Christmas is Coming...

Tuesday was a gorgeous day.  I wanted to soak up all of the sun that I could!  I am hearing from my roommates and many other people that this is going to be a terrible winter in Ireland.  So, I will take every beautiful day I can get!

I have definitely been seeing a spike in my laundry with all of my traveling.  On Tuesday, I desperately needed to get my laundry done.  I was a little, okay not a little, VERY lazy and brought my clothes to the launder.  They clean and fold all of your clothes for you, which would save me lots of time.  Laundry is so expensive at my apartment, I thought I would test it out.  Since I was in town dropping off my laundry, and it would not be ready until Wednesday, I had to go buy more socks!

When I was in town I noticed that everything was covered in Christmas decorations, even more than when I was last there!  I love this, it makes me feel like Christmas is sooner than it actually is.  I am a Christmas person, so this is totally okay with me.  To keep going with the Christmas spirit, I bought another gingerbread cookie at the English Market.   I can't walk by these and not get one, they are way too good!

After my afternoon break, I went back home and went to class.  I was already halfway through my school week..weird!  Next year is going to be a huge reality check...

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Christmas-y Oliver Plunkett! 

Never Leaving Bed

Monday was a super lazy day.  Grace and I arrived in Cork at around 3 AM that morning from the airport.  Thankfully we made the 11:30 PM bus, otherwise we would have had to take the 1:30 AM one, which would have been horrible.  I have to say, I am not going to miss the Dublin bus rides when I am back home.  This, however, was my last trip to Dublin until I fly home for Christmas...crazy!

Since we got home so late, I decided not to go to my first class.  It was rainy and cold, perfect weather to stay in bed.  I unpacked and did a little work that was due later that day, and finally decided it was time to emerge from my room during the afternoon.  My roommate, Meadhbh, and I went to the veggie stand down the road and Centra to get some food.  I didn't need much to get me throughout the week because I was leaving again on Thursday!

After my grocery shopping, I went to class ( I couldn't skip all of them, even though I wanted to very badly), and then the gym.  It was turning out to be a great day, actually!  The sun was peeking out behind the clouds and there was no more rain!  I was pretty exhausted, so it was going to be an early night.  I have been so lucky to do all of the traveling that I have done, but I think I can say I have never been so exhausted in my life.  Leaving every weekend has been tough, but I have enjoyed every minute of my travels.  

Be back soon!

XO, 

Caitlin

Right outside my apartment, I see the sun!

A great Monday perk on the gates of UCC.

Paris is True Perfection

Sunday AKA my last day in Paris, unfortunately.  I did not want to see this weekend end.  It was an unbelievable weekend.  But, luckily I get to return to another pretty awesome city, Cork!

We woke up on Sunday around 9:30 AM and had to pack our stuff up in the hotel room so we could checkout.  Grace and I had a late flight, but Lauren and Mikela had an early afternoon train to catch back to Cambridge.  Once we checked out, we grabbed brunch at a cafe down the road.  Brunch is not a thing at all in Ireland, so it was a great change.  I definitely miss Sunday Brunch very much!  I had eggs and french fries (I guess the French's replacement of home fries?).  It was so good, and a huge meal that held me over until dinner.

When we finished brunch, it was time to part ways.  Lauren and Mikela headed for the train station, and Grace and I headed back towards the Eiffel Tower.  We figured out how to use the metro system, which was incredibly easy (maybe we should have figured this out before the last day...oops), and walked around the Seine for a little.  There was an awesome running/walking path that was filled with people.  I felt like a local walking around there!

As we were walking around, we saw advertisements for the tours of the city along the river.  We had time to kill, so we figured it would be a great activity.  It was definitely a cool way to see the city, especially now that we have walked so much of it.  I would definitely recommend something like this to visitors.  It was a great change of pace from what I normally do when visiting countries.

After the river tour, we walked around the area a little more.  We wanted wanted to pick up some items from the street vendors!  I needed to get my Paris print to add to my collection.  I really love the one I got.  It is a very pretty painting of the Arc de Triomphe and the area around it.  Once I am done with my travels this semester, I will put up a picture of the prints I have so far!

We headed back towards the area our hotel was in to hit the great shops that we saw on Friday.  I figured I needed to buy some sort of piece of fashion on this trip, I was in one of the fashion capitals of the world.  I ended up getting a few things!  I cannot say what they are because I know my sisters read this and then it will spoil their surprises :)

Shopping worked up an appetite, so we grabbed a quick dinner at around 5:30 before we left for the airport.  Our flight was at 10:30, so we arrived about two hours early.  We got back to the airport the same way we got picked up, the private shuttle service.  This was such a good idea on Grace's part.  When we arrived to the airport I almost had the infamous Ryanair luggage troubles.  My bag was barely overweight, so I had to do some rearranging, but it all worked out!

I feel like I say this after every trip, but this was my favorite city thus far.  Paris is absolutely incredible and I WILL be back one day, no matter what.

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

The great architecture in Paris.

View from the river tour!

A Magical Day

Saturday had a full list of touring in store for us in Paris!  It was our only full day, and Grace's official 21st birthday!!  We had no time to waste.

Our first stop of the day was Versailles.  It was very easy to get there from the city.  But, we had to make a pitstop at a bakery first.  How could we start our first day in paris without a croissant?  I had a chocolate croissant which was as good as I remembered them from my last time in Paris.  Once we had our croissant boost, we headed towards the RER stop near out hotel.  The RER is a Paris train system that would bring us to Versailles, and it was incredibly easy to use.  We stayed at Versailles for a few hours, and it was magnificent.  The palace was so grand and beautiful, the grounds were never ending, everything was incredible.  And to make it even better, we got in for free!  Since we are students studying in Europe for more than three months, there is no admission charge.  I have to say, birthday magic was pretty great!

After touring the palace for a few hours, we grabbed a quick bite to eat and headed back to the city.  We still had many places to see!  Our RER stop was right near the Notre Dame, so we went there as our first stop in the city.  It was crazy busy, so we could not go inside.  However, the outside was gorgeous.  The detailing was so intricate, and it was so big!  Maybe I will come back to Paris one day and go to the top :)

We then walked along the Seine River for a few hours looking at the trinkets from the street vendors, and just taking in the scenery.  I swear you could walk forever here and never get bored.  I was in such awe of Paris.  The city is beautiful, and even though it is a major city, you do not feel overwhelmed or cramped at all.  It is perfect.  

As we walked along the river, we saw that many of the street vendors were selling locks that you could write your name on and put on the Love Lock Bridge.  We thought that this would be an awesome idea, especially to commemorate Grace's 21st.  When we got to the Love Lock Bridge, we had a hard time finding a place to put our lock!  There are so many attached to the bridge that the wiring is starting to bust open and plywood is now covering a lot of the sides.  However, we managed to find a perfect spot!  

Once we finished moseying around the city for some time, we decided it was time to get dinner and celebrate Grace's day a little more!  we found an adorable, very, very small restaurant.  There was one waitress and one chef!  We had a fantastic meal and then sang "Happy Birthday" (in English!).  It was such a nice evening.  After we ate, we bought a bottle of wine and crepes, and headed to the Eiffel Tower to have one last "hoorah" for Grace's birthday.  I did not feel like my life was real.  I was eating a crepe with a glass of wine, looking at the sparkling Eiffel Tower right in front of my eyes.  This was truly an unbelievable day.

Be back soon with more details on Paris!

XO,

Caitlin     

Now, those would be nice to have at your house (Versailles).

GORGEOUS

Me, Mikela, Grace, and Lauren at Versailles!

Versailles!

Versailles!

The Notre Dame and Me, Mikela, Grace, and Lauren.

Our lock (right over the blue one)!

We saw a wedding and could not stop watching them!  This WILL be me in Paris one day!

Hello, beautiful.

Happy birthday, Grace!

Perfection!

En Route to Paris!

Grace and I had a 6 AM flight on Friday morning, so our journey to Paris started at the crack of dawn!  I was so excited to get to Paris and begin the amazing weekend.

We landed in Paris a little before 9 AM.  The Ryanair airport is sort of in the middle of no where, like most Ryanair airports, so we have a little bit of a journey to get to the hotel.  Grace organized for a shuttle service to pick us up, which worked out very well!  We were dropped off right at the hotel so we could avoid all lost wandering around the city.  When we arrived to the hotel, Grace's friend from Wake Forest, Lauren, was already there with one of her Study Abroad friends, Mikela.

Once we dropped our bags and got a little organized, we were on a mission to find some lunch!  We were starving.  Lunch was so good!  I had a beef dish, which definitely hit the spot after a long morning of traveling.  We stopped at a cafe down the road from our hotel, which worked out very well.  The hotel was in a great location, so many awesome restaurants, shops, cafes, all surrounded us.  After we ate, we walked around the area for a while and checked out the shops.  Oh my goodness, they were AMAZING.  I could have bought something in every store I walked in, but I resisted...until Sunday.

The four of us made our way on our sightseeing and went towards to Louvre.  It took a little while to walk there, but it was a great walk.  We got a really great feel for Paris and saw some beautiful architecture.  I was starting to fall in love with Paris!  It was a beautiful day out, and perfect for walking.  When we got to the Louvre, we were all in awe of its beauty.  It was such an interesting building, and the size of the museum itself was massive.  We did not go inside, because we had so many places to see, but we spent a lot of time taking pictures and absorbing everything around us.  

We then headed towards the Champs-Élysées, but on the way, we stopped in a park for crepes and coffee.  I needed an afternoon sugar and caffeine rush, and it definitely hit the spot.  I seriously could not believe my life.  I was sitting in a park, eating a Nutella crepe, looking at the Eiffel Tower on one end, the Louvre on the other.  It was incredible.

Our walk down the Champs-Élysées took a little while because we kept stopping in all of the stores.  This was like a girl's heaven, designer shops everywhere!  We went into Louis Vuitton, and I swear you cannot get out of there unless you buy something (don't worry, Mom and Dad, I didn't).  It was like a maze!  But, I felt as if I were in a dream, it was fabulous.  We also stopped at Ladurée to buys some of the famous macaroons.  i bought a box of six, salted carmel, rose, pistachio, gingerbread, coffee, and chocolate coconut incroyable.  They were delicious! 

Our destination after the Champs-Élysées was the Arc de Triomphe.  There was no line to go to the top when we got there, which was mind-boggling!  We were having such great timing on everything, we called it, "birthday magic."  When we got to the top, the view was insane.  I do not think I have ever seen something so breathtaking in my life.  It was just as the sun was setting, so the sky looked beautiful, and there was a clear view of the Eiffel Tower.  I just could not believe it.  

To top off a great day, we went to dinner at a great restaurant near our hotel.  I had a very delicious chicken dish, and of course, lots of fresh baguettes.

Paris was so awesome on day one, I couldn't wait for the rest!

Be back soon!

XO, 

Caitlin       

Cliche, I know.

Me, Grace, Mikela, Lauren at the Louvre.

View from the top of the Arc de Triomphe.

The Arc!

My Champs-Élysées purchase--Ladurée macaroons!

Start of the Journey

Thursday was such an ugly day in Cork.  The rain and wind was so terrible.  It was just one of those days you want to curl up in your bed and never leave.  BUT, I had to get ready for Paris, an amazing excuse to get goin'!

I had a meeting with a professor at noon on Thursday before my classes, which was very quick!  I had time to kill before my lecture, and did not feel like trekking back to my apartment in the rain, so I went to Cafe Depeche again.  It is such a cool little place, I thought it would be nice to sit and relax.  I enjoyed a great latte, which warmed me up in the cold weather!

In between my two lectures, I went to the gym to prepare for all of the crepes and baguettes I would eat over the weekend.  On my walk to the gym, there is a bagel shop,  I go by this all the time and it is so hard to not go in and get something.  But, on Thursday, I gave in!  I had no lunch food in the apartment, and I was in need of a good bagel.  I have to say, it was pretty good.  Not as good as Lox Stock...but a great substitute.  I think it is bad that I stopped at Bagel Box, because now I want it whenever I pass by!  I will resist the temptation because it will make my reuniting with Lox Stock that much better come December :)

After class, I gathered my stuff for Paris, and Grace and I headed to Dublin.  Our flight was really early Friday morning.  Mrs. Hallinan generously found us a hotel to crash in for the night before our early day of travel.  Thank goodness she did this because our last 6 AM flight to Belgium was pretty tiring not sleeping at all.

A great start to the weekend!

Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Coffee is my addiction!

Gloomy Cork day. 

Bagel Box!

Happy Early Birthday, Grace!

Wednesday was a day to start getting ready for Paris!  I cannot believe it is time for another trip!  I was getting very excited for Paris because we were celebrating Grace's 21st birthday.  It was definitely going to be an amazing weekend.

I had a very good day on Wednesday!  I had a group project in the morning, which forced me to get up early, for once! Before class, I decided I would try out a new coffee place the HC girls told me about, Cafe Depeche.  This place was so adorable and had awesome drinks.  I decided to keep going with my holiday spirit and ordered a gingerbread latte.  It was so yummy and tasked like Christmas in a cup :)  To add to my great morning, one of my classes got out an hour early!  This was nice because it gave me a lot of time to get organized for the weekend.  Later that night, I had dinner with some of the Holy Cross girls, who I had not seen in forever!  It was great to catch up with them and hear all about the traveling they have done.  Everyone is on such crazy different schedules of traveling, it has been so hard to meet up.  It was a great little reunion, however!

After dinner, Jane and I headed to Graces.  Jane would not be in Paris with us, so we thought we would have a little get together for Grace before we left.  Grace was not feeling too well, so we did a quick "happy birthday" at her house with some cake and just hanging out.  We were going to have a big celebration when everyone was back in Cork!  Even thought 21 is not a big deal in Ireland, it still deserves great celebrations!

Back to packing for Paris!  Be back soon!

XO,

Caitlin

Cafe Depeche

Happy early 21st, Grace!