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Category: Europe

  • Working from Barcelona

    Working from Barcelona

    [vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]In November 2015 I was lucky enough to travel to Barcelona to attend the IBTM conference. While I had to work some of the days I was there, I made sure to save some time for sightseeing (and eating lots of paella). These are my recommendations.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”584″ img_size=”500x” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

    Stay

    Catalonia Barcelona Plaza Hotel – due to the fact that I was attending a conference, I chose a hotel that was in relative close proximity to the convention center, but also not so far away from some of the other neighborhoods I wanted to check out. That being said, I’m not sure I would choose this specific location would I have just been going on vacation, but the hotel was very nice regardless and I’d definitely recommend it.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1477670587559-dbd7947b-556c-6″ include=”585,586,587″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1477670587562-c12f6c07-c61a-7″ include=”588,589,590″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

    Things to Do

    Hop-On, Hop-Off Bus – I had never done one of these before, but since I was by myself at the beginning of the trip and Barcelona is a relatively spread out city, I decided to give it a whirl. I really enjoyed it and think whether you are alone or not it’s an easy way to see a lot of sights – and of course you can hop off and spend as much time as you want at any of the sights! In Barcelona there were two main routes I was able to choose from. The bus actually picked up from the plaza my hotel was in and I was able to see FC Barcelona’s stadium, multiple Gaudi masterpieces, the beach, Cathedral in the Gothic Quarter and so much more.

    Las Ramblas – although a bit touristy, this treelined street is filled with shops and restaurants and is worth wandering down at least once during your stay.

    La Boqueria – while you’re wandering down Las Ramblas, make sure you stop in La Boqueria – grab a bite, buy some snacks, gifts, whatever you’re feeling as you wander through the market.

    La Sagrada Familia – buy your tickets ahead of time so you don’t have to worry about waiting any longer to get in when you arrive. We picked later in the afternoon so we had time to sightsee during the day and ended up seeing the most amazing colors coming through the stained glass as the sun was setting! If you can by chance make this happen I recommend it. Unfortunately it was windy the day we went so we weren’t able to go up the tower (I am not sure if this happens often, but it happened to us!)

    El Born – if you want to get away from the more touristy parts of Barcelona, I highly suggest El Born. We had a great time checking out restaurants and the bar scene there (multiple nights).

    Day Trip to Sitges – need a break from the city? Since it was November it wasn’t exactly beach weather so we decided to escape and check out the small town of Sitges. We took an easy 45 minute train and wandered around the town, stopping in shops and having our fair share of food and paella.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1477670587565-b83eb714-d644-6″ include=”591,592,593″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]

    Eat

    Unfortunately and fortunately for me, I had a friend who was living in Barcelona at the time and I lived off his recommendations and didn’t take great notes, but here are some places I do remember!

    7 Portes – come here for an old school dinner. No reservations and no bar to grab a drink at while you wait, so we sat outside for 20 minutes before we feasted on one of our many delicious paellas.

    El Salon – a yummy, cozy restaurant in Barrio Gotic with authentic Spanish food. We didn’t get any paella here but everything was delicious!

    Absenta Bar – close to the beach and Barrio Gotic, this bar was cozy and eclectic. Have some absinthe, wine, whatever you wish!

    Bar Hop in El Born! I’ll say it again, this was a great place to bounce around after dinner any night.

    While Toby lived in Madrid (and thus traveled all over Spain) for two years, this was my first time visiting this amazing country. I can’t wait to get back there and explore more cities and towns. What are your favorite parts of Spain? Comment below and tell me where I should go next time!

     

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  • Icelandic Adventures

    Icelandic Adventures

    [vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]When WOW Air started their crazy flight deals from Boston to Reykjavik, I didn’t hesitate.  Knowing I would already be in Boston for my brother’s college graduation, it seemed like a simple choice to take the entire week off and spend the first part of the week in Iceland.  The flight from Boston to Reykjavik is actually shorter than the flight from San Diego to Boston!

    We left Boston around 7am and landed in Iceland around 4am.  We were about an hour drive to Reykjavik where we had a hotel waiting for us.  Many of the hotels are used to these early arrivals so you can pay a lower rate and check in bright and early.

    Where to Stay: We stayed at a hotel called Room With a View.  It was a pretty simple hotel but had what we needed and was in a great location.

    What to Do: Since we were only in Iceland for a few days we made Reykjavik our home base and did day trips from there.[/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Wander around Reykjavik.  After we woke from our redeye/jetlagged naps we found some lunch and Icelandic beers and then wandered around the city, checking out the windy waterfront, the church Hallgrimskirkja for some great views of the city, and popping into shops full of Icelandic goodies.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1503330549813-05ba0960-c913-0″ include=”353,328,352″][vc_column_text]South Coast Tour – We booked this through IG Tours – it was an all day tour of, you guessed it, the south coast.  We stopped at Seljalandsfoss and Skogafoss waterfalls, Reynisfjara black sandy beach, the village of Vik (don’t get too excited about what you’ll be eating for lunch here) and Myrdalsjokull, Iceland’s fourth largest glacier.  You also have the option to do a glacier hike or snowmobile tour as a combination tour but we did not.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid initial_loading_animation=”fadeInDown” grid_id=”vc_gid:1503330549816-aa0e0732-9992-6″ include=”334,333,329″][vc_column_text]Snorkel Silfra & The Golden Circle Tour – We booked this tour through Local Iceland Tours/isango!. While the entire trip was one highlight after another, this was definitely one of our favorite activities.  We put on ridiculous dry suits and wandered down to the Silfra Fissure in Thingvellir National Park and hopped in the water.  You snorkel through some of the clearest water in the world, in between two tectonic plates – in 32-degree water!  Where else are you going to do something like this?  The water was SO BLUE.  After snorkeling, we made our way to the Geysir geothermal region and Gullfoss waterfall – also pretty cool sights to check out![/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid grid_id=”vc_gid:1503330549824-e1a4529c-2ec1-4″ include=”357,358,356″][vc_column_text]Blue Lagoon – while it’s definitely a tourist hot spot, it seems like a trip to Iceland isn’t complete without a visit to the Blue Lagoon.  It’s much closer to the airport than to Reykjavik so you’ll definitely want to try and schedule your time there on your way to or from the airport.  We spent about an hour there on our way to the airport and it was really quite amazing.  You can book add-on massages but we just enjoyed relaxing in the steamy water.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”359″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Our days were so long and full of activity that the only other thing left to do was EAT!

    Where to Eat:
    Grillmarkadurinn – A trendy restaurant located right off the main drag.  A warm and cozy ambiance, and like many restaurants in Iceland, they featured a lot of seafood, but had a great selection of meat as well.

    Fiskfelagid – another trendy restaurant close by, we sat down in the basement level at a bar area and had our fill of delicious seafood recipes.

    Bakari Sandholt Reykjavik – This bakery was located down the street from our hotel and was our daily morning stop for breakfast and coffee.  If you’re all set with breakfast, I highly recommend stopping in here for a treat later in the afternoon!

    While we were only there for a few days, I’ve heard great things about driving the Ring Road, so if you have the time it’s definitely worth considering![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

  • 4 Days in Israel

    4 Days in Israel

    [vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]After throwing around a number of ideas, we settled on a trip to Istanbul over Thanksgiving 2013. Our only “problem”? It was going to be pretty chilly there and we wanted a few days in warmer weather. But in Eastern Europe at the end of November, where were we going to find that? A two-hour flight south, in Israel![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Because we only had a few days we decided to use Tel Aviv as our home base and make a few day trips to Jerusalem, Masada and the Dead Sea from there. I definitely think if you don’t want to be constantly moving and only have a few days this is the way to go.

    I absolutely loved Tel Aviv and would love to go back in the summer. Living in San Diego, I loved the city on the beach vibe.[/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”473″ img_size=”500x” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]What To Do

    Half-day trip to Old City Jerusalem – I thought this was a great trip if you were limited on time. The van picked us up at our hotel and we made our way to Jerusalem. We stopped at the Mount of Olives where you can see views of the Old City and New City. We then made our way inside the walls of the Old City and were able to visit the Western Wall, the local Bazaar, the Christian Quarter and the Jewish Quarter. It was an incredible experience. Once that part of the tour ended you were either continuing on to the Dead Sea or…left to get back to Tel Aviv on your own. Unfortunately we were NOT aware that this was the situation we were in so with some loose instructions we decided to head to the New City for lunch. After lunch in a restaurant in what resembled a mall we began the journey home. All of the local train signage was in Hebrew so we picked the direction that seemed to be the correct way to the bus station and hopped on. Luckily, we were right. When we arrived at the bus station we were at a loss for where to go. It was giant. We quickly located an Israeli soldier who was nice enough to bring us exactly where we needed to go. People here are nice – don’t be afraid to ask![/vc_column_text][vc_single_image image=”465″ img_size=”500x” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_rounded”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Full-Day trip to Masada and the Dead Sea – To be honest, I wasn’t all that familiar with Masada when we planned our Dead Sea trip, but since we were heading all the way out there it seemed to make sense to do both. For those of you who don’t know what Masada is, it’s an ancient fortress that sits high above the Dead Sea. We took a cable car up and toured around. It was hot and I didn’t love our tour guide, so I don’t have the best impression, but if you’re going to go all the way to the Dead Sea it’s probably worth seeing Masada – there is a good chance you’ll never be back! The Dead Sea however, was amazing! We had plenty of time to relax in the water – the buocancy was crazy! And then rub “magic, healing mud all over ourselves (but ouch – it’s kind of rough, which can irritate your skin and then the salt gets in and burns!…but it’s magically healing, so it’s worth it I guess?).[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”6″ gap=”10″ grid_id=”vc_gid:1470194059596-10c39f38-a3a8-9″ include=”475,466″][vc_media_grid element_width=”6″ gap=”10″ grid_id=”vc_gid:1470194024408-982d8275-7b76-10″ include=”468,469”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Rothschild Street – wander around, shop, eat, drink and just enjoy your day in Tel Aviv!

    Jaffa – we visited the neighborhood of Jaffa, the old port area in Tel Aviv and again wandered around, ate and drank – the common theme of all of our trips.[/vc_column_text][vc_media_grid element_width=”6″ gap=”10″ grid_id=”vc_gid:1470194145594-5fdb34e6-7ff5-6″ include=”476,467″][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Last, but not least, head to the beach, wander around, maybe find a rave party in the middle of the day – relax and take it all in in this city by the beach![/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]