Warsaw Old Town, Poland - 3rd May 2015

Welcome to Warsaw Old Town also known as Starowka which as the name suggests is the oldest part of the capital city of Poland. The old town was established in the 13th century and is nowadays one of the most prominent tourist attractions in Warsaw. 

I am very lucky to have partner who comes from this beautiful modern city and regularly take advantage of this, :-)

We have just come back from 'roadtrip' around Europe and have tons of photos to show you! This place with it's medieval architecture, rich in restaurants, cafes and shops is always buzzing with life. Full of tourists, local young people and families, it's a great place to start this trip I will be taking you on in the next couple of weeks.

Enjoy the ride! :-)

Lots of love, Karienne x

Happy 126th birthday Eiffel Tower!

So this beautiful old lady celebrated her 126th birthday this week and I'd like to add she doesn't look too bad for her age, does she? I've been looking for a blog to share with you for Our Random Blog Thursday and I discovered that I had missed blogging about this trip last year probably in the whirlwind of work and upcoming wedding season. ;-) This has given me great chance today to treat myself to a hot latte and reminiscence about those three gorgeous days I spent in Paris last year; wondering around the city; sampling local coffees and deserts and taking lots and lots of photographs.

If only I could capture the smells of lovely little corner bakeries; sounds of  'mental' local traffic and warmth of fresh spring air that I remember when I look at these photographs.

Hope you will enjoy this small selection of my travel photographs from France and remember you can click on the first picture and view them in high-quality slideshow.

Je'Taime

Karienne xxx

Gok Wan, frizzy hair & few snaps of Liverpool...

Hello lovelies! :-)

It's not very often you casually bump into a celeb getting of the train and when that celeb  is one of your favourite Fashion experts you have no other option but to stalk him across the whole train station (not embarrassing at slightest!!!! ;D ) and ask him for a photo. 'Sorry Gok for putting you on the spot but you handled it like a pro. :-)' 

The rest of the trip was ok too. :-) Little bit of shopping, visiting the Beatles Story museum and strolling around The Albert Dock. The spring is finally here, days are getting longer and creatures like me are finally waking up from their winter hibernation which means only one thing - my travel bug is awake too. :-)

If you have never been to Liverpool before, YOU need to go and visit! Hope you will enjoy these few photographs of this gorgeous city. :-

Love Karienne xx

Our Egyptian Adventures...

Being completely honest, Egypt has never been on the list of my dream destinations. Having visited Tunisia few years ago and going home very disappointed, I didn't want to visit any other similar country where being 'harassed' on every corner or having to haggle in the shops is just normal part of everyday life. What's changed, I have got not idea but something shifted inside of me and I have learned to accept this strange culture - strange to us of course. Maybe it's all the different countries I have visited in the last few years; or maybe it's just my age and experience; but I couldn't help but fall in love with this mad place, where driving at night with the lights on is banned by law; riding a camel to work or for work is absolutely normal, so is having 4 wives (!!!) and drop whatever you do 5 times a day and go pray to the mosque. I am not going to lie, there were moments when we'd get annoyed by street sellers trying to drag us in their shops but when you get to know people and you hear their stories about the life in Egypt and learn how little they earn, you can't help but feel for them. Because let me tell you, the life in Egypt is anything but easy.

I don't want to bore you for much longer because I've always been better with my photographs than words so if you'd like to know how I really feel about Egypt now, keep scrolling down... :-)

Our journey from Gatwick to Sharm El Sheikh...

Namaa Bay Beach. If you visit Sharm, you must visit this bay! Namaa Bay is a social centre of Sharm with beautiful beaches (Entry from 25EGP) but also many souvenir shops, caffes, clubs and restaurants.

The view of the pool in our hotel - Dive Inn Resort. 

Il Mercato - nice little shopping centre with numerous shops selling handmade souvenirs, fridge magnets, antiques and you can also find McDonalds and Starbucks here. :-)

Al Mustafa Mosque in Sharm El Sheikh.

Here's an interesting fact for you. Men are going to love this, girls not so much! Man is allowed to marry 4 women at one time here in Egypt! Once he is married he can marry someone else without his wife's consent. If a man wants a divorce it's not a problem but if a woman wants to go her separate way she has to prove that her husband is a bad man... And him marrying someone else is not a reason to divorce him! On the plus side husband has to treat all his wives the same and divide his time, money and love fairly.

Heavenly Cathedral. The most beautiful church I have ever seen. Every inch of these walls is covered by magnificient  paintings of Biblical stories! My eyes have never been so busy! :-)  This cathedral has been built recently and it took 2 years to paint the interior. The work was completed by 2 painters and 18 assistants 

The Cathedral is as one would expect of a church in the orthodox tradition. For Christians who enjoy modern interpretations of the biblical story, sacred art, and the unique flavor of Arabic Chistianity, it is a must see. There is beautiful stained glass and well done appointments in wood and stone.

 The Old Market.

Il Mercato, as you can see places like this really come alive at night time with the hustle and bustle of tourists strolling around and domestic shopkeepers trying to earn their bread.

Snorkelling in the Red Sea. This was really an amazing experience. We've spent all day sunbathing on the deck of this boat, exploring breathtaking corals in the Red Sea, sampling some more delicious local cuisine. The wind in our hair, sunshine gently kissing our skin and feeling of absolute freedom, need I say more? :-)

No visit to Egypt would be complete without riding the camels, visiting the dessert and enjoy warm welcome in a bedouin tent. :-)

And lastly Dolphinia! It's been my partner's dream to swim with the dolphins and holidays are for fulfilling your dreams, aren't they? :-)

If you'd like to see a short video from our holiday that I have put together click here. :-)

Thank you for visiting our blog! Hope you've enjoyed my little travel guide. If you're planning to visit Egypt and have got any questions, please don't hesitate to get in touch, I will gladly point you in the right direction.

Lots of Love, Karienne xxx