Vodka Shots and Headshots- A Weekend in Baltimore

I haven't been to Baltimore in years, so I wasn't sure what my aunt and uncle would want to do when I visited last weekend.  When I was little we would go to a lot of museums in the city and I still like to do that, but this time my aunt wanted to go to a Christmas tree festival and my uncle, an avid gun collector (I say collector instead of enthusiast since he loves historical guns so I feel like the hobby for him is more than just "let's shoot stuff") had plans to go to the gun range.  I chose to go to the gun range with him since I had shot a rifle as a kid (back before Columbine when they offered shooting as a camp activity) and was actually pretty decent.  Also, as an avid gamer who prefers shooters, I was ready to get my Max Payne on.  This time we would be shooting my uncle's 9mm and a revolver, which I had no experience with.  The 9mm scared me a bit to be honest, it's a very heavy gun with a harsh kickback and the used bullet shells fly back at your face, I really did not like that.  The revolver I quite enjoyed, it was so 1940's film noir, I kept pretending I was assassinating an ex lover in a red evening dress :P  it was also lightweight and the used bullets stayed in the chamber, nothing flying back at your face.  The range didn't allow photo taking inside so I just took some empty shells for souvenirs as well as my target.  They also had a strict "no headshots" policy which I umm...did not stick to.  Whoops!  In my defense, my uncle said I was a natural and just have built in great aim!

My mom modeling my uncle's WW2 gun

After shooting, my uncle took me on a drive around this awesome abandoned industrial area that he explained used to be booming in the 70's and 80's.  I have a weird fascination for all things abandoned, it just calls to some part of my brain, I'm intrigued at how an area or building can be so in use and then be completely left as if it never existed.

Down the Rabbit Hole...

Saturday night my mom and aunt decide to stay in and relax and my uncle and I went out for drinks.  We went to a small restaurant in Elicott City called The Rumor Mill which makes artisan vodkas in bizarre flavors and offers very unique foods.  I ended up just getting some vodka cranberries bc I can't really do straight vodka, even flavored, and they don't offer regular drinks like margaritas.  For food we got a plate of cilantro beef with cucumber, a plate of Brie with different marmalade toppings like bacon marmalade, peach, pesto, and fig.  I also got a bowl of pumpkin soup with coconut juice which was really nice!  For dessert my uncle and his friend got ice cream and we were given complementary strawberry canolis which I had

 Modular Surrealist glasses= love

Late night in Elicott City

Our final day we went for lunch at a diner near my aunt and uncle's house and on the way I saw this awesome statue looming ahead and of course got excited because of how weird it was 

Getting closer I realized the king statue was actually for the "Enchanted Forest" amusement park (which is now a shopping center) and had a little moment since this amusement park was used in the John Waters film "CryBaby" which is one of my favorite films!  I knew I couldn't leave Baltimore without stumbling upon something John Waters!

 

Off to Baltimore!

 Next weekend I'll be in Baltimore after Thanksgiving visiting my aunt and uncle.  I've been there quite a few times but it's been a while since my last visit so I'm excited!  Above is a photo from last year of me with Mr Baltimore himself, John Waters

Travels with Grandma

Cleaning out the house for my recent move, I found tons of random things that my grandmother saved.  Among them, I found one of her old travel journals.  She never really understood the concept of a travel journal, so a lot of the comments are trivial things like what she had for breakfast or what she thought about other people she was with (ever the sassy one, my grandma), but I still find them fun to browse through.  She ends every entry with what she had to drink for the night and where, which is perhaps where I get my love of nightlife!

I also found these random stickers from various Polish hotels.  Holy 1970's Batman! 

Vintage Vault- Postcards from Japan

Kyoto, 1946.  Photo by my grandfather 

Roman Ramblings- Piazza Navona

 A little known fact about me is that Rome is my favorite city (city, not place. My favorite place is Sicily).  It's a place I know very well, and always enjoy revisiting no matter how many times I've been there.  Rome is a great city to explore alone as well since the street plan is really simple and efficient.  Most if the city is a traditional Roman grid plan, so it's easy to follow a map an find what you're looking for.  In cities like Paris or Dublin with winding streets that branch off at weird angles I always have trouble finding things.

My favorite area of Rome is Piazza Navona.  During the day it's very cheesy with tourists crowding around the Four Rivers fountain and grabbing gelato or browsing trinket stands, but at night I find it to be entirely different. The main area will still have some tourists at night and the restaurants surrounding the piazza are perhaps a bit less authentic than you might be looking for, but if you venture onto the surrounding streets, you'll find the energy that makes me love the area.  

Parallel to the actual piazza is Via Santa Maria dell'Anima, which is a small street that houses all types of different bars and bizarre shops selling candy, toys, novelties etc.  Via dell'Anima has just about every bar you could want, and sometimes I even forget that I'm in Rome when I explore this street.  There's many different areas for nightlife in Rome and each of them offer different types of vibes but Navona has the most variety for the types of places that I like. Yes Testaccio has more clubs, there's chic places like La Maison (I wasn't a fan) by the Spanish Steps, there's more low key pubs over in Palatino, but Navona has the vibrancy.  I always feel like I'm in a carnival land or something.  One night in an Irish Pub there (and several rounds of cocktails in) I actually forgot that I was in Italy since it seems so bizarre to find an Irish pub there and then step outside back into the balmy air and see the warm stone colors all around you. 

The above card photos show one of my favorite souvenirs from my travels in Rome.  I actually keep this card in my wallet till this day because it's just so silly and makes me happy.  If you read it you can see that the club theme is "Screw Global Recession" and one of the available drinks is the "Jager Obama Bomb".  This for me sums up why I love Piazza Navona, it's just such an odd little area!

The piazza is just across the street from Campo de Fiori which I also like but not as much as Navona.  I always recommend this area to people when they ask me where to stay in Rome.  This is where I prefer to stay and aside from being in the area itself, you're really close to everything and just about as ideally central as you can get, which makes most of the sites easily within walking distance.  Oddly, I have no photos of Piazza Navona!  That's due to the fact that every time I'm there I'm having way too much fun (and too many drinks) to be thinking about taking pictures!

Sicilia

I have many favorite cities and places, but without a doubt, Sicily is my number one.  The island holds a lot of personal history for me, including being the setting for my first love, and it was there that I discovered my real passion for travel.  Sicily is a magical place, it's so different from anywhere else with it's mix of European Baroque and ancient Arab style.  Palermo is like a Fairytale for me, a beautiful crumbling jewel in the Italian crown.  The old palaces with their damaged facades, the palm trees, the markets, it all makes me feel like I've gone to a different, lost world.  The other vibe that Palermo gives me is that of being at the end of the line, the very end of Europe.  You can actually feel that there, it gives you the clear sense of being at at the South Pole of the continent, with the whole new adventure of Africa looming ahead.  I adore Palermo and I'm so thankful that I can now consider it home along with New York.  People can have their own opinions on what makes someone "from" a place, but for me Sicily gave me my first series of big adventures in my life, and though I was not there from childhood (I was 16 when I was there), I still consider myself to have grown up there, because I did.  Almost everything changed for me in Palermo, I went through a lot of big life events during my time there and for me that's what "growing up" is, having experiences etc, and I feel like that was definitely the point in my life where I drew a dividing line of before and after.  Everything now is after Sicily for me.  With all that being said, and after having lived there (with the boyfriend at the time), this is my Sicily guide.  

I lived in Santa Flavia which is a suburb of Palermo, and also spent a lot of time in Torre Artale which is pretty much a suburb of Santa Flavia.  It was about a 20 minute drive into the actual city, and 10/15 minutes from Bagheria.  I still miss that house, it had amazing views of the sea since it was up on a mountain and had an amazing smell that I just refer to as "Sicily" even today when I did things that smell like it.  I can best describe it as a mixture of spicy cologne and fresh towels, as weird as that sounds!

 

 Views from home

One of my favorite areas in Palermo (and perhaps in the world) is Mondello.  I have never seen a more gorgeous beach in my entire life.  The view is unbelievable, the water clear, and the vibe is a mixture of the California and Portugal costs.  There's a fun, arcadey type aspect to the area that feels very American or British (think Blackpool) to me, and the restaurants feel very Portuguese coastal town.  Mix those elements in with the Sicilian mountains and you have Mondello.

Mondello

The other beach I frequented was Sant Elia.  Sant Elia is less touristy, and smaller, mostly a local crowd.  It's farther from the center of Palermo so if you're in the city it makes more sense to go to Mondello, they have a bus that goes there erc.  As far as I know you need to drive to Sant Elia, it's kind of in a random spot, but it's a gorgeous beach lined with little fishing boats and nets and watched over by a large tower house. 

Sant'Elia

Views of Palermo suburbs, Santa Flavia to the right

 Ocean views from Santa Flavia

Palermo itself is such a bizarre city, and that's why I love it.  Down one street you might find 18th century palazzos or statues and down another even older Arab buildings.  You can't really peg the city to any style other than it's own, it's just a gorgeous historical mixture of everything capped with a tiara of Palm trees. 

On the subject of the sketchiness of Palermo, yes, it does have a bit of a shady factor but I don't think it's what has come to be accepted.  There are many gypsies around the main tourist sites to watch out for, and there is a pretty high rate of unemployment and poverty but I don't think it's dangerous.  It's more just shady in the sense of being in disrepair.  The buildings need to be tended to, a lot is abandoned, etc, but to me that's cosmetic stuff, it doesn't actually affect anything else but the rowdy character of the city.  The only mafia things I know of in Sicily are monuments or tombs to dead leaders (you can see one off the highway leading into the city), I don't know of any current activity.  The mafia today is mostly based in Naples.

 Four Corners

 Fountain of Shame

Cathedral

Montreale

Side trips

Sicily is pretty small, you can drive from one side to the other in 2 hours, so there are many side trips to do from Palermo.  To the south is Agrigento, home to a colony of amazing Greek ruins (also the HOTTEST place I have ever been in my life, like center of the sun hot with no shade to be found, be prepared), to the East is Taormina, an ancient Roman vacation favorite which is still home to an amphitheater overlooking the sea from high up on a hill.  Taormina also has loads of small alley type streets with pastries shops, major fashion houses like Versace, and little boutiques.  They have a large market for Sicilian pottery there too.  I like Taormina, I think it's charming but I much prefer Palermo.  Without offense to anyone Taormina is a little "older crowd" for me.  My mother would LOVE it.  Me, I prefer the beach and bars of Palermo to the pastry shops and wine bars on the East coast.

 From Taormina it's an easy trip to Mount Etna, the volcano.  The late eruption was in 2001, but it continuously smokes.  Etna was pretty boring to me, it was freezing cold and I did not have a jacket with me, and there isn't much to do if you don't want to actually climb the volcano. If you don't climb it, there's a souvenir shop as a food court.  That's it.  It just wasn't for me

Mt Etna

 

When it comes to Sicily, I'm very much a Palermo girl.  The city just fits my personality perfectly, a little but classy Baroque, a little bit of Mediterranean beach and spice, a mixed historical and cultural background, and a warm lust for life.

I've dressed Alice in Dolce and Gabbana because they are Sicilian and understand what the island is about.  Lace is a huge industry in Sicily, which is why they incorporate it into many of their designs.  Their pieces are also classically Italian and sexy, the Dolce woman is unafraid of vibrant color or print, and embellishes herself with statement jewelry.  The clothing is Sicily embodied, classical shapes and structures sometimes drawn from historical inspiration and adorned with Byzantine gold and jewels.  I love how well the essence of Sicily is captured  in their designs, and if you want to get a feel for the Sicilian vibe, slip into one of their outfits.

Victoire's View: Paris (Neighborhoods)

When I travel, I like to get a feel for the real city that I'm visiting rather than the tourist version of the city.  Recently, I came across a discussion about how some people who have visited Paris were disappointed with what they saw because it didn't live up to the incredible fairytale-like hype that Paris has had for decades.  We've all heard about that Paris, the one where you sit at a cafe eating pastel colored macaroons watching the Eiffel Tower glitter at night and walking through rows of pink cherry blossoms on your way to the Arc de Triomphe.  That's not Paris.  I feel like too many people forget that Paris is a real, functioning city that people inhabit, it isn't Disneyland.  I find Paris very whimsical and magical, but that vibe for me has absolutely nothing to do with the Eiffel Tower or pastries.  

With that being said, I would like to talk about "my" Paris, the one that I fell in love with, and what I believe to be the REAL Paris.  I'll start with neighborhoods.  I know many people who think that the most Parisian parts of Paris are Montmartre and Invalides.  I'm not a fan of either of these areas, I just find them really cheesy and touristy rather than charming.  My substitutes for these are Saint Germain and the Marais.  Both can also be touristy (well all of Paris is touristy, it's a major city) but I find them to be so much more real.  Saint Germain is my favorite area not only because it's my old neighborhood but also because it's a great mix of the different sides that Paris has.  Half of Saint Germain is very chic and flashy, especially being so close to Invalides, but the other half is historic and weird.  Saint Germain is the land of boutiques (rather than large flagship stores), small bookshops, and tiny cafes on streets from the 1600's.  I feel the same way about the Marais but the difference is that Saint Germain has more of a balance between old and new while the Marais is more historic in my opinion. Saint Germain is probably best known for being the capital neighborhood of 60's bohemians and 20th Century bon vivants who put Café de Flore and Les Deux Magots on the map, but to me the area just has a charm to it that makes me prefer it over the other areas.  It's also incredibly central.  My friend asked me recently why I said I barely ever used the Metro while in Paris and the answer is simply because I didn't need to.  You can walk to almost everything from Saint Germain. It's bordered by Invalides (Eiffel Tower, Musée Rodin), Quartier Latin (Sorbonne, le Cluny), and Montparnasse (Catacombs). While a lot of the main sights around Saint Germain are officially in other areas, I consider a lot to still be Saint Germain. The Louvre is right across the river, Notre Dame, Jardin de Luxembourg, Jardin de Tuileries etc.  Saint Germain is an ideal home base for exploration.  

My other favorite area is Bastille.  I've said it a million times and ill say it again, I love Bastille.  As a nightlife girl, and specifically an NYC nightlife girl, I seek out places like Bastille.  It reminds me a lot of places I go to here at home (mostly I'm in the Meat Packing District) and the bars tend to have a bit of New York flair to them.  I also love the convenience of Bastille, if you get bored of one bar on Rue de Lappe, go to the one next door or across the street until you find one that suits you.  As someone who likes to do multiple bars in a night (that's the Roman in me) it's an ideal street.  I also like that the area means business, it's not filled with cafes for older couples or quiet little restaurants, these are party bars and I love it.  I like quaint restaurants and things during the day but at night I like to go all out and be with other people my age. 

Aside from the bars, Bastille is filled with historic little gems and oddities that you can find by wandering around. I remember a few years ago I found a bunch of space invaders graffitied on a random building, I love things like that!  Bastille just has a vibe that I go for, I know it might not be for everyone but for me it's amazing.  I always remember being on the metro with my Parisian friend who told me "Every time I see someone who's oddly dressed, they get off at Bastille"

Other areas I find charming-

- Canal St Martin (so many great restaurants!)

- Île Saint Louis 

3 Days in Paris

While in London, my friend and I planned a short getaway to Paris.  This was my first time taking the EuroStar and I was surprised by how quick it was!  We were in Paris in about 2 hours and set out to explore Saint Germain, my old neighborhood, the first day.  It was ridiculously hot, as they were experiencing a heatwave at the time, but it was still great to be back in Paris wandering around.  

Le Bon Marché department store hiding behind the trees

I did a bit of shopping at Zara, and then we went to Le Bon Marché, which I love.  It was pretty empty at the time, and air conditioned (I would have been happy to move in there at that moment to be honest, the heat was killing me) and I love to wander around the maze-like boutiques that surround the main floors.  It's just such a different store, it reminds me of being in the 1960's and 80's all at the same time.

Notre Dame

Lunch at Café Buci

Down the Rabbit Hole...

After our day exploring Saint Germain, we decided to stick with that area for nightlife as well since it's the area I know the best aside from Bastille.  We thought Bastille would better be conquered the following day when we had had a proper rest (we had to be up at 5:30am to get the train from London to Paris).  First, we went to Cafe le Petit Pont, across from Notre Dame.  The place is pretty touristy but we went because my friend told me she had gotten flaming mojitos there once (they put some kind of big sparkler in the drink) so we wanted them, but sadly they didn't seem to have them!  We got regular mojitos instead

Afterwards, we headed over to one of my favorite bars, The Long Hop, because that was much more of a party bar.  It was just how I remembered it except that they now have a Foosball table where they used to set up beer pong.  We had a good night there and got a bunch of glow sticks for our drinks so that kind of made up for missing the flaming mojitos!

The following day, we went to Montmartre since it is my friend's favorite area in Paris.  Honestly, I cannot stand Montmartre.  It's out of the way, overloaded with tourists and cheesy tourist shops, and just not the real Paris to me.  I feel like it's like Times Square, it's just not really a representative of the real city.  There's also a lot of sketchy characters who hang out there and we had our own bit of a run in with some, but I'm not going to go into detail on that.  So anyway, Montmartre really isn't my favorite place, but it makes for some great pictures!

Lunch in Pigalle

Sacré Cœur and views of Paris

Back Streets

Down the Rabbit Hole...

For our second night out, we got to do the one thing I had been wanting to do the most in Paris- go out in Bastille.  I've talked before about my love for the area, I just always have such a good, wild time when I go out there,  I love it.  We headed over to Rue de Lappe, which is a street completely filled with bars, and decided on a place called Charlotte Bar.  I was intrigued because my guinea pig is named Charlotte!  and also because the bars on Rue de Lappe change pretty frequently, I had never been to this one.  It reminded me a lot of New York style bars, it had air conditioning (my elation was unmatched when I found this out) and inside the look was very modern red and black decor mixed with massive wall collages of all types of iconic pop culture images.  The music was mostly American hip hop which isn't really my style but we met some great people and had a fun night

 

Jay Z and Kanye above the bar

The ceiling!

Epic awesome wall

After Charlotte Bar was Balajo (which I believe used to be called Balajo Latino), a place I know but had never actually been to before.  The inside is really hard to describe, they had these weird decorations on the wall that were like things out of one of those Halloween fun houses.  It was such a surreal experience!  I don't have any pics from there as it was really late at night and we were wrapping things up, but it was interesting!

A bit of whimsy at home after a long night

The next day was our last, so we didn't do much, but we grabbed lunch at a cafe at the end of our street called La Barrique, and they literally had the best cheeseburger I have ever had in my life!  Definitely recommend it!