let's take a trip to my favorite places!!

Are you ready to hit the road or catch a plane? I chose four places to mark as my favorite because I love them all for different reasons! Two are amazing road trip destinations within the United States that have tons of fun stops along the way, and the other two are in Europe, so you'd have to look into purchasing a plane ticket.

Starting off in the USA, we have Flagstaff, Arizona!

My friends and I road tripped to Flagstaff for spring break 2017, and let me tell you it was the best spring break trip! From the gorgeous scenery, to the great weather, to the amazing hiking, Flagstaff would be a hard city to beat! I even hiked a volcano, and how many people can say they've done that? If someone asked me to move there tomorrow, there is no way I say no.

Here I am at the top of Sunset Crater Volcano! This was quite a warm hike since the black volcanic ash just attracts the sun. In the background is the San Francisco Peaks in March 2017.

This picture was taken on the way down the South Kaibab Trail in the Grand Canyon in March 2017. The Grand Canyon is a little north of Flagstaff, but I still count it as being a reason why I love this place!

Our next destination in the USA is Chicago, Illinois!

I am a total city person, so when I first visited Chicago three years ago, I fell in love! My life goal is to be able to sell my car and never have to drive again, and with the public transportation and everything being within walking distance in the city, it is my dream city. Chicago has all the charms of New York City, but without the claustrophobic feeling. Grant Park has an awesome music festival every summer called Lollapalooza (if you haven't heard of it, seriously check it out!), and Lake Michigan with its abundance of water sports is right there. The only downside to Chicago is the wicked cold winters, so I only visit in the summer when it is nice and warm ;-)

I took this picture at Lollapalooza 2014 in Grant Park during a performance by Iggy Azalea!

The Navy Pier is one of my favorite features of the city! You can go pretty far out into Lake Michigan without ever getting into the water, all while enjoying the shopping, food, and music on the pier.
(Navy Pier and Chicago Skyline:Holiday Inn & Suites) 

Now to leave my humble country and explore outside its borders, the first European destination is Dublin, Ireland!

My disclaimer about my love for Dublin is I am part Irish and a red head, so I am partial to my people. With that being said, Dublin is seriously amazing! One of the tallest buildings in the city is the Guinness Storehouse, which is only seven stories! (You read that correctly, I said seven stories) There are no towering skyscrapers to be found here. The old and the new come together in this city to create this wonderful vibe of fun and funkiness that I could not get enough of when I visited. The food, mainly the Irish stew I ate for every meal, was to die for and the people were all so kind. With my terrible sense of direction, I got lost about a million times, but people were always nice enough to lead me in the right direction. The amount of things to do and sites to see is never ending. I luckily got to stay right in the heart of the city at Trinity College, and I have no clue why I actually got on my plane to come home. 

Here is a picture that shows me thoroughly enjoying the Jameson Distillery tour on Bow Street in Dublin that I went on in July 2016!

This picture was taken by me in July 2016 when I got lost on my way to the National Leprechaun Museum, so I stopped and bought a meat pie :-)

The Brazen Head is Ireland's Oldest Pub and home to the best Irish Stew (in my opinion anyways)! I took this picture in July 2016.

The next European destination, and my absolute favorite place is Arezzo, Italy!

I did a study abroad in Arezzo for a month, and it was quite possibly the best month of my life! The location is right in the Tuscan valley making the weather nice, the wine amazing, and the people friendly. We did the typical Italian vacation things in Rome and Florence, but actually being able to live in an Italian city and become part of the population was a unique experience. The views from the top of the city were breathtaking and I would have gained thirty pounds from all the amazing food if everything wasn't uphill both ways :-) I got to stay in a renovated 13th century monastery with a bell tower that had a three hundred and sixty degree view of the entire valley. This was the best place to just sit and take in the beauty that is the Italian countryside. Arezzo is my favorite of my favorites because every reason I have loved the previous three places I have talked about can be found here, plus so much more. The views, hiking, people, food, and vibe are all so special and unique to this amazing gem of a town tucked away in Italy. If I ever get the chance to go back to Europe, this will definitely be a stop I make again!

This picture was taken on my last night in Arezzo in July 2016 on top Fortezza Medicea overlooking the city!

Here is a picture I took of Piazza Grande in Arezzo at sunset in July 2016. Every summer there is a huge joust in the piazza where the four quarters of the city compete to claim victory for their section!