Tag Archives: bucket list

Walking in a winter wonderland! (Aspen)

10 Jan

Happy New Year everyone!!!  As many of you know, Nina and I do a winter vacation every year in January. This year we went to our all time favorite place, Aspen! This was our second time, we went 2 years ago and fell madly in love with the magical Colorado town. Aspen is unlike any other town. It is like you’ve been dropped inside of a snow-globe full of shops, restaurants, and beautiful scenery everywhere you look.

Aspen is definitely a bucket list destination and is certainly very high on the price scale. Someone asked me what’s expensive and I answered: EVERYTHING! Just to give you an idea, our hot chocolates spiked with Baileys were $48 before tax and tip! (they were  soooo good though) aspen 7

Activities like skiing and tubing are 2-3 times as much as other places as well as hotels and air bnb. Once you get over the sticker shock, you will want to experience Aspen for yourself. You will fall in love just like we did. When we went 2 years ago, I certainly thought that would be our first and last time, but it was just too magical not to return- so here we are- back home after our second trip.

Would I recommend Aspen? YES yes yes!! I highly recommend it. Whether it’s a drop in the bucket or you need to save up, I highly recommend it for your next winter vacation. Aspen is so full of bucket list moments from Sitting in a hot tub while it’s snowing or the breathtaking views from the top of Buttermilk mountain.  Treat yourself to a little piece of winter heaven. You won’t regret it.

Travel tips: Nina and I prefer renting a car when we are on vacation, but a car isn’t necessry in Aspen if you’re trying to save money. There is a FREE bus that takes you all around town and the hotels have complimentary shuttles to and from the airport. The buses will drop you off at any of the four mountains to ski or take you downtown to the shops and restaurants.  Another cool thing about Aspen is if you don’t have a car, they will transfer your skis from mountain to mountain. For example, if you want to ski one mountain on friday and another on Saturday, your skis will be waiting for you in the morning at the mountain of your choice.

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Below are some of my favorite restaurants and activities.

ACTIVITIES

Snow Mobile at Maroon Bells  

Outdoor Ice skating

Skiing (with lift tickets you can ski all 4 mountains)

Tubing/ Alpine slide roller coaster (tickets include both) 

DINING

Cache cache (favorite restaurant)

The Little Nell (best hot chocolate and yummy food too)

Ajax tavern (best kale and quinoa caesar salad)

Meat and Cheese (yummy soups and salads and a cute little shop too)

 

My Paris Trip!

16 Jun

I  recently arrived back home to Los angeles from a dream vacation to Paris with my wife. I was so satisfied when the trip ended and I looked back at all that we had done- We did everything on our list and more. As promised, here are just some of our many pictures below. Paris is considered to be a trip of a lifetime for most and it did not disappoint. Bucket list…..Check!

Random travel tips:

*Exchange your money before you go to save a bit on the exchange rate and save time waiting in line at the French airport.

*Learn a few common phrases in French. ‘hello, goodbye, thank you, how much’ etc.

*Get the international data plan your phone carrier offers, it’s worth it. My plan was just $10 a day to use data in France.

*Don’t forget to bring outlet converters (specifically for France) so that you can charge your electronics, including your phone.

*Indulge!!!! Counting calories can be done when you get back home! There is also plenty of walking to offset the overeating you will do! We walked 10-15 miles a day!

Paddle boat at the garden of Versailles.19148932_10212162476991423_6470749387562051714_n

Chocolate sculptures were unreal.19145726_10212162697516936_9159886990439975182_nVersailles rowboats and garden were literally straight out of a fairy tail.19114023_10212162853560837_7596937829662730331_n19060218_10212162482031549_5673358027957423239_nWe really became familiar with the metro.19059275_10212162926762667_7693657593912451727_nThe eiffel tower was amazing, and picnicking under it was priceless. We found an amazing place by the name of Cafe Zia that prepared a picnic to go that included wine and a blanket for under 60 euros. It was one of my favorite experiences on our trip.19029770_10212162477591438_2453970744740841579_n

Me- right before Nina surprised me with a beautiful band to add to my wedding stack. It was beyond romantic. I will never forget that moment.

boatA cafe nestled in the french countryside in a town called Giverny.cafe countrysideUnderground catacombs where the remains of over 6 million people are stored. The bones were neatly stacked to the ceiling and it went on for miles.catacombsfranceGardens of Versailles.gardenGolden gates of Versailles.gateGiverny.givernyMontmartre.montemartreCarousel ride across the street from the eiffel tower.
parisSo many beautiful blooms in Paris. I was obsessed!paris2Pajama party in our hotel!pjs

Vacation Essentials

29 Apr

I’m just finishing up packing for my vacation tomorrow, I’ll be heading to Kauai, Hawaii. I thought I’d share a few of my island essentials with you guys. When packing for a sunny destination, SPF is crucial- I use SPF 110 on my face and 50 on my body. I love Neutrogena Age shield face because it’s the only sunblock that doesn’t break out my sensitive skin. I also packed my oversized Old Navy floppy hat, white tory Burch flip flops and the cutest tommy Bahama fringe cover up that I found for under $50!!! I’ve been looking forward to this vacation for some time and will be sure to drink a Mai Tai for all of you guys:)

 

xo-Journey

 

Floppy hat

Flip flops

SPF

Fringe bag

White cover up

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Aspen Trip!

11 Jan

Happy Monday everyone! I got such an overwhelming response to my Aspen pictures that I’m going to share some more here. It was the first trip to Aspen for my wife and I but definitely not our last. I feel like the way we planned it was perfect. We landed in Denver and rented a car and drove to Aspen, which is one of the most beautiful stretches of snow capped mountains I’ve ever seen. The drive took 3.5 hours but flew by as we got lost in all the scenery. Once we arrived in Aspen we stayed 4 days which is a nice amount of time to see the sights and partake in activities. I really loved ice skating but the ultimate bucket list check off was snowmobiling deep into the Aspen mountains for hours. We even saw moose!!!!! As usual, we ate our way through the town- Aspen is known for their strong culinary game and  were not let down once. Everything we ate was amazing! And as far as scenery goes, everywhere we looked was straight off of a post card. It was breathtaking to say the least.

I keep getting asked “Is aspen expensive?” Expensive would be an understatement! It is off the charts crazy expensive from the hotels, to activities, to shopping, to dining. When places are this astronomical in price, a once in a lifetime visit will usually suffice, but there was something so magical about Aspen that I will go back and overspend, because frankly, it was worth it! I suggest everybody visit this gem during the winter months!

 

 

 

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