leaving for fall break...

Wallenstein Garden

Tonight!!! Unfortunately, our plane departs at 4am tomorrow morning... but the Czech metro closes down at midnight. So, sleepover at the airport?

I'm sure Barcelona, Southern France, Paris, and London are gorgeous, but Prague was especially lovely this week. Be back in ten days, I'll be sure to take tons of photos! xoxo

BUDAPEST!

Finally, I'm ready and armed with lots and lots of pictures! We literally walked around the whole city, crossing three of the four bridges -- so lots of different views of the city. It was the perfect way to "meet" Budapest. A picture-filled recap of my trip (or click for the whole experience here):

No surprise, Budapest is architecturally striking...

Along the way, I saw some of my favorite yellow buildings!

Budapest is also fully of silly statues!

And little nooks in castles!

But what kind of trip would this be without yummy desserts?

And lots of Eastern European food? (Read: Paprika spice and heavy sauces)

I had such an AMAZING time in Budapest. It's a beautiful city.

budapest! (in video)

I'm such a terrible studier. I can't work for more than an hour or so before my mind drifts off to things like pictures, shoes, and traveling. And I can't believe I still haven't sifted through and picked out Budapest pictures to post yet! After my midterm tomorrow, they will be up soon!

But I do have for you some of my videos from Budapest! Such a gorgeous, beautiful city. Architecture, landscape, the Danube river -- everything was serene and quietly majestic.

Budapest's Parliament building

Sitting by the peaceful Danube river

PS: T-minus 3 days until I leave for fall break!!!! (Sooo excited!)

blog updates

Hi dears,

I'm sorry I've been remiss on updating! It's midterms crunch-time, and uploading photos (unfortunately) takes up a lot of time, especially when there are hundreds of them to look through!

In the meantime, take a look at my inspiration blog (on fashion, writing, and design): http://helenhearts.blogspot.com

See you in a week!
Helen

PS: I promise Budapest pics will be up soon! :)

my petit room

I have a bunk-bed! Perfect for visiting friends

My closet is all over the place

I'm usually not so sloppy, but lately, everything has been in disarray. It's like the second I fold my clothes and put my stuff in place, they're all in a mess again! (And somehow always find their way to the unused top bunk.) I blame it on the planning, traveling, and studying. If only a day were 48 hours long!

PS: I am off for my weekend in Budapest in FIVE hours! (As in, we leave at 5AM!) Not going to sleep much tonight. :)

bohemia bagel, pt. 2

Actually, it might be the cheesecake... (with coffee and a book).

I like to eat the crust first with the fruit

bohemia bagel

Sometimes, when I need a break from (delicious but heavy!) Czech food and my own scrappy creations, I visit Bohemia Bagel for some good old American treats in hearty, large portions. Their menu is absolutely divine -- the chunky, creamy, tomato soup is my favorite.

Berlin!

I'm still gushing about this weekend in Berlin -- it was so, so much fun! My friend Lisa and I took the city in a whirlwind! We stayed with a lovely couple, Tanja and Dirk, who we found from CouchSurfing, and then set off to do some sightseeing and exploring. We ended up visiting:

The Pergamon museum

The Reichstag and its dome

The Brandenburg gate

The TV tower (Berlin's tallest building)


And the Berlin Wall and East Side Gallery




Oh, and we caught "The Giants" puppet parade!

In between, we relaxed at Cafe Einstein, where we ordered brunch, the cafe's famous apple strudel (so says Time Out Berlin) and hot chocolate. It was the best part of the entire weekend! And just the beginning of two food-crazy days. We devoured currywurst, doner kebaps, and gelato. Oh, this weekend was such a blast!

just another day in prague

I'm heading to Berlin tomorrow for the weekend, so today, I felt the urge to snap more photos of Prague while heading to class. Kafka once said of Prague: "this Little Mother has claws." Now I know what he means. It's an endearing little city that I've grown to love. :)