New Paltz Semester Wrap Up

It is the last week of my first semester of my junior year here at SUNY New Paltz, so I thought I would write a little post summing it all up…with my favorite photos of course.

This semester has been a whirlwind of emotions. Some amazing things happened and some awfully stressful things happened as well, but that did not stop me from exploring and taking photos.

New Paltz in the Fall is one of the most beautiful sights to be seen. There is apple picking, trees that are filled with fluorescent shades of red, yellow, orange, and green; The sunsets get more beautiful every day, and who doesn’t love a random walk on the rail trail here and there for some exploring?

Overall this semester has been filled with many beautiful memories, and I got to capture them all.

This was one of the first sunsets of the semester, and it was breathtaking.

This was a cute little bridge that my friends and I came across while on a hike.

Still can’t believe I took this photo, it looks so professional..LOL. But, these are some of the gorgeous trees on campus.

Moxie Cupcakes always knows how to make people smile while walking past their shop on Main Street.

Here are my feet along with the feet of my best friends…we were trying to be artsy while on a hayride to go apple picking.

If you like some of the pictures you see here and want to get a little more of the inside scoop to this beautiful town, then check out my friend Angel’s blog where she posts about her mini adventures: http://angelh218.tumblr.com

To learn about more cool things to do in the Hudson Valley and the surrounding area, check out this blog: https://valleyblog24.wordpress.com/about/

Canada Bound

So today I will be reminiscing on one of my mini adventures of the semester. Back in October I ventured off to the tundra that is Buffalo, NY. My little brother, okay not to little, is a freshman at the the New York State University of Buffalo, so of course I had to visit him.

While I was there I made my way to Canada. It was only 25 minutes away from his school so I could not pass up that opportunity, especially since I have never been there before. So of course I spent my entire day at Niagara Falls, because who wouldn’t want to spend four hours staring at waterfalls?

They were gorgeous, mesmerizing, and just overall soothing to look at. All of my stress disappeared for that short period of time…and I was not mad about that at all.

This is me super-duper excited to be entering Canadia (Yes, I do call it that). 

When my parents and I first drove up to bridge my face lit up, and I am not even kidding. I made my parents take pictures of every step I took because I was so excited. This country is magical…lol I am just slightly dramatic.

Look how beautiful this rainbow is…I was in awe.

Basically what I’m saying is that I love Canada, it was gorgeous, even just the little part I was exposed to.

Oh…and it was nice to see my brother too.

This is me all sad that I had to leave my brother after our short reunion.

Here are some reasons your next destination should be Canada: http://www.thecollegetourist.com/10-reasons-why-your-next-destination-should-be-canada/

London Town

Hey Everyone,

I’m back with another post about one of my previous adventures. In the summer of 2014 I traveled across the Atlantic to my favorite place, London, England. London has been on the top of my “places to travel” list for years, because to be honest I think I am secretly meant to be British, but don’t tell anyone. When my cousins invited me on an all girls trip across seas, there was no way I could deny returning to my secret home country. When I first got on the plane I think I went into shock, because that was the moment I realized I was actually going to London, and it was my first time on a plane, so there’s that! This magical city was just as I imagined, filled with beautiful people with beautiful accents.

Although, I am all for discovering the little things that make a city special, I was in full on tourist mode when I arrived. I took pictures of everything and even made a video of my adventure, which I may upload in another post. If I had to pick one my favorite places it would have to be Buckingham Palace, which I had the honor of touring, but sadly was not aloud to bring in my camera…what was that about? This palace was by far the most gorgeous example of interior design I have ever seen, it was magnificent. I left in awe and with the urge to buy a palace. Then, there was the British Museum, which was amazing. I am not one for museums at all, in fact, I hate them. But, the British sure know how to impress because I was so pleased with my experience. I found myself not wanting to leave, which let me tell you has NEVER happened before in a museum.

Yes, I was a complete tourist and took selfies with every amazing thing I came across, but there was one thing I knew I wanted to find. This one specific thing was a piece of Banksy graffiti art. I heard about him from a fellow brit, and because I am basically a brit I knew if I ever went to London I needed to find a piece of his work. Therefore, I took my cousins on a “treasure hunt”, little did they know the treasure was just a piece of art on the side of the building. But, to me it was amazing, it was so realistic, and so socially capturing that it automatically made me think. This specific piece was so hard to find, it was hidden on this little street, which I almost missed. But it was totally worth getting lost for, so if you are ever in the mood for a treasure hunt, go around London and look for famous Banksy pieces, you will not regret it.

The back of Buckingham Palace, because it was the only place I was allowed to take a picture, but it still came out pretty cool.

Banksy’s “Shop Until You Drop” on Bruton Street in Mayfair, London.

This is me, looking surprisingly happy at the British Museum.

In case you want to learn a little bit more about London, here is a blog post written by a Marist student, who spent a semester abroad in this magnificent city: http://www.thecollegetourist.com/study-abroad-my-abroad-experience-in-london/

Philadelphia

Hey Everyone,

This past Labor Day weekend my best friend and I decided to travel to Philadelphia on a whim and escape school…not that we had school but, you get the idea. We packed our backpacks, and departed from SUNY New Paltz for a few days in search of an adventure. At first we weren’t sure exactly what to do in Philly, but then we decided “lets not have a plan and just explore,” and that is exactly what we did. Although we had no plans, we did know that eating a Philly cheesesteak was on the top of our “not so real” list, especially since neither one of us had tried one before. The only thing I can think of to describe my first experience eating a Philly cheesesteak is that it will be my only experience. Don’t get me wrong, it was delicious while I was eating it and I understand why everyone loves them but, I do not think I can ever eat another one again. Although, somewhat disappointed with the “famous” Philly cheesesteak, I was definitely not going to let this ruin my trip. I was with my best friend, in a city I had never been to, and I wasn’t at school, so therefore I was already having a great time. We got to be complete tourists, and that was my favorite part. We tried famous restaurants, sat near fountains and people watched for hours, walked around exploring until it was nearly midnight. It was overall an amazing quick getaway. I did end the trip by getting an awful cold, which can I mention, I still have…a whole week later, but it was totally worth it! I completely 100% recommend visiting Philadelphia for a weekend if you want to get away!

My best friend (left) and I (right) being complete tourists at the Board Game Art Park in Philadelphia.

My first Philly Cheesesteak from Campo’s.

Although I left New Paltz for the weekend, it truly is an amazing place, here is a blog post from the International Businesses students who are experiencing New York and New Paltz for the first time: https://newpaltziibpr.wordpress.com/2015/09/14/one-school-hundreds-of-opportunities/