is studying in Granada for the semester and it was a fun couple of days! The town is perfect for spring break because it is a huge college town, full of students from all over! I toured the city on foot like I do in most cities and my friends took me to this awesome look out point where I could see the Alhambra and the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains that sit behind amazing palace. The nightlife was a blast, and pretty much everything we did was as cheap as dirt, which was a nice change from Dublin's expensive nightlife! I left my friends in Granada and took a 3 hour bus ride to Sevilla. I had no idea what to expect after being in Granada, and Sevilla is a completely different city. I think it may be my new favorite place in Europe. I reminded me a little bit like Boulder with a hippy vibe, free spirit attitude, and relaxed atmosphere. I stayed in probably the coolest places of anywhere in europe, a pension right in city center, where the narrow streets made by shuttered houses and family businesses conceal the view of anything outside. You could get lost in the maze of these skinny alleyways, and believe me I was lost too many times! I met one of my best friends from Santa Clara in Sevilla and it was so great to see her since its been nearly 8 months! It is always nice to be there with someone who really knows the city! I did a lot of the touristy stuff, while my friend, Meredith was in class and my favorite discovery of the weekend was when Mer and I found this out door market in the Bohemian district of Sevilla. I ate the most amazing food in Sevilla, tapas are seriously the best ever! The weather in Sevilla was perfect and i couldn't have been happier to wear my flip flops! After spending about 5 days in Sevilla, I took my next Bus to Madrid. It was a very long bus ride, but having been pretty worn out from all the excitement, I slept most of the way. I met a good friend in Madrid from middle school and high school that I haven't seen in two years! After about 10 minutes it was like nothing had changed and we were back to our usual high school shenanigans! My friend Katie, lives in a very cool bohemian neighborhood, her piso (floor) was in such a cool building and it was a blast being surrounded only by the spanish language. I never really caught on to my spanish, its very different to the spanish in South America, but it was fun being in a place where I could kinda understand what people were saying! I saw the whole city and spent nights in clubs dancing. Katie took me around and showed me the sites of the City and we finished with a trip to the famous tapa bar, El Tigre, where costumers throw trash on their trash on the ground to show off how good the food is! It is quite the sight when you walk into this bar, but it was without a doubt the best food i ate in Madrid. Touring around Spain couldn't have been better for my Spring Break adventure! I feel so lucky that I got the chance to go and see so many cool cities while I was there! I headed back to Dublin the day before St. Paddy's, not quite ready to leave, but looking forward to the excitement of the Irish Holiday!