Another year went by and one of my biggest regrets is not being here enough, not documenting my travels on the go. However, a quick recap will help me remember what to write about in 2019, so here it goes!
Number of countries visited: 6
Days spent travelling: 39
1. Austria
February ended with a quick trip to Vienna with my best friend. It was freezing cold, yet we managed to see everything that matters. Vienna is a safe bet when you don’t have much time to discover a city as it is pretty compact and walkable. Also, Erich – best brunch place ever!
Read more on how to spend 24 hours in Vienna here.
2. Austria, again
I learned to appreciate the places close to us, and Hallstatt has been a dream of mine for years now. So, during a well-deserved March long-weekend, M and I decided to do a quick roadtrip to Hallstatt and the Salzkammergut area. I couldn’t recommend the area more, it’s so picturesque!
Click here, to read about our weekend adventure in Hallstatt.
3. Ireland
To be honest, I don’t have to think twice about my favorite trip in 2018. Ireland with M and my parents was my Dad’s 70th birthday present, but it was a trip of a lifetime for all of us, really. The Galway area with all the sheep farms, abbeys and castles, the beautiful and majestic Killarney National Park, an Cóbh with its cute colorful houses, and Dublin as charming as it is, Ireland stole our heart!
If you’re interested in our 7-day Ireland itinerary, click here.
4. The UK
Oh, London. The first – and last – time I saw it I was not even in high school, so it was high-time I revisited this amazing city. Although I got sick the minute we landed as we had to stand in pouring rain for half an hour before getting on the transfer bus, I enjoyed every minute of our stay. It was more like a literary walk through the city, as we probably stopped by every bookshop possible, so I’m planning a post dedicated to the most charming bookshops in London!
5. The Azores & Lisbon
Ok, I might have lied about our favorite trip in 2018, as I rather have my top 3, and the Azores is definitely among them! We spent a week on São Miguel, and had the most amazing time hiking, visiting a tea and a pineapple plantation, and eating all the fish in the world. Carla and Joao were incredible hosts; they helped us plan where to go each day, and baked us breakfast cakes every other day. This week felt like a honeymoon, and if you’re actually thinking about yours, please consider visiting the Azores! On the way back, we had an 8-hour stopover in Lisbon, so we decided to pay a visit – definitely do it if you don’t want to sit in the airport! It might not seem like enough time, and it’s obviously not, but it’s enough to get your first impression of the city and decide whether you want to plan a whole trip to Lisbon. I have a feeling that you will want to!
6. Slovakia
During my teenage years, I couldn’t wait to go on trips with my boyfriend instead of my parents, but after I moved away from home, I started to have a newfound appreciation for our time together. That’s why we enjoyed going to Ireland with my parents, and that’s why we were excited to spend 3 days in Slovakia with M’s parents, too. We hiked in the High Tatras, and visited a couple of villages in the region, followed by a short stay in Kosice. As it’s a lesser-known area in Europe, I’m planning on writing a blogpost showing the highlights of our trip here!
7. The US
The last trip of 2018 was one of the most magical, for multiple reasons. We spent two weeks in the US – the first one was about family: experiencing Thanksgiving for the first time, celebrating my birthday – and my niece’s, we share our birthday, actually! – the day after Thanksgiving , and going to my sister’s baby shower. As much as I was thrilled about going to New York afterwards, it was really hard to leave my family behind in Nebraska after a week like this. However, the following week was just as amazing in New York, and it included a lot of firsts, too: seeing the city all decorated for Christmas, going to the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting, going to a Broadway show and seeing Daniel Radcliffe perform, doing a photoshoot with balloons, and a lot more!
If you wanna know what exactly we were up to during our week in NYC, click here.