road trip - visiting australia with love never fails

Oi! How ya goin' today mate?! 

My name is Sam from Love Never Fails &

I'm coming to you live from the land down under, 

AKA AUSTRALIA! 

For those of you who don't know my story, I'm just a wee-little college student from down south in America, trying to leave my mark (and pass a few classes) in this amazing country! My journey began in February and will sadly end in June. It's been the best 5ish months of my entire life. I can't even begin to describe how blessed I am. 

BUT ENOUGH ABOUT THAT. Today, I'm here to help educate you on a new language. Yes, the language of "Australian English". 

When learning to speak Australian, there are a few things I would suggest first.

• Move your mouth as little as possible. 
• ER at the end of a word is pronounced as A.
• Cut out as many letters of a word as possible.
• Do not ever say say, "Let's put another shrimp on the barbie." You will be thrown out of the country. K, not really, but NO ONE says that here. 
• No one actually says crikey either. Sorry Steve Irwin (RIP).

Some lingo:

(Word - Meaning-  Description)              

HEAPS- lots of; in excess. Australian's use this word like it's going out of fashion. They say it all the time! Example, "there are heaps of gorgeous men in Australia!"

KEEN- excited, down for it, interested in, etc. It also has no real definition. 

Example, "I'm keen to go out tonight!"

ARVO- afternoon. Self explanatory.

GOON- boxed wine. Uni students drink goon 24-7 because it is the largest amount of alcohol for the cheapest price. Goon tastes like crap- so they mix it with juice and call it goose (goon-juice).

JUMPER- sweater. Self explanatory.

THONGS- flip flops. When Australian's say we have lost our thongs it doesn't mean that they have a huge wedgie- it means they have misplaced our flip flops.  

Just a side note: our thong is called a "g-string".

BOGAN- Redneck, not the brightest crayon in the box. 

Example, "Man he is dressed like a bogan!"

UNI- University, campus, school. 

Example, "Man I have heaps of Uni work to do."

Well, there ya have it kids. Just a few fun lines you can use the next time you meet an Aussie :) Thanks for spending some time with me today and I hope we get to play again soon! 
Love.

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road trip - visiting dc with sunlight after rain

Hello! My name is Sarah from Sunlight After Rain

All my life I've been a city girl.

I've known ever since my Mom took me to NYC for the first time when I was 8.

 I remember looking around in awe at the bright lights, the larger-than-life billboards, and the buildings stacked on top of one another.

I couldn't believe how many people there were and how fast everything was moving.

I knew then and there that it was my kind of world.

One of my favorite pictures that I have found of NYC - it describes everything I love about it perfectly. 

For the next ten years, I told everyone I was going to live in the NYC for college.

I worked hard in school to get good grades, I was constantly participating in extracurriculars, and I volunteered all the time.

I was determined to be the best - because then NYU couldn't possibly reject me...

Anytime motivation just wasn't striking me enough to write my paper or finish my math homework, I just pictured in my head the cute breakfast I would soon be eating in a little bistro in Greenwich village, or the history book I would be studying in Central Park. 

When it came time to apply for colleges, however, it turned out that NYU was just not in my price range.

I was crestfallen - how could I possibly enjoy college if I wasn't in NYC? 

Halfheartedly, I applied to seven other schools, and I eventually accepted admission to one right on the edge of DC.

My parents tried their hardest to show me how awesome DC was, but I refused to listen.

For the first three semesters of college, I did everything but go into the city.

I visited friends at other colleges, I went home, I went to Baltimore, I went to Virginia.

My heart was sold to NYC - I couldn't betray it by falling in love with DC! 

During this semester though, my curiosities got the best of me. 

Hesitantly, I ventured into the city with a few friends of mine.

I had been there before, but never in this capacity. 

I took the blinders off and really looked around the city. 

It's a whole different world in DC.

The people are slower, the city is more spread out, the cars are nicer.

This isn't to say I don't love NYC still - but DC, you've got me hooked as well.

In the last two weeks alone, I've been to DC on 6 different occasions.

Why, you ask?

Well, that's a good question...

Let's start with the metro - DC's primary transportation system.

It is seriously one of the most reliable things I have ever traveled on.

It's almost always on time, and it is everywhere.

(And, I mean everywhere. The other day I got lost, so I just walked a few blocks and found another station. So easy and convenient!)

I know this is cheesy to rant and rave about transportation, but I love it.

It goes from my school to DC in less than 20 minutes. 

I use it to go everywhere - it's more accessible than some of the busses my campus uses.

With it, you can get to some of the coolest places in the city.

I know what you're thinking:

"DC! That means monuments, museums and the White House."

Wrong.

Sure, I've visited my share of monuments and museums.

But, those get so boring after a while.

Don't get me wrong - I love the pride demonstrated in our nation's capital.

But, I am a 20-year-old girl: There is only so much I can take of museums!

One of my favorite places in DC is Chinatown/Metro Center.

While there are some great chinese restaurants down here 

(My favorite is Chinatown Garden on H St. NW)

But, the best part of this part of town is the shopping!

Here, there is everything you could ever want within a few blocks.

In one trip, you can get bags full of stuff from H&M, Forever 21, Urban Outfitters and American Apparel.

It's one of the calmest places I have found to shop in the city, and it's just so convenient.

My second favorite place in DC is Georgetown.

Yes, the place made famous by cupcakes of the same name

While I recommend you stop by the bakery at least once (they're really good cupcakes - I promise)

That's definitely not the best part of this sleepy little neighborhood.

Within one trip, you're in a 'suburban town' complete with shopping, food and even one of the cutest neighborhoods I have ever found.

I'm determined to own a house here one day....

(I mean, seriously - how cute are they?!)

I'm not all about shopping - I promise.

There is some good food in DC. 

One of my favorite places to go is Ben's Chili Bowl.

Ben's has been around since the 50s, and is frequently visited by people like Bill Cosby and Chris Tucker.

Even Obama eats there!

It is a place full of delicious chili, half-smokes, burgers and fries. 

This greasy spoon is a must-visit for anyone in DC - as it is not only iconic, but delicious!

Some days (usually when I get paid...) I love going to the fancier restaurants of DC.

One of my favorites is Founding Fathers (on Pennsylvania Avenue NW).

This restaurant's food is to die for. 

Everything is made from freshly farmed foods from all over the country - no preservatives or 'extra stuff in your food - just food the way Mother Nature intended it to be! 

I'm vehemently against doing touristy things - I've seen them all a thousand times.

However, the one museum I go to over and over again is the National Museum of American History.

One of the most fascinating pieces of our history is contained in that building.

You can see the Star Spangled Banner,

Oscar the Grouch,

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, 

and my favorite:

Dorothy's primary Ruby Slippers from the Wizard of Oz.

 

One of my favorite things to 'find' throughout the city are the PandaMania pandas.

PandaMania is a sculpture exhibit that was placed in DC in 2004. 

After that, some key pandas were placed around the city. 

They're just adorable! 

I love that they were inspired by one of my absolute favorite parts of the city:

These two are my favorite animals to visit at the (free!) National Zoo! 

The zoo is almost always packed, but it is such a beautiful place to walk through.

It is filled with animals from all over the world, and they are so fun to watch and interact with.

I can't count how many times my friends and I have just spent a day wandering around and looking at the animals here :) 

However, if I had to pick a favorite time of the year in DC, it would have to be the Cherry Blossom festival.

The city is just full of color and the potomac river shines with a beautiful shade of pink that you can't find elsewhere...

But, you know what the one annual thing I would never, ever miss in DC?

The 4th of July fireworks. 

Nothing can beat celebrating the birth of our nation, in our nation's capitol...

pictures via: 1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9|10|11|12|13|14|15|16|17|18

road trip - visiting naples florida with frecks

well hello there pretty people. i'm victoria, also known as vic from frecks. You can call me any of those! I love where we currently live {minus the family being so far} in Naples, FL. it's a mixture of everyday sunshine and wildlife with a tint of swamp ass but the overall beauty defeats that portion of it!

we live on a gulf course in an amazing community! it has everything you need including a monstrous club house, tennis courts, gorgeous swimming pools, long bike trails, a neighbor with a backyard beach {where we sneak in sometimes}, a full blown GATOR alley, breathtaking water views and woods filled with bears, deer and so much wildlife it's unbelievable.

our third floor condo gives us the views we enjoy and the access to stretching my legs over the railings while playing with palm trees. yes, i'm such a kid! home of the woodpecker state....these gorgeous fella's make the most beautiful sounds {yes, i enjoy them sooooo very much} -

we live minutes from the most awesome beaches...if you have never been, it's a very high class getaway. snow birds come down every year to enjoy the warm lifestyle. it's a very fast paced life for us right now but my husband has a very good job and this is where our road leads at the moment.

we enjoy the outdoor life completely! i take so many photographs it's nearly impossible to share each day. i wish sometimes everyone could live with me in this city-we'd sip wine and enjoy the pool side chats.

5th avenue is known for great cafes, food and good shopping. they also have amazing art shows as well as soothing music. the scenes and company is just fabulous! maybe, just maybe you can meet me here and we can have a cappuccino, catch up on some chats and go shopping!

i enjoyed sharing my world with you today...you can get more here on frecks and i'd love to see your neck of the woods♥

road trip - visiting finland with my best friend jules

via mervi from my best friend jules

road trip - visiting Malta with Gertrude

Hello Scenic Glory readers!  I'm Gertrude from Bows and Pearls. While Lindsay is enjoying a road-trip with her husband, I am here to tell you about where I live.

First of all, I live in Malta, which is a very small country situated in the centre of the Mediterranean Sea. It is an archipelago made up of three main islands (Malta, Gozo and Comino) and a couple of very small inhabited ones. Together they only cover approx. 300 km² and the population is approx. 400,000. 

By these values you can imagine the small population that our 'cities' have. I live in a village called Siggiewi which has a population of only about 9,000. It is rather an old village, and we don't really have any entertainment places here. Enough babbling, here are a few pictures of some beautiful parts in Siggiewi:

Siggiewi is located on a plateau, this picture was taken from one of the higher areas.

The area surrounding the church is the older part of the village. It has lots of these narrow roads and antique houses as pictured below. People used to build their homes near the church as they felt safer.

This part gains a lot of attraction in Summer. I usually go swimming with my family near that cave on the right

This is a zone in Siggiewi called Buskett, which is like a small forest. It's the perfect place for picnics :)

This picture was taken from Buskett. The Verdala Palace (in the top part of the picture) is the summer residence of our president.

I hope you enjoyed reading about where I live! Lots of love to all of you from Malta :) 

road trip - visiting hawaii with lily love

As we say in Hawai'i, Aloha! It's me Che'Lyssa hopping over from Lily Love lending a hand to the beautiful Lindsay while she and her hubs take a road trip! I know they'll have fun, so while they do I wanted to share a little about where I'm from. Hawai'i is a beautiful place and a lot of people trade in their life savings to vacay here and I gotta say, thank you visitors, you truly keep the economy here flowing!

Now, without going into political things, I wanted to give you a little sneak peek of the island I live on, which is the island of Kaua'i (kow-wah-ee). It makes up 1/8 of the Hawaiian island chain and is the oldest island out of the 8. Our island was named The Garden Island because when God was creating it, he turned his white canvas green. Lush valleys, beautiful mountain tops, taro patches and ocean everywhere.
Speaking of oceans, here are a few of my favorite beaches...

I took this picture last September while flying back in from Honolulu. This beach is our little Waikiki. The Marriott sits right on the bay and the famous Duke's Canoe Club restaurant has ocean front seating and the best Hula pie dessert I've ever tasted. I also live on the left side (not pictured, lol) of this photo.

Ahh, Hanalei pier, the place where I spent most of my childhood. It's also the place I learned how to swim. True, but simple story: my dad threw me off and told me to kick and doggy paddle. Ever since that day twenty-something years ago, I can swim. HA! It's about a 45 min. drive north from the central part of Kauai, but everyone flocks to this place. This bay and the rest of the north shore is surfing nation here on Kaua'i. Big name surfers such as the late and great Andy Irons, his brother Bruce and Bethany Hamilton (Soul Surfer) are from this quiet town. And so is my mother, so it makes it that much more special. Lots of memories on the sands of this bay.

THIS is my favorite place. Every Sunday, for the past 10 months, our family has come here to relax, eat and enjoy our time together. Winter, spring, summer or fall (all you have to do is call) we come here. Winter is summer here in Hawai'i anyways...

If I'm not dunking myself in the warm salt water here are some things I'm usually doing on this beautiful island:

Thrift Shopping. I think everyone everywhere has a niche for thrifting. I try to go thrift shopping at least once a week!

Going to the Farmer's Market to buy homegrown veggies and fruits for dinner!

Eating sushi. I swear, I eat sushi and raw fish at least twice a week. It's my ultimate fave!

Taking a drive. Since our island is only about 550 square miles, we need to make the most out of how far we can drive. If we're heading all the way to west side (pictured below) we pretend we're tourist and make like we've never seen the canyon before. It helps because the beauty is breathtaking!

Spending hot sunny days with the girly cousins. We love taking walks to the park in my neighborhood. The view is WONDERFUL and the time with cousins are always priceless. Oh, and I wake up to that mountain every single morning. So wonderful! AND this picture was taken in the middle of winter!

Camping in a cabin and being in awe of such beauty of the valley. Koke'e (koh-kay-eh) State park is amazing! It's a 13-mile twisty-turnyish drive up a mountain and the views are stunning! Stay there for a few days and the drive back down will be the hardest thing to do. But you gotta do whatcha gotta do. This state park is HIGHLY recommended!

 And this is not me, it's my best friend Chasidy. I'm afraid of heights. :)

Taking trips to our neighbor islands. Mostly to visit my dad's family and to shop! The island of O'ahu (Honolulu, Hawaii 5-0) is where all the big name shops and high-rises are. My grandma and a bunch of my cousins live there, so we're always hopping a plane whenever we get the chance to so we can relax and kick back! And did I mention to shop?

Caption: Here is a short video by Devin Graham. He shot this amazing video of Kaua'i. Some of the places above are in the film. Enjoy it! It's breathtaking!

So, did y'all enjoy that tour? I wish I could take you on a tangible tour! Maybe if you're ever on Kaua'i vacationing and getting your tan on I can be your official tour guide! Thank you for letting me share a little part of my life. Have a great day. And Lindsay love, have fun on your road trip :)