A Day with Monet

Claude Monet, The House Among the Roses

I have noticed recently that my blog has not included very many posts about what I have been doing in Madrid! Strange, since this is where I’m actually living and I explore A LOT. So today I am writing about my visit to the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza off of the Paseo del Prado in Madrid. While I have been to the Prado several times (I am taking an art history class there, how lucky am I?!), I had never been to the Thyssen-Bornemisza and wanted to go to see their collection of Monet’s work. There aren’t very many Monet paintings in Spain, and I just couldn’t wait another two weeks to go to France, so that’s how I ended up spending my day there today.

I had a wonderful time. My roommates and most of my friends took a weekend trip to Portugal, so I went all by my lonesome. This turned out to be a HUGE bonus as I could wander around at my own pace and ended up spending close to 3 hours in the museum. I was a little disappointed, as several of the Monet’s that the museum owns were being restored, but they had several out so I was still satisfied. The museum also had enough other well known artists and paintings to more than make up for the lack of Monet’s. These included Vincent Van Gogh, Edgar Degas, Caravaggio, Rubens, Ribalta, Salvador Dali, Roy Lichtenstein, Pablo Picasso, and many many other talented artists. Pictured below are some of my favorites from the museum, though I could not possibly post all of them.

Pablo Picasso, Bullfight

Salvador Dali, Dream Caused by the Flight of a Bee around a Pomegranate a Second before Waking Up

Georgia O’Keeffe, From the Plains II

George Henry Durrie, Autumn in New England

Ribera, The Pietá

Vincent Van Gogh, “Les Vessenots” in Auvers

Edgar Degas, Racehorses in a Landscape

Roy Lichtenstein, Woman in Bath

These were just a few of the highlights for me, but there were so many great pieces by so many talented artists. I would highly recommend this museum for anyone who is at all interested in art and who is in the area. It has discounted tickets for students (mine was 7 euros to see the permanent collection, not bad at all). They also have time when people may enter for free, on Mondays from 12:00-6:00pm for the permanent collection. After my museum visit today, I went and grabbed a coffee as my feet were begging me for a break. So I sat inside and enjoyed warming up with a latte. I was feeling pretty good after walking around the museum, as you can see from my snap chat below…

Pinky out for being more cultured!

Next on my list of museums in Madrid is the Reina Sofia, the Museo Taurino (a bullfighting museum), and the Museo Archeologico. So when I get around to those, I will post summaries of those too! From now on, I’m going to try and post more what I have been up to in Madrid, so stay tuned for more Madrid blog posts!

 

Much love and happy traveling!

Kiss Me, I’m Irish!

Waterfalls in Blarney, Ireland

Alright, so the title may be super cliché, but considering I spent my St. Patrick’s day in Ireland, I figured it was only appropriate! After much confusion and frustration booking my flights (I wouldn’t recommend using the booking company Opodo in the future) I FINALLY made it Cork to spend a weekend and St. Patrick’s day with my lovely roommate and best friend from school in San Diego. I flew into Dublin on Wednesday afternoon and took a three hour bus ride to Cork. The bus ride wasn’t nearly as bad as I expected, and I didn’t even end up watching the movie I had downloaded because the scenery was too beautiful to miss! Once in Cork, I proceeded to spend the rest of the weekend drinking, eating, seeing Ireland, and drinking some more. When in Ireland, do as the Irish do, right? 😉

Cathedral in Cork

So one of my favorite sites that we went to was the Blarney estates. This included the Blarney Castle, the Blarney House, the poison gardens, and the waterfalls pictured above, plus some great trails to walk around and experience the vast green expanse that is Ireland. Fortunately, when I was there the weather was absolutely BEAUTIFUL, which apparently never happens. I was told by almost every person I met that this was not typical Irish weather, so I’m glad I came when I did! While at the Blarney Castle I kissed the Blarney stone for good luck and spent the afternoon walking around and enjoying the sunshine. My friend and I also visited the Blarney Woolen Mills, where I may or may not have bought some unnecessary (but at the same time very necessary) woolen items.

The Blarney Castle! And the beautiful weather that went along with it!

About to kiss the Blarney stone!

It was a bluebird day on top of the castle!

I was also fortunate enough to consume lots (and I mean LOTS) of Irish food and drink while on this trip. I sampled all the local brews, including Murphy’s, which is apparently Cork’s version of Guinness. We also went to a craft beer bar called Franciscan’s well, where I had some of the best amber ale of my entire life. I’m addicted. My friend treated me to a traditional Irish breakfast, which was composed of baked beans, toast, a fried egg, sausages, tea, and “irish pudding” which is essentially a meat patty with blood in it. Though it may sound a little questionable, it was DELICIOUS.

Love this girl!

Since it was St. Patrick’s day weekend, there were lots of cool events going on during my time there. The entire town was buzzing with festivities and I was fortunate enough to be able to experience most of them! On Thursday night, we went to a concert for The Rubberbandits, who are Ireland’s version of the Lonely Island. They were absolutely hilarious and I’m so so happy we went. We also went to a street festival that was set up on the main street of Cork. It included stands to eat traditional Irish foods, street performers, and a stage that hosted Irish musicians all day and into the night. It was truly the perfect weekend to be in Cork.

Ready to go out for St. Patrick’s day!

Street performer playing the horns while riding a giant unicycle

So my trip to Ireland was a huge success and I’m so incredibly happy that I was able to go! I can’t wait to continue the study abroad adventures!

Happy traveling to all, and to all a good night!

Home Sweet Switzerland

Swan obsessed in Montreux, Switzerland

So let’s talk Switzerland. No, I didn’t open a bank account. Nor did I buy a swiss watch (though I was tempted!). But I did manage to try lots and lots of Swiss chocolate! My friends and I spent three days in Geneva and the surrounding towns this past weekend, and we absolutely loved it! Here’s the run-down:

Day 1 – Though it was slightly rainy and cold, we explored the city of Geneva and saw most of the major landmarks of the city. These were the Jet d’Eau, the United Nations, Saint Pierre’s Cathedral, the Roman Catholic church, and the infamous flower clock. That night we warmed up from the rain with a cheese fondue (delicious), veggie pizza (mouth-watering), and truffle ravioli (to die for).

On the lake!

St. Pierre’s Cathedral

Day 2 – We decided to take a day trip to the northern end of Lake Geneva to a smaller city called Montreux. It was stunningly beautiful. The weather was much nicer than the day before, and the views of the Swiss alps reflecting on the surface of the lake were literally magical. It was kind of like being in a real life Disney movie, because it was so perfect. So we spent our day there walking along the lake, basking in the sun, visiting the Chateau de Chillon, wandering the narrow mountain streets, and enjoying some hot chocolate at the end of the day.

The Swiss Alps from Montreux

Chateau de Chillon

The Alps again (sorry I’m not sorry)

Day 3 – Our final day in Switzerland was spent exploring some of the smaller towns just outside of Geneva. When you stay at a hotel in Geneva, they give you a transport pass which is good for all of the public transportation in and around Geneva, which made the exploring really simple! We visited a town called La Plaine on the border of France, which was beautiful and so green that it looked like Ireland. We also visited a town called Satigny, which is known for its vineyards. When we returned to Geneva in the afternoon, we took a boat tour of Lake Geneva where we were able to spot the Matterhorn in the distance. We got some beautiful views of the French Alps as well, and were able to see Mont Blanc. Then we spent the rest of our day enjoying the botanical gardens, walking through old town, and eating some delicious food. After dinner, we went to a local brewery (who knew Switzerland had good beer?) and enjoyed some of the best beer I have had in Europe.

Making friends in La Plaine

La Plaine, Switzerland

Vineyards in Satigny, Switzerland

Our lovely local brews

So overall, Switzerland was a complete success! I am so happy that I had the chance to visit with some amazing girls! While I don’t have any more immediate trips planned, I am looking into a trip for the beginning of April and am deciding between Budapest, Hungary and Dublin, Ireland. If you have any suggestions or input, don’t hesitate to share!

Until next time, happy traveling 🙂