Summer 2016 Movie List

I never got around to doing a Spring movie list for 2016, and because of missing a single season, I now have a plethora of wonderful films I've watched and now want to share with you.

Like Sunday, Like Rain
This movie features a very young main character: Reggie, who is a somewhat lonely and outcast cello prodigy. Over the summer, a young woman in her twenties comes to live in the house and take care of Reggie after having lost her job. The movie focuses on the developing relationship between this unlikely pair, in a wonderful combination comedy and coming-of-age drama. I am a big fan of Leighton Meester (you may know her as Blair from Gossip Girl), and she plays her role perfectly in this film, making it even more enjoyable.

'The Human Toll of Terror' - A Look at Life Amidst Death

On my iPad I always get notifications about big news bits; it's an element of The New York Times app which I really appreciate, because I can get news snippets, even if I don't want to read an entire article. But on a Wednesday afternoon I came home from shopping with my mom, and saw a very sobering notification.

Greece 2016 // Mystras, Nafplio

Day 6
We woke up early to get a start on our last full day in Greece; I could hardly believe how quickly the time had flown by. We had arranged to have breakfast at 8 AM, and when we walked to the separate house where we were to have breakfast, there was a lovely classic Greek spread: hard boiled eggs, bread, breakfast cookies, cheese and meats, Greek yogurt, a selection of jams, fresh squeezed orange juice, and hot coffee. We dined indulgently, and soon after finishing breakfast packed up the car and headed to Mystras: our first stop of the day.

Mystras is a site of an upper and lower town on the mountainside. Many of the structures are restored, so along with the crumbling ruins, there are churches and houses that you can walk in to. This was a wonderful last archeological site to explore; despite the sweaty and winding walk up the mountainside there was always a breath-taking vista and the beautifully designed architecture depicted the age of the site.

Greece 2016 // Methoni, Kalamata, Sparti

Day 5
We got up at a reasonable time in our Air BNB, and right away my mom, cousin, and I headed down to the beach for a morning swim. We had the beach completely to ourselves, and the water felt wonderful. Walking into the water for the first time sent a shiver up my spine in the cool morning, but running in and letting the water close around me felt immediately invigorating. After swimming out a little ways, I floated on my bag with closed eyes. The ocean was extremely calm with almost no waves, but still I felt myself move with the water.

When we retreated back to the shore we dried off in the sun for a couple minutes before heading back to the flat. We did a quick change, packed up our things, and made our way into Methoni––a nearby town––for breakfast. It took us a little while to find a bakery, but we eventually did and I devoured an apple pastry (imagine a croissant with cinnamon spice apple pie filling).

Next we headed to a castle in Methoni, which we had seen––and said we wanted to come back to––the previous day. The castle is absolutely beautiful; although the structures themselves are not very large for the most part, there is a massive wall encompassing fields of purple and yellow wild flowers. Surrounding all of this is the ocean, with stunningly clear blue water. It was a relaxing morning of ambling around, and the cool sea breeze from the water allowed us an escape from the morning heat.

Greece 2016 // Louisios Gorge, Olympia, Pylos

Day 4
We arose around 8:30AM, and left our room at 9AM for breakfast at the hotel. We were met by a feast of bread, meats and cheeses, delicious fried mushrooms, house-made jams, Greek yogurt, traditional Greek pastry and cookies, and croissants! AND fresh squeezed orange juice and coffee! After dining like kings (and queens), we said a melancholy goodbye to our lovely host, and headed onto the day's first destination: the Louisios Gorge.

Greece 2016 // Corinth, Mycenae, Dimitsana

Day 3
Our first day on the road in Greece, we wanted to get a good start on the day, so we woke up at 6:30AM, and after a short (but sweet) breakfast on our balcony, we headed to the car, cranked the local station of traditional Greek music, and began making our way to Ancient Corinth.
It wasn't long before we arrived, and first made our way to the museum which although much smaller than the Acropolis Museum in Athens, was very impressive with quite a lot of statues and other artifacts. Although still relatively early, by the time we began exploring the ruins it was already sweltering. Still, we spent around an hour walking around, and taking in what was left from a time long ago.

Greece 2016 // Athens

Now in full swing of summer, I am finally writing on the blog again, and currently back in Austria visiting family. About a week ago, I returned from a six day trip to Greece I had taken with my parents and cousin. Originally I had been unsure of whether or not I wanted to do a blog post on the trip; in the end I figured the trip was so wonderful that I should share the experience. If you happen to be going to Greece soon, or are wanting to take a trip this sometime in the future, maybe this can give you some inspiration for some places to see. Our journey started in Athens, and we took a rented car throughout the Peloponnese taking in as much as possible in what felt like an extremely short trip!

Day 1
We flew into Athens on June 25th, arriving at 2:30 PM local time. We were shuttled to the car rental place, where we picked up a little white Nissan, plugged in the GPS, and began our drive to Athens. As we entered the city I was immediately taken with the feel of the streets; before arriving I didn't really know what to expect from Athens. It was so unlike other European cities I had visited. Narrow streets were crowded on both sides by lined up cars and plethoras of motorbikes constantly whizzed by our car, trying to get ahead of the traffic. Buildings looked slightly dilapidated, and graffiti was scrawled all over the place... but they were also painted in cheerful colors with plants overflowing on balconies, making the streets appear homey and well lived in.

10 Texts I'm Glad I Read During High School

Around Christmas break, I got the idea to write a post about texts I am glad to have read during high school. I had my last day of high school (ever!) last Friday, and it is incredible to think that a portion of my life has now come to a close. Although I have always really enjoyed English class, this year has been especially influential for me. I am a firm believer that having a passionate teacher can have a huge impact on what you take away from the class, and this is why I hold teachers with such high regard. My English teacher this past year was absolutely phenomenal, and I am very thankful for having learned a lot from her. I think the most important thing she taught me is simply to love reading, because it is how people (of any race, color, age, gender, etc.) can share their stories. Not only this, but all stories are connected and come together to create the one larger story which relays the human condition.

Any time you read, always have the question 'What does it mean to be human?' running through your head. A good book––no matter what genre or style––should answer this question in some way! There are a surplus of wonderful books in the world, and I look forward to reading many more (and I already have a good list going for summer). However, for the purpose of this post, I condensed things to ten books that had an impact on me during my high school years. I would absolutely recommend people to read all of these books, and if you have any suggestions for me, I would love to hear about them in either an email or in the comments!

A New Outlook of Life: Jumping in the Lake

Within the last couple of weeks, Spring has finally reached Pennsylvania. Currently I am sitting in the garden, with the sun pouring down on me, and birds are chirping all around. Each day seems to become more beautiful: flowers popping up, trees sprouting luscious green leaves, and the days become warmer and longer. The renewed feeling of Spring has made me appreciate each new day, and in general I have noticed a dramatic increase in my mood... Seeing the sun again after a long winter is a feeling like none other. Last weekend I was on a hike with a friend of mine, and I was telling her a story which became the backbone of a new philosophy I am taking on life... And I would like to share that story with you.

Every year my family goes up to the Adirondacks in New York to help friends of our open a cabin they have on a lake for the summer season. Essentially this means cleaning all the different cabins, making sure the water works, setting up the dock, etc. It's something we all look forward every year, because the Adirondacks are absolutely stunning; going up for a long Memorial day weekend is a great way to start off the summer vibe. Because Memorial day is in late may, you would think it would be really warm, but the air temperature is actually quite a bit cooler because of the elevation at their property. The cabin is right on a big lake, and jumping in the lake is extremely cold (as it has been frozen all winter). Normally we will all jump in the lake at least once on our last day, despite it being too cold to really swim. This past trip, however, it was particularly cold,and on the last day I ended up wimping out, and never jumped in the lake. I distinctly remember having been mad at myself for not jumping in, because it was another annoying example of my extreme indecisiveness.

Washington D.C. Travel Diary

Over the recent Easter break, my family and I drove down to Washington D.C. for three days. We had planned this trip back in January thinking that it would be a nice little get-away; little did we know it would be the ideal time to be in D.C. with cherry blossoms at their peak! To say the least, it was a pleasant surprise to find the entire city adorned in the delicate beauty of the pale pink flowers. The cherry blossoms also have a very sweet history, as they were a gift from Yukio Ozaki (previous mayor of Tokyo City) to the US, celebrating the growing friendship between the US and Japan. This gift has become a symbol in the capitol, which is celebrated annually with the national cherry blossom festival. So if you are planning a trip out to D.C. and don't know when to go, I would absolutely try to do it in early Spring. Because we were there for three days, I wanted to format this travel diary a little differently than others I have done, and just give my top recommendations (as opposed to a blow-by-blow of the trip). In terms of things to do, the majority of these are free, making this trip pretty inexpensive. I wasn't really sure what to expect of D.C. prior to the trip, but I can now say with certainty that I am already looking forward to my next trip back!

Marmorgugelhupf (Marble Bundt Cake)

As you may know, this today is the official first day of Spring! I am beyond excited for spring, and already here in Pennsylvania you can tell that we are moving out of winter. Although it is still quite cold, bright sun and blue skies are making more appearances, the grass is growing greener, the days are longer, and birds are happily chirping outside. One of the most exciting signs that spring is on it's way is little patches of snowdrops that are popping up. If you aren't familiar, snowdrops are little white flowers that bloom in very early Spring. When I was in England there was a garden estate where the snowdrops grew all over the place, and it became a magical place to see the first signs of warmer weather on it's way.

Although it is quite overcast today, I wanted to stay in the spirit of spring, so I wanted to share a recipe I think is perfect for spring and summer. The cake is made in a bundt pan, so it looks beautiful. The primary reason this cake is so nice for the warmer months of the year, is because it is very delicate and light, while still remaining extremely moist. The secret trick for getting this wonderful texture is separating the eggs, whipping the whites, and then gently folding the whipped whites into the rest of the batter at the end. This does become an extra step of work, but overall the cake is still very easy to make.

Our little patch of snowdrops!

San Francisco Travel Diary

Last week I was in California visiting my grandparents for spring break. They live in the Bay Area, and only about an hours drive from San Francisco, so we planned a day trip into the city. I have always loved the idea of San Francisco. At heart I'm fully an east-coast girl, but San Fran has always intrigued me. Maybe it's the picturesque pastel houses and the way you can gaze down the streets for miles. Or maybe it's the plethora of urban coffee shops in alternative/artsy neighborhoods. Whatever it may be, I was excited to be going back (as I have been there a number of times before). The difference with this trip was that I was making all the plans for the day, so the night before I got the map and marked out specific places I wanted to hit, as well as general districts which were must-sees.

I always like to see where I've been in cities using a 'map my distance' site; including bus rides, we went approximately 21 kilometers during our day in the city!

Valentine's Day Croissants

I have always loved Valentine's Day. I know a lot of people do not share this sentiment, but honestly I think it can be a very lovely day if that's how you choose to perceive it. If you are in a relationship that is wonderful, but if not, it doesn't have to be a day of 'single awareness'. It can be a day of appreciating friends, and doing something fun together. This Valentine's day, I decided to tackle the feat of making croissants from scratch for the first time so that I could enjoy them with my family on Sunday morning. I am extremely pleased that I made them, but they're definitely not the kind of thing you would want to bake every weekend! Although this wont be a recipe post (purely because they are so involved), I wanted to share my experience with you!

Once I decided to make croissants, I spent a good bit of time searching for the recipe I wanted to use. In the end, I opted for one from Fine Cooking (can be found here), and was very pleased with it. The recipe is quite lengthy, and therefor seems intimidating, but don't stress out after seeing the long process: it's honestly not that bad! One thing that I will say, is to read the instruction––all the way through––at least once before you begin baking. Along with that, make sure you're planning ahead if you make these croissants for a specific day, because the process takes three days total.

The first day (for me this was Friday), all you have to do is make the dough. This should take no more than 15-20 minutes, because you are just dumping all the ingredients into you mixer, with the paddle attachment, and letting it knead for a couple minutes. Once that's done, you pop it on a plate, cover it, and let it sit for the night. My recommendation for this step is to use a scale to measure out all the ingredients; the recipe from Fine Cooking does include imperial measurements, but by going by weight instead, you will ensure you are exact with your measurements.

Moving on to the second day, this is when you will fold the butter into the dough. This is a little more time consuming, but if you have an open afternoon it's no problem. The process is a little weird in the sense that you take 2 1/2 sticks of butter and form it into a square, and fold it into the dough. It's very easy, but the time consuming aspect is that you have to roll it out to a certain dimension, fold it, and put in the freezer for 20 minutes, and then repeat this process so that you do it a total of 3 times.

Finally, on the third day (the day of baking), you fold the dough out very thin, cut it into triangles, and start rolling your croissants. Once they are all rolled, you have to let them proof for 1 ½ to 2 hours. Letting them proof fully is very important, so don't rush into baking them. Allowing enough time to proof will ensure that they spring in the oven, giving them the airiness you want in a croissant. When I baked my croissants, I deviated from the recipe slightly and set the oven to 400˚ F (conventional) to bake for 20 minutes, and then turned it back to 375˚ F and baked an additional 10 minutes. This allowed the croissants to have really beautiful color outside, but not become too dark as they bake all the way through.

 My mom and I sat on the kitchen floor watching the croissants bake through the oven door!

 
Along with the croissants I served a fruit salad with pineapple, strawberries, and blueberries, and of course it wouldn't have been breakfast without a cup of tea. These croissants had the ideal texture with a flaky exterior but incredibly airy and chewy interior. They have a very subtle sweetness, and because there are no additional ingredients, the rich, buttery flavor really comes through beautifully.

Though it is an involved process, I can say with certainty that I will be remaking these croissants for special occasions in the future. If you have doubts about knowing what to do with some of the steps in the recipe, definitely watch some videos on YouTube of other people making them, because this will give you a picture of how things should look throughout the process.

This was a fantastic breakfast for Valentine's Day, because it was both extravagant and comforting. After all what says "I care about you", more than serving a breakfast which took three days to complete?! I hope you had a lovely Valentine's Day, whether it was spent with a significant other, your family and friends, or Netflix and a heart-shaped box of chocolates ;)

xx

Erin

Winter Movie List 2016

I am constantly stunned by how many wonderful films there are, and I think with each one I watch, my love for movies grows exponentially higher. Since it has been quite cold here in Pennsylvania, most weekend evenings watching a movie and drinking hot cocoa sounds much more preferable than going out with friends or going into town (yes, I have been turning into even more of a recluse than usual!). But for you this is good news, because it means I have watched many films and now have lots of recommendations. So grab a cuppa tea, your calendar, and start planning some movie nights!!

Inception
Trailer here
I definitely came a little late to the party with this movie... I still remember one day back in 8th grade: Inception had just come out in the theaters, and everyone was talking about it. For whatever reason, I did not jump on the bandwagon then, but I watched it recently and was completely taken with it! The idea of 'inception' is ridiculously trippy (even thinking about it now!), and the movie has wonderful cinematography and phenomenal acting. Leonardo DiCaprio is a perfect fit for his character, and I adore Marion Cotillard. Although I have a lot of films I love, Inception has very possibly jumped up to #1 on my list. On a side note, stunning soundtrack as well; well done Hans Zimmerman.

Winter 2016 Favorites

January absolutely flew by.

It's hard for me to fathom that we are already a whole month into the new year, because it feels like only last week that I was watching the New York City count down to 2016. I have been at a bit of a crossroad this month: on the one hand I am excited about the new year and have many exciting things that are coming up to look forward to, but a part of me has also been struggling with this dreary time of the year. Because I live in Pennsylvania, this time of year is typically very snowy––which I love––but this year it has been unseasonably warm, and we've gotten almost no snow! Instead, it is semi-cold, and the scenery is relatively bleak... not the winter wonderland I am wishing for.

With that said, despite the disappointing weather this winter, there have been a lot of things I have been loving this season. And I wanted to share them with you! This will be my first 'favorites' post, so I will be experimenting with how I want to format my photos and such, but I'm thinking I'll might make this a seasonal routine. Without any further ado, let's get into the mish-mash of what I've been loving!

Grapefruit Salad and Crispy Sweet Potato Fries

I have always loved salad. In part this may be because I was raised with it: in my family, we have a big salad with dinner at least 4-5 times a week. Salads often get the reputation of being a diet food that may not actually taste good, but this is undoubtedly a myth, and the people who say/think these things have likely never had a really good salad! Salads allow you to incorporate many different wonderful, fresh ingredients, and there are endless flavor possibilities. I like to use a spring mix when I make salads, which will typically include things like romaine, arugula, radicchio, baby spinach, etc., which are all much more mild tasting that kale (which can be quite bitter and tough). The dark leafy greens are a great source of fiber, folate, carotenoids, vitamins C and A, calcium, and iron, and combined with additional ingredients is an extremely wholesome and hearty meal.

Getting on to the recipe, this salad is both fresh and hearty while being simple and very easy to prepare. It combines grapefruit, dried cherries, pecans, and a little feta to create a tangy, spicy, and refreshing blend of flavors. Because this salad is on the lighter side, I'm also sharing how I make sweet potato fries which can be a great addition to a salad, adding complex carbs to make it a more filling meal.

The Power of Opposites

In the past couple of years as I have continued to try to develop my style, I have constantly been pulled to a particular look: pairing opposites. Whether it being wearing a sheer, elegant blouse with ripped skinny jeans or having messy, tousled hair with a simple, summer dress, I think pairing opposing pieces is one of the best (and easiest) ways to look smart and chic.

The wonderful thing about pairing opposites is that there are so many different contrasts that you can incorporate, so it's not as if you're always wearing the same thing. 

chic vs. grunge

solid vs. patterned

all black vs. pop of color

Reflecting on the Year: 2015

I was not planning on doing a post about the end of the year, but then was reading Hello-October's (one of my favorite bloggers) Goodbye 2015 post, and was inspired by her positive outlook. She described how she's really been enjoying her adult life, and my initial reaction was 'wow, I'm excited for when that time in my life comes'. I then realized that's a silly thing to think because I have not only had a good year, but should also fully be enjoying my life right now, because life has been very good to me!

In the same style of Hello-October, I want to share some of the highlights of my year with you, as I am a firm believer that being able to reflect on life can be very valuable for both learning and appreciation.