Tag: trip

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The Hookup On: Preply

Now that I have been traveling more often, I think it’s time that I learn a language other than English. I took one Spanish class for a year once and one French class for a year once and did pretty poorly in each.  I took Italian for three years in high school and was pretty bad at that too. Learning a language really isn’t my thing, but I’m giving it a shot!

Preply.com is an online language-learning service that allows users to connect with tutors from all around the world. You can meet with this tutor via Skype and the lessons are very affordable.

I did my first lesson last night to learn Spanish. I met with my tutor on Skype and we had a one hour session. We did an audio call and she shared a presentation with me and we went over the basics of Spanish such as greetings and the alphabet.

My tutor lives in Venezuela and was very friendly, easy to understand, and relatable. I loved the lessons she laid out for me and feel as though I learned a lot in my first hour! It was so easy to find a tutor and get the session going. I’m looking forward to the rest of my Spanish lessons!

hc

This is a sponsored post. All opinions are mine.

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The Hookup On: My Trip To Vermont!

I took advantage of the three day Labor Day Weekend by visiting Vermont. I had a feeling Vermont would be one of my favorite states and it did not disappoint. It reminded me a lot of Portland, Maine – but better.

Things we did:

  1. Hiked Elmore State Park – a little tough, but a decent hike for beginners. I took a lot of breaks going up because I suck at steep hikes.
  2. Saw the World’s Tallest Filing Cabinet – and it was awesome.
  3. Ben and Jerry’s Factory Tour – ice cream, need I say more?
  4. Hiked Mount Philo – an easy and scenic loop!

Places we ate:

  1. Penny Cluse – prepare for a long wait, but good breakfast!
  2. Chubby Muffin – we stopped here for some takeaway breakfast before a hike and loved it.
  3. Red Onion – tasty sandwiches for lunch!
  4. Our House – omg sooo many mac n cheese options
  5. Sweet Waters – one of the better places that didn’t have a long wait!

We stayed at an Airbnb in Burlington and college was back in session so it was a little busy, but never really too chaotic. Everyone is very eco-friendly and the scenery was just amazing. Mountains are everywhere and we were lucky to be staying close to Lake Champlain where we watched the sunset. This was one of my favorite weekend trips and I would be so happy to take another trip to Vermont!

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The Hookup On: The Finger Lakes

Being from NJ, I am mostly limited to New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, etc. for short weekend trips – ones that don’t require me to take off from work.

This past weekend I went to the Finger Lakes with a group of friends and was pleasantly surprised by how much we loved the area.

What we did:

1. Hiked Watkins Glen State Park – the views were AMAZING! And it was a relatively easy hike.

2. Wine Tastings – the Finger Lakes is the Wine Country of the East Coast. Wineries are a must do!

Where we ate:

1. Red Newt Bistro – if you like grilled cheese then you need to try their artisanal take on the sandwich!

2. The Lakeside Restaraunt – great view views of Keuka lake and great food!

Wineries:

1. Red Newt – very fun wine tasting and great views!

2. Wagner- awesome views and also has a brewery!

3. Bully Hill – very quirky, great views, and great wine!

The best part of the Finger Lakes was the views of the farms, rolling hills, and stunning lakes. Anything you do there, make sure you’re doing it with a view. All of the places we went were overlooking dreamy lake and hill views.

Have you ever been to New York and visited somewhere outside of NYC?

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The Hookup On: Places I’d Love To Go

Here is an updated list of places I want to visit! Where are some places you’d like to go?

    1. Toronto (but I want to go again!)
    2. Portland, Oregon
    3. Portland, Maine 
    4. Seattle
    5. Niagara Falls
    6. Nashville
    7. Mt. Rushmore
    8. Washington DC
    9. Austin
    10. San Francisco
    11. Boston
    12. Boulder
    13. Ireland
    14. Australia
    15. Alaska
    16. Disney World
    17. Aruba
    18. Arkansas
    19. Mexico
    20. Mall of America
    21. Chicago
    22. Montreal
    23. Dominican Republic
    24. Italy (But I want to go again!)
    25. Hawaii
    26. Bahamas
    27. Iceland
    28. France
    29. Vancouver
    30. New Orleans
    31. Great Lakes
    32. Egypt
    33. Baltimore
    34. Charlotte
    35. Barcelona
    36. Miami
    37. Atlanta
    38. London
    39. Jamaica
    40. Finger Lakes (Going tonight!)
    41. Puerto Rico

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PostGrad

Live From The Middle Urinal

Hi guys!

I recently hung out with the guys from the Live From The Middle Urinal Podcast. We talked about travel and how to settle arguments when you’re in a relationship. I had a blast and if you feel like taking a break from reading blogs to listen to something, check out the episode I’m featured on!

Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-from-the-middle-urinal/id1123887651?mt=2&i=1000389621947

All of their episodes can be listened to here: https://www.middleurinal.com/episodes/

Let me know what you think in the comments!

xoxo

Rosie

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The Hookup On: My Trip To Portland, ME

Over 4th of July weekend, I took the 6 hour trip to Maine – or 9 hours if you hit weekend traffic like I did.

I’ve been making it a point to spend my weekends wisely and try to explore my American backyard while I can. It’s so easy to spend a day driving to see somewhere new, I can’t always hop on a plan to see new places. The main(e) goal of Maine was to eat good food and relax 🙂

Things we did:

  1. Distillery Tour at New England Distillery
  2. Portland Head Lighthouse
  3. Bug Lighthouse
  4. Willard Beach

Places we ate:

  1. C Salt Gourmet Market
  2. Portland Lobster Co.
  3. Gilbert’s Chowder House
  4. Gorgeous Gelato
  5. Old Port Sea Grille
  6. Elsmere BBQ
  7. Otto’s Pizza

Doing a brewery/distillery tour is a must when you’re in Maine. I don’t like beer so we only went to New England Distillery, but it was very interesting! Portland Head Light and Fort Williams Park have amazing views and history. Bug Light and Willard Beach were near where we were staying, we relaxed on the beach then headed over to Bug Light to watch the sunset. The views in Portland are amazing.

As for food, I would 10/10 recommend C Salt Gourmet Market for breakfast, Portland Lobster Co. and Gilbert’s Chowder House for lobster rolls, and Elsmere BBQ and Otto’s Pizza for other nomz. Gorgeous Gelato was okay and we weren’t huge fans of Old Port Sea Grille compared to the other yummy food we got this restaurant fell short.

Overall, I am so happy I went to Portland, Maine and would definitely recommend popping in for a short trip! Maine itself has so many cool hiking trails and such so I’d love to go back to see more of it.

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Portland, Maine Advice Needed!

Every time I finish up a trip, I have another one already booked and in need of planning! We’ll be heading to Portland, Maine in the next coming weeks and would love any tips from someone who has been there!

Looking for ideas on things to see, unique spots as well as landmarks. Looking for places to eat (big fans of brunch if you have any suggestions there). And looking for some low key bars to visit at night. Any and all advice is welcome!

Thanks in advance!

xoxo

Rosie