36 hours in Nice, France

I just got back from a quick trip to Nice France! I stayed 2 nights and spent about half of one day in Monaco! Which is totally a must. I ended up picking Nice because there was cheap direction flights out of Naples and I wanted to check another country off my list (Monaco) as I have already been to France. I ended up liking Nice so much though! The vibe was very laid back and chill and compared to other big European cities it wasn’t even that crowded!! I loved it.

Okay so you have 36 hours in Nice...

Must sees:

The Promenade: maybe these most iconic location in Nice! Everyone runs and bikes and walks along it. It runs from one end of town to the next.

The #ILoveNice sign: at the end of the promenade closest to town. Not high on the must see list but if you are close to it snap a quick pic.

Massena Square: beautiful square with black and white checkered floor surrounded by pretty pink and orange buildings!

Fountain: who doesn’t love a pretty fountain of a naked man!

Castle hill (Colline du Château): this is definitely on the top of my list of must sees! It’s a climb up but worth the gorgeous views and there is a pretty waterfall, an old cemetery, and pretty walking trails. And 360 views from the top. 

Casino: Even if its just to walk in and play a few slots. Casinos are always fun or do what I did and take a little day trip to Monaco!

Relax on the beach: I actually didn't think I would do this. I didn't even bring a proper swimsuit but I ended up loving just laying on the beach and reading my book. 

Play in the water / water sports: The water is amazingly nice especially when I visited in mid September, so warm from being heated by the sun all summer. There are paddle boards and jet skis you can rent. You can also go paragliding. 

Walk in the city center and along the pedestrian shopping street: I always love streets that are just for pedestrians! We don't really do that in America so I always enjoy strolling down them in the European cities. 

Le Negresso Hotel: This hotel is gorgeous from the outside and an iconic Nice location. 

Food:

100% Tacos: amazing street tacos. They make everything super fresh. Seems like a nice family owned place and amazing tacos.

Emilie & the Cool Kids: yummy cookies and desserts. I had the peanut butter and an M&M cookie. I liked the peanut butter one better but they were both great. They also serve drinks and other pastries. 

Emma’s Cupcakes: came across this shop while walking back from the train station. Stopped in for a quick treat. I got the chocolate and raspberry! The French definitely like that combo and know how to do it right.

Amorino: a chain gelato place all over Europe and there might be one in NYC now (not sure) but they have really yummy ice cream and if you order it in a cone they make it into a rose! If they have a cheesecake flavor that is what I order every time :)

McDonald’s: okay okay I know. I did eat dinner at McDonald’s once but I have to recommend it because in France they have chocolate soft serve!

Wayne's Pub: Great place for burgers and beer!

La Pizza Cresci: I didn't personally try this place but I walked by it and all the pizzas looked SO GOOD! If I hadn't just eaten at 100% tacos I would have eaten here.

Okay those are my recommendation. Like I said I wasn't there for long but it was a good trip. I stayed at the Meyerbeer Beach Hostel which was in a great location and they even had free beach stuff you could use like floats and towels! Also Nice is great because there are beaches you can pay for chairs and umbrellas or you can just plop your towel down at the public area which is what I chose to do.

Also I had a pretty great interaction with a gentlemen. My number one interacation with a person I don’t know is no interaction but this would be number two:

Him: Hello

Me: Hello

Him: Where are you from?

Me: America

Him: Oh here on holiday?

Me: Yes

Him: Am I disturbing you?

Me: No

Him: I would like to know you.

Me: No thanks

And then he walked off without another word. It was wonderful. Crazy some of the news stories we hear about girls rejecting guys and something terrible happens. This guy did it right.

love, Carlee

Swimsuit aka Barlette : Nordstrom

Shirt: American Eagle

Shorts: Target

Shoes: Nike

Sunglasses: Firmoo

And a few more photos for good measure! 

 

 

 

 

Best Burger Drive-Ins in North Central WA

Hey guys I am back with a few recommendations if you are ever in Eastern Washington / North Central Washington. If you are in the market for a great burger or milkshake or corndog or chicken strip basket these places are for you! These are places from my childhood and I made sure to visit and eat at each one while I was home and I thought I would put them here just in case anyway was searching for some good food and retro decor. 

1. Lakeview Drive-In: Chelan WA
I ate at this one three times while I was home. It is only 20 minutes from my hometown so I ate here a lot when I was grow up and in the summers. They are only open from May to around September (maybe October.) They also recently downsized their menu but they still have all the good stuff. My favorite is the corn dog. Their burgers and chicken strips are also really good but my favorite park is the crinkle fries and fry sauce! They also have great ice cream and milkshakes. You can walk up, drive up, or call in your order ahead of time. There is only outdoor seating. Go here and order the french fries you won't be disappointed!

2. EZ's : Wenatchee WA
We stopped here when we were in Wenatchee after one of my brothers baseball games. I also remember eating here as a child mostly their milkshakes. I had mini corndogs (can you tell I miss corndogs, they don't have them in Italy!! haha) and fries. Once again great fry sauce. My mom had a burger she said was amazing and my brother had a bacon burger with a chocolate milkshake. I had a vanilla milkshake. Just doesn't seem like you should be able to visit a drive-in with out ordering a milkshake. This one is on more of the expensive side compared to the other two drive-ins I am recommending but still worth it and really fun decor!

3. Rusty's Drive-In : Cashmere WA
We ate here on our way from the airport to home when my mom picked me up. Their Rusty Burger is what they are famous for and it is delicious. We also got fries and onion rings! There fry sauce is a little odd so I wouldn't recommend that but everything else was spot on. 

Now these are not all of the great burger joints in Eastern Washington just the ones that I visited while I was back home. Also my bad for not taking any photos of the food besides my ice cream, you'll just have to take my word for it I guess. 
love, Carlee

28/50

Food Guide: Florence, Italy

Gelato

Perche No? : This place was our favorite shop we tried in Florence, might even be my #1 gelato experience in Italy! So yeah, if you are in Florence go here. We actually went back for seconds in the same day that's how good it was. I had the coffee crunch and strawberry cheesecake. They have many flavors and no sitting room inside the shop.

La Carria: Second favorite gelato shop in Florence. You know how it is good, because there are two location in the same city! We ate at the original location across the bridge. Yummy creamy ice cream. 

Edoardo: This place has one of the best locations in Florence right next to the Duomo so lots of foot traffic from tourist. The ice cream was really really good from Edoardo. They don't have very many flavors and the flavors are pretty simple. Also one thing I don't like about gelato shops is when the gelato is not displayed and at this place it is not displayed it is in tin cans with lids. However, that doesn't make the ice cream at this place any less delicious. 

Vivoli: This was one of the gelato places that came highly recommend. Be warned they are closed on Mondays. The ice cream was really good but as you can see I thought three places in Florence were better! haha. It is kinda hidden away down a back ally but there is seating inside which I liked. 

Amorina: So I originally had Amorina's in Paris and it was my favorite gelato shop there. They have a really yummy seasonal cheesecake flavor that was my vice. So I knew I wanted to go to the one in Florence and see if it was as yummy as I remember. The ice cream was good but a little to soft for my liking. I think they were having problems keeping their freezer temps down. Tasty ice cream though and if you get it in a cone they make it look like a flower which is fun and nice for the #gram ;) 

Magnum Pleasure Store: While we didn't try the once specifically in Florence, we have been to a magnum ice cream shop where you can custom make your ice cream bar and they are so good. Definitely worth it if you have never been or don't live in a city where they have one. 

Gelato flavors I had in Florence: Cheesecake, Cookie, Stracciatella, Macadamia, Cinnamon Cookie, Cafe Crunch, Bacio.  

Sandwiches 

All'Antico Vinaio: I read about this place when doing some research on places to eat in Florence. People said this place had the best sandwiches and they were right! Just google the name and you will see over 5000 reviews and basically 5 stars. They have a set sandwich menu and you can order from but I heard you can also order a custom sandwich but people said there is a reason they have a list of sandwiches because they know what is best. I had the Boss and Clark has the Summer. We went around noon and it wasn't too busy. I heard it gets really busy about 2pm cause that is usually when Italians do lunch. 

Pizza 

Toto Restaurante: This is the place that we got to make our own pizza so while I can't speak for the pizza that the restaurant makes, I can say that the ingredients were very fresh and the lead chef has been making pizza at this same restaurant for 24 years so it is gonna be good. 

Restaurants / Dinner  

La Cantinetta: This is the restaurant we ate at the first night we were in Florence. We were near the duomo so we did a quick google search for restaurants near by and this one popped up with great reviews. I order the steak and french fries. The steak had parmesan cheese on it and it was SO GOOD. Clark has the seafood pasta and we split a cheese appetizer that comes with honey and marmalade. Definitely recommend this place. 

Trattoria dall'Oste Chianineria: We ended up having dinner at this place on our last night in Florence. We had passed it a few days before and it looked really good. When we looked it up for our last night there we saw how good of reviews it had. It also said reservations required on Google but we showed up at 6pm and did not need a reservation. If you show up at around 9 or 10pm when the Italians start eating you probably need a reservation and yes it is worth it. I had the spinach ravioli (YUMMM) and clark had a steak. I think meat dishes are their speciality but I am sure anything you order is going to be fantastic. 

Cafe & Pastries 

Paszkowski: This was actually our first stop in Florence. I got some hot chocolate and Clark got a Cappuccino to give him some energy before heading around town to explore. The hot chocolate was so good and rich. Also, we didn't try any but the pastries looked amazing. And there were tons of people at the counter ordering coffee and pastries to go so I think it is a hit. 

As you can see I spent the majority of my food research on testing out the gelato in Florence so you are definitely covered in that department haha. I actually made a whole map with points on it and there were like 15 gelato shops on it. I figured it was better to have more options haha. Remember the gelato is listed in the order of best to least best (was going to say worst but let's be honest there is no 'worst' gelato). 
love, Carlee

17/50

Bruges, Belgium

I just got back from Brugge or Bruges depending on the language you speak and it was amazing. A true fairytale town. I went with my friend and her daughter. We drove from Charleroi Airport to Brugge and stayed in Martins Brugge hotel which was in the best location just one block from the city center. The first thing we did after checking into our hotel was go see the famous Markt square with the beautiful buildings and the Belfort tower. We then found a place to eat some yummy dinner, I had Flemish beef stew and my friend had Mussels which are served everywhere in Belgium. My friend recommends the garlic and cream mussels. We then walked to the town hall square and all the buildings were lit up green for St. Patrick’s Day! So pretty and festive. We then ended the first night in Brugge with some ice cream and waffles from Fred’s !

The next day, first full day, in Belgium we set out for some breakfast and ended up eating at Le Pain Quotidian Stevinplein, which is actually a chain restaurant and we didn't even realize it haha. They had great breakfast and fresh bread and pastries and coffee. We then got to the Belfort (bell tower) first thing so we could climb up the 366 steps to the top of the tower and see the 360 degree view of Brugge. The view was outstanding but the wind was blowing so hard from the top it was freezing. Actually while we were there the weather was really cold like 32 degrees or below especially with the wind chill it even snowed a little in the afternoon one day! What the heck it is almost the end of March.

We then walked to Minnewater Park and fed the swans before we read the signs that said no feeding the animals, whoops! We also saw the gorgeous monastery, Begijnhof, with the blooming daffodils, although the daffodils were a little wilted because it was so cold but still beautiful. After we desperately needed some hot chocolate so we found a tea room and sat down to warm up. Along with our hot cocoa we also had scones and pound cake! Also the Belgian hot chocolate is amazing - they bring you steamed milk and then the spoon with the hard chocolate and you put it in your milk and it melts. And you could choose between dark or milk chocolate.

After we warmed up we took a boat tour of the canals! Did you know they call Brugge the Venice of the North? While cold, the tour was awesome and our boat captain was great and really funny. He also spoke 4 languages, French, Dutch, Spanish, and English. It was really cool to see the pretty row houses and bridges from the water. There was even icicles under some of the bridges because it was so cold. Next we went to Julie’s burgers and beers for lunch. It was really yummy. I recommend the onion rings and chalky cheddar burger.

We walked along the canals some more, stopping lots along the way to take photos. We popped into a few cute shops and so many chocolatiers. There was some blocks that only had chocolate shops literally one right after the next. So many in a row. I was thinking how do they all stay in business. But you know people love their chocolate. I sure do.

For dinner we ate at a place in the main market square. I didn’t have anything as I was still full from lunch and waffles, oh yeah waffles on a stick from go.fre so yummy! Go get them. My friend had mussels again and we enjoyed some quiet time while getting out of the cold. We also wanted to rest a while to make room for some more dessert. We ended up having really yummy gelato at Da Vinci! Give me all the ice cream all the time. #sorrynotsorry

The next morning we woke up early and ate breakfast as this amazing bagel sandwich place called Sanseveria Bagelsalon then we walked to the Basilica of the Holy Blood which houses the supposed blood of Jesus Christ! We got some more waffles (of course) and then drove to a park that lines the outside of the old town to see some really big and pretty windmills. We then made our way to Mons, Belgium!

Jesus Christ's supposed blood is behind this alter!

Summary of recommendations:
Stay: 
Martin's Brugge

Eat:
go.fre: waffles on a stick
Da Vinci: gelato 
Oyya: gelato and waffles
Fred's: gelato and waffles
Jilles: burgers and beers
Sanseveria Bagelsalon: Bagel sandwiches
Le Pain Quotidien Stevinplein: breakfast, bread, coffee
Tea-Room De Proeverie: hot chocolate, coffee, cakes, pastries!

See: 
Basilica of the Holy Blood: houses the supposed blood of Jesus Christ! 
Bonne-Chieremolen: Giant windmills that line the outside of the town
Minnewater Park: So many swans! 
Markt: The main market square were you see all the pretty buildings.
Belfort Brugge: Climb to the top! The views of Brugge are amazing. It cost 12 euro per adult and there are 366 steps and it gets pretty narrow at points. 
Burg: A square that houses the town hall and also the basilica of the holy blood. 
Begijnhof: The beautiful monastery that was blooming with daffodils when we were there. 
Boat Trips Brugge: take a tour of the canals!
The Beer Wall: a pub with a fun wall full of beer.