Australia Day 3: Outdoors in Adelaide

Another early morning in Adelaide! The Jet lag is still in effect so I woke up unusually early but that's okay because today I am going hiking for the first time with my cousin.  Today we are hiking about 3 miles to Mount Lofty. When we drove there I was surprised at how many people where there hiking; it's something I would never find in Texas.  We started it off with a nice photo in front of a little waterfall (I'm rocking my bodypop leggings). Then we started actually hiking and man, was it brutal! My legs were so sore from climbing all the way to the top. Some sections of the hike were incredibly steep. When we finally reached the top we celebrated with ice pops and selfies. The view of Adelaide was worth the effort. The downhill was a lot easier aside from me eating it once as I was going down a steep bit. But it's okay I have bruises and battle scars to show off my first hiking expedition.

After the hike, we all went to a family picnic in the park.  We played ball and ate shrimp on the barbie (hehe). Life in Australia is very laid back.

At sunset, we drove to Glenelg beach with our cousins. The water was cold and the waves were fierce. We tried playing beach volleyball but it did not go too well so we ended up playing in the water which was very salty.

This is what I would call an active day. We spent a lot of our day outside. It was very fun.

Ulta, Papaya, Wetseal, JC Penney & Jessie Steele Haul: There's No Friday Like Black Friday!

Happy Friday everyone! Like I said, I was planning on going to go shopping today! Forget going to stores at dawn and fighting over a flat screen tv. Nobody got time for that.
My first stop was at Ulta where I was planning to pick up the little OPI trios (2 for $12!). I also wanted to pick up the Lorac Vintage Vixen palette but I couldn't find it anywhere. Probably for the best. The last thing I need is more eyeshadows.

These were the two that I got. I wanted the purple one but they didn't seem to have any. 

Their regular price is $9.95 so I saved about $8 when I bought them on Black Friday. I don't know if they have them in stock after today but if they do, I highly recommend them. 

OPI Be Bold. Be Dramatic 3pc Mini Set $9.95 $6.00

OPI In the Pink 3pc Mini Set $9.95 $6.00

After Ulta I went to the mall in need of some winter clothes for myself, primarily some boots and skater skirts.

It's was hard so find boots that were $20 and fashionable. I got these at Papaya where they had a 20% off sale. It's hard to tell from the photo but they are a dark brown. They are a little slouchy and they are knee highs. These will look great with the boot toppers I bought a while ago. I found a link here so you can see it better: http://www.papayaclothing.com/p/search/winter-essential-long-flat-boots1?color_id=249&size_id=11

Papaya Boots: Brown $24.99 $19.99

Like I said, I wanted to buy skater skirts so I went to Wetseal where they were having a buy one get one free deal. They are a cotton-y jersey material. I would have liked a more flow, silky material but I can't argue with the price. The one on the left looks red but it is more of a burgundy/maroon color. Also, I almost always buy smalls but for this one I could barely fit in a small so I had to get a size up. 

Solid Ponte Skater: Burgundy M $14.90 $7.45

Solid Ponte Skater: Black M $14.90 $7.45

If you don't know this about me, I have a major weakness for scarves. I walked past scarves all day at every store I went to. But as I was walking past JC Penney to get out of the mall these caught my eye.  JC Penney had solid and floral pashmina scarves for $5 that were originally $20! That's just not fair. So of course I had to buy them. I resisted the temptation to buy more. They had similar floral patterns but with white, blue, orange etc. I got the purple and black because they looked the most versatile. Sidenote: this was the only store where I had to wait in an extremely long line. 

Bloomsbury Floral Pashmina Scarf $20.00 $4.99

Falling Flower Pashmina Scarf $20.00 $4.99

And of course Black Friday wouldn't be complete without an online purchase. I bought this apron from Jessie Steele who has AMAZING aprons! Perfect for a mom, aunt, grandma, girlfriend who loves to cook.  This was originally $33 but I had a 30% off coupon which I will put here: JSFRIDAY30
If you want to take advantage of this amazing deal, act fast because it is only valid for Friday! If you get more than $50 then shipping is free.
Jessie Steele Venice Toile Viola Apron $33.00 $23.10 (plus $6.50 shipping)

Overall Total (with sales tax): $91.03
Overall Saved: $67.72 43% saved

I gotta say, it's been a good day!
xx

Also, three consecutive posts! You're welcome.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving y'all! I want to quickly say thank you all who click on my blog and read what I have to say. I just reached 3000 hits which is crazy considering I was only at about 300 this summer. Since my family is Vietnamese and my mom wasn't born in the US we don't "celebrate" Thanksgiving. But now that my brother and I are older, we are starting to take control and instead we make a home cooked meal for our family. My brother is making (or attempting) black bean lasagna and country quiche. I chose to make a healthy apple-cranberry crumble for dessert and some instant mash potatoes.  Update: I got mom's approval on the crumble!

I got this from Amy's Healthy Baking Blog which I will link here: http://amyshealthybaking.com/blog/2013/11/24/cranberry-apple-crumble/#.VFmTXYt4qmM

I will repost the recipe here to make it easy for you if you want to try this. I used honey crisp apples in this recipe which worked out nicely. I would say in the future I wouldn't use cranberries. They made the crumble I little too tart for my taste. I would sub them out with maybe blackberries or blueberries. I added a little dollop of cool whip but you can add vanilla ice cream if you want. I thought it would be a cool idea to drizzle chocolate in the top. Big mistake. The flavors just didn't mesh well. I like that it's also healthy. Just a little butter and sugar but also 6 cups of fruits and heart-healthy oats. Also, it's a crumble so it doesn't bind together well so good luck scooping.

for the filling
4 c diced red apple (about 3 medium)
2 c cranberries, halved
2 tbsp brown sugar
1 tbsp cornstarch
½ tbsp ground cinnamon

for the topping
¾ c old-fashioned oats (gluten-free, if necessary)
¼ c whole wheat flour (or millet flour)
3 tbsp brown sugar
¾ tsp ground cinnamon
2 tbsp butter or margarine, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F, and lightly coat an 8” square baking pan with nonstick cooking spray.

1. To prepare the filling, combine the apple, cranberries, brown sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon in a large bowl. Stir until the cornstarch dissolves and the cinnamon is evenly dispersed.

1. To prepare the topping, stir together the oats, flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Mix in the melted butter until the mixture resembles a fine meal. 

1. Pour the fruit filling into the prepared pan, and evenly sprinkle with the crumb topping. Bake at 350°F for 35-40 minutes for firmer apples, or 55-60 minutes for softer apples. (After 40 minutes. cover the top with foil if the crumble topping browns too quickly.) Cool completely to room temperature. Let the crumble rest at room temperature for 1 hour before serving to allow the juices to thicken.

Don't forget to take a minute and reflect on what you are thankful for, eat your weight in food, and trample each other over on Black Friday!

xx

LORAC Royal Collection Lip Lustre Creme Collection REVIEW

When I saw LORAC's new Royal Collection my first instinct was to buy everything. From the packaging to the naming, I love the overall Royal Theme. I already had their sweet temptations 4 quad eyeshadow set so I didn't buy their Royal Eyeshadow Collection even though I really wanted to. I decided to stock up on some lip products. I don't wear lip gloss too much since I'm in college and I tend to tone down my makeup but I couldn't resist the opportunity to expand my collection. I don't have any non-drugstore lip products and for $25 for 6 (about $4.16/each) full size lip glosses I couldn't say no. This set is an Ulta Exclusive. The cashier even complimented it and the one next to her said that she had bought the set too. This would make a great Christmas gift for someone. Or if you want to keep a couple and give some away as stocking stuffers, that would be good too. I plan to go back during Black Friday to see what else I can get.

I know the packaging has nothing to do with the quality of the product but I will say that Lorac's packaging is amazing. The gold tops of the glosses add a chic look. The box it came in has gold detailing and the maroon part is actually a fuzzy felt. If you buy the 4 quad eyeshadow collection, the packaging is also felt.

I will retype the description on the back:
LORAC rules this season with The Royal Lip Lustre Creme Collection. Give your lips the Royal treatment with our luxuriously creamy and delightfully smooth Lip Glosses that are loaded with antioxidants of Acai Berry, Pomegranate, Grape Seed and Vitamins A, C & E to protect and soothe your luscious, regal pout. This Royal family of Lip Lustre Cremes comes complete with 6 magnificent, high-shine shades that are fit for a Queen. Own the throne with The Royal Lip Lustre Creme Collection.

From left to right:
TIARA (Nude)
CROWN JEWEL (Cherry Red)
DEBUTANTE (Exclusive Warm Pink)
YOUR HIGHNESS (Hot Pink)
ENGLISH ROSE (Exclusive Pale Pink)
MAJESTIC (Exclusive Mauve)

The names are on the bottom so you know which is which. All the glosses are matte and not sticky at all. The nude one has a hint of shimmer but it is not very obvious. My favorites in this set are Tiara and Majestic. I haven't tried all the colors but from the swatches I would say that the pinks in the middle were not as opaque as the others. Overall I am in love with this set. There is a very diverse set of colors that will complement any look. For the price of a drugstore lip gloss and quality of a high end product you can't go wrong.

xx

I'm going to Australia!

Get ready for new installment of Connie-travels-the-world-even-though-she-hates-flying. I originally started this blog to write travel diaries of my time in Europe (hence the name girlinafantasyland). And it's pretty hard to devote a blog to travel if you're a broke college student and not constantly traveling. But I am excited to share with you all who take the time to read my blog that I am going to Australia for 10 days.

I don't share too much about my family on this blog but I will say that most of my mom's side of the family lives in Australia (my mom is one of the few of her siblings who left to live in America). So I have three aunt's and their respective families living there that I haven't seen since I was 6.

I will be going to Adelaide for Christmas and Sydney for New Years. So be prepared for some daily posts in two months. And if anyone has suggestion for sights to see in Australia, let me know!

xx

Europe: An Overview of St. Andrews, Amsterdam, Rome, Madrid & Barcelona

"To travel is to discover that everyone is wrong about other countries." - Aldous Huxley

After traveling around Europe I think it is fair to assume that you can indicate how tourist-y a city is by a few things: the number of businesses on wheels, homeless people, international groups tours led by a person holding a flag, tourist shops on a given street, people who approach you and the overall vibe of the streets. These are my own personal opinions. Obviously every traveling experience is unique to each person.

With this criterion I would rank all the cities I visited in this order, from most touristy to least touristy:

Rome

Barcelona
Madrid

Amsterdam

St. Andrews

St. Andrews obviously has an asterisk because it was where I lived for a whole semester. But I figured since I lived there for four months that I would give my input on this town.  It's the birthplace of golf so it does that have that element of tourism.  It had a very homely feel. Everyone is nice. It is a small tightknit community.  There is the Old Course but other than that, very minimal tourism.

Amsterdam

A lively city both day and night. Amsterdam is one of the more chill and laidback cities you will come across.  I don’t even think I saw a homeless person in Amsterdam, at least not in the city center.  The pungent smell of weed was a turn off to me personally but there are definitely other PG-rated places to see.  The trams are an easy and efficient way to minimize the amount of walking you had to do.  I live in a city with no public transportation and even I was able to figure out the trams after a day of riding them. There are an abundance of museums to go visit by some of the greatest artists.  I read that it has one of the highest concentrations of museums per unit area. I would recommend going in December when the Amsterdam Light Festival is going on.  What is so great about Amsterdam is that it is a place I could actually imagine people living in. The tour guide told me that it is the 3^rd best non-native English speakers who speak English. Translation: they speak English amazingly well. Tourism levels are moderately high but not overwhelming at all. It’s a place where you can just lay low and go where you want to go. Overall, I loved this city and I would love to come back.

Rate: 8.5/10

Rome

I have very mixed feelings about Rome. It is a city with a rich history that has been tainted by excessive tourism.  I know it is just business and people need to make a living, but by the end of my first day, I simply ran out of patience for anyone who tried to stop and sell me things.  It’s not the easiest or cleanest city to navigate, ironic because they were the ones who built roads in the first place and the traffic is a nightmare.  Honestly, besides Vatican City, there wasn’t much to do in Rome. It was mostly you would walk to a site, look at it, take a photo and move on. Walking to the top of St. Peter’s Basilica and going to the Vatican Museum were the highlights of my time in Rome. The gelato and pizza were overhyped. That’s not to say that they were bad, it’s just that I could find something that resembled it back at home and for half the price.

Rate 5/10

Barcelona

Everyone sees the city in a different way depending on how they go about travelling through the city.  I don’t know if I could give as accurate an impression of Barcelona as I have done with Amsterdam and Rome seeing as how we took a safer approach.  Barcelona is notorious for pickpockets, so be wary of purses and pockets.  I never came across a pickpocket but you never know what could happen in Barcelona.  I never went out to walk the streets at night but from what I could see, it is a pretty walkable city, some places will require a taxi but most places are easily accessible.  Don’t expect them to be well versed in the English language. You should know some basic Spanish/Catalan phrases or take a guidebook.  There are many interesting exhibits to see.  I will say that a lot of our money went into admission fees to different exhibits so if you are short on cash or want to save money, I would recommend visiting La Sagrada Familia and Casa Batllo.  We came in December but I’m sure the beaches get very busy when it warms up.  It’s a great shopping city as well, everything from quirky street markets to high-fashion boutiques. I didn’t do enough research to consider getting the Barcelona Tourist Pass but if it benefits, I would say take it.

Rate: 7/10

Madrid
We sandwiched Barcelona between two trips to Madrid so we got to experience it twice, and in two very different ways. The first time around we visited Retiro Park which is a very nice place to relax.  In the afternoon all the street vendors and miscellaneous street performers started to pop up.  There are a lot of tourist hotspots like Palacio Real but also a lot of high traffic areas like Puerta Del Sol. That was a major one.  The streets were full of people.  Between Barcelona and Madrid, I would say that I personally liked Barcelona more. There were more entertaining things to do there but Madrid is also a very vibrant city full of history that you shouldn't miss.
Rate: 6.5/10

December 28, 2013: There's No Place Like Home

"Maybe you had to leave in order to miss a place; maybe you had to travel to figure out how beloved your starting place was." -Jodi Picoult

          Getting to go abroad for the semester was one the greatest and scariest things I have ever done.  I loved that I got to go study in the UK at such a internationally flavoured university. You could walk up the stairwells of the library and hear phone conversations in 3 different languages. As interesting as it was to study abroad, the experience of being on my own for the first time, magnified by living in a different country has given me a greater appreciation for the stability and familiarity of home. For the first 18 years of your life, you take for granted the house you live in, the parents who feed and love you, the friends you've known for years and the routine you've crafted for yourself.  When you leave for the first time, it feels as if the world is suddenly upside down.  The things in your life that have been constants for your entire life are suddenly not there. 
   
          The reality starts to settle in when you have your first fever and suddenly you have to set reminders on your phone to self-medicate with Advil because your mother isn't there. You don't realize how much she means to you until you are thousands of miles away because before you were a college student, she was always there for you. And now, she is replaced by words from an email and pixels from a webcam.

          After staying in Boston for a night, I was ready to head home.  After a total of about 4 hours and one final boarding pass printout, one final security checkpoint and one final plane boarding, I was off to DFW.  I saw my mom and my brother greeting me at the airport. I hadn't seen their faces in nearly four months! It was so glad to be back home and get reoriented with my home. Was my bathroom sink always that low? Were the lights always that bright? Anyways, that was the conclusion of my semester abroad and subsequent two weeks around Europe. There were highs and lows to this trip but everything is a learning experience and I definitely became a wiser person after this.  To end it with a cliche: there's no place like home.

P.S. If you have read my entire travel diary, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for taking the time to listen to my story. Whether you know me personally or not, whether you clicked on a link that I advertised for found this my mistake, thank you. I know these are not uploaded in real time and these last posts are six weeks overdue but I really do appreciate everyone reading. I don't care if there's two or two hundred of you all. As long as there is an audience, there is a blogger.

December 26, 2013: Madrid Round 2

"Travel teaches toleration." -Benjamin Disraeli
If I had not already said it before, I will say it now.  Travel is a true test of a relationship, whether it be with family, friends or a significant other.  Tensions can run high or you can experience travel euphoria.  Usually, it is a mix of the two.  I definitely think my friendship with my best friend has grown stronger through this journey.  We learned a lot about each other. We learned what makes the other one tick, makes the other one uncomfortable, and of course makes the other one laugh.

We started off with a walking tour of Madrid hosted my Sandemans New Madrid Free Walking Tour. I had gone to one in Amsterdam and thought it was such a priceless (get it?) experience and I really learned a lot about the city.  This one was not as great as the one in Amsterdam but still a quality tour regardless. After all, Madrid is not exactly the city of vice, but they do have a complicated story of succession of kings, one that I could not recall even if I tried.

After the tour we walked to the Templo De Debod which was a great FREE thing to see.  It's a very scenic attraction (one of my favorites pictures from the entire trip) and has an interesting backstory.  Look it up if you have the time.

We walked around the two squares Plaza Mayor and Puerta Del Sol again.  Eager to eat, we stopped at a little shop (and I mean little) and ordered two calamari sandwiches which I didn't know at the time was actually a very popular food item in Madrid.  They were pretty inexpensive too (flashback to all the times I payed a large sum to eat calamari in America).

That pretty much ended our last full day in Europe.  Susan, if you are reading this, thank you for everything.  I couldn't imagine doing this with anyone else but you. Sidenote: How freaky is that dark cloud behind the Palacio Real?

December 25, 2013: Merry Christmas from Barcelona

"Christmas isn't a season. It's a feeling." -Edna Ferber

If I were to rank all the Christmases that I have had, this would easily be in the top 3 if not #1.  We didn't do anything too special in the morning since we had to get on a train to go back to Madrid.  Another two and a half hours later, we arrived and took a taxi to our hotel.  I don't remember too much about the hotel except that the floor in the bar area had glass and you could see the basement which was decorated in a very unique way (see below) and we stayed in a bright pink room.

We went out to walk the streets and the two main busy areas, Plaza Mayor and Puerta Del Sol (Puerta Del Sol is much better).  Be warned, these are high traffic areas.  We ate at a McDonald's there (classy right?).  We walked around a little more, waiting for the big Christmas tree to light up, which it eventually did and we awkwardly asked a Chinese tourist to take our photo.

We went back to the hotel and decided to indulge ourselves at the bar.  I saw that they had fresh sangria which I didn't know until after that day that sangria actually originated from Spain (that explains the pronunciation).  Susan and I had both ordered sangria.  She took a one-and-done sip and then proceeded to order champagne, oranges and molten chocolate cake.  So guess who got to drink two glasses of sangria?  Needless to say, I was a little buzzed and giggly that night.

Double the pleasure, Double the fun 

I want all oranges to be prepared for consumption in this manner from now on.

Cue mouth-watering...

We went back to our room and listed to some Pete Holmes comedy bits.  If you don't know who he is, you are missing out on a good laugh. He's even got his own talk show on TBS. It was a great end to a great day. I loved being able to share this day with my best friend. Bon Nadal Barcelona. Feliz Navidad Madrid.
(Susan asked me to take a photo of her doing this, so I thought it was only appropriate for me to share it with the world wide web. You're Welcome Susan.)

December 24, 2013: Christmas Eve in Barcelona

 A new day in Barcelona.  We started our day with another 15 Euro breakfast. I should say that it is 15 for each of us. These hotels man. Anyways, after filling up, we took a taxi down to the Sagrada Familia.  The line wasn't too long. We arrived around opening time and waited for only 15 minutes to get our tickets.  The attraction itself wasn't too entertaining, but keep in mind, it is a religious building, not a carnival.  The stained glass and architecture of the Sagrada Familia really create the beauty of this structure. There is a reason that this is one of the most visited attractions in Europe.

Look at the stained glass.

The outside of the Sagrada Familia.

We hopped on the bus tour again. Not really to go anywhere but just to see the city.  I learned a lot about the city and about how they hosted the Summer Olympics back in 1992.  We passed by Bernabeu Stadium where FC Barcelona plays.  I am not a big fan of soccer (ahem, football) but I knew the magnitude of importance that this stadium holds for Barca fans.  If I ever come back to Barcelona, it will definitely be one of the places I go visit.

Another stop on the bus tour was Maremagnum, a nice shopping center. Not as big as the malls back home, but much bigger and more urban than the shops we had seen on the streets.  I bought a nice black sequin dress that I wore to dinner that night for around 20 euros. After that we went to an aquarium next to Maremagnum. It was a nice little aquarium. Not the best 25 euros I ever spent, but certainly not the worst.

For Christmas Eve, Susan treated me to a fancy dinner at a restaurant in the Maremagnum.  We were originally going to go to a different dinner but we messed up the directions (oops haha).  Regardless, it was a great meal and a great way to spend Christmas Eve. She spent I think 80 euros on dinner. I know money doesn't buy friendship, but I don't know how many non-friends would drop 80 euros on a dinner for two. Love ya girl! 

December 22, 2013: Day Two in Madrid/Barcelona

Today was the day we were to take the train from Madrid to Barcelona.  It was a very easy process and the train took about 3 hours.  We arrived in Barcelona and checked into our hotel.

We walked down La Rambla and to Palau Guell, one of Antoni Gaudi's creations.  The ticket came with an audio tour, which was a great way to learn about the building.  The highlight of this exhibit was the rooftop, decorated with interesting ceramic covered chimneys, a perfect photo op!

For dinner, we wanted a nice traditional Spanish meal.  There were a lot of restaurants on the same street as our hotel so we decided to go in and have paella.  We ordered a combination paella with seafood, chicken and vegetables to split between the two of us.  The person who was running the small restaurant was very generous and gave us a larger paella free of charge.  He gave us a free bottle of water and even offered us free shots, which we politely declined as we rushed out.  There is a fine line between being generous and creepy.  But it's a nice anecdote to tell our friends, especially because of the fact that my friend misinterpreted the word "shot" for "shirt" and didn't understand why I was adamant on declining his offer.

December 21, 2013: Day One in Madrid

         

          Today we took it slow as my best friend was still recovering from jet lag.  We took a nice stroll through Retiro Park, which she suggested.  I was surprised to find that rollerblading was a fun pastime for the people of Madrid.  In the park, we visited the Crystal House (a misnomer seeing that it is actually made of glass, but pretty to look at nonetheless).  There were also two free museums in the park, which were a nice way to kill time.  It was a nice change of pace after my jam-packed days in Amsterdam and Rome.  I wasn’t able to go to Vondelpark in Amsterdam so this was a nice substitute.  Susan was enjoying it, as was I. 

          I was able to convince Susan to visit The Royal Palace in Madrid. I would say that it was definitely the highlight of my day.  We walked through many of the elegantly decorated rooms in the palace and took a look through the armory.  It was a great inside look at the way the Spanish Royals must have lived. I highly recommend visiting the Palace. We ended our day early to get a jumpstart on tomorrow.  

          I wished we could have gone out later but I wanted my best friend to be comfortable her first time away.  When traveling with a friend there is definitely a lot of give and take and two people with different interests. But in the end, I was okay with giving up some freedom and control to have a travelling companion around Spain, especially since my Spanish is severely limited.