For a really long time I couldn’t unserstand why people use AirBnB, when there are so many hotels, B&B and hostels around – until I tried it myself. After four very positive experiences with AirBnB, I can say I’m impressed with the whole system. Comfy rooms, friendly locals and cheap prices are the main reasons I’m using it more and more these days. Let’s start with the basic…

What is AirBnB?

Airbnb is a website where people rent out their rooms, apartments, and houses to people looking for a place to stay. Opened in 2008, it’s the biggest apartment rental website still functioning with over 2,000,000 listings worldwide. AirBnB allows you to stay in a wide range of lodging, from private rooms to treehouses, villas and castles.

Read More

Yesterday me and my boyfriend returned from Dublin, where we eneded our one week roadtrip. Because it’s all still fresh, I thought I could share the expenses with you, so you have an idea how much such roadtrip costs. Please note that I first write down the price we paid together and then calculate how much it was per person.

CAR

Rent for 7 days: €77
Petrol: €46 + €8 + €42.8 + €10 = €106.8
Toll fee: 3 x €1.9 + €2.9€ + 6.2€ = €14.8
Parking: €4

Expenses per person: €101.3

We did a little under 1500 kilometres.

ENTRANCES (student tickets)

Powerscourt Waterfall: €11
Rock of Cashel: 6€
Prehistoric Fahan Beehive Huts: €4
Kylemore Abbey and Victorian Walled Garden: €18
Guinness Storehouse: €32

Expenses per person: €35.5

Some of them planned, others not. No regrets for any of them.

Read More

Every second Monday I’m going to recommend you one travel movie (in no specific order). Each one of those mentioned, had some kind of an impact on me and I’m sure they will affect you too. Travel movies have the ability to inspire your wanderlust, the motivation to a new destination and give you the power to chase your goals.

WILD (2014)

A chronicle of one woman’s 1,100-mile solo hike undertaken as a way to recover from a recent personal tragedy.

With the dissolution of her marriage and the death of her mother, Cheryl Strayed has lost all hope. After years of reckless behavior, she makes a rash decision. Without any experience, driven only by sheer determination, Cheryl hikes more than a thousand miles of the Pacific Crest Trail, alone. Filmmakes didn’t sugarcoat the journey. Read More

On my first day off, I chose to see the city just one hour away from where I’m staying. Kilkenny is a small city (which makes it very cosy) you can easily walk through in a day (or even less), best known as Ireland’s medieval capital, steeped in heritage. Although it’s supposed to be a very popular tourist destination, I didn’t get that feeling when being there, but this may be because it’s off-season and we visited on Sunday.

1. Walk around Kilkenny castle
The castle is beautiful inside and out. The entrance fee is very reasonable, 7€ per adult (for more info click here), especially since the guides are very knowledgeable and always happy to answer any questions. On a nice sunny day, you should take some time for the grounds around the castle too. We had a very pleasant walk around. And it’s free!

Read More

In the 20th arrondissement of Paris you can find the world’s most visited cemetery, Père Lachaise. It opened in 1804 and it’s the largest cemetery in the city of Paris (44 hectares or 110 acres). It is also the site of three World War I memorials.

We visited Père Lachaise on a cloudy February morning with our wonderful couchsurfing host and another guest he was hosting. We must have been there for around 3-4 hours, just getting lost. While seeing the grave of Oscar Wilde and Jim Morrison is a must, this is a serene place steeped in art and history, interesting even if you don’t seek celebrities. Other notables buried here are composer Chopin, playwright Molière, poet Apollinaire, writers Balzac, Proust, Gertrude Stein and Colette, painters Pissarro, Seurat, Modigliani and Delacroix and chanteuse Édith Piaf.

Before skipping to photos, I’d like to talk the name of the cemetery. It’s taken from the confessor to Louis XIV, Père François de la Chaise (1624–1709), who lived in the Jesuit house rebuilt in 1682 on the site of the chapel. The property, situated on the hillside from which the king watched skirmishing between the Condé and Turenne during the Fronde, was bought by the city in 1804. Established by Napoleon in this year, the cemetery was laid out by Alexandre-Théodore Brongniart and later extended. Short history lesson over.

Let me take you around now.

Read More