Live like a local in Rome

I was blown away by the beauty of Rome right from the start of my trip. Open fields, forests, flowers, and the train ride from the airport to my bed and breakfast was a sign of good things to come. My countryside retreat for three days was located 10km from the center of Rome. I decided to stay out of Rome for many reasons, the main ones being that I wanted to experience how the locals live, go where they go, eat where they eat and essentially enjoy the prices that come along with all of the above. I wanted to breathe some fresh air and not be surrounded by tourists but at the same time have the option of accessing touristy spots at short notice. Of course as I discovered, sometimes trying to fit in with the locals can be a bit challenging, as you will soon read.

I knew I was going to get lost on this trip, I wanted to. I left the train station and found my first bus without much effort. While waiting at the bus stop, I met a Peruvian guy and we started chatting about life in Italy. The Italians are a laid back bunch, which was evident as soon as I got on the bus. I approached the bus driver and confidently asked for “un biglietto grazie” (a ticket please). He looked at me as if I stepped on the wrong bus and replied ‘I don’t sell ticket,’ very well I said to myself as I looked for a seat, meanwhile acting like I knew exactly what just happened. Five stops later and I realized I had to get off on the fourth stop. Of course if you don’t indicate that you need to get off at a certain stop then the driver will not stop and will actually increase his speed. Again I pretended that I knew exactly where my stop was while trying not to break my neck while looking at the name of the stop as the driver flew by. Anyways, I got off at the next stop. I decided to walk to the previous stop because just next to it was where I would catch the second bus that would finally take me to my destination. Now this stop was not a happening stop. Meaning that I waited 30 minutes without even a hint of a bus coming in my general direction. It was getting a little dark and so I decided to walk, guided only by a photo of a google map that I took. It was a 40 minute walk and I was moving. Luckily for me, 15 minutes into my walk, a little bus zoomed past me and stopped about 20 meters ahead to let someone off. I ran up to the bus and this time, a little desperate, showed the driver where I needed to go. A friendly Italian chap overheard me and said that he was headed in the same direction and would show me how to get there. Uh a sigh of relief.

 

I finally arrived at my hotel and was greeted by Romina, who made me feel very welcome. She explained where I need to go to experience local cooking. She said go to this restaurant called La Treggia, ask for Fabrizio and tell him I sent you. This right here guys was one of the highlights of my trip. Fabrizio hooked me up and I got to taste some of the best food I have ever tasted. He is the owner and head chef and he comes to every table and takes the order himself. He recommends the special of the day and really puts love into what he does.

 

Day 2 started off with a 45 minute walk/wait for the bus followed by getting off at the wrong stop again. I finally made it to the train and took a 20 minute train ride into town. I asked for a train ticket at the station and was sold a bus ticket. I asked if I can use it for the train and was told yes. It appears that no one buys train tickets. Anyways, once I made it to Rome center, it was just beautiful sights after beautiful sights. Fountains, monuments, museums, the Coliseum, the cobbled streets. It was just amazing. I found a hidden pizza place, which just opened for lunch and not too long after I arrived, the place was full. The third best pizza I have ever tasted. After Milan and after Fabrizio from the night before.

The most awe inspiring thing for me in Rome was the Trevi fountain. It was on my list of sights to see and I had more or less an idea of where it was, but it caught me by surprise as I turned the corner. I was really impressed and was left in awe of its majestic beauty.  When in Rome definitely go to the Trevi Fountain.

I did some really amazing meditation in the center of Rome. I plugged in my headphones, blasted Ave Maria, and took in deep breathes while getting lost wandering the cobbled streets, each piece of architecture more impressive than the next.  I highly recommend doing this.

The Vatican is epic. St. Peters Basilica and The Sistine Chapel  was all just so beautiful.  I’m not a fan of museums, but I decided to pay the 16 euros to see the Vatican museum. It was well worth it. You need at least one full day in the Vatican. St. Peters Basilica is one of the most awe inspiring pieces of Architecture I have ever seen. After half the day in the Vatican, I then took the train back to the country side.  Day two ended of with a top dinner at Fabrizios followed by an even better sleep.

On day 3 I decided to explore some of the street art in Rome. Rome is known for having some of the most amazing street art in the world. It is kind of strange to see a door without graffiti, a painting, or an arrangement of stickers. Seeing a mixture of the old with the new is very refreshing. After my street art tour, I decided to have a drink in one of the pubs. I found the owner to be very friendly and the afternoon was spent making new friends while enjoying some locally brewed Italian beer. It was great.

Word of advice! Don’t assume that your departing flight is going to be from the same airport where you landed. Man did I screw this one up. Monday morning, 04h30am, I’m up and getting ready to leave in order to catch my 06h30 flight back to Paris. I get to the train station around 05h15 where I patiently wait for my train that will take me to the airport just 10 minutes away, life is good.  While waiting, I just decided to actually look at my boarding pass for the first time and I noticed that the airport code was different. Quick side note, another reason why I chose to stay out of Rome is that I would be close to the airport to catch my early flight on Monday. Whoa was I smart. Anyways after swearing under my breath and calling myself an idiot over and over again, I went to a small gas station just next door and I requested a taxi to take me to the other airport in Rome, which is located on the exact opposite side of where I was. After 30 minutes of waiting and two calls to the taxi company later, I accepted the fact that 1. The taxi was not going to show up and 2. I was going to miss my flight. I took the train into Rome, caught a taxi to the other airport, which was about a 30 minute drive, and then I was told that the next flight back to Paris is in 12 hours, pay 100 euros and it’s yours. Oh how we learn. In many ways this was a great lesson. I was so preoccupied in living like the locals and being close to catch my flight that I forgot to notice a rather important detail. In travelling these things happen, they must happen in order for us to not only learn, but to also find the positive in everything. Rome was amazing. I highly recommend that you go and visit or live there if you can. Walk as much as possible, learn some Italian before you arrive and remember to live like the locals. Visit Trevi Fountain, download Ave Maria and don’t forget to double check your departing flight. Until next time Cheers and safe travels.

Adventures in Language Learning

Hi guys,

This is Stephen aka the wandering linguist. I’m honored to have been invited by the founders of Missionwanderlust, Caitlin Knightly and Kassim Richards, to share with you what will hopefully be some inspiring epicness. I’m a homeless, hungry South African living in Paris (by homeless I mean I move a lot! And for being hungry well that’s the adventure part)

I’m currently on a language learning mission to become fluent in four languages and hopefully, once achieved, I will keep going for more. Born and raised in South Africa, I lived in Miami for several years (where I met my two awesome above mentioned sidekicks), attained Spanish fluency by living in the Andes mountains in Ecuador for two years and now Je parle avec le French in Paris, where I have been for the past 7 months. I’m also an aspiring vlogger, photographer, and basically working on kicking my creativity, waking the beast while inspiring you guys to travel, learn another language and get lost in the awesomeness of it all.

Costa Rica 2012. My language learning journey starts here.  Paradise located 2 hours from the USA.  The locals use the term Pura Vida, which means Pure Life. As is evident by the guy dancing on the car roof to good vibes and an epic sunset.

Post 1 February 19, 2016

My first post involves a girl from Saudi Arabia, who was my inspiration to write this post and TLC. Now until my blog posts start bringing in millions of readers, I find myself working at a hotel in the heart of Paris (great for my French), anyways this is where we met. We started chatting about different countries and cultures and she explained that she lives in London and is in Paris for the weekend. She expressed that she does not like France because not many people speak English and she went on to say how rude the French are because of it. Now I’m sure many of you know that the French are often labeled as being cold towards foreigners who don’t speak French and I think that they have every right to be. I asked her if I had to walk into a store in London or Saudi Arabia and expect everyone to speak French, would I not be looked at strangely and be asked the question where are we? We cannot expect the locals to speak our language if it is not one of their official languages. I said that it’s great that the French are proud of their language and I think they should protect it in any way possible. She looked at me with a rather negative gaze and then proceeded to dive into her cell phone. That was the end of our conversation, but it was great because it gave me the idea to write this message and highlight an important topic of what we shall call ‘travel language courtesy’ or TLC.

No car, no mortgage, no wife, no kids. I can pack up and leave whenever I want in under 30 minutes. Keep it simple.

You see when we plan a trip, a lot of time goes into booking the flight, researching hotels and preparing our equipment, but we often neglect perhaps the most important part, language preparation. Just assuming everyone speaks your language is a very narrow minded mistake that I think we have all been guilty of at least once during our travels. If you are going to visit a country where you do not speak the language, I highly recommend that you download a language podcast or an app or even purchase a book at least 3 weeks before your trip and spend at least 15 minutes a day on the basics of the language. Work on pronunciation as well. I guarantee you that this small investment will make your journey so much more epic. Many times when you converse with someone in their language, they will reply in English, don’t feel offended, let it ride, It’s possible they are studying the language and they would also like to practice. You see the more we travel, the more we start to realize that speaking the language of the country we are visiting is in fact embracing the culture to the utmost degree. Communication is the essence of love and without it we cannot truly connect as human beings. Technology has made this so much easier by providing us with hundreds of thousands of different tools to get us off the ground and conversing in a foreign language. Whether it’s a book, a CD or an app, there is just no excuse for not being able to communicate with the locals in the country you are visiting. As we speak, I’m following an app in Italian by Lingopedia in order to prepare me for an upcoming trip to Rome next week. It gives you well-rounded lessons in many different environments and so far it is going really well. The last time I was in Italy I ran into a nasty train conductor who decided to check tickets on the only day I decided not to buy one. At the time my TLC was around a negative 50 and so it was a mess trying to explain why I was basically stealing a ride. Needless to say it was horrible and since then my TLC has greatly improved. I can feel my confidence increasing for this next trip and I know I will be ready to communicate with the locals as soon as I arrive. It’s also always good to have a dictionary on hand, and if it’s an app make sure to download it in case there is no wifi.

These are my kids. Some say kids tie you down, my kids set me free.

In my future blogs I will be delving more into the benefits of language learning and I will also be giving tips on how you can prepare, language wise, for your upcoming trip. I will also be sharing more stories about how knowing the basics of a language have helped me and made my experiences so much more enjoyable, as well as stories where not knowing the language proved to be rather uncomfortable and at times dangerous. So next time before you plan a trip don’t forget your TLC! All it takes is a little motivation, 15 minutes a day and an effective language-learning tool. Before you know it you will be negotiating a deal with the locals or explaining to a rude custom official why you overstayed your visa, whatever it may be, the fact that you have somewhat of a base, could be the difference between an epic journey or just a sightseeing escapade. All that counts is that you put the effort and enjoy the smiles that come with the ride. That’s it for now, until later. Cheers and peace out.

Australia Part One of Many

The Opera House

Well, here’s the other half of the blog Caitlin and I’ve made some massive changes in my life. I moved to AUSTRALIA. I’m currently in Sydney on the working holiday visa trying to find work in maritime archeology/heritage. It’s been a crazy adventure so far. I arrived January 30th of this year and I’ve been taking it easy enjoying the sites and exploring all Sydney has to offer. This city is absolutely stunning. Photos do not do it justice at all. Seeing the Opera House in real life was a truly surreal experience. I still cannot believe I moved out here. As it’s been three weeks into my stay I’ve covered a lot of ground. Here are some weekly highlights and below is a list and pictures of things I’ve done in Sydney and it’s surroundings so far.

Week one’s highlight was getting to the city itself. Seeing the Harbour Bridge and taking a walking tour around the Rocks felt the most like I made it. I’m blown away at how gorgeous the city is. There are so many parks and green spaces that are surrounded by huge infrastructures and bustling city atmosphere. I feel like I’m constantly surprised at what I’ll find at every turn. I still in awe that I’m in Australia. Walking around the city makes me feel like I made the right decision in coming here. I would definitely suggest the city or the Rocks free walking tour. It really helps to gain your bearings around the city.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Week two’s highlight is a tie between bonding with kangaroos at Morisett Park and the breathtaking Coastal Walk (Bondi to Bronte). I won’t lie getting up close and personal with kangaroos was AWESOME. There’s honestly no other word for it. We didn’t approach the kangaroos either they came to us which was super cool. I suggest bringing some food along as it takes some coaxing to get them over and not taunting or attracting the attention of a bigger kangaroo. Some of them are massive and don’t underestimate how strong they are. Some of them seriously look like they’ve been lifting some intense weights. The coastal walk was mind-blowing. The views of the ocean surrounded by beautiful cliffs were awe-inspiring. This would definitely be in my top 5 must-do in Sydney. I would suggest if you make it all the way to Coogee to take a refreshing dip in the ocean. I, on the other hand, made it to the Cemetery and turned around back to Bronte to truly enjoy the ocean. Plus, summer in Australia is super hot so bring TONS of water. I was ready to just swim after all that walking.

Wattamolla Waterfall

Week three’s highlights is hands down jumping off of a waterfall at Wattamolla. I realize there are signs saying to not do this but if the tide is high and you just watched about 5 people do it successfully then jump. It’s something I will never forget about living in Australia. Plus the national park is beautiful in its own right if you’re not up for the adventure. Close second is the stunning Blue Mountains. I would suggest getting a map since we got lost on our trek. The signs disappeared on us half way through so we did a lot of guesswork walking around. However, that did not take away from our gorgeous surroundings. I’m definitely planning at least one more trip up that way to explore.

Blue Mountains Elysian Rock Lookout

If you do plan on going to Sydney and planning on investigating its surroundings, I suggest going on big trips on Sunday since there is a $2.50 cap on all travel with the Opal card. This is so convenient and makes the trip entirely worth it.

The cutest koala ever at Taronga Zoo

Sydney is a bustling city like none I’ve been to before or have ever experienced. I cannot wait to explore more and truly enjoy the best the city has to offer. Now, if someone could give me a job that’d be the cherry on top but for now I’ll settle for making the most of my adventure. Such a tough life!

Harbour

Bondi to Coogee Walk

Blue Mountains

Featherdale

Sleeping Koala at Featherdale Wildlife

Three Sisters

Morisett Park

Kangaroo Burger

 

Week One:

Opera House
Botanical Gardens
Taronga Zoo and hanging out with a koala
Featherdale Wildlife Sanctuary and chilling with some kangaroosExploring Newtown and University of Sydney and Nicholson Museum
Pop-up gin bar at the MCA
Darling Harbour
Maritime Museum (because I’m a total maritime nerd)

 

Week Two:

Morrisett Park and truly bonding with the natives
Super Bowl in Australia, which was an unreal experience to be enjoying it with some Aussies
Enjoying the Chinese New Year- food, festivals, and lanterns
Bondi to Bronte coastal walk is a must for anyone traveling to Sydney. It has constantly stunning views

 

Week Three:

Wattamolla and jumping off a waterfall (something that was on my bucket list)
Wendy’s Secret Garden and gorgeous harbour views
Street Art hunting in Newtown
Moonlight Cinema in Centennial Park
Relaxing on Bondi
Exploring the beauty that is the Blue Mountains

Bristol: The Land of Babbers, Brunel, And Banksy

The Harbour

This is Caitlin writing again and I’m so excited for this post!  Now on to my favourite city in England located in the South West, Bristol. It is the sixth most populous city in England and the eighth most populous in the UK. I won’t lie, I went to Bristol Uni and that makes me incredibly biased to this amazing cultural city. I had the best time studying for my master’s in maritime archaeology. I decided to come back and visit. I timed the trip perfectly to be there for the May Bank Holiday. A lot of my uni mates now work so it was great to spend that Monday with them.

Tepees in Queen’s Square

Bristol is one of those cities that always seems to have something going on. If you want to do something you will find something. It’s incredible! I love the community and close-knit feeling to the city that is Bristol. It has such a great and open vibe to it. It’s not stuffy or overly posh. While I was there a few great festivals were going on: Eat Drink Bristol Fashion 2015 and Food Connections 2015. They were both awesome events. Eat Drink Bristol Fashion 2015 set up tepees in Queen’s Square and served tapas while a live band was going outside. While Food Connections 2015 took over College Green. I love any place that has food stalls and both of these events had plenty of food to try. Unfortunately, the Bank Holiday turned grey and it up raining (it was so England of it to be honest).

Wills Memorial Tower

If you’ve never been to Bristol there a few iconic places you must at least visit. Wills Memorial Tower is an absolutely stunning piece of architecture. The first time I walked in I felt like I was on the set of Harry Potter. The stained glass is amazing and worth seeing in person. A walk to the harbour is completely necessary. I spent a lot of my time during my degree at Pitcher and Piano down at the harbour. You will always see a great fireworks show there during the Harbour Festival as well. While you’re in the harbour you should go and visit the SS Great Britain. I had many lectures for my degree there and it is a cool museum.

Stokes Croft road covered in street art

Another thing not to miss is the Stokes Croft area. Bristol isn’t home to Banksy for nothing. There’s always amazing works of street art blanketing the city. I always have to take a walk down Stokes Croft to see all of the new art. It’s what makes Stokes Croft, Stokes Croft. I always start my walk from the iconic Bear Pit and go from there to Attic Bar and along to The Canteen. If there’s one place I love to get a drink in Stokes Croft its The Canteen. I also enjoy No. 51 Stokes Croft. Although there’s many great places to go in the area.

Sunny Clifton

Another area that’s worth exploring is Clifton. It might be the polar opposite of Stokes Croft in every way. It’s a bit more posh and cleaner but the views from the Clifton Suspension Bridge are always worth the walk over. I really enjoy the Mall and the Coronation Tap in Clifton. The Coronation Tap makes their own cider and it’s absolutely deadly and delicious. It’s probably the most potent cider in % of alcohol I’ve ever had and that’s why they only serve it as half pints.

Most of my time in Bristol was hanging out with my mates I met while living in England. I went to a great dinner at Alma Tavern (http://www.almataverntheatre.co.uk/). A place I’ve never been to before and had a great meal. I also had dinner at one of my favourite places the Burger Joint (http://www.theburgerjoint.co.uk/). Any place that serves gluten-free burgers is a place for me. I’m allergic to wheat and peanuts so this always make a restaurant skyrocket to the top of my list. Another amazing place for food is Townhouse (http://www.thetownhousebristol.co.uk/). There food is positively incredible!! I’ve never been disappointed and £10 for 3 courses is very hard to beat. Also their chocolate nemesis is to die for. It’s vegan and gluten-free and is complete chocolatey goodness. One of my mates and I hit up Brown’s for their great happy hour with cocktails (http://www.browns-restaurants.co.uk/locations/bristol/). I love their drink called “British Royal,” but I love anything with Prosecco in it.

Banksy’s art on the side of the Highbury Vaults

As a post grad in the archaeology and anthropology department I’ve spent a lot of time at the Hawthorns and the Highbury Vaults drinking way too much Thatcher’s Gold. They are two places I could not miss on my week back in Bristol. Not to mention the department has a weekly lecture and we always head to those two places afterwards. I of course went to the lecture and all I really wanted was to just hug everyone while the speaker was talking on. It’s incredibly hard to maintain relationships over continents but it’s so worth it.

My university’s crest

My very unhealthy diet of cheese and Thatchers Gold

For our night out we stopped at OMG Bristol, a gay friendly dance club/bar for my mate’s birthday. It was good fun to get a dance in and hangout with all of my mates. They usually play some of the best music as well however this night wasn’t there best but we still danced our bums off. After that, as a staple of most graduates from Bristol I climbed in the Victoria Rooms fountain as my final send off from Briz.

Street sign in Clifton

As I said, I will not lie about Bristol being my favourite city in all of England. I love it and miss it every day.

More Stokes Croft street art

My final day in England was spent in London as I was flying out of Heathrow. I met up with one of my mates who live in Battersea and we went out to the Magic Garden Pub in Battersea. They had a DJ playing amazing electro-swing and now I am completely in love with that genre of music. Not to mention that they had several bands from Bristol playing a mix of roots, reggae, funk, soul, and ska. It included: First Degree Burns and Mango Factory with DJ Jon Bongly and here’s the link to the event https://www.facebook.com/events/436013076547814/.

It was very hard to get on my flight the next morning. Trust me I almost stayed. The thought of how long my passport allows me to stay legally crossed my mind far too many times. However, this was a trip for the record books. I cannot wait to go back already!

Photos of all of my favourite street art in Stokes Croft commences, if you know any of the artists names let me know in the comments:

 

Adventures in London town and Salisbury

This is Caitlin, the other half of this blog. I’m a maritime archaeologist living in Florida and I absolutely love to travel. I lived in Bristol, England for my master’s degree and I have to say I am very biased to this country. I love England! It’s my home away from home and I loved getting the chance to come back and visit in May. Even crossing a few more things off of my list of things to see and do. I’m going to start with the first half of my trip, London and a day trip to Salisbury to see Stonehenge.

London. Where do I even begin? This is perhaps one of my most favourite big cities on the planet. There’s always so much to see and always something going on. I love the vibe the city has, it’s not too stuffy with all of its expats from various nations but it still has the refinery of all things quintessentially English, stiff upper lip included. Yet still, I find the people of London so warm despite its consistent rain and October like weather. Luckily for me, my first day was sunny, cold but sunny! I was elated. This rarely ever happens. I decided to walk around Kensington Gardens and take advantage of the beauty. Not to mention I love to visit the Serpentine Gallery. The Serpentine is very much a niche-market gallery. It’s quite modern but it’s always so unique showcasing one artist’s pieces.

After that stop, I decided to still take advantage of the sun and visit Big Ben. For once he was shining and glimmering in the sun. A wonderful site indeed!!

After this, I took the long jaunt up to the British Museum and along the way I ran into a May Day parade. Quite frankly, I have no idea what I ran into but it was thousands of people gathered in Trafalgar Square. (If anyone knows, let me know in the comments section) However, the British Museum is a must! As a historian and archaeologist, this is a happy place for me.

I enjoyed all of the Assyrian and Egyptian art and artefacts. That is a period I’m obsessed with so I spend most of my time in that section. Luckily, on the maps they list all of the must-see artefacts and there locations in the museum if you don’t have enough time.

After spending hours there, I was supposed to meet up with my mates on the Southbank for a festival done by Campo Viejo for Spanish cuisine and Sangria.

This is where my phone died. After not meeting up with any my friends and having the keys to my mates flat. I went to a nearby stand for comedy festival going on and asked if they had a charger.  They inevitably found one and started charging my phone. Nearly in tears and overwhelmed by the amount of people on Southbank a lovely English woman afford for me to use her phone while I waited for my phone to charge. She invited me to sit with all of her friends outside the comedy festival and have a drink. I’ve never been more thankful to someone for taking me in like that. If you ever think the English are too tough or stiff upper lipped I hope this disapproves that. They were so friendly and welcoming! And were more than just a “polite Brit.” Once my phone was charged I finally met up with my friend and had some tapas and sangria in a nearby restaurant. The food was delicious! That was the busiest day I think I’ve ever had on two to three hours of sleep (I flew in that day). After a four hour dinner it was off to bed for the next day.

The second day was also a much filled day. However, this day was spent mostly in Greenwich and I fell in love with the area. First, I visited the Greenwich market and for a steal bought Jerk Pork with coleslaw and rice, a gluten-free cupcake and donut from Ruby’s, AND a flavoured coffee for only 10 pounds. A foodies dream! The food was so good!

After eating and taking the views, I ventured onto the Cutty Sark and to the National Maritime Museum. As a maritime archaeologist this was a must see but I never got the chance while I was living in England. I had to go this time around. The Cutty Sark was a clipper ship built in the late 1860s.

I loved learning the history of the ship and playing with all of the hands-on displays. The views on top of the ship were good even for a grey day. The National Maritime Museum was very informative and a bit overrun with children that day but it was Saturday so that was expected. As always, I geeked out in the museum. There was a lot of stuff I learned about while doing my degree so it was quite cool to see in person or at least have the knowledge background to it all. Next, I ventured back to my mate’s place in Camden and hung out until morning for a trip to Bristol to drop my stuff and head to Salisbury.

There’s an overwhelming amount to see in London but I tried to hit up my favourites and now new favourites. This isn’t a city you can tackle in two days. You need a lot more time to investigate, look, and try all of the things that make London, quite frankly London. Here’s my list of must-sees if it’s your first time to visit:

Big Ben

London Eye

Buckingham Palace

Tower Bridge

Kensington Palace

Tower of London

British Museum

Don’t forget to eat at an English pub and get some local beer. Also, Wahaca and Bodean’s BBQ are two great restaurants. That’s just a few but they are all worth it.

Now onto Salisbury and Stonehenge. One of my mates from Uni moved to Portsmouth for a job and we decided to meet up half way in Salisbury. Giving me a chance to visit the Cathedral and Stonehenge. The morning started off with the Cathedral and seeing the Magna Carta. It was so sunny!! The Cathedral was stunning with all of the stained glass windows and dim lighting. The people working there were extremely helpful and even started telling us there personal stories. They talked about times they’ve been when they were younger and stories from ages ago about the Cathedral itself. They made sure we didn’t miss out on any of the important little nooks and crannies to the place. Seeing the Magna Carta was definitely a highlight.

Afterwards, we went to a nearby pub and I had the ham steak and a pint. This allowed my friend and me to catch up and take it easy. We decided to drive over to Stonehenge as it’s a bit out of the ways but along the motorway. We walked to Stonehenge as opposed to taking the bus. I was a bit annoyed as the communication about the bus and how close you could get to Stonehenge was kind of unclear. We thought we had to pay for the bus ride but not to get up close to the henge but unfortunately it was the other way round. We did get quite close for free though. There’s a field right next to it and you get a very decent view. It was surreally windy up there though. I was glad I brought my coat but I wish I wore wellies in that field. Next, we had to say our goodbyes and I headed back to Bristol via the train.

Here’s me with my mate above!

The next post will be about my time in Bristol. I could write a novel about that city so I figure I should separate the two. Let me know of any of your favourite places in London that I should visit the next time I go.  Here are some other photos from the trip:

Agenda Long Beach

Hey everyone this is Kassim the second half of this blog. Let me start by saying that I’m a photographer based in Miami, and most of my time is spent just shooting.  I got a call from one of my clients and friends from Singapore to fly to Long Beach and cover the show for them.  I jumped at the chance to fly to Cali seeing that I haven’t been back since I was about 6 years old.  I would like to take this time to tell you about this trip to Long Beach and Los Angeles.  It wasn’t for fun, but I still found time for some fun.

            

Waking up the day of my flight I was still packing like always.  I made it to the airport with just minutes before my flight leaves, and this is a normal thing to me.  Settling on my flight I had an overwhelming feeling that I was forgetting something that like I’m sure most travelers get. Landing in LAX was like any other airport to me. It wasn’t as epic of most airports.  I rushed off the plane to get my bags and ended up waiting for over 30 minutes for them to show…haha.  Meeting up with my friends as I got my bag to get this trip started.  We shuttled to the hotels and started to get things together for the show.  We chilled in the hotel for a couple hours to get all the handouts for the show together.  After finishing up we had a meet up with an old friend Lupe.  We chilled a bit in the hotel room talking for a while.  After about an hour later we all hit the streets of Long Beach to find some food to end the day of travel.

The next day of the trip was dedicated to setting up of the Agenda show.  We had an early start to this day.  I was rooming with the brands PR, and we headed to the other hotel to get some of the other members of the team.  We moved everything over to the convention center, which was very awesome to see our master suite at the show.  5 hours later we had to make our way out to Kmart for some last minute things that were forgotten and really needed.  This one little shopping trip turned into another fun outing with the crew.  Let me just say shopping with three women is so crazy from a guy’s point of view…haha. It’s like having three ADHD kids to keep up with.  The highlight of this shopping trip was when we all found the Reese’s Fast Break bars.  We then headed back to the convention center to set up the rest of the booth.

Day 3 and 4 was the day of the show.  For two days I spent most of the day inside the convention center running around taking photos of the show.  The Agenda show is a meet up for all the hypebeast and street brands in the states.  My job for the two days is to run around the show taking photos and covering the event.  The things you see at this show will not be on the street or available to the public for a couple months.  I’ll let the photos tell the rest of the story for the two days of being locked in the show.  

Thanks again to http://emo-emoji.com/

The First Post: A Day In New York City

My experience in the Big Apple was a calm, cloudy wintry day.  It’s the first time I’ve ever gone to New York City and it wasn’t quite what I was expecting.  Calm isn’t a word that people normally use to describe the big city but the weather provided for a more dark and whimsical day rather than overwhelming and bustling.  I only had one day there and it had to be filled to the brim with sightseeing and seeing old friends.

The first stop was Grand Central Station as my group of friends and I was coming by train from Connecticut. I had no idea how beautiful Grand Central Station is there were absolute stunning engravings everywhere.  The ceiling in the main concourse was incredible with all the stars and constellations.  I was pleasantly surprised as one of my friends insisted we look.  It was completely grandeur and it didn’t let down.

The next on our hit list after dropping off our bags at my friends Airbnb flat was Central Park.  This was the destination I was most excited about by far.  Our first stop was the Ladies Pavilion which gave us our first views of the city skyline beyond the trees.  We continued on walking around the lake to Bethesda Fountain.  Since it was winter the fountain wasn’t on but it was still an impressive place.  After seeing it in a million movies it felt so familiar a place but it was nice to actually see it and experience it for myself.  Winter had left the fountain with a mysterious feel as it felt like it lacked the movement that comes with fountains and there statues.  After this we made our way to the Loeb Boathouse for lunch and then back tracking to Strawberry Fields.  There was so much more to see but we wanted to make our way on before it rained.

The next stop was Top of the Rock and the Rockefeller Center.  Top of the Rock was an incredible experience.  The views were incredible.  Our group must have stayed up there for at least an hour looking at the beauty of the city.  It seemed so calm from so high up but vast and stretching out from every direction.  The views of Central Park and the Empire State Building were amazing.  We could even see the ball in its place in preparation for the ball drop every New Years Eve in Times Square.  On one side was the Brooklyn Bridge and the other you could see a tiny Statue of Liberty standing high on her island.  It was definitely worth the money it cost.  Down below of course is Rockefeller Center which cannot be missed.  The ice skating rink and the Christmas tree are far too iconic to overlook.  This was a bustling place but we were able to stand and watch ice skaters for several minutes before moving on.

After that inspiring stop we went to the New York Public Library to slow down for a bit.  Entering the massive doors we entered in to see another beautifully decorated Christmas tree.  After looking at books and being inspired by the marble we decided to sit for a bit outside before heading onto Times Square.

Here was the most bustling area of the day, Times Square.  It was the first part of my day in which I was absolutely overwhelmed.  There were so many people in some of the oddest costumes like a very drunk Homer Simpson.  I expected Times Square to be more of square as opposed to a very long walkway with loads of places to stand or awkwardly take selfies with your friends.  We went into the Disney store which was amazingly playing the Muppets Christmas Carol movie.  Then we hit up the M&M store that was overflowing with children.  After seeing all the lights and walking around we were headed to dinner.

We ate at Blockheads on 50th Street and had incredible $5 margaritas.  A friend of mine suggested this place and it lived up to it.  Not only was the Mexican fare delicious then even had gluten-free tortillas.  As a person allergic to wheat I was so excited to be able to order a burrito in a restaurant.

After this day that was chock full of events my mates and I parted ways.  I had to make the very long journey to JFK.  All in all, a day in New York City was just as magical as most say it is.  I’d love to go back and see the 9/11 Memorial and explore more of Central Park.  It’s not one of the places that you can only spend a day but I’m definitely happy with the day spent.