tourist

Belgrade

Missed me, yet?! I´ve been away for some time now and I apologize. I´ve been going through a sort of a 30 years´old crisis, working too much, sleeping too little and questioning my priorities. That´s no joke, I tell you! Luckily, all that´s gone now! I´m on a fabulous holiday in Belgrade with my husband, staying at a 5 stars hotel, eating our way through Serbian and international cuisine and discovering whatever this surprising mix of East and West has to offer us. We came here to attend the wedding of some friends of ours, a lovely Serbian-American couple and it was such a show! For now I´ll let the pictures talk for themselves, details when I get back home, on Thursday!

Old building in the old part of Belgrade

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I love Paris in the fall

We´re going to Paris for a week in September! Weee! There´s a trade show my husband is attending and I get to toggle along. I´m soo looking forward to it! All the croisants and the eclairs we can eat, walk till we drop, shop at the best fashion boutiques, attend a jazz concert and drink wine all night! Besides, I need to go to some antique markets this time, plus meet a couple of friends. Ai, ai, ai, la vie en rose!

http://www.purple-papaya-films.com

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Santorini

Thinking of going there in September, any of you been there yet? We´ve been looking at this hotel, it looks amazing and the view is divine! I´m looking forward to it already, all the sun bathing, the caipirinha sipping and the lazy days… Oh, holiday!

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Lisbon, my love

I haven´t been outside Europe yet , but I´ve seen quite a lot of the old continent. And although I knew that there will always be new places to discover and fall in love with, I was still taken aback by Lisbon. What a city! What a vibrant, colorful, charming city! It´s the architecture, the people, the food, the fado, the sweeping views, they all make Lisbon the place of one´s dreams! And let´s not forget the weather! For a Romanian living in Oslo and bitching about it 70% of the time, 5 days of glorious sun were just a soothing patch after a long and grey winter!

But let me tell you more about what you can do in Lisbon! Take the tram 28 and see the city sliding by! Walk from Estrela cemetery towards the city center, stopping by the Jardim da Estrela for the best beef sandwich you´ve ever had!

Shop in Principe Real area, it´s perfect for special shops! If you´re into the famous brands, Avenida da Liberdade can boast with both Max Mara and Louis Vuitton. And in the weekends, don´t miss the Thieves´Market, a charming antiques and rarities marked!

Dine at A Travessa, a wonderful restaurant located in an old cloister, incredibly romantic! The food is exquisite and so is the atmosphere! The waiters are attentive and speak flawless English. Next day, go to Pharmacia by Mirrador, a really cool concept restaurant located in an old mansion, with carefully prepared dishes served from apothecary vessels. For the next day, book tables at Adega Machado in Bairro Alto, a bit in the pricy range, but absolutely worth it for the divine music! Order duck with risotto and the cinnamon ice-cream!

If you´ve seen it all and still have some time on your hands, go to Cascais for a day and stay at the beach sipping caipirinhas! Sintra is a must I hear, but it´ll have to wait for next time. ´Cause I need to book tickets for Lisbon soon!

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Holbox Island

Sorry for spamming, I´m home alone with the cat, the dog, a glass of Valpolicella and Billie Holiday. And I feel like sharing my holiday plans with you! Next year, I and my husband will have been married for 10 years, so I invited some of our dearest friends to an exotic holiday (at their own expense!;-)). I thought of different places, beginning with the Maldives and Seychelles, then Mauritius, La Reunion, Tahiti, Fiji, Hawaii and Zanzibar. They all have their charm and their advantages, the first two are known for being pricy, the others far away, so on and so forth. I keep going back to Holbox, a paradisiac island just outside Cancun in Mexico. It looks divine and it´s not as expensive as the others. Besides, you get to be around the inhabitants and get the Mexican spirit instead of being isolated in a resort. I dream of wearing my gorgeous wedding dress again, this time barefooted on the beach, with a crown of white flowers and a glass of champagne. And share this moment with my love and my closest friends.

 

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Walking Down on Memory Lane- Croatia

Summer is approaching and I can´t help but think of all the incredible places we´ve visited along the years. To put it like that, Croatia was definitely one of them. We spent 12 days in Dubrovnik in 2007 and we were dazzled by the architecture, the pine tree forests and the sparkling sea. We´d take the boat to different places every other day and enjoyed some quiet time on the Lokrum Island, a nature reserve with peacocks and pine forests. The food was a mixture of Italian- with risotto and pasta and Mediterranean with grilled squid and shrimps. 😉 Although the services suffer from the post-communist syndrome, people were really nice. I could definitely  go back, maybe to Hvar Island this time? Any suggestions?

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Amsterdam

A blog I follow by a fellow countryman Amsterdamming always presents the canal city in a new posture. The more I get to see of it, the more enchanting I find it. It´s alive! We went there for a long weekend a couple of years ago and were lucky with the weather, too! We walked and walked, almost got run by a bicycle  several times, enjoyed a waffle, then a coffee, bought a souvenir, localized the Anne Franck museum, took a picture of a cat living on a boat, you name it. Vintage shopping was great and so was the Indonesian cuisine. We´ve been planning a spring break there, but it seems it´ll have to wait until next year. Enjoy some pictures so long.

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France

I´m having a really difficult time adjusting to this uncertain weather, is it spring, is it still winter, which coat do I wear, do I still need gloves and how come it´s so windy!? At least it´s been sunny, it made it so much easier to spend time outside with my Sammy, without needing to force my own hand.

I´ve only just returned from my trip to Romania and I´m going to Lisbon for a few days in May and still the only thing I can think of is travel. And since France is one of my favorite places, thought I´d share some of my travel pictures with you.

Although I adore France, I haven´t seen nearly as much of it as I should have. Paris is the place I always long for and find a reason to return to, both for its magic and its food. In fact those two are quite interconnected since food is one of the main ingredients of magic! And you´ve got to love French food! Oh, my God! The snails, the cheese, the macarons, the rabbit, the onion marmalade, the Tarte Tatin. Yum! I´ve been to Normandy, Corsica and Cote D’Azur and besides beauty, divine food was the second thing they had in common. I need to explore more, I need to see Provence, the Loire Valley and Bretagne. In the mean time, enjoy a trip on my memory lane!

Restaurant in Corsica, France

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Slow motion

Although I have lots to do and an exam coming up, I think I´ll actually take a day off today. I feel a bit unwell and the last working weekends have taken their toll on me. I think I just need to lay on the couch all day and watch one of my favorite series, the Danish-Swedish coproduction- The bridge.

Yesterday was a glorious day with lots of sunshine and bird chirping, so spring seems a  couple of weeks away. I´m happy I´ll get to celebrate the 1st of March in Romania, it´s the day we mark the return of spring. Here are a couple of pictures of a beautiful spring celebration in Corfu, Greece, a couple of years ago. Have a lovely Tuesday!

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