Observations + Fascinations

January 19, 2015

Two Winter Weeks in Europe: What I packed

I give kudos to the fashionistas who create beautiful, eye catching collages on Polyvore. This here, is a mess, but it was the best way to show what I packed to Europe (Copenhagen, Stockholm, Paris). I travelled Christmas through New Years and I wanted to travel light mainly because I hate checking in bags. The best way I found for packing is rolling everything. Just keep rollin' rollin'. Ziploc bags you will need. I had 1 for underwear, 1 for toiletries, 1 for pens/chargers/little things, 1 for dirty laundry, 1 for paperwork, etc. Oh, and I recommend throwing in a few dryer sheets because they just smell so darn good! The weather was what I expected, ranging from 16-40 degrees Fahrenheit, snow in Sweden, some rain in Paris, so I was prepared for that. And you really don't need much. After a week, I realized I could have done with just two sweaters. So here's what I brought with me:

Everlane Weekender Bag (it's really roomy, durable, and a dream come true!)

1 coat (you only need one)

1 windbreaker/jacket (layering purposes, in case of rain, and it's light, easy to roll up!)

1 denim jacket (layering)

3 sweaters

1 sweater dress (New Years celebration, but I could have done without it)

1 chambray/button up

1 T shirt (PJS)

1 undershirt/warmer things (I prefer Uniqlo Heattech because they're warm and very lightweight, I should have packed 3 but I was lucky enough to do laundry when I was abroad)

1 pair of really amazing black jeans (Yes just one pair, so make sure you love them! ACNE Studio for me, worth the splurge)

1 pair of leggings (to keep warm under jeans, and PJs)

1 scarf

1 pair of gloves

1 beanie

2 pairs of shoes (One for walking, I prefer Superga white sneakers, and 1 for snow/rain, Dr. Martens for me)

~~1 umbrella~~ (Nope, don't even bother. It sprinkled a bit in Paris, but I didn't need it. Plus, I left it at a restaurant, which I'm glad because it was taking up precious space.)

And not pictured were socks, undergarments, ziploc bag of toiletries, face towel (I stayed at a hostel and I didn't want to pay $9 to rent a towel so I brought a small one), and camera bag

January 26, 2014

Six Months in Philadelphia

Philadelphia City Hall

Philadelphia in my mind never actually crossed my mind. From the history books, I remember it as "the City of Brotherly Love" and the city that houses the huge bell with a crack in it. There's the Philly Cheesesteak (Dalessandro's wins), and then those steps that one fictitious boxer runs up (though I really thought that was in New York City, because any big city I saw on the silver screen had to be New York City).

And when I finally got off the Greyhound bus at 10th and Filbert, I knew that I shouldn't judge Philadelphia just yet. So what if there were three pigeons hanging out inside the station? The first time I visited Philadelphia, I would have never thought that a year later, I'd spend three hours installing an IKEA bed frame, my IKEA bed frame, in a room that I'd be renting out for the next 12 months. 6 months later, and the bed is still in tact!

When I was living in New York City, I never blogged about it. I actually haven't blogged in many months (I must stop talking about blogging because apparently, according to some blog tips I read, readers hate to read about blogging and would rather read about things that will be useful to the reader). But because my readership has declined from 5 to 0, I shouldn't really worry too much about that.

I've been in Philadelphia and the only post I can remember posting is about my trip to Cambodia. I've travelled a tremendous amount recently and have yet to update them. It's really never ever going to happen. As TSwift would say, like, ever.

Being in a new city is like falling in love. No it's not. Let's just say I've been on a few dates, thought I was falling in love, got stood up, and now I'm avoiding the phone calls but not necessarily ready to break up and move on. It's also convenient that I arrived during the summer, when everything was whimsical and heated! 6 months later, the polar vortex arrived and ruined a little girl's dream.

I haven't taken any pictures with my camera (I'm 90% ready to sell it, except the buyer loves stalling) so I browsed through my phone looking for some horizontal images (#nofilter) of this city called Philadelphia.