Well everyone. I wanted to share this post during the Olympics, but I didn't want to be compared to Julia Mancuso and Mikalea Shiffrin. Because I'm about to share the story of the one and only time I have ever been skiing. And by skiing I mean getting kicked off the bunny hill because I didn't pay for lessons and then deciding that it was best for myself and everyone else on the mountain if I walked back to the restaurant and enjoyed the view.

I spent my entire life living in South Georgia before relocating to Arkansas to go to college. So it's safe to say that I had never been around large quantities of snow or real mountains. (side fact, I hadn't been farther west than Dallas, or north of Tennessee until two years ago.) So when I read on my group's itinerary that we would be spending a weekend in Interlaken skiing, I was equal parts excited and terrified. 

My balance and coordination has always been less than ideal and I'm firmly convinced that being on a different latitude and altitude only made it worse. Combine that with the fact that I was too cheap to pay for ski lessons and you get an adult never making it off the trial hill before you advance to the easy slopes. But, who cares, I can still say that I have skied in the Alps. And whenever I make it to Colorado to ski, I'll make sure to stay long enough to take lessons. And then maybe I won't be passed by six-year-olds.

The positives from this trip: 

1. The view from the top of the mountain is breath-taking. It was worth every penny for the ride up there. 

2. The Swiss know how to put great restaurants for their skiers. So great that you forget why you decided to wear five layers of clothes and strap two pieces of metal to your feet. 

3. And if skiing is not your strong suit, Switzerland has beautiful lakes and hiking trails. Pack a picnic (because you won't be able to afford a restaurant meal) and enjoy the outdoors.

_______________________________________

Abby of Becoming

Blog | Pinterest | Twitter | Instagram

This blog will share my story. I'll share life events, musings, creations, photography, life in New York, taking a year of service, and whatever else might cross my mind. Random might be a good term for this blog, but I promise to keep it interesting!

Who would you most love to have dinner with?

I would love to have dinner with Audrey Hepburn. She was stunning, classy, and an amazing performer. Her style was iconic and she did some great things on earth. I have no doubt we could eat in the fanciest restaurant in New York City if I had dinner with her. :)

What you should be reading: 

Juice Cleanse | A Day in the Life | Scenes from the Weekend

Jess of Foreign Room

Blog | Bloglovin | Twitter | Instagram

I'm a CA girl with a passion for adventure, photography, and iced coffee, preferably all together. I blog about personal style, my latest travels, my favorite spots to explore in the SF Bay Area, and finding beauty in every day life.

Who would you most love to have dinner with?

I would have dinner with Mindy Kaling because I think she would be so entertaining and fun to hang out with. Like, can't we already be best friends?

What you should be reading: 

Red lipstick is always a good idea | Why I love my nutribullet | My favorite photo apps 

Here is an excerpt from my blog from March: 

I just got back from an amazingly fast five days in London. There is no way to condense everything down into one post but I’ll give you the highlights. Right after we dropped our bags off we started a walking tour around the city. First stop: Rosetta stone at the British museum (no big deal.) We continued on to the likes of Trafalgar Square, Big Ben, and a brief glimpse at Buckingham. 

My favorite part of the trip would actually have to be the excursion to Oxford and Stratford-Upon-Avon. Oxford is dripping with heritage and traditions. The Ivy League has nothing on this university. And what better way to commemorate my time in Oxford than with a crew sweatshirt? 

We also did the whole Shakespeare thing since he was kind of a big deal. We toured the Globe, but since it’s not quite summer were unable to see a show there and instead saw The Tempest in Stratford. It may not be quite the same, but it was still an amazing production. 

Sunday was spent at church at Westminster followed by lunch at a pub, outside of which they were filming part of the new James Bond film, followed by an afternoon stroll through Kensigton Gardens, the Victoria & Albert Museum and afternoon tea and scones. 

We had a free day on Monday before we headed back to Paris. Sam, Emily and I decided to brave the crowds and tourists and watch the changing of the guard at Buckingham. While I probably won’t ever do it again (it’s kind of a seen it one and done kind of deal) it was still one of those British rights of passage activities that you just have to do when given the opportunity.

We also went to Chipotle afterwards. You may be wondering why Chipotle when I could have it any day back home? Well, sometimes you just get a hankering for America and the familiar. Trust me, it did not disappoint. 

And what would any travel blog be without a quick discussion on food? Well it was more like a culinary trip around the world instead of just strict Brit fare that included Chinese, Thai, Mexican and of course several helpings of fish & chips. 

It amazed me how similar British and American culture is. Also, seeing signs in English made traveling that much more comfortable and relaxing. There is definitely a strong American presence in London, especially in the stores and restaurants  More so than in Paris. Driving down the highway almost made me forget that I was in England…until I remembered that we were driving on the left hand side of the road.

-Jess

When we first arrived in Paris, 

the metro map looked more like gibberish than something useful. 

To get aquainted with our new home away from home, 

Lauren sent us on a scavenger hunt around the city. 

For a recent multimedia storytelling project, 

I interviewed Samantha about the experience. 

{laduree}

 {moulin rouge}

{louvre}

{notre dame}

{the winning team}

{the second place team}

don't worry, after too long i ditched that blue bag.

-Jess

*p.s. Yes I know it's not actually Tuesday, but there are no fun travel words that rhyme with Monday.

Here's a post from my first week living in France. It was a magical time. 

February 2, 2012

After about 20 hours of traveling we arrived safely in Nice, France on the French Riviera. The city is GORGEOUS. I was wondering why we were coming here in the winter instead of later in the semester in April. Aristocrats and socialites have been coming to Nice since the 1800s in order to improve their health (supposedly.) I guess it’s like snow birds vacationing in Florida all winter. There is something special about the salt air, especially after sitting on planes for the past 11 hours. Now whether or not it cures tuberculous, is beyond me. 

We spent today with a tour guide walking around the city and this afternoon we were on our own to go exploring and finding a place to eat dinner. We walked up and down the Promenade, which was built by all of the British and European socialites who wanted to walk along the coast and be seen, but did not want to walk on the rocky soil. As the promenade expanded in the 1920s, art deco hotels and buildings began to pop up. It is a center for artists of the time to come and be inspired. 

Today I went to my first art museum ( there are MANY more to follow in the next several weeks), the Contemporary Art museum. It was very interesting to say the least. Some of the more abstract pieces I feel like I could have made myself and called it art, but maybe I was missing the big picture. The problem with going to museums when you do not speak the language is that you can’t read the captions and biographies of the artists to understand what you are looking at. This may become a problem later on. 

Nice is one of the few places that you can go to the mountains in the morning and ski and then go to the beach in the afternoon. Very cool. We also saw the hospital that Angelina Jolie gave birth to her twins. I’m glad my pop culture and Hollywood knowledge will serve some kind of purpose.

For dinner, Emily, Samantha and I discovered that restaurants in Nice close early (like 6 or 6:30ish) and we had to walk around for about an hour to find something good and cheap. We ended up going to a Cuban restaurant of all places and it was wonderful. There were salsa dance lessons going on in the back. I had some sort of beef, onion, and pepper dish covered in sliced banana and cheese. Sounds strange, but so good. So far I haven’t had much French food actually. For lunch we had a Nice sampler platter of specialty items from the area. They were all good on their own, but together it was like an explosion of rich flavors in my mouth and was a little much this early in the trip. 

Tomorrow we have an early train ride to Cannes. So excited for the rest of the week on the coast!