December 31, 2016

2016.

2016 was def one for the books. To be completely honest, this year flew by but I feel like I say that every year. But it felt extra fast because I was really enjoying myself lolz. 
The beginning of 2016 was fun aye eff like literally, the first day. I ended up shaking my tail feather all of NYE and came home at like 6am. My body was in so much pain it was the craziest thing - I felt like I did an insanity workout but it was just wearing heels for a ridiculous amount of hours. And I never even did insanity but I just image that's how you feel after. Life was then became alright. I was still in university so that's that and was also doing an internship at a fashion magazine, which I ended up dreading unfortunately. The highlight of all that was me getting my degree! It was a long time coming and I couldn't have been more excited especially since PRESIDENT BARACK OBAMA was our keynote speaker. It was so surreal like wow Rutgers, you did one thing right lol. 
So fast forward to the good stuff that woke me the hell up and helped me get my mind right. After I graduated, I was having like my third quarter life crisis cause I had no idea what the heck I wanted to do with my life. I mean I did but I wasn't sure of it. I wasn't sure if I wanted to write because I hated my internship - there was nothing wrong with the people, I just couldn't stand being in an office. To make a long story short, all I can say is following my instinct has never paid off so much and I thank the universe for giving me that courage. After traveling, meeting incredible people and listening to their stories, things started to fall into place as to what I wanted to do and I became sure of it. I also met a writer (my brother's friend's girlfriend lol) who helped me get my shit together, opened up a few opportunities and gave me the confidence to keep writing. Like she gets the life I wanna live cause she's doing it which is why I'm doing what I'm doing. 
As per usual, I have no idea where I'm going with this but the moral of my 2016 story is to just do it, like Nike. I don't know what "it" is for you but just get it done. Sometimes I just wanna shake people because they're so afraid of doing whatever gets them going. Trust and believe I was that person too but taking myself out of my comfort zone has allowed me to grow so much more than I could have every imagined. I feel like I'm fearless now, to an extent lol. I honestly don't know what would have happened if I didn't reject the few jobs that offered me positions after graduation. That's another hot mess story lol but hope that gives you a little insight on what I mean by following your gut. I guess it might be hard for some people because everyone's situation is different but I kid you not, if you put your mind and determination to it - it's doable. Personally, I'm not a person who needs easy just possible. As you can see, I'm trying to be motivational here but sometimes that's what people need. I've learned to become patient with my timing and from what I've been told, I'm not doing as bad as I thought lol. 
Not too sure what your goals are for 2017 but whatever they are, do it with all that you got. Seriously. The other day I read on Twitter that humans are the only mammals that are conscious that they will die. If that doesn't get you moving to follow your dream, I have no idea what will. It's pathetic that we know that one day we will die but still decide to live a mediocre life. I'm getting to deep into this so let me wrap this up lol. 
As a human living on Earth, shit hit the fan in 2016. There were many deaths, disturbing bombing i.e. Aleppo, and ridiculous political outcomes especially living in the US. We all wanted 2016 to be over and it is basically coming to an end. Personally, I found a silver lining in my cloud of confusion but hopefully we find that silver lining in humanity too. I have tons of hope for this next year and look forward to what it brings. 

November 3, 2016

Italy Photo Diary: Venezia.

The Bridge of Sighs

The Hardest Part of Traveling.

I understand that simply getting money to travel is hard in itself (and I thank my parents whole-heartedly for believing in my life plan and allowing me to travel, as I always say). Not only that but getting accustomed to a different culture, not being able to communicate and just being a stranger to a completely different place. Trust me, throughout this year, I've never felt so small sometimes cause it can become isolating, especially while solo-traveling.
Usually, my posts are to show you what I've seen throughout my travels but I'm here to take it to a personal level which is completely out of my comfort zone. I recently came back from a three-week long EuroTrip with my line sister and I never been so happy to be back home. It was the constant moving that got me tired but I enjoyed the experience nonetheless. While I was unpacking my things this morning, I was by myself and just thinking about everything, a self-reflection per say. I was thinking about what I went through the previous weeks whether it was dragging luggages up 89 steps, being homeless in Germany or being out of breath every time we had to catch a train since we always thought we had enough time.
As cliché and corny as it sounds, it's crazy how much being exposed to a different culture shifts your mentality. To be honest, when I was in Ecuador, that's when it hit me like a bus. The people there live with much less than what I have here and live the happiest life - it was beautiful to see. I'm starting to go off topic here but what I'm trying to say is, the hardest part of traveling is coming home. Of course, I miss home because home is where my fambam is but it's difficult and frustrating to explain to someone the drastic change within you when everything you come back to is the same. Like I just witnessed all this beauty but we're raised to remain in one spot! It kind of feels like you don't belong anymore.
It's similar to going to another country and trying to communicate but you can't because of the language barrier. I can talk to someone and ramble on about how huge the world is and they can see how intense I talk about it but I know they still don't understand. I've talked to a few friends about what I've been doing and some are inspired, which makes my heart so full, but it's so hard cause I want them to understand what I'm saying. When I was younger, I always heard how people (aka Anthony Bourdain) never come back the same and sheesh, it's true. Setting your feet on other grounds can work magic. Sometimes I think people think I'm a nut-job cause I'm just going off into the world head first but that's none of their business *insert upside down smiley face emoji*. I don't know what will make you, whoever is reading this, go off into the world for a bit, I'm not talking about for a long time, and see something that impacts you and takes you out of your comfort zone. 

August 22, 2016

Ballin' On A Budget.

I've been asked multiple times how I'm able to travel and since I'm tired of answering the same question - here's my secret. It's not even a secret, just researching and getting the scoop from the right sources. I'm not super rich, or rich to even begin with lol, but I do have a job that gives me the monies to see the world. And the most important thing that comes with that is saving, obviously.
Anyway, the website I use is called skyscanner.com - the holy grail to my traveling life. It allows me to see when is the cheapest time to go ANYWHERE in the world. Or if you want to go to a specific place, you can even research when is the cheapest month to go there. You can even see how much tickets are each day. But of course, if you have a specific place you want to go to at a specific time then it will give you the cheapest flights. I swear, it's the best website I've ever found out about.
Also if you're traveling within a country, don't be afraid of public transportation. You can get to different cities simply by train. Well, at least with countries that have a metro system built in it. Or even by bus. When I'm in Europe, I go through train and when I was in Ecuador - all I did was travel to different regions by bus. It's also a nice way to see the landscape of whatever country. Oh, and ferries if you're traveling across water, of course.
Now for places to stay, I never do hotels now. Ever since last year, I found the glory of bnbs (bed and breakfasts, in case you were wondering). The friends I made while studying abroad last summer showed me how great these bnbs were when we rented a DOPE apartment in Barcelona. From there on, I just use airbnb.com to find my accommodations. I haven't tried hostels yet cause I like space but I'll eventually see how they are. You can filter what you want specifically when using airbnb.com to fit the kind of space you want. I honestly think it's better too cause you get a feeling of actually living in the area that you are and sometimes you meet cool people. Like I met these cool Germans while in Greece cause they were in the same house as me.
So... taaadaaa , these are the ways I travel - you're welcome lolz. 

July 30, 2016

Greece 2016.

It's been about a week since I came back from Greece and I'm still heartbroken lol but my tan is still in tack so I'm chillin'. As per usual, this was a great trip but it was different cause I did a lot of things for the first time. It's crazy cause I wasn't even supposed to go to Greece but the universe happened to work in my favor. 

So what can I say about Greece? Hmmm. Maybe that it's MAGICAL, literally. Speaking specifically about Europe, I have been to a few cities in other countries and I never had so many jaw-dropping moments in my life. You know how Greece is portrayed in movies? Whelp, they're not lying to you. The clearest and the bluest of waters, white and blue houses (on some islands), friendly people and a beautiful culture. I honestly couldn't believe what I was seeing with my eyes. It made my heart so happy. 

Anyway, below are some pictures and you can watch my video here.

July 24, 2016

A Lil Brooklyn Guide.

Hello! The title is pretty self-explanatory, hope you enjoy!

June 18, 2016

Ecuador 2016.

It's been two weeks since I came back from Ecuador and I've just been too lazy to put this post together BUT, here you have it. I found out I was going on this trip literally like three weeks before I actually went. My parents asked me if I wanted to go so that was an instant yes. I thought it was the perfect time since I just graduated university and I going to take advantage of my free time before I become a real adult. Anyway, I was super duper excited because I was finally going to Latin America and throughout college, that was one of my minors and I absolutely loved it with a passion. It was incredible to finally see what I've been reading and studying about for the past three years. The Andes left me in awe, the food lived up to its standard (and didn't mess up my stomach), the people were so genuine and humble and the culture left its mark in my heart. I love how simple everything was and I finally felt in touch with my soul - that's super deep lol but it's the truth. I've only been to Europe before and it never had that impact on me. Maybe because going to Ecuador literally is apart of who I am since my dad is from there. I now understand the slogan "All you need is Ecuador.'

Now to where I went:
Ecuador is divided into four regions: the Galapagos, the coast, the Andes and the Amazon. I went to 3/4 of those within 16 days - I didn't get to see the Galapagos :(.  Most of the place I went were for outdoorsy people so if you're tryna chill in a resort, you won't find anything like it in this post lol. And I didn't go out partying because 1. Most of the places I went to were so small there weren't club 2. I wasn't gonna go out with my dad 3. It was too dangerous for me to go out - so that explains that situation. But I didn't mind not going out because I wanted a different scene (I was basically Eliza Thronberry the whole time). It's crazy how relaxing and peaceful it is just to be with nature. Being away from the hustle and bustle is something everyone needs to do in their lifetime to just hear the river flow when you're sleeping, to look up at night and see SO MANY stars and be surrounded by the friendliest people who always offer to help or just want to talk even if you're a stranger.

So, here's a little recap video of my time in Ecuador and you can see pictures below:


Side note: you know what totally sucked? I forgot my Nikon battery charger at home so all these pictures are from my iPhone lol. I wanted to DIE #shoutouttotheHDtho.