Postcards from Paris

Technically, these aren't postcards from Paris since I'm back in the states - but let's play along shall we.

My sister and I ended up in Paris per chance. My sister's heart was originally settled on London - she's never been and I wasn't too fond of venturing into another expensive city. I had my high hopes on a weekend in Dubai. It would be a cheaper flight since we were in the Middle East to begin with.

Instead, fate and our thrifty travel agent suggested we head to Paris since we were coming from the Lebanon; known as the Paris of the Middle East. We took her word and booked the trip without having planned much except walk everywhere, eat & drink everything, and shop until you drop.

Here's a look back at what we did:

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I think we would've been so embarrassed if we never made it to the Eiffel Tower - so this was first on our list. Even in the rain, the city & the tower looked so ridiculously gorgeous.

Oh, and I almost got swindled here too. If you ever find yourself in the Champs de Mar and someone tries to loop a bracelet onto you - give them a firm NO.

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My neck was so sore from looking up. Like how does the city of Paris maintain such gorgeous buildings?! Why can't New York look like this?

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We came across the Army Museum on our walking tour, and by "walking tour" I mean getting lost. Next time we're hoping to have more time to head inside and explore all of the museums we came across.

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Here's the back of the National Assembly. At that moment in time our legs were so tired from walking we couldn't fathom the thought of checking out the front.

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We found that nearly every bridge entrance on the canal was covered in love locks. The middle of the bridge was covered in art. Not like my sister and I were about to put a lock on our love but just for reference :).

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Notre-Dame de Paris Cathedral is so insane and breathtaking. Knowing that the Cathedral was 850 years blew my mind - this place has seen so many riots, rebellions, wars and it's still standing there gracefully. When I head back to Paris I am definitely doing a tour here - I must learn all of the histories!

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I swear my phone just has billions of Parisian rooftops & skies.

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Being the paranoid tourist that I am, there was no way I was going to hand off my phone to a stranger. Needless to say there weren't many pictures of us together. But hey... that's my sis up there :).

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Since we were at the Louvre, my sister was feeling pretty creative and managed to get this reflective photo which I then copied haha.

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I didn't take many pictures of food, but I found this gem to help paint a picture of how our nights usually went: beaucoup de wine, bread, and meats. Our jeans were feeling pretty tight on our flight back.

Overall, I loved every minute of our Parisian trip. But, what I loved most was spending time (two full weeks!) with my sister. With how busy we both are it's always great being able to create these memories together and learn more about each other in a place new-to-us.

OH! My sister and I had a chat with Parisian enthusiasts on the plane ride back. They told us that every two or three years they visit Paris and explore in depth, one or two arrondissements. There is so much history in Paris, it's the only way they could learn as much as they could without getting overwhelmed. I'm definitely intrigued by this and may take it up in the distant future when I enter baller status.

Postcards from Greece

Karpathos could probably inspire some long winded post about a mystical Greek island hidden away on the Aegean Sea. Dotted with a multitude picture perfect beaches, windswept cliffs, seafood that could literally ruin every restaurant back home and locals who will have you out every night until sunrise. I almost felt guilty when I told Aileen I'd write this post, like I've been let in on a secret that I should try and.....

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....yea Karp's just ok, you should probably stick to Athens.

Visiting the Saratoga Race Course

Last month I spent an amazing (!!) day at the races. If you follow me on snapchat you may have seen me get pretty close to a few majestic horses - last time that happened a horse bit me. Yay for nice horses!

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America's Best Racing invited me and the boy up to the Saratoga Race Course to immerse ourselves into the sport. It would be our very first introduction to horse racing but with two amazing hosts (hi Dan & Victoria!) by our side, we left leaving like pros. Well, almost.

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Saratoga, a gorgeous suburb three hours (two if you decide to pay the tolls) outside of New York City was a refreshing breath of air and will most likely be our only escape from the city this summer. Some of the residents there seem to have a second side hustle (I'm all about that!) and so we were able to quickly find relatively close parking on someone's yard. When we walked into the venue I noticed a few people were tailgating - I only thought they did that for football, so of course my mind was blown.

Once inside our gracious host Dan & Victoria quickly greeted us and gave us a tour. Outside the grounds there were quaint shops to get your shopping on, the famed Hattie's Chicken Spot, and a live band that kept the energy high all day long. I could've stayed out there listening to good music and eating to my heart's content but alas we came to see the horses and hopefully win a little bit of $$$.

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We went up to our seats and had a fantastic view even with all the spectators wearing their gorgeous hats. Dan taught us how to read the scoreboard and the racing program which came in handy for when I placed my first bet. Did I mention I won my first bet and promptly got the boy a refreshing beer. I would've gotten him a new pair of blue suede shoes but that was my last winning bet of the day (sigh). Oh, and after the first race I got really really into cheering on the horses - when in Rome right!

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After a few losses (sigh again) we went over to the Paddock and got to meet a few jockeys and trainers and see them prep their horses. This was pretty epic because I got to go behind the velvet rope, so to speak, and get really close to the action. In case you were wondering (cause I was too) the Paddock area is where the trainers and owners give instruction to the jockey on how to ride the horse. This is also were the horses are given a walk about to warm up their muscles and spectators can catch a glimpse of the horse's energy before the race.

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After a full day of races we contemplated staying an extra night or two - but life summoned us back into the concrete jungle. The very next day (and sadly) back in New York City I found myself on a train that with ads spotlighting Saratoga. Might be my luck but also a sign to get my butt back up there and SOON.

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If you're near the Saratoga Race Course I totally recommend it as something to add to your bucket list and if you can take someone a horse racing aficionado with you. Saratoga too far? Try visiting another one of their racetracks by clicking here.

Photos by Victor Cerejo.