New Month, New Goals: August

I think that July might be my favorite month of 2015 (so far). I mean, really, what was not to love about it? Summer Fridays started at my job, so I’ve been getting out of work at 1:00PM. I have no idea why this makes the week feel significantly shorter, but it does. I also spent the bulk of the month preparing for my trip with the zeal of…someone zealous? I don’t know where I was going there. Then, I left for my vacation on July 26th, and I’m still in France as you read this! Current location: Nice. Anyway, it’s been an eventful and exciting month for me. How about you?

How was your July?

Duolingo Review or Die. I did some Duolingo-ing, but definitely not as much as I would have liked to have done. I was bitten by the writing bug this past month and spent my train rides (which is when I usually use Duolingo) drafting short pieces of whatever popped into my head.
Get some reading done.  Again, I definitely didn’t do as much as I would have liked, but I did read a bit. Hopefully, I managed to get some reading done on the plane ride and, if I did, expect a book review sometime in August!
Buy the last of my advance tickets. Done and done! Everything was booked and paid for by the time we headed to JFK airport.
French Trip. Currently a work in progress, but I’ll cross it off my list anyway. By this point I’ve been to Paris, visited London, and am now in Nice. Today, however, I’ll be day-tripping in Provence and evening-tripping (I’m aware that’s not a real thing) in Monaco. Sadly, this means that my trip is almost at an end.
Make a blog queue. Done! I did manage to set up a small queue so that new content (like this post) would go live while I was away.

AUGUST GOALS

• Print & frame photos from France. I have a gallery wall that is devoted to photos I've taken on my travels that is slowly but surely growing in size. There are currently pictures from my time in London, Bath, and Windsor in 2012 and others from Rome, Florence, Venice, and the Amalfi Coast in 2014 up there, so my new photographs will be in good company.
• Schedule dinner dates with friends. I've been horrible with making dinner plans with friends of late, and I have several friends who are long overdue a catch-up dinner. Hopefully, I'll be able to make up for this in August and September.
• Go see Minions. Yes, I'm aware that I am 25, but who can resist the charm of those yellow, pill-shaped cuties? I have an unhealthy obsession with them and have watched the trailers so many times that it wouldn't surprise me if I could recite them. I even had my friend who works in the film industry send me the Minion 3D goggles...which I proceeded to wear around the house saying "Banana!" Basically, I need to see the movie before it leaves theatres or mope around until it comes out on bluray.
• Clean my room. I have been saying that I need to clean my room for months but haven't gotten around to it. A two day weekend hasn't been long enough to clean, blog, and plan my trip, so cleaning--the least fun of the activities--has been put off time and time again. My room is a disaster area though, and it really is starting to make me twitchy.
• Do some re-decorating. I spent months pinching pennies to save up for France, so I haven't gotten around to working on making my room the little oasis I've intended. I'm intent on making it the perfect little "studio apartment" in my parents' home, so it's time to start visiting Ikea, Home Goods, and H&M to get the things I need.

Do you have any goals for July?

Monthly Favorites: July

Not surprisingly, this month's favorites were all purchased with my trip in mind.  So, without further ado…

Carlos by Carlos Santana Sandals –

One of my many quirks is that I'm not a sandal-person. Well, it's more like the only sandals I like are the impractical five inch stiletto heel ones. Obviously, I can't do any real sightseeing in that type of footwear unless I want to maim myself. I did want to find a comfortable pair of sandals for my vacation though, especially for niece. I found these gorgeous Kiara 2 Wedge Sandals at my shoe mecca--DSW. They have a gladiator-esque look to them and a small one and a half inch wedge, so I can walk around comfortably. I've gotten tons of compliments on them too. But what I love about these sandals is that they can be dressed up or down depending on my needs. At $39.99, these babies were a steal!

Covergirl LastBlast Fusion Mascara –

LastBlast Fusion is my old reliable when it comes to mascara. I've been wearing it for years now with no complaints, so when I realized I was running low, I went and bought a new tube. It gives your lashes volume and length and is buildable for those of us who have a flare for the dramatic. I love the applicator too which I feel is great for preventing the clumpy, cobwebby lash look.  

Eiffel Tower Journal –

It's a tradition for me to bring a journal on my trips so that I can chronicle everything as it happens. The Eiffel Tower motif was no coincidence, but the compact size means that I can slip it into my purse and carry it around with me. You can't believe how many comments I get when people see me jotting down notes in my journals when I'm abroad. I feel a bit like I'm carrying the torch of all those writers who spent time in Europe, scribbling down their great works. Hemingway, anyone? For me, there's nothing quite like writing. I love the feel of pen on paper and am more inspired by an empty notebook than a blank word document.

Forever 21 Gold Leaf Necklace –

This was a "just because" buy. I was in Forever 21 a few weekends ago and spotted this delicate leaf necklace and couldn't not buy it. It's the sort of piece that can add a touch of elegance to simple black top or add a little personality to something with a pattern. I love necklaces with long chains for that reason! They're just so versatile.

Monthly Musings: July

I put my life in danger to take this photo. 

 I am deathly afraid of all things bee-like (bumblebees, bees, wasps, hornets, yellow jackets…), so the fact that I was anywhere near this little guy is an impressive feat in my book. Yes, I realize that I’m incredibly melodramatic, but I have literally climbed over picnic tables covered with food to get away from a bee. I wish I were kidding.

Onto this month’s musings!

• Top 12 Pastry Shops in Paris –  It's probably no surprise that I was reading up about France leading up to my trip.  World of Wanderlust is one of my favorite travel blogs and, as luck would have it, 10 days before my trip a guide to pastry shops went live! I had already planned to visit Ladurée and Pierre Hermé, but I kept the others in mind too! Let's see how many of these dessert heavens I manage to visit!
• 8 Tips for Hanging Art – One of my ambitions is to have one of those homes that looks like it came right out of magazine, so I'm always in the mood for interior design related posts.  Joanne of Cup of Jo gave some great tips for hanging art.  I'll definitely keep these tips in mind for future design projects.
• Get Married by Your Late 20s If You'd Rather Not Get Divorced - An interesting article on how people who get married in their late 30s are now more likely to get divorced than those in their late 20s.  So, basically, if you marry too young, divorce, and if you marry too old, divorce.  Not great odds, America.
• Finally, Photographic Evidence that Kit Harington Has Joined the Cast of Game of Thrones in Belfast - SPOILER ALERT: Jon Snow lives!  I was one of the many fan girls who wept over what appeared to be the demise of Jon Snow in the season finale of Game of Thrones, but there has been a lot of speculation as to whether he was actually dead.  Although Kit and show runners have said that Jon is gone, methinks they doth protest too much.  It seems like too much of a coincidence that he landed in Belfast just in time for next season's script read-through.  Is this the worst kept secret in TV history?  I hope so!
• Amber Heard is More Complicated Than You Think - I've always liked Amber Heard, although I couldn't really put my finger on a reason.  This article, which appeared in July's edition of ELLE, made me like her even more. Johnny Depp slayer, free-spirit, and feminist--what's not to like?  Unfortunately, this link will only bring you to blurbs from the full article, but if your friend reads ELLE, steal borrow it!

Road to France Pt. VIII - Bon Voyage!

Au Revoir, USA! Bonjour, France!

The next few days will be a whirlwind as Mom and I get ready to fly off to Paris, but I’m bouncing off the walls over the prospect. Last minute shopping, packing, going to the airport!  It's so exciting! And isn't packing for a trip is always more fun than packing to come home? My room is currently a disaster area with luggage and clothing strewn everywhere, so it’ll be nice to get a bit more organized. I’m also looking forward to getting pampered tomorrow. Yay mani-pedis!

Anyway, I do have some posts set up in my queue, so Bringing Up Brittany won’t be completely neglected in my absence. When I get back, you should expect plenty of travel photos and posts! I also plan to give the blog a bit of a face-lift as a belated six month-iversary present.

In the meantime though, check out my Instagram for some lovely on-the-go shots of Paris and Nice!

"A walk about Paris will provide lessons in history, beauty, and in the point of Life."

-Thomas Jefferson

Road to France Pt. VII - Travel Tech

Time for another travel-related post! Don’t hate me.

I don’t know about you, but even on vacation I have a ton of tech with me. I don’t like being completely disconnected, so I tend to bring more equipment with me than I probably should. So here are some of my tech must-haves.

Plug Adapters –

Plugs in the US don’t match those in Europe, so good luck trying to charge any of your gadgets without at least one of these. I bought plug adapters to save myself that frustration, and I get the most bang for my buck by buying these off Amazon. I bought these Type E/F adapters for a steal at 3 for $7.25. These work in Germany, France, and some other European countries, so they’re perfect for my needs.  

Camera Equipment–

My trusty Nikon D3200 will be accompanying me on this trip, and she’ll be my most faithful companion, apart from my mother, obviously. But my DSLR needs a lot of TLC considering how much I’ll be using it. So I make sure to carry two ENEL14a rechargeable batteries and two 16GB SanDisk memory cards. This might seem like overkill, but I can’t think of what would be worse than missing a photo-op because of a dead battery or lack of memory. I’ll also be bringing my two camera lens because…why not?

Kindle Fire HDX –

Except for that time I went to London while writing my senior thesis, I am against bringing my laptop on trips. Laptops are heavy and take up a lot of room, and I don’t want to be tempted to spend my time in my hotel room. With my Kindle though, I still get some connectivity without the temptation of sitting in front of my laptop for hours and hours. Plus, it’s great for reading books and magazines on the plane. This is like the one time when I’d ever promote e-book use.

iPhone –

Because who goes anywhere without their phone nowadays? I always get the global plan added by phone provider so that I can use my iPhone overseas which saves me a few bucks. I tend to rely only on data when I’m abroad though for sending quick messages through WhatsApp, uploading photos to Instagram, updating Facebook and Twitter, and the occasional glance at Google Maps. I really only send text messages in emergencies, and the same goes for calls.