The Three Best Spots!!

After getting finsihing up my trip in Rome, I returned my rental car to the shop in Madrid, Spain. Overall, the entire trip was so awesome! There were so many awesome things I did that I will never forget! I do have a few favorites though!

1. La Corral de Moreria (Madrid, Spain)-This restaurant was so cool. I love the fact that while I was eating, I could watch people dance and sing on stage. It was an awesome experience especially because I love singing and dancing (dancing, I'm not so good at, haha) and seeing people do the things I love really speaks to me. It was an amazing experience, although it was slightly expensive, it was totally worth it!!

2. Eiffel Tower (Paris, France)-When you dream about visiting this one day as a child, you imagine it being super awesome, but seeing it real life is way better than awesome, it's magical... If you ever go to Paris, please go see the Eiffel Tower, and go visit it at night because you are able to see all the lights up and down the structure and they look like stars. This is one of the coolest things I've ever seen!

3. Belmond Hotel Caruso (Rome, Italy)-This was the most beautiful hotel I have ever stayed in. I loved having the view of the mountains and having my own patio with my own garden. And, OH! The infinity pool was the best thing ever! I had never been in one before and it was just amazing! Even though this resort was expensive, it is so worth it to stay here!!!!! :DDD

Rome, Italy

www.indagare.com

www.piercedhearts.org

My last stop on my amazing road trip was in Rome, Italy. I drove for 10 hours from Bern, Switzerland and eventually arrived at my hotel, the Belmond Hotel Caruso. It is a beautiful resort in the mountains. It cost me around $450 per night and I ended up staying in the exclusive suite. It had its own personal balcony and garden. I spent a lot of time in the infinity that over looked out into the mountains and environment below. It was so amazing and the staff was so nice! This is definitely a place that you need to stay if you are ever in Rome, Italy and on your honeymoon! The day after I arrived, I went to the Colosseum. It is a wonderful ancient monument made of marble in Rome where fights occurred as well as the killing of wild beasts (http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g187791-d192285-Reviews-Colosseum-Rome_Lazio.html). It was really cool to explore and it gave a really good insight to Rome's culture. On the final day of being in Rome. I ate at a delicious restaurant, called La Pergola. I ate a wonderful pasta dish for around $53 and had one of there many different types of water. They have 29 different types of water at the restaurant (http://travel.cnn.com/10-best-italian-restaurants-rome-920961). The view was very beautiful. It looked out over the city... :) I would definitely recommend going here if you are ever in Rome because it is so amazing!

Bern, Switzerland

 Schwellenmätteli (www.mytable.com)

Schweizerhof Hotel Bern (hotelsandstyle.com)

My next stop was in Bern, Switzerland! I drove to Bern and it took about 8 hours to get there. When I finally arrived, I ended up staying in a very nice hotel called the Schweizerhof Hotel Bern. It was so nice. It was like living in luxury!! :) I ended up staying at the hotel for three nights, for $445 per night. The decor in each room was so beautiful and the architecture of the building really represents the culture of Bern. There was a wonderful pool and the staff was so nice. They even had some staff that spoke English to accommodate for my needs, considering English is the only language I know. I would definitely recommend this hotel for anyone looking for a romantic getaway! The next day, I visited some cool places such as Old Town Bern, which is the historic district in Switzerland. I decided to walk around the town for a while and found a tour for $83 dollars. The architecture and shops in Old Town Bern really represent Bern's culture. I suggest coming here if you ever find yourself Bern, Switzerland. The next day, I took the train for around $7 to a really cool restaurant called Schwellenmätteli (http://www.schwellenmaetteli.ch/en/). It was built along the Aare River near Old Town. At night, the restaurant lit up with lots of beautiful lights, even colored lights in the water. The restaurant has Asian and Mediterranean food and it was really expensive (http://www.yelp.com/biz/schwellenmätteli-restaurants-berne). Even though the food was expensive, it was totally worth it to eat there! I definitely recommend stopping in if you are ever in Bern, Switzerland.

Berlin, Germany

 Hotel Aldon Kempinski (www.tripadvisor.com)

Restaurant Buntspecht (www.tripadvisor.com)

The next place I went to was Berlin, Germany. I drove my rental car all the way to Berlin from Paris. It took around 10 hours to drive there but seeing the cool environment around me made the drive worth it! When I arrived in Berlin, I stayed in the Hotel Aldon Kempinski. It was amazing! The hotel was really fancy and relaxing and had gorgeous architecture! It cost me $240 per night for three nights. If you are looking for something that is extremely luxurious, this is definitely the place to go. Although it was expensive, it was so worth it to stay here. The staff treats you like royalty! It was the best! The next day, I took a taxi to visit the Berlin Wall. It was pretty awesome considering how much history the wall has. The wall has definitely worn down a little bit, but the significance of the wall is till present. I would suggest that you go here for sure if you are ever in Berlin, Germany. The next day, after walking through the streets of Berlin, I decided to stop by a delicious restaurant called Restaurant Buntspecht (http://www.restaurant-buntspecht.de/). It was really nice and had some outside seating so i could view the city. I got the clams and a salad when I went there. They were so good!! I recommend coming here if you're ever in Berlin because it isn't super expensive and it has awesome food!!!

Paris, France

Hotel Le A (plus.google.com)

www.aviewoncities.com

I rented a car in Madrid so that I could drive to Paris, France. It was a really long drive but it was awesome to see all the scenery on the way there. When I arrived in Paris, I stayed at a very nice hotel called Hotel Le A. It was all white and had beautiful art throughout the hotel. In the dining room, a variety of colorful trees are painted on the walls. The hotel was $174 per night and I stayed for three nights. I would definitely recommend going to this hotel if you find yourself in Paris, France because the staff is very kind and it is like living in luxury. the next day, I visited the Eiffel Tower. It was amazing! :) I went there at night and all the lights on the tower were glowing. I climbed all the way to the top! Even though there were a lot of people there, even at night, it's definitely an experience that you shouldn't miss if you are ever in France. On the final day, I went to a really fancy restaurant in Paris called Le Meurice (http://www.dorchestercollection.com/en/paris/le-meurice/restaurants-bars). The building has a very historical structure and represents the culture through it's style of architecture, with mosaic floors and crystal chandeliers. I ended up getting the crispy green ravioli and spent around $100 because the restaurant was super nice (http://www.theguardian.com/travel/2011/may/06/top-10-paris-restaurants-dining). I would suggest going to this restaurant if you are on a romantic getaway. Although the restaurant costs quite a bit, it is sooooo worth it!!!! :D

Madrid, Spain

I wanted to take a huge trip across the world. I decided to fly with Air France. The flight there and back cost around $3,000. If you're looking for a flight that is very luxurious and if you want a lot of pampering while on the flight, I suggest that you use this airline. When I arrived in Madrid, Spain, I stayed in the Senator Gran Via 21 Hotel. It was very expensive, but the architecture was beautiful and the decor inside was simple, yet elegant. The staff was also very nice and helpful. They even gave me directions for traveling. The best part was the pool on the roof. It was awesome to swim up there at night and see all of the gorgeous lights in the city. I would definitely recommend staying in this hotel because it is so amazing. Although, it may be expensive, the building's structure and design really represents the Spanish culture. The hotel is also very close to the Plaza Mayor, which I visited the next day. The Plaza Mayor is a very old structure. It was built when Phillip III was ruling over Spain between 1598 and 1621. It is the main plaza in Madrid and has 237 balconies within it. It also has various shops and restaurants within it (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plaza_Mayor,_Madrid). It also is a good representation of Spain's culture. The next day, I took a taxi to a very popular restaurant in Madrid called La Corral de Moreria (http://www.corraldelamoreria.com/). I had the chicken salad and the crab cream soup. It was very delicious. I suggest that if you are ever in Madrid, come to this restaurant because it is really cool! While you're eating, they have performances, such as singing and flamenco dancing on a stage in the back of the restaurant. It's very culturally awakening! :)

www.corraldelamoreria.com

en.wikipedia.org

My Trip to Europe and Russia!

www.lssu.edu

Three Best Spots to Visit!

There were so many great places to visit and sights to see but these three listed below were my favorite and are worth traveling back again to see them once more!

1. One of the best spots to visit was the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It was really cool to be able to soak up a certain aspect of Brazil's culture. The statue is an image of Jesus and represents Brazil's main religion. I recommend visiting this statue if you're ever in Rio de Janeiro, and if you do visit, you should go earlier in the day because there aren't as many people there compared to later in the day.

2. The second place that I though was awesome to visit was the Parque de la Reserva in Lima, Peru. It is a really beautiful monument to visit, especially at night because of the light shows given off by the many fountains. The monument also shows a part of history where Peru fought during the War of the Pacific. I would suggest visiting this monument because it is really interesting and very beautifully designed. If you go, night time is the best to visit because of the cool lights! :)

3. The last place that was super awesome to visit was the 7 Cascades resort in Sucre, Bolivia. There were seven waterfalls and various water pools that people could swim in, but to get to the final waterfalls, you have to climb up the rocks. It may be difficult but it is totally worth it because it is so beautiful. I suggest visiting this place in you're ever in Sucre. Another good thing about this place is that there aren't a lot of people hiking with you which makes for a great, nearly private experience! :)))))

Quito, Ecuador

Mare Nostrum (www.tripadvisor.com)

Hotel Sierra Madre (www.expedia.com)

(http://www.hotelsierramadre.com/)

My second to last stop was Quito, Ecuador. I drove from Peru in my rental car and  ended up staying for three nights in the Hotel Sierra Madre. It was built in a Spanish Villa style. It is gorgeous and the entire staff and guests were all super friendly and hepful. If you're ever in Quito, make sure to check this hotel out because it is really cozy and only cost me $58 per night for three nights. The next day I walked throughout the city for around 30 min. until I found the perfect restaurant. It is called Mare Nostrum. It was so amazing! The whole theme of the restaurant was kinda based around the sea. They serve a lot of seafood and the prices are extremely fair. I ate the Pasta Marinera for only $15 and it was delicious. It was a seafood pasta. Yummmm... I definitely would recommend this restaurant if you're ever in Quito because it has decently priced food and it is sooooo good. If you can't make it to Quito, at least check out their website; it's pretty cool! (http://www.marenostrumquito.com/home.html) The next day I visited the Old Town which is the historic district in Quito. It was very beautiful. The buildings were made to have Spanish colonial architecture and really brought out the culture in the small town. Everyone was really kind while I was there and I would definitley recommend taking a walking tour of the historic district. It's only $99 dollars but you can also just walk around by yourself or with your family and have fun exploring on your own. When you have the time, please come to Quito. It is a really fun experience and I loved every minute of it! :))

Old Town (itsashtonelizabeth.wordpress.com)

(http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g294308-d315636-Reviews-Quito_Old_Town-Quito_Pichincha_Province.html)

Lima, Peru

Don Fernando (www.donfernando.com.pe)

 I drove my rental car to Lima, Peru next and ended up staying at a hotel that was a little over my budget but it was filled with culture and it was a great experience. It was called the Tierra Viva Miraflores Larco and it was $140 per night. I ended up staying for three nights. The rooms were really nice and it was really cool to see the art in the lobby that represents Lima's culture. The next day I walked around the city and stopped at a restaurant called Don Fernando. It was delicious and well-priced food. I got the chicken, with fries, rice, and a salad and it only cost me $9.61. The two chefs at the restaurant are Fernando Arturo and Fernando Antonio. I even got to meet them and they were very kind. I suggest that if you are ever in Lima, go to this restaurant because it is fairly cheap and the staff is very nice. [Link to Don Fernando Restaurant-(http://www.donfernando.com.pe/index.asp)]
On the last day in Lima, I visited the Parque de la Reserva. It has various huge glowing fountains and the whole park was created in 1929 to remember the soldiers who fought for Lima in the War of the Pacific. It is really beautiful sight especially at night because of the awesome lights. If you ever get the chance to come here, definitely go to this monument because it is gorgeous. :)

Top: Tierra Viva Miraflores Larco(www.tripadvisor.com) 
Bottom: Parque de la Reserva (www.pirwahostelscusco.com)

(http://www.limaeasy.com/have-fun-in-lima/parks-gardens-lima/magic-water-circuit)