If money and time were of no consequence, where in the world would you travel? While I may be landlocked in the US for the near (and far) foreseeable future, my traveling alter ego would be a globe trotter. You better believe that she would easily fill up her passport before it is time to renew and have to ask for another one. (Side note: How does that work? Not like I will ever be in the predicament. But just curious.) This alter ego of mine would also have the art of packing down to a science. No more experimenting with the zip-lock bag method, or the roll-and-stuff method. No, she would know exactly how to pack for three weeks in a carry on like everyone says you can do. She would also have a sixth sense about where the hidden gem restaurants in a new town are. 

My travel alter ego would have stamps from: 

1// Russia: After watching Anna Karenina I fell completely head over heels in love. And throw in the Winter Olympics in Sochi in January, I'd say Russia is looking pretty good right now. I am an extreme Olympics fan. During the London games, I would watch three simultaneous events on my tv, computer and phone Minus the fact that they are hiding an American seller-of-intelligence-secrets in their airports. Russia might not like America, but I still want to visit. Don't worry, I'll practice my accent, call everyone Vlad and they won't know where I'm from.

2// Highclere Castle: Home of Downton Abbey and the home of the Earl and Countess of Carnarvon. Interesting fact: the 5th Earl of Carnarvon sponsored Howard Carter who discovered King Tut's tomb. Currently, there is an Egypt exhibit in the cellars of Highclere. Count me in. 

3 // Greece: I have gotten it into my mind that the best way and only way I want to see the Mediterranean is by cruise, you can read about Casey's Mediterranean cruise here. Think  about it, the boat is like a floating hotel that you don't have to arrange. There are no train tickets to purchase. Your excursions can be planned if you want, or you can explore on your own. Granted, I will not be cruising on a Carnival ship no matter how much of a discount they offer. After all of those disasters, I understand that cruising has a bad reputation, but I have been on two Disney cruises to the Bahamas and they were wonderful.

4 // Bali: I watch a lot of House Hunters International. There I admit it and I'm not ashamed. Sam and I even will have whole text conversations about families and how obnoxious they can be, especially when they are looking at flats in Paris. Secretly we are jealous of them. But back to Bali...It is EXTREMELY affordable to travel there once you fork over the price of the plane ticket. You can live like a king for pennies a day and many of the people buying vacation homes were able to afford maids. Add in lush jungles, pristine beaches an a unique local culture and I am a happy camper.

5 // American road trip:West coast I'm coming for you. My cousin is graduating from college in Malibu in May, which sounds like the perfect excuse to load up a rental car and cruise down the 101. Actually this sounds like a brilliant plan for non-alter-ego-traveler Jess so I'm going to get the ball rolling on this plan.

6 // Finland: I read in the Wall Street Journal about these igloos that you can stay in that have an open ceiling so you can watch the Northern Lights. How amazing would that be? Don't worry, they have thermal panels to make sure you stay nice and toasty while watching the show. For more places to view the Northern Lights, read the article here. I'm kind of obsessed with the Nordic countries in general. I would finally have an excuse to wear all of my fair isle patterned sweaters, scarves and socks. Trust me, there are a lot of them in my closet.

So now I will ask you, what is on you travel bucket list? Any ideas on how to turn them into a reality?

I promise this blog is not going to turn into

an homage to our three months spent in Paris. 

It's a year later and I'm almost to the point where I don't

mention some aspect about the trip every single day. 

But we three girls still LOVE to travel. 

It's in our souls now and I'm perfectly fine with that. 

While there are vague talks about a nordic vacation in two summers, 

I should begin to get more realistic about my next vacation destinations.

So I've complied a list of my top 5 stateside cities to visit. 

5. Aspen, Colorado 

source

I do want to give skiing a proper go {more than the few hours available last time.}

And what better place to do that than the home of the 

Food and Wine Classic? Sounds like a win win combination to me. 

Plus, I could try and get in a little celebrity stalking. 

2. Seattle, Washington 

Home of my three loves: Starbucks, Death Cab for Cutie and Grey's Anatomy. 

Cliche, I know. 

But for some reason I think I would fit in more in the Pacific Northwest 

instead of California, if I had to pick a destination on the west coast. 

Here is a list of must-do activities in the coastal town. 

3. Charleston, South Carolina 

source

This is the closest destination to my home that I've chosen. 

Only 5 hours away. 

Completely doable for a long weekend getaway. 

I've been to Savannah and completely fell in love with 

the old Southern charm of the city. 

Yet it still seems to blend the new and old. 

Charleston is like the sister city to Savannah.

And I desperately wish to go. 

For the architechure, history and possibly to see the 

2013 HGTV Dream Home on Kiawah Island. 

2. Boston, Massachusetts

source

Boston will potentially be a day trip during 

#SPRINGBREAK2013NYC.

It is the epitome of American history pre-1860.

If only I could have traveled to Boston instead of taken American history 

in school. Only in my dreams. 

I'd like to think that it's an extremely smart city

{it's home to Harvard...hello}

and that by visiting and breathing in the academic air, 

maybe I could boost my gpa a little. 

But the real reason we want to go is to eat at Wagamama. 

And last but certainly not least...

1. NYC

source

There is a whole hashtag dedicated to this trip:
#SPRINGBREAK2013NYC.

March 11-16. Mark your calendars. 

Five whole days spent in the big apple

briefly acting like a tourist, 

taking too many photos, 

eating at Le Relais De  L'Entrecote and Laduree,

going to museums and understanding the captions,

and just exploring. 

The plane tickets are booked and the airBnB apartment is rented.

Now prepare yourself for a slew of "what to do in new york" posts

in a month and a half. 

If you happen to be visiting Manhattan sooner than that, 

Lyndsay at Post Grad Diaries has so many suggestions. 

I live vicariously through her blog. 

And of course don't forget A Cup of Jo's Guide to New York. 

What cities in America do you want to visit?

-Jess

One of the worst things about going to school where we do is the distance it is from home. In the grand scheme of things, a 7 hour drive isn't terrible, but it sure feels like it when it's a Sunday afternoon and all you want to do is nap. Anddd that's what happened yesterday. 

Where I wish I was headed.

Literally all I wanted to do was lay in bed and eat chips & guacamole, but it was just not meant to be. 

However, I've discovered that long car rides are some of the best times to find new music. Especially when you have 4G & your Pandora radio wants to work.

 Side note about Pandora- once, I pushed like on a Lady Gaga song on my "Top Hits" station, and from that moment on, that station only played Swedish techno music. I kid you not. Moral of the story: don't push like on the Lady Gaga song. 

But seriously, I've found some gems before. My song of choice yesterday though was something my sister introduced me to: Thrift Shop by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis. It's Seattle hip hop AND the guy wears a onesie in the music video. I'll admit, the first time I heard it, I was really confused. Then, all of the sudden, my mind was blown and now I'm obsessed with the song. I listened to it probably 30 times yesterday. It's that good. So, take a minute. Listen to it (more than once. You'll think it's kinda weird the first time). And become obsessed. You're welcome. 

And just a PS, there is some naughty language, so just don't let your kids listen to it. Or whatever. 

-Samantha

{*Must link all pictures back to this site. kthanksbye.}