Castle Dreaming

May 23, 2016 by Patricia Chang in Fashion, Food, Travel

During the middle of our Spain trip, we got to sneak away to a romantic Languedoc France. We took the train and as we got closer to Languedoc, the scenery become more tranquil and stunningly serene. The high speed train was so smooth and we whizzed by horses, vineyards and a large lake. It's funny - I think the freshest baguette sandwich I ever had was at a train station during a transfer in France. I had no idea Hank planned a Michelin star lunch so I accidentally spoiled my appetite a bit with 2 of those sandwiches (no regrets). We stayed in a fortified town called Carcassone in the south of France. We stayed at Hotel de la Cite which is the most charming hotel straight out of a medieval fairytale. You step outside the hotel and the basilica is right there. Because the bulk of the people there were tourists, the town felt a bit like Disney World's Epcot except everything is actually authentic. Nonetheless, we admired the church and headed out to edge where we got hit by the wind and soaked in the views. There was something so fresh and exciting about being here with my husband, I was excited to see him in his element during this leg of the trip and spontaneously go out to explore with my "adventure buddy". He was especially excited for our wine tasting tour that took us out to a couple local vineyards and another picturesque town, Minerve. I wish we had taken our time to explore it since it is known as one of the most beautiful towns in France and some of the views reminded me of the Grand Canyon. Because we were with a group and it was unfortunately a bit rushed. During our tour it was my first time trying organic and live wines (In case you are wondering, I am not pregnant yet so it was safe to try the live bottle - which I liked and learned I like "tannin"). Ugh, without a doubt the best part of France was the price of their wine. It's ludicrous how expensive a glass is here in NY compared to their 2.5 euro. A side note: Feeling a bit adventurous I ordered "black pudding" and apple salad - turns out it means "blood sausage"! Being Korean we have something similar so it wasn't bad, but it was definitely not what I anticipated. I think my husband knew what I was ordering and gave me no warning, haha.

Packing wise - cute outfits are fun, but hey I'm on vacation and nothing feels better than stealing my husband's cozy cardigan come the moment to put an outfit on. I noticed I wore the buttons unaligned when I was uploading these photos - a sure sign of a relaxing time~. It's always a good idea to pack a set of comfortable clothes for back up because at the end of the day, you want to feel good and enjoy yourself! Lastly, you're in luck~ I found the embroidered blouse I'm wearing at a market from our last trip to Korea- I typed in "bohemian top" to find something similar since I figured some of you might ask about it- and I found the exact one! (Korean markets often sell wholesale to brands). It happens to fall under both "cute outfit" and "comfortable outfit" so it's a winner! Well, that's the last of our week and a half in Europe - next stop, Paris!

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Postcards from Barcelona, Part 3

May 19, 2016 by Patricia Chang in Fashion, Food, Travel

Oh man, how do you put into words the work of Gaudi. It's no secret that he is a huge part of what makes Barcelona a special place. Sagrada Familia (angels chiming *ahhhhhh*) is TRULY a gem. My jaw dropped to see the stained glass in this enormous space is ombre! The sun light piercing through was just magical and breath taking to say the least. I was lucky to have come back 16 years later and it caught me off guard to see new parts of the building I did not remember from 2000 (a 10th grade Spanish class trip). Turns out it was only half built back then. I remember climbing the spiral stairs up a tower, terrified that there's no guard rail, holding onto the wall as I courageously made it to the top. Now they have an elevator! It's pretty cool to see people still working on it both from the outside and inside (by the museum) on a structure started over a hundred years ago. Can't wait to come back with Chase when he's old enough to appreciate it and perhaps it will finally be complete by then! Each of Gaudi's creations are pretty spectacular, Park Guell is a sunny day in tangible form and FYI Palau Guell is free on the first Sunday of each month. If you like visiting historic and architectural spaces, the MUHBA was more interesting than I honestly expected it to be - you can walk around Roman ruins discovered under street level with all sorts of shops and homes in a rather small vicinity.

Tamara from Theglamandglitter was in Barcelona just before me and recommended Chok, a chocolate and donut specialty shop. Don't expect a sit down cafe, just a couple seats for a quick bite and the most fabulous concoctions! I am so glad she recommended this spot because we went back anytime we were near one. The cronuts are beautifully garnished, we got a white chocolate one with edible flowers and a an amazing tarty crunchy topping. Contrary to how they look, they're not too sweet so you can manage to eat an entire donut. It's really hard to choose a flavor - their combos are really sophisticated and interesting! I also got a package of dark chocolate covered potato chips for the road which is perfect for a salty tooth like me.

I absolutely have loved this Self Portrait dress for ages! The powder blue was perfect for Park Guell but a lot of shoes were dressing the dress too up. I wanted to wear it casually and the weather was non committal, so I paired it with boots. Try wearing your favorite dresses this spring whenever or wherever you want by accessorizing appropriately!

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Post cards from Barcelona, Part 2

May 16, 2016 by Patricia Chang in Fashion, Food, Travel

Ciutadela Park, wearing Shopbop — Ciutadela Park, wearing Shopbop

Welcome back for Part 2 of our trip! I mashed together some of my "naturey" photos and ended up with a parks list. I have come to realize I have a soft spot for parks when I travel. When you're running around seeing all the sights, it's especially relaxing to sit and listen to some water trickling while soaking in the surrounding culture. My favorite place was Ciutadela Park, as we went back twice by choice. There's something about this park that brought out a sense of home away from home. It reminded me of a condensed Central Park in NY, except this park has palm trees galore!

We also went back to the beach for a second time. The first time, we stumbled upon it on our way to the cable car that takes you up to Montjuic. We saw people selling blankets and decided to come back for a picnic if we had time. On our last day we happened to walk by the beach again. Before making it to the sand, we got distracted by some people making large bubbles for the crowd. It was then I noticed groups of people buzzing around on electric bikes and scooters of all kinds. Right there in the middle of the board walk we spotted a rental place and had a spontaneous ride! I definitely recommend going along the entire boardwalk this way. It was so fun that had we discovered it sooner I may have convinced my husband to do all day rentals everyday~

El Nacional is a gem! There are multiple restaurants in one large open space with THE most fabulous interior. Our Airbnb was just around the block and I would have missed it had I not just seen it on my friend's instagram (@mjtraynor). I think we tried most of the sections and I can't really recommend one over the other. The tapas section was a unique experience because they come around announcing available plates in their hand (kind of like dim sum carts). Definitely check out this space if you're in the neighborhood!