I'm moving to New York!

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Its official! I'm moving to the East Coast! It's been three years since living in Washington, D.C. and i'm so excited to be coming back for more East Coast adventures. So many opportunities have come into my life in the Big Apple and I can't wait to share all of my adventures with you! I will definitely have more free time to vlog more and update on the blog, I promise! Thank you ALL for your support. 

#Dutakestheworld: Milano Day 1

After four days in Florence, it was time to meet my family for the first time in Milan! I walked to Santa Maria Novella, the main train station in the city and took the train straight to Milan. It took about 4 hours to get to Milano Centrale and oh my goodness, it was one of the most beautiful train stations i've ever seen. The architecture alone was something from a movie. The high ceilings and the white marble everywhere, I was in love. I mean, when am I never not in love with Europe.
I completely forgot I booked business class for my trip to Milan and what a difference it is compared to coach. I got my own little corner to myself and all kinds of food and drinks. It was glorious. Once I arrived my family greeted me from the entrance of the platforms and we took the metro to their apartment to drop off my things. Public transportation in Europe is incomparable to any other type i've ever experienced, except for when I lived in Washington, D.C. Not to put LA down, but they ain't got nothing on Europe with their metro. It was Easter Sunday when I arrived in Milano, so almost everything from businesses to public areas were closed, but everyone was still out and about for aperitivo (drinks & appetizers) at certain local restaurants. We attended mass and afterwards my family took me around to explore the city. After seeing Il Duomo (The main cathedral in Milano) we walked around the shopping areas and the central part of the city. Some of the most beautiful buildings i've ever seen in my life were in Milan and I couldn't be anymore grateful than I already am to have experienced them with my own eyes. After some exploring, we ended up having an aperitivo of our own at this beautiful restaurant called Maya. It was a Mediterranean Italian restaurant with a lot of different kinds of all you can eat appetizers and refreshing drinks. It was amazing. I could not stop eating. Afterwards we ended up walking around some more and just heading home for the night. It was a beautiful first day in Milano. 

#Dutakestheworld: Firenze

So the moment we arrived in Firenze (Florence), I was taken back by the beautiful river that was surrounded by all of these gorgeous buildings and bridges. I was in definite awe to witness this place in all its glory. I honestly had no words when we got there. I just kept taking all of the videos and pictures I could take. I mean, don't get me wrong Roma was magnificent filled with so much rich culture and beauty, but Firenze just felt like this entirely different place filled with romance and just a simple calmness to it. I can't really explain how I was feeling when I started to explore the city after we checked into our hotel, but overall the cobblestone steps and the amazing churches were spectacular. I couldn't believe my eyes.
We ended up joining a walking tour after we were settled in and I learned a lot about the history of Florence. I found out there was a significance to the story of Pinocchio because it originated in Florence by an Italian carpenter.  Our guide also talked about the significant amount of famous philosophers, inventors and artists that actually resided here like Leonardo Da Vinci, Cenni De Pepo and Filippo Brunelleschi. 

#Dutakestheworld: Roma

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Since i've been in Rome, everyone has been so welcoming. I arrived around noon and my driver picked me up at 12:30pm. My hotel was only 20 minutes from Aeroporto Fiumicino, so once I arrived I took a nice long nap in my room before I did any exploring in the central part of the city. I met up with my mom and sister afterwards because they arrived a few days earlier than I did. We have family in Rome that live close to where we were so they picked us up and we took a little night tour around the center of everything. We saw the Colosseum and just drove around the city and had some really good Chinese food. I thought it was really funny because my first meal in Italy was Chinese, but it was still so delicious.After we said our goodbyes that night, the next day we went to Vatican City and went to the papal visit to see the pope and watch the service. It was really amazing being able to see the Pope and we actually got to meet him and he blessed us. It was beautiful.
We were there from about 7 am to 2:30 pm going all around after the service and visiting the Sistine Chapel and St. Peter's Basilica. After all of that exploring we had some time to visit the Fontana Di Trevi and make our wishes and Lizzie Mcguire dreams comes true (Just kidding only my dreams). We had some delicious Italian food afterwards and I ordered some ravioli cause it looked really good on the menu. It was a simple meal and I finally got to try an Aperol Spritz. One of my coworkers told me about them and how they're a specialty drink here in Italy. It was delicious. There was actually a lot of alcohol in it surprisingly. We headed back to the hotel to get ready for a formal dinner my mom had for her job and were wined and dined, danced the night away and I actually got to meet more people closer to my age and since they were going to Florence the same time we were we got to meet up with them again towards the end of our trip. 

#Dutakestheworld: London

I honestly don't know where to start with this post. It's been a crazy last 24 hours from landing here in Heathrow from LAX and finalizing all of my plans when I arrived. I had this whole page filled with what stations I needed to get off and on using the tube. (That is the name of the subway here in London)

Anyways, before I even go into extreme detail of all that went down in Central London, on my flight I met an amazing person named, Maxine, she works in the fashion industry in London and coincidentally is from Italy, lives in London and has family in the San Fernando Valley of all places. What are the odds? She gave me some really great advice on where to eat in Italy and London and I'm so grateful to have met her. 

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Once we landed in Heathrow we picked up our luggage and parted ways after getting each other's contact info. After getting my sim card and dropping off my excess luggage I headed to the Heathrow express and arrived in Paddington station in about 15 minutes. Right after I got off I headed straight to the tube and to Regent's Park. It was absolutely breathtaking. I've never seen a park kept so well with such beautiful garden designs. 

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​I walked around for about an hour and a half and stumbled upon the Queen's garden and admired the Japanese style garden. Walking around gave me a little relating check that I was actually in London. I was still in a bit of denial. A few minutes later I decided to head to the next thing on my planned itinerary. I went to Oxford circus and explored the shopping area of London. It was busy and reminded me a lot of when I was in New York, except the while double decker bus thing ofcourse. 

I just kept walking until I hit Leicester square and since my new friend Max gave me a few recommendations in this area I headed to ​Fortnum & Mason, a famous tea and delicacies shop. It was like Teavana & David's Tea & Neiman Marcus on crack. I honestly don't know how to describe this place, but I did get to take a little exploration break and have some tea and scones. 

I had a Royal breakfast English tea ​with some amazing scones and clotted cream and their famous jam. I was basically in heaven. After the appropriate amount of photos were taken of my food (just kidding) I embraced this beautiful little cafe and this glorious tea I  ordered and finished within 10 minutes or less. 

Once I finished I headed to the tube once again because it was almost 5 o' clock​ and I had to make time for Tate Modern one of the most beautiful museums I have ever visited. All of the art was so unique and really spoke to me. The installations alone definitely caught my eye. 

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There was this indoor bar cafe that had the most beautiful view of the city. I grinding need to come back and spend more time here. ​I stopped into a Starbucks to settle down for a bit until the next stop on my list: Shakespeares Globe. It was definitely amazing seeing where history happened in the theatre world. As a lover of the theatre (think of a strong Shakespearean way of saying this) I appreciated every aspect of this place. 

I walked up and down the area of Borough market to London bridge and by the river until I couldn't anymore. ​I stopped in a few shops and talked to some friendly locals about where are some good places to explore as a first timer. They pointed me in the direction of where Big Ben and Buckingham palace was and so I headed there because they were on my list anyways. Big Ben in all its glory still surprised me the moment I laid eyes on it. Walking around the area was a nice brisk walk where I ended up seeing the London Eye and Buckingham palace 30 minutes late right before sunset. 

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Buckingham palace was definitely a sight I wouldn't want anyone to miss if they're visiting London. I stayed there for almost an hour admiring its beauty. I was also exhausted, but hey who's keeping track. I ended up walking through a park nearby and headed to the tube again. I went straight to Kings Cross and visited the infamous Harry Potter Platform 9 3/4. The line was pretty long, but this was the last thing on my list anyways so I decided to stand in line for my picture. 

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After a quick snack break after that long line I headed to a local pub to relax and enjoy my last few hours in London. It was near King's Cross tube station and right next to Google hq and YouTube space London. The drinks were great and the staff was pretty accommodating. It was a definitely a nice end to an exciting and eventful day exploring. I headed to Paddington station around 11 and took the Heathrow express again back to the airport and slept in the airport for about 5-6 hours. I wonder I'm around 5:30 and tried to washer myself nectar my flight was at 8 am. I picked up my excess baggage that I dropped off and headed to my terminal to Rome. 

Europe!

Today's the day! I'll be arriving in London in about 20 hours and I can't wait to explore the beautiful city of so many historical sights. It'll be my first time visiting the UK and I'm excited to take advantage of the 19 hours I have on my layover so we'll see what's in store the moment I arrive. I've been vlogging since I started packing so there will be a video once I arrive to my main destination: Italy! 

Coincidentally my sister and mom had their flight at the gate next to mine so we got to spend a little more time together before we parted ways: 

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#Dutakestheworld: Europe!

in

So it's finally happening, i'm headed to Europe for the first time in my life and I couldn't be anymore excited than I already am, I think. A few months ago my doctors were planning for me to have surgery on my thyroid in April, but because of complications they postponed it and I had a few weeks off from work. Right then and there I looked up some flights around the same time and found a flight from LAX (Los Angeles) to FCO (Rome, Italy) for $400. I honestly couldn't believe it, so I booked it that minute. I decided to specifically visit, London, Italy, France and Switzerland. I honestly am counting the days until the day finally comes for my dream destination. I am so grateful to even have this opportunity and I can't wait to share it all with you!

#dineLA The Church Key 1.13.2017

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Last night was definitely a beautiful dining experience to say the least for my friend Keisha and I. It was our second time celebrating #dineLA and we definitely enjoyed every minute of it. On the first night of #dineLA, out of the 300+ beautiful restaurants to choose from, we decided on The Church Key here in Los Angeles on Sunset Blvd. The ambiance was relaxing and the low lighting definitely gave a romantic dinner vibe. The price point for our meal was $39 and from all of the delicious food we received and the great service it was most definitely worth it. We had to choose between three menu items for each main course and two desserts.

The first two courses we chose were: a stuffed avocado with a tuna tartare, Japanese cucumber, radish and a ponzu aioli followed by crispy pork belly, Korean chili glaze, escarole "Kim-chi" with a fried egg and cilantro. The tuna was a refreshing start to our meal with all of the great qualities a tartare can have and it was elegantly executed. The flavors blended very well together and I also absolutely loved the crispy pork belly. It was both crispy and soft and I never thought the flavors of "Kim-chi" and the chili glaze would blend so well with the fried egg and cilantro. (Sidenote: But then again I love cilantro on everything.) 

Our main courses were: Tapioca crusted Tai Snapper, Green papaya salad, Thai basil nuoc cham, peanuts and crispy shallots followed by Red Wine braised beef cheeks, parsnip puree, and a horseradish gremolata. The Tai Snapper was just the right amount of crispy in my opinion and the green papaya salad with the nuoc cham all meshed together so well with my palette. The winner that night though was definitely Keisha's choice: the braised beef cheeks. They were so tender and cooked so perfectly and the gremolata was a nice touch of flavor to make it so savory and satisfying. 

For dessert: we both chose brioche donuts with a brown butter glaze and cinnamon caramel. The butterscotch pudding did sound quite appetizing, but we were definitely in the mood for some donuts. The donuts were spot on to end our beautiful meal. The sweetness of the caramel and brown butter glaze was something we both just looked at each other with approval about. There was also a hint of saltiness that we both loved and were trying to figure out where it was coming from. What's funny is that we both just planned on ordering the #dineLA menu, but there were a few carts going around the restaurant that caught our attention. The Church Key actually has dim sum carts that go around every 20-30 minutes to bring you small tapas type plates like mac and cheese, tacos or even popcorn (which i'm pretty sure they're known for). 
There's even a cart for alcoholic liquid nitrogen popsicles, which were very similar to what otter pops look like, but made in house. We ordered a strawberry tequila popsicle with some mac and cheese fritters and a fried halibut taco. ALL absolutely delicious and we wanted more, but we had to stop ourselves. I know for a fact that I will definitely be back for more another fantastic dining experience at The Church Key and i'm really grateful I had Keisha my foodie adventure partner with me to enjoy it. Thank you to #dineLA for making this all possible and i'm excited for the next stop on my list of bookmarks to eat. 

#Dutakestheworld: Japan Days 5-8

Taking the bullet train from Osaka to Tokyo was definitely a memory I will treasure forever. Our (my mom and I's) luggage was picked up around 6 am and then we headed to the front of the hotel to take our shuttle to the train station. It honestly was an amazing experience on the train. As we entered we were greeted by the amazing staff and we actually received a bento box lunch. It was delicious. Within five minutes the train was going almost 200 miles per hour. It was pretty astounding. I fell asleep pretty easily because it didn't really feel like we were going that fast. After about two hours we finally arrived in Tokyo. It was definitely more hustle and bustle vibes once we got there. We walked from the station to our bus it was really cool seeing all of the commuters and the giant buildings all around us. Once we got to our hotel, we took a nap and got ready for another event we had that day. 

#Dutakestheworld: Japan Days 1-4

After an 8 hour flight from Kuala Lumpur, I finally arrived in Osaka. It was a great flight because I was asleep the whole time. It was about 8 am when I landed and I was exhausted. When I picked up my beautiful luggage (well, backpacking backpack) my transportation was already there. I've always wanted to have someone holding my name with a sign after a flight and my dream came true that day *hiding my face emoji*. After two hours of traveling, we finally arrived at the hotel. It was called the New Otani hotel and oh my goodness is was absolutely gorgeous. I had to wait a few hours for my room to me ready so I met some new people in the lobby and explored Osaka for a bit for some delicious authentic Japanese food. We ended up crossing a long bridge close by and found an underground market area with so many places to choose from.
The set up almost looked like a department store, but for food. You could try anything you wanted. It was glorious. After some tasty ramen and talking about each of our travels, my new friends and I decided to head back to check into our rooms. I got really lucky because you could see the entire park across the way from my window. It was a rest day for my itinerary and after some needed r&r I headed down to meet up with some more new friends. We went out for some amazing sushi and walked around the park. I was worried about my mom because she didn't arrive yet, but I found out later that her flight was delayed so she missed her connecting one and had to stay overnight in Hong Kong. It was a long few days of traveling for her. 
The next morning, on the itinerary was breakfast. After the last few weeks of backpacking and living off of toast and hostel food, it felt amazing to have food at your fingertips. There was an omelette bar and every kind of breakfast food that you could imagine. We headed to our tour buses to see the most beautiful temples and shrines I have ever seen in person. We visited Nijo Castle, Golden Pavillion and Heian Shinto Shrine. We had a break in between each stop and for lunch, it was nothing short of amazing. It was a long day for all of us and my mom finally arrived form her flight that night and we attended the welcome dinner from her job.
The next day we set out to see Osaka castle. There are only two ways to get to the top of the castle and that's either by taking the stairs or the elevator and the line for it was pretty long. It was a beautiful view of the city and after a traditional style geisha house lunch (The most authentic and delicious sushi i've ever had in my life btw) we headed to Dotonbori. Dotonbori is a world famous shopping area in Osaka with tons of restaurants and stores to explore. We actually got lost trying to figure out the subway system and finally figured it out after almost half an hour. It was definitely an adventure. We also found out that there are cars specifically for women only and I found that really interesting. After an adventurous evening exploring the city we went to bed pretty early for the bullet train the next morning.