Santorini in Blue and White

Santorini was a dream come true! If it's not already on your travel list, you must add it now! Not only is it stunningly beautiful, but it is completely unlike any place I have visited before.

Santorini is a rocky island with towns situation on the sides of the island’s cliffs.  And what is characteristic of the island (as well as other Greek islands) is the surplus of blue and white buildings that create beautiful and picturesque views.

My favorite buildings were the churches with the blue domes on top!

My mom, grammy, and I stayed in the adorable town of Oia, and I wouldn't recommend staying anywhere else. (I also recommend staying at Canaves Suites Oia as it was so perfect and we felt so pampered all week long!  This hotel is also just absolutely gorgeous and the staff is so kind and helpful.)  Oia is quaint, small, and adorable with one main pedestrian walkway complete with small shops.  From this walkway there are many other alleyways one can walk down to see exceptional views of the caldera and landscape.

We spent the evening of our first day admiring the hotel and relaxing in our room's private hot tub before going to dinner at the hotel.

Our second day in Santorini consisted of laying out at our hotel in the most beautiful infinity pool, shopping in the cute shops of Oia, and then going to dinner at the port.

The second day we explored the island, did some more shopping, got massages at the hotel's spa, went to a Greek winery, relaxed by the pool, and ended the day by watching the sunset before we went to dinner.

The next day, we went on a boat tour around the island and saw the white beach, red beach, and black beach, and the other small islands near Santorini.  The weather was perfect!  In the evening we went to Fira, the capital of the island where we took pictures, shopped, and ate supper.  Fira gave off a much different vibe, as it was busier and much larger.  We preferred Oia, but Fira was also pretty.

 I am so thankful for my mom and grammy and I will never forget this special time we had in Santorini together!

Xoxoxoxo,

Lovely Lucerne

While en route back to Italy from Germany, I stopped to spend a day in the picturesque  town of Lucerne, Switzerland.  It is such a quaint, adorable, and charming town with medieval architecture, painted buildings, Lake Lucerne, and the Reuss River running through the town. 

People say that Switzerland is very expensive in comparison to other countries nearby, and I found this to be true when booking my accommodation.  Typically when traveling alone, I chose a hostel in a good location that is the most inexpensive.  However, I did not see any hostels listed, and nothing in the price range I typically strive to stay between.  The most reasonably priced room I found was at Hotel Stelle.  This place was SO cute! It is such a small hotel that there is no reception in the building, but rather at the hotel across the street that provides check-in to the other nearby small hotels.  Each floor of this narrow hotel only had two rooms, and after lugging my suitcase up to the fifth floor at midnight, I was greeted by an adorable room with an exposed wall, slanted ceiling, and wooden beams!

My favorite part of Lucerne was Old Town, and it actually felt like I was looking inside of a story book with all the detailed intricacies, plethora of shops, and people walking around.  Although many of the shops were mainstream chain stores, the exteriors still matched the enchanting style of the town.  

(I also spontaneously went into a hair salon and got my hair cut while here...Because why not get a haircut in a foreign country where it's even more difficult to describe how I want my hair, not only because of my inability to explain my preferences, but also because of the language barrier...Haha, but thankfully it turned out well (which is surprising, because it's rare that I actually get my hair cut even 1/16 of an inch without thinking it's too short), and my hair feels so much healthier now!)

The most photographed monument in Switzerland is said to be the Water Tower, the octagon tower near the famous wooden Chapel Bridge.  In my opinion, what makes it so stunning are the surrounding features: the sparkling river, wooden footbridge, traditional Swiss-style buildings, the baroque Jesuit Churchand of course - the Swiss Alps in the backdrop.  Swoooon!

Xoxo,