so i finally have a bit of time to update you on what has been going on...
my travels here have been amazing... whether here in London or internationally. i have been blessed enough to see parts of the world that i never would have imagined getting to see!!
Most recently, i went to St. Vlas, Sunny Beach & Nessebar in BULGARIA! It is located right on The Black Sea. and it was amazing. One of my oldest and best friends, Kelly, joined me for the trip. we had an amazing time. It was beautiful and hot... and even more amazing, my friend Dave, from London, has an apartment there, so we had place to stay, for FREE!! (thank you Dave!) - - oh.. and by the way, Dave's apartment was in a VILLA!! 8 pools 3 restaurants, private beach! AMAZING!!
The pottery in Bulgaria is handmade and everything there was super cheap, as the Leva / Pound ratio is 2:1 and the Leva/USD was 1.4:1... so me and Kelly made out like bandits! :-) i think Kelly made out more, as she shopped til she dropped! :-) i
The Black Sea was clear and amazing... but the funniest part about that whole area is that it is super safe, because the Denevi Brothers (the mob) run it... which i know sounds completely insane.. but its true... they love the $$ from the tourism that it is really safe!
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I took the month of August to explore the some of the best nook and crannies of the UK, relatively near to London. Windsor Castle, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Brighton Beach, & Southend.
Windsor Castle - was really cool... the landscape is picturesque. And apparently, the Queen stays there from time to time.. and also, apparently, the first car from London drove through Windsor at 5mph. and the funny thing was - people from Windsor never saw a car before, so a boy had to run in front of the car with a red flag, so people would know it was coming! HYSTERICAL!
Stratford-Upon-Avon is where Shakespeare is born and raised and died. it is quite a quaint little town.
Brighton Beach - Is amazing!!! This beach has the feel of the combinations of the Santa Monica Pier and Coney Island all rolled into one.. it is beautiful with an "old" feel to it.. the only thing that is annoying about the beach is the sand.. or lack there off Brighton Beach consists of a "rock/pebble" beach... not very nice on your feet!
Southend - now this is an interesting town.. it is a fisherman's town. and i don't think it is up to date on alot of things, and that includes the mindset of the people there... granted, not everyone.. but yeah.
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In July, I went to Geneva, Switzerland to see my friend Dena from LA who lives there now... we had a great relaxing time.. it was quite nice! and Ava (Dena & Hyder's little girl) was so cute and a breath of fresh air to see and hang with... Oh.. and let me tell you.. Dena and Hyder live right on Lake Geneva.. their view is absolutely Stunning!! i can't even get over it!!! And while i was there, I was able to see my new dear friend, Jade, who is from South Africa, who I met here in London. She is a doll and her boy friend, oddly enough, just moved to Geneva as well! So that was really great to see them and catch up as well! oh, and i almost forgot! i went to Evian, France!! ya know, where the water actually comes from!! cute little town!!
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June was spent splashing around in the south of Portugal, in The Algarve and Lagos with my friend Laura. UNREAL! although the water was quite chilly, it was refreshing after sitting on hot beach. We hike the beach for miles and climbed these amazing rocks and cliffs. Stunning... The sunsets were fantastic and the food, was really good!! i could have stayed there forever! - the only annoying part was in The Algarve, all the waiters or hostesses would harass you to come into their restaurants. it was OK the first 2 hours.. but then i wanted to hit them! :-) and actually all the restaurants that we ate at were off the beaten path and we were not harassed to go in... so if you are ever there... follow my lead!
next week, i am off to Oktoberfest. It should be a great time. My friend Jenny and crew from the US are going as well, which will make for a fantastic time!!
More later!!
here are a few pics... ENJOY!
Rach
Bulgaria:
Southend, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Warwick Castle & Windsor Castle:
Brighton Beach:
Geneva:
Algarve & Lagos, Portugal:
