10 Things To Do in Paris

Planning a trip to Paris? Trying to figure out what to whilst your there? Look no further. Here are 10 things to do in Paris. (Although there is loads more)


1. The Eiffel Tower
Now who goes to Paris and doesn't go to the Eiffel Tower? Its beautiful all hours of the day. Observe the tower from afar or travel up to the top and take in the view. Its absolutely breathtaking.



2. The Louvre 
Another popular tourist spot, the Lourve is one of those places you have to see. Not only is the art impeccable but the history behind the building is incredibly interesting. Even if you aren't an art fan, this is something that needs to be seen.

3. Paris Bike Tour
What better way to explore Paris than on a bike? Go with a tour group and discover all the highlights of Paris. Better yet, their are rentable bikes everywhere. Hire your own and get lost within the wonders of the city!

4. Paris River Cruise
What better way to explore the Seine river than on a river cruise? Go for lunch or dinner and explore the monuments surrounding the river. It's great for all ages.

5. Arc de Triomphe
Now in the picture it may look small, but I assure you this is one of the worlds biggest monuments. You can travel to the top and take in the view or walk around underneath and learn a little bit of France's history.

6. Notre Dame de Paris
One of the oldest Gothic cathedrals in Paris, it's not to be missed! Located in the central of Paris, explore the history this church has to offer.


7. Paris by Mouth Tour
Want to experience the french cuisine? The Paris by Mouth food tour is your answer! The cheese, the croissants and the snails, oh my!

8. Rue De Rivoli 
This one is for you shopaholics. The Rue De Rivoli is one of the most famous streets of Paris. It includes all the most famous high-fashion labels. So if you are looking for something to buy, this is your first-stop-shop.

9. The Catabombs of Paris
Now this is not the for light-hearted. The Catabombs were a previous burial place for the Parisians in the 18th century. It has approximatly 6 million remains.This is a spooky, haunting yet interesting aspect of Paris.

10. Disneyland Paris
Now, if you are a bit of a Disney freak (like myself) Disneyland Paris is a must! The parade, the sculptures and building include all your favourite Disney characters.Even if you may think its small, its everything you Disney fans have ever dreamed off.

The Travel Diaries: The Flight

14th July, 2015.

It was 2am and the dream of travelling to Europe was becoming my reality. I was sitting at the terminal, waiting for my flight number to be announced on the intercom. My nerves had skyrocketed the moment I walked into the airport. Needless to say, I was terrified. Then the flight number was called and I was on my way to boarding the plane.

You're probably wondering if I am afraid of planes, I'm not, I swear! But the fear of the unknown terrified me. Travelling across the world, by myself, nearly got the best of me. I was scared, but I was triumphant. I was doing something everyone seemed to disapprove. People thought I was crazy, they couldn't understand why I was doing it. I even had one person tell me I was going to get killed. But needless to say, I am here now and this is how my journey began.

Brisbane - Singapore - Dubai

Brisbane - Singapore

The journey to Singapore was the most uncomfortable. At the time I left, Brisbane was blanketed under a polar vortex. Because of this, turbulence on the way was a nightmare. You could feel every gust of wind against the plane, making it quite a bumpy flight.

I flew with Emirates on one of their Boeing-777's. Although their wasn't anything they could do to reduce the turbulence, the flight attendants were really helpful. If I had a question, they were very polite. I can't really say much about the food on this flight as I was too nervous to eat it. However from the menu options, it seemed like pretty decent food considering it was on a plane. From memory, the meal you could choose from were scrambled eggs or sausages. The trip from Singapore to Dubai was much better. On this flight, I wasn't as nervous as I was before and I had a far better experience.

Dubai - Paris

Dubai - Paris

After landing in Dubai, I waiting for a couple of hours in the airport for my next flight. Now Dubai is beautiful, but it was ridiculously hot and humid. Just walking in the terminal you could feel the heat from the windows.

Before I knew it, my flight had been called. For this flight I flew on the Emirates A380 Airbus. Let me tell you, that plane was HUGE! The first floor was just economy and the second floor was dedicated to business and first class. For economy it was pretty high end. It was more spacious than the Boeing-777  with the seats being slightly bigger. The windows though felt a bit smaller. The food was similar to before with options being beef and mashed potato and the other option being chicken. The entertainment was also fantastic. They had nearly every new release music and movies available, as well as old classics. 

The only problem I had on this flight was how far the seats could recline. Don't get me wrong they are quite comfortable when you are trying to sleep, but their isn't much room for your dinner tray when the person in front of you reclines their chair. You literally have to have your tray sitting on your lap because that's how far the chairs recline. 

Landing - Paris 

Landing in Paris, I had never been more excited. Despite my nervousness departing, I felt confident that I could get my own way from the airport to the hostel (and I did!). Maybe it was the friendly staff on board the flight, or maybe it was the back-up plans I kept creating. From here, it was the start of my amazing journey around Europe.

Observation Investigation: Tactile Pathways

Whilst walking around UQ, I couldn’t help but notice the tactile pathways which were scattered across the University. There are plenty of these pathways within the CBD and surrounding areas but what about the outer suburbs? If there is a drastic difference between the number of pathways throughout each suburb, why? Where are these pathways located? Brisbane’s most southern suburb Drewvale has been substantially growing over the years. With 2 retirement villages and another on the way, I decided to observe these pathways within the area.

This piece was for an assignment at Uni. But in your opinion, should their be more tactile pathways available for the visually impaired in the outer suburbs? 

Holocaust Memorial Day 2015

Respect, memory makers and 'keeping the memory alive' where the themes to commemorate the 70th Anniversary of the Holocaust Memorial Day. The heartbreaking event, which is deemed one of humanities utmost tragedies, took place on the 27th January 2015. 

The Auschwitz killings, which approximately killed over 1.5 million people (mostly Jews) destroyed hundreds of thousands of families, divided countries and was the ultimate downfall of the totalitarianism government known as the Nazi's.  

However, in spite of all the devastating events which took place, one girls brave charisma and beautiful words stole the heart of millions. Her name was Anne Frank and although she was tragically killed during the Holocaust, her striking language and her faith in humanity are portrayed within her famous diary - "The Diary of a Young Girl."

13 year old Anne Frank

The diary describes her wartime story - from the days when she was considered as a normal schoolgirl, to the days when she and her family were in hiding. The diary abruptly ends just before her and her family were discovered and captured. Her father, Otto Frank, was the only survivor within the household. Shortly after discovering his family had been killed, he finds his daughters diary and had decided to publish her innocent thoughts for the world to see. 

Since then, the diary had sold over 30 million copies worldwide and was translated into 67 different languages. 

To commemorate the theme of 'Keeping the Memory Alive', below are some of her most beautiful words. Her thoughts, courage, bravery and shining charisma are are portrayed within this funny, inspiring and heartbreaking diary. After all, What is done cannot be undone, but one can prevent it happening again. 

“Human greatness does not lie in wealth or power, but in character and goodness. People are just people, and all people have faults and shortcomings, but all of us are born with a basic goodness.” 

“Where there's hope, there's life. It fills us with fresh courage and makes us strong again.”

“Although I'm only fourteen, I know quite well what I want, I know who is right and who is wrong. I have my opinions, my own ideas and principles, and although it may sound pretty mad from an adolescent, I feel more of a person than a child, I feel quite indepedent of anyone.” 

“Earning happiness means doing good and working, not speculating and being lazy. Laziness may look inviting, but only work gives you true satisfaction.” 

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.”

Women should be respected as well! Generally speaking, men are held in great esteem in all parts of the world, so why shouldn't women have their share? Soldiers and war heroes are honored and commemorated, explorers are granted immortal fame, martyrs are revered, but how many people look upon women too as soldiers?

“Think of all the beauty still left around you and be happy.”

“I can shake off everything as I write; my sorrows disappear, my courage is reborn.”

“No one has ever become poor by giving.” 

“It's really a wonder that I haven't dropped all my ideals, because they seem so absurd and impossible to carry out. Yet I keep them, because in spite of everything, I still believe that people are really good at heart.”

*All the above quotes are extracts from Anne Franks Diary, The Diary of a Young Girl. 

Raising a Puppy

Hi Munchkins,

Today, Luna is officially 6 months old. It seems like only yesterday that we picked her up as a 6 week old puppy. How time flies! 

Throughout this journey of being a 'parent' to this mischievous little ball of fluff (Yes, I used the term parent as that is exactly what its like raising this dog.). I have come to realise that puppies are very much like toddlers. They misbehave, cry and whine at your bedroom door at 4am in the morning begging for attention.

Raising Luna has had its ups and downs. Although this is nothing compared to raising a child, their are some similarities.One of the classic examples is telling child 'no'. How can you possibly say no to those big, brown round eyes? Exactly, you can't and she knows this too. She walked into the study on one of the first days we got her and began to chew the boxes on the floor. Instead of telling her in a stern tone 'no' my mum decided to allow her to chew the boxes as she didn't need them anyway. "It's okay" she would say. Now she chews everything her little heart desires. First the boxes,then my shoes and recently the knob of one of the desk draws.

As I write this post, she is currently rolling around on my newly made bed. Not only that but she is soaking wet from jumping into the pool, so now I currently smell like wet dog. Do I forgive her? Of course! Her beckoning brown eyes tell me too.

Thats another thing. With her adorable head tilt and chocolate eyes its almost like she is telling me what to do. If only I could do that!

Anyway, here are some pictures of 6 month old Luna. I hope you all enjoyed.
Do any of you have dogs?

Amy
xo

The 2015 Tag

Hi Munchkins!

Happy New Year!
Another chapter has closed and a new one has begun, so make the most of it! 

To welcome the New Year, I have to decided to make a '2015 tag'. Although I don't believe in New Year resolutions, I do have goals that I would like to achieve this year. I believe that you should expect the unexpected, however it is quite fun predicting what this year might bring. Here goes nothing! 

1. Do you have a New Years 'resolution'?

As I said previously, I don't believe in New Year resolutions. In my experience, I have to give myself a deadline for these goals as I find that after 2 months, I tend to give up. I have to give myself realistic goals. For Instance, I want to stop swearing. So for the first two months, I'll swap those words for some others. Then, I'll attempt to give up on those words all together. Its a personal thing, but if you are going to give yourself a goal, your going to have to give yourself deadlines.

2. What would you like to achieve in 2015?

My main goal this year is to achieve the best grades possible for University. I'm changing course this year into a dual degree for a Bachelor of Journalism and a Bachelor of Arts. So not only is it double the work, its a very competitive industry to get into. So to help develop my skills, my goal is to write more blog posts, report more stories. Even if its once a month, at least I am brushing up on my skills.

3. What are you most excited about this year?

This year I'm going to Europe! I'm about to pay the final installment for my trip next week. I'm going for 2 weeks, I am so excited already!

4. Its 2015! How old does that make you?

I will be 19 in April! :O 

5. What are you going to miss the most about 2014?

Thinking about it, I don't think I'm going to be doing much different this year than I did in 2014. In saying that, with my dual degree I think I'm going to miss having so much freedom.

6.  Any final words for 2014?

I remember it like it was yesterday. ;) 

I hope you all have a splendid New Year! Enjoy your break and have fun.

Amy

xoxo

The Tips and Tricks To Foundation

Hi Munchkins!

Today I have finally found the time to create a blog post, a guide to finding the perfect foundation. As its a change of seasons, I thought this would be perfect.

When I first began my make-up collection, I was quite confused by the different types and colours avalible. What are the differences between dewy and powder foundation? What colour is right for my skin tone? These were just some of the questions circling in my head. I was afraid that I had chosen a foundation which was too dark and didn't do the coverage I was after. After many trail and errors I thought it would be a great idea to share my experiences with you all.

When I was 14, I bought my first foundation. I didn't have a job, so my first mistake was buying the cheapest foundation I could find. If I was to describe it in one word - terrible. My face looked orange, completely mismatching my pale complexion. By the end of the day, my make-up had completely fallen off my face.

Tip #1 - Don't ignore your skin type.
After all the different foundations I have used, the first tip that comes to mind is finding a foundation which suits your skin type. I have very dry skin, so I prefer to use a dewy or liquid foundation whereas my sister had quite oily skin and prefers to use powders. There are many different types of foundations (Matte, Dewy, Powder, etc) which can suit your skin as well as giving you the amount of coverage your after.


Tip #2 - Quality 
As saying I always like to follow, its quality over quantity. With make-up it doesn't matter how much you spend, but the quality of the product. Does it feel good on? Does it match your skin complexion? Does it look good on your skin? If so, then it is probably a good quality product which won't damage your skin and will suit your skin type. If your still having trouble with deciding on which foundation to use, read reviews on websites, see what others think of the product. Again, your going to have to do your homework with this one.

Tip #3 - Shade
Like I stated previously, when I had first tried foundation, I had chosen the completely wrong shade. . . In saying this, if you blend foundation into your hand and reflect it in the sunlight, it should show you if that tone matches your skin. Don't be afraid to mix foundations as well, as blending a darker tone with a light one might actually work for your skin.

Tip #4 - Trial and error
Sometimes, it may take you many tries to find the right foundation for you. Even if you get it wrong the first time, you can always try again. So when you buy your next foundation, you'll know what to look for.


I hoped this helped some of you out there, and i hope your all enjoying your Christmas break.

Amy