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Europe

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in Berlin, Berlin What to Do, Berlin Where to Go, Expat Life

Cherry Blossoms in Berlin: The Best Places to See Them & Get Your Hanami On

April 10, 2019

There’s nothing quite like spring in Berlin. I always feel it coming like I’m some sort of early warning device. My hands start to develop red spots and my throat gets scratchy. Pollen, like the White Walkers in Game of Thrones, tend to creep up on you like that. Before you know it, they’re in full-attack mode and you’re sneezing like there’s no tomorrow, stifling that curse word you want to direct at nature. But you stop yourself completely, knowing that this season has its pros. Number one on my list? The cherry blossoms in Berlin.

“It’s like a unicorn threw up all over Berlin,” I found myself telling my husband last spring. “I love it!”

Call me basic but pink everywhere is definitely my cup of tea. From wet, grey, gloomy winter, Berlin comes of out of its closet (intended), leaving its black, puff jacket behind to reveal itself dressed in the prettiest pastel shade. Pink goes with everything and taking pictures around the city is just made a lot more fun. Just don’t forget to take your anti-histamines.

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Kraków's Old Town: Where to Stay, Eat, & Some Things to Do
in Kraków, Poland, Travel

Kraków’s Old Town: Stay, Eat, & Some Things to Do

April 17, 2018
2 Comments

So my last post on our first trip to Poland is finally here! It was our first summer here in Europe when we rented a small car and took the eight-hour drive to Kraków. It was the perfect base if you’re also visiting the Wieliczka Salt Mines and Auschwitz.

To say that I fell in love with Poland is quite the understatement. True, it’s not the poshest destination in Europe so it doesn’t make it to people’s bucket lists quite often. However, Poland is a country that has a lot to offer when it comes to history and culture. Oh, and the people are so sweet and helpful!

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in Beauty & Fashion, Fashion, Fashion Tips

The Complete Guide: Wearing High Heels (in Europe)

November 16, 2017

I’m in my 20s and I can honestly say that it now takes so much to make my feet hurt. And it’s all because of my love for some high heels.

It started years ago. Every time we would buy school shoes, I would try to get my grandmother to buy me something with a bit of a heel. High enough to make me feel like an adult, but not too high that would make my teachers at my (very) Catholic high school send me to the disciplinary office.

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Almost Diplomatic - Schloss Bellevue - Bellvue Palace - Berlin - Diplomat's Wife - Blog - Germany - 607
in Berlin Travel, Berlin Where to Go, Europe, Germany, Travel

Visiting the Schloss Bellevue with Wilkommen in Berlin

October 10, 2017

I recently wrote about the first event I attended organised by Wilkommen in Berlin (WIB). After that, I was able to attend a couple more before the diplomatic spouse club went on a break for the summer. The break is over and I’m still not done writing about the events before it. No surprise there. As per usual, my plate has become pretty full. One of the said events was a tour of the Schloss Bellevue – the seat of the German president.

When I told my husband about us getting to visit this particular schloss, he pounced on it as another awesome thing about being the diplo-spouse rather than the diplomat. “You get to do the fun stuff while I deal with the stressful bits,” he laughed. Come to think  of it, I get to go on a tour of the palace before he does. Also when he goes, it’s going to be work. But I do the cooking and the laundry at home so I guess we’re even. 😛

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London, Travel, UK, United Kingdom, Europe, 2015, Westminster
in United Kingdom

Travel: Covent Garden Market, Transport Museum, a meet-up, a Pub, & other must-sees (London, UK)

August 2, 2016
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We started our second day in London by heading to the London Transport Museum. On the way there, however, we passed through the Covent Garden Market. The former fruit and vegetable market is now a beautiful shopping centre. It has high end brands like Dior and local shops selling artisan goods.

London, Travel, UK, United Kingdom, Europe, 2015, Covent Garden Market, Covent GardenLondon, Travel, UK, United Kingdom, Europe, 2015, Covent Garden Market, Covent GardenLondon, Travel, UK, United Kingdom, Europe, 2015, Covent Garden Market, Covent Garden

Though what really got to me were the antiques and other awesome vintage finds. In case it isn’t that obvious yet, let me just put it out there – London is an awesome city for shopping for vintage. They have the best stuff I’ve seen! And I do love spending time looking through markets and stores that sell vintage and antiques.

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London, Travel, Europe, Britain, UK, United Kingdom, Madame Tussauds, Madame Tussauds London, Oxford Circus
in United Kingdom

Travel: The British Museum, 221B Baker Street, and Madame Tussauds (London, UK)

July 8, 2016

***Or what I’d like to call ‘The rest of Day 1 in London’. Fair warning: This is going to be quite a long photo diary.

Sadly, most of my videos (and even some photos) for London were corrupted so I still don’t know whether I will be making one with the little bit that was left. 🙁 But at least, there are photos from my trusty camera so I can still share with you guys how awesome London was.

I love London.

There, I said it. My dad said he knew I would love it more than Paris and he was right. Expensive, yes, to the point where I can’t imagine living there but I love it still. When I think of London, I think of exuberance. I read somewhere that a man who gets tired of London is tired of life and I can see why. You just won’t run out of things to do! Most museums are free, the parks are just gorgeous, and walking around different neighbourhoods is an adventure in itself.

The British often complain about how gloomy London could be due to the incessant rains throughout the year but I do believe that the city itself has enough light and life in it to make the gloom bearable (even unnoticeable).

So back to the point of this post – London day 1. I already talked about our arrival and our  affordable accommodation that had a superb location in another post. I also did a post on the Imperial War Museum which was our first order of business after checking in. So this post will be a mish-mash of everything we went to afterwards.

It’s no secret that we love museums so after the Imperial War Museum, The British Museum was up next on our list. Before going there, however, we had to drop by Trafalgar Square to pick up our pre-ordered London Passes. We will be needing them for the next couple of days. 😉

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Churchill, Winston Churchill, Churchill War Rooms, London, Travel, History, World War II, WWII
in United Kingdom

Travel: The Churchill War Rooms (London, UK)

May 17, 2016

Churchill, Winston Churchill, Churchill War Rooms, London, Travel, History, World War II, WWII

Note: The Churchill War Rooms is part of Britain’s Imperial War Museums. If you want to check out my write up on the IWM London, click here.

Tucked in a corner by the Clive Steps in London is the entrance to one of my favourite stops during our Europe trip. The inconspicuous door  leading to the Churchill War Rooms’ entrance was already modified to make it easier for people to find it. However, a lot of tourists who visit London still walk past it, not knowing what it actually is and not even noticing it.

The Churchill War Rooms is composed of the Cabinet War Rooms and the Churchill Museum. It is an underground complex built under the Treasury building in London that served as Britain’s command centre during World War II. It is where then Prime Minister Winston Churchill spent most of his time, making the most important decisions and plans back then. The complex was abandoned in August 1945 after WWII and was preserved.

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Travel, London, Imperial War Museum, World War, World War II, World War I, WWII, WWI, What to do in London, Where to go in London, London Travel, Europe, United Kingdom,
in United Kingdom

Travel: The Imperial War Museum (London)

April 25, 2016

Travel, London, Imperial War Museum, World War, World War II, World War I, WWII, WWI, What to do in London, Where to go in London, London Travel, Europe, United Kingdom,

On our first day in London, we decided to visit the Imperial War Museum (IWM). We were staying at a small hotel nearby and getting there meant just a three-minute walk. Whoopee! Summer walks in London? Why don’t mind if I do. 😉

IWM London is part of Britain’s Imperial War Museums – a family of 5 establishments in the UK dedicated to keep the lessons of the past alive.

We’ve been to three of the five during this trip and this is the first post on this series. Will be linking the other two here once they are up.

IWM London is housed in the former Bethlem Royal Hospital and has been there since the 30s. It’s quite hard to miss this building along Lambeth Road as right at the front are two, 15-inch guns taken from the HMS Roberts and HMS Ramillies.

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The moment you walk inside, it is quite hard not to be impressed. You’ll be welcomed by a Harrier Jump Jet along with a couple more planes, rockets, and bombs. All are hung from the ceiling. We stood there gaping at them for a while.

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Travel, London, Europe, St Pancras Station, Paris to London, Train, Paris to London by Train, United Kingdom, UK
in United Kingdom

Travel: Arrival in London, The Real Platform 9 and 3/4, Plus Affordable Accommodation

April 24, 2016

Travel, London, Europe, St Pancras Station, Paris to London, Train, Paris to London by Train, United Kingdom, UK

Ah, delays. They have become a norm in this blog and even on the Youtube channel I started. I would apologise but I’m afraid that won’t change anything so let me just jump right into the post.

We are still on our Europe trip but we will now discuss how we travelled from Paris to London. I’ve mentioned this before although I think I should just do so again: my husband is a huge fan of trains.

So during our trip, we took this mode of transportation whenever we could. Of course, we had to take into consideration the time and cost effectiveness of it whenever we chose between rail and flying. We also booked everything in advance to make sure we were getting good deals.

From Paris’ Gare du Nord station, we boarded the EuroStar that took us to London’s St Pancras station. We took the earliest train (we boarded at 7am) and I was practically sleep walking. However, we do want to make the most of our trip so sleep had to take a backseat during the whole three weeks that we were in Europe.

The journey took 2 hours and 17 minutes and most of it, I spent snoozing. Arrival at St Pancras was a breeze since British border control officials will already process your travel documents in Paris.

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Paris, Travel, France, River Cruise, Seine Cruise, Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, City Cruise, Lafayette, Paris Shopping,
in France

Travel: Paris River Cruise + Travel and Saving Tips for Your Trip to Paris

February 7, 2016

Finally on my last installment for Paris! Since I’m writing this in the middle of the night as I suffer from monthly lady pains, I’m just gonna make this a quickie post. Also, so I can proceed to writing about Geneva next. 😉

After our half-day trip to the Versailles, my husband and I quickly went back to the city to do some last minute shopping for souvenirs and sight seeing. We first dropped by the Palai Garnier which is the official home of the Paris Opera.

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It’s definitely a grand building and a pleasure to look at. After exploring that area for a bit, we went straight to the Galeries Lafayette. Not to splurge or anything but to just stare and be in awe of the ceiling. Yes, we’re kinda weird. But just look at it!

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We walked around, getting lost in rows and rows of shops till it was almost sunset. We made our way back to the Eiffel Tower so we can catch a river cruise along the Seine. We wanted to do the cruise at the right moment to maximise what we could get out of it.

Normally, we wouldn’t make much effort just to join a cruise but since the ticket was included in our Paris Pass, we decided that it might be a good way to end our trip.

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