NATURE ft. BEAUTIFUL NEW ZEALAND SPOTS ON THE SOUTH ISLAND

 - LAKE TEPAKO -

 - LAKE OHAU -

 - MIRROR LAKES -

- MILFORD SOUND -

People feel connected - either to other people, to a certain sport, to a religion etc and I have found myself recently and especially in New Zealand connected to nature. We live in a world with so much to explore and so many different landscapes. It makes me so happy to be in a place where the nature is just so different to what I'm used to and to just intake each unique feeling a place gives me. My favorite spot in New Zealand was probably Milford Sound. A truly beautiful and magical place!

Traveling On Your Own 🌏 Being A Female Solo Traveler

So about one month ago I stepped onto an airplane, having an 36 hours journey ahead of me, and that was the start of the first time I was traveling on my own. I have always been the kind of person that enjoyed traveling with a friend or my sister but this time I decided that I wanted to try out something new, well even something I was a bit afraid of doing. So I booked a trip to New Zealand and okay I have to admit that I wasn't completely on my own since I booked a tour where I was with a bunch of people and everything was basically organized for us but I'm taking baby steps here right? 😄 And since I didn't know any of these people beforehand it was definitely something a bit scary yet super exciting. However I've spent multiple hours on the plane on my own, killed a 10 hours layover at Perth Airport on my own, etc when I was basically never completely on my own because I met super nice people along my way and it's crazy how much more open you are when it's just you and you simply find yourself being open and happy to start chatting to anyone who is around you.
During the tour it was a great experience to get to know around 50 amazing yet so different people from all around the globe and it was really easy to connect to those people as we all had something in common - the love for traveling. We were all so keen to have the best time in New Zealand and in the end that's was we had indeed!
I'm so glad that I stepped out of my comfort zone and that I did something that challenged me in so many ways. In the end I must say that I'm a person that can probably enjoy a trip and also look forward to it a tiny bit more when I can share this excitement with someone but I wouldn't say that this trip was the last one me as a solo traveler.
There are definitely pros and cons to traveling on your own as well as traveling with a friend and I guess everyone is different and therefore prefers a certain type of traveling but I would recommend to anyone to just be open and try out things. It's great to share moments and memories with someone you love and that's something I missed a bit but doing this trip on my own probably taught me a lot more about myself and the only person you have to worry about is yourself - no compromises as you can do whatever YOU want to do. 😋

"If you want something you've never had. 

You have to do something you've never done!"

New Zealand - Aotearoa VIDEO

Our Trip to the ULURU

Some people are also calling this massive rock in the middle of Australia, which means in the middle of nowhere, Ayers Rock! When I was in Australia I knew that I had to go there because this place seemed so extraordinary and special to me that I had to see it with my own eyes. During the time when my sister was visiting me in Australia we booked a flight to the Ayers Rock Airport (which only had, believe it or not, 2 gates haha) and once we stepped out of the airplane we walked straight against a heat wall. Well lucky us we decided to go there in February, so the middle of summer.
But nevertheless it was a spectacular experience and it made me so happy to be there - a place which is so far away from home and a place that couldn't be more different to where I was coming from.
While we were there we stayed in a 20 dorm hostel room and due to the heat we could only enjoy this place very early in the morning and later in the evening/night time. But this also ensured that we saw beautiful sunrises and sunsets which were priceless! We did also do a free ranger tour along the Uluru where we found out some interesting facts about this "rock" and now I would just like to share some photos of the Uluru with you guys :)

Kata Tjuta - another rock combination close to the Uluru

The Uluru by sunrise

Traveling up the Australian East Coast - MUST STOPS!

I was planning to write about my favorite places along the Australian East Coast a while ago but it always seemed quite difficult to pick some favorites. But I had such a chilled and wonderful weekend with an old school friend who was actually also in Australia when I was there and talking about the time over there really made me feel like looking through some old photos and to just pick some in order to show and share them with you.
But I also have to say as breathtaking and beautiful as a place can be, for me it's the most memorable when it's shared with the right people and it is also so dependent on what you are connecting with this place as well as all the memories of this place.

・M E L B O U R N E  &  T H E  G R E A T  O C E A N  R O A D・

While being an Au Pair in the South of Australia I had quite a lot of time to explore Melbourne with the Queen Victoria Market, the beautiful parks, busy shopping streets, the Yarra River, China Town, Hosier Lane etc. It's a beautiful vibrant city with so many facets and I loved spending time in the city.

Of course I also had to see the famous Great Ocean Road and Twelve Apostels. I loved the beaches and the whole landscapes. That was also where I saw Koalas in the nature and not a touristy zoo.

・S Y D N E Y ・

If someone hears Australia the city they will think of first is probably Sydney. It's really busy there but I loved the vibe and atmosphere the city provided. It was a magical and special moment to see the Opera House in real life and Bondi Beach was great to hang around and enjoy an ice cream as well. There is also a secret spot (which in the meantime probably isn't as secretly anymore) that is a playground where all the backpackers and travelers head to to take a photo on a swing with the skyline of Sydney in the background (it's called the Dover Heights Swing and you can take a memorable photo for free there).

・B Y R O N  B A Y ・

Unfortunately I don't have too many photos of my time in Byron Bay. But if I had to choose one favorite spot it would probably be Byron. I don't really know why but I just loved this cute little town next to the beach with its nature, markets, people, lighthouse and just the whole atmosphere in general. I felt so happy there!

・B R I S B A N E・

It wasn't really planned but I ended up quite a long time in Brisbane. The photo shows Southbank a lot more touristy and less natural than other spots but I still liked it because it was so different. In Brisbane you can also explore the city with a free ferry called CityHopper or as well as in the other cities I loved walking through the botanical garden.

・F R A S E R  I S L A N D・

Fraser Island is the largest sand island of the world and it was truly amazing there. We where there with a tour group and explored Fraser with a 4WD which was a little adventure itself. There are also planes landing at the beach right next to where you drive haha. Some other memories are that we saw the milky way at night, dingos, dolphins and the Lake McKenzie was so unique!

・T O W N  O F  1 7 7 0・

Driving up north you can't miss the Town of 1770. It's an insiders' tipp if you want to go surfing because it's so cheap (around $17) to take a surfing lesson there!

・T O W N S V I L L E・

I saved the best for last and that's not directly the town I want to talk about but the mountain right next to it. Townsville is a small town in Queensland and once you're there you can't miss this big mountain where you should definitely go up and enjoy the sunset. Truly magical and one of my favorite memories of my whole time in Australia!

Our Amsterdam Adventure 2016 I VIDEO

This summer my sister and I went to Amsterdam for a few days in order to explore the city with its channels, beautiful architecture and bicycles everywhere. I actually totally forgot about the fact that I filmed quite a lot of the trip so I was able to put together a whole video of our time in the Netherlands.

I hope you enjoy this very unprofessional but with memory filled video of our trip!

Have you ever been to Amsterdam? And what did you think of the city?

Lots of love,

Nina 🌍⛵️✨

BEING AN AU PAIR - One of the best experiences of my life

About two years ago I was on the other side of the world - collecting memories, living my life to the fullest and having a new exciting adventure ahead of me every day while being an au pair in Australia.

But before I could call myself an au pair of an adorable 6 years old girl who endlessly loved dinosaurs and a 2 years old boy who could give the best cuddles in the world, I had to go through all the organization stuff.

The decision that I wanted to organize everything myself and not go over there with an organization was quickly made since my sister already run through all this two years before me and in general every single person around me told me that I wouldn't necessarily need an organization. So first of all I jumped on a website called 'Au Pair World' where I created a profile and it didn't take too long until I had my first skype interviews (interview always sounds so serious... but it was actually just a relaxed conversation to get to know each other). The family I ended up with (and I couldn't have been more lucky!!!) send me a message on my birthday that they would like me to come over there to be their au pair. I couldn't have asked for a better 18th birthday present :) After that I only had to book my flight, get a visa, pack my stuff and I was ready to go ✈️ Kangaroos, Koalas, hot weather - here I come!

I spent July until December in a small town close to Melbourne with my lovely second family, in my second home and I had such a happy time full of experiences.
I didn't have to work too much (only 5 days every two weeks) so I also had plenty of time to discover Melbourne, meeting other au pairs, driving along the Great Ocean Road, attending a surf course, spending a day on Phillip Island and feeding kangaroos hahah. Beforehand I already planned that in December my friend Lisa from Germany would come over there so we could backpack together up the east coast and explore more of Australia. But being an au pair was such a great start to my whole stay abroad. I had a safe place to stay, could earn some money (which I used up pretty quick though, so I could go on trips etc, but I wouldn't have wanted it any other way), make new friends but most of all I was learning so much. Not only about their culture but also about life especially from the kids who taught me a lot. They filled my heart with so much happiness and still are!

If you would like to know more about my work as an au pair or about the preparation part or anything else please just ask and I would be more than happy to share my experiences with you :)

Also.. sorry for the crappy quality of the photos but most of them were taken with my phone and I still wanted to share them with you because they hold a lot of meaning for me.

If anyone of you is thinking about being an au pair or not I can only recommend to go for it. It has so many benefits and you will definitely grow as a person (and actually see how stressful it can also be to take care of kids). But I can definitely say that it has been one of the best experiences of my life which I am so thankful for!

AUSTRALIA IN 224 SECONDS

2014 and 2015 will probably be two of the best years of my life. After graduating in summer 2014 my dream came true and I flew to Australia. During my time on the other side of the world I learnt so incredibly much about life, myself and just what actually matters in life. I saw beautiful breathtaking places and am happy to share some moments with you of a place on our little planet I might have fallen in love with.

We Discover Paris

As I already talked about in a previous blog post a few weeks ago. My sister and I went to Paris to explore the city which I have never been to even though it's actually rather close to where I live. But I don't know... somehow I'm always more drawn to the places which are extremely far away and where you have to cross oceans by an airplane to get to. But it was good that this summer was different and I actually took some time to explore Europe a bit more. I hope you guys enjoy the little impression of my time in Paris and please don't hate on my video cutting and editing skills as it's all new to me and I'm still learning and trying out :)

Exploring Beautiful Paris

Since my sister is currently in France for a few weeks we had the idea to meet up in Paris for a few days to explore the city. I always wanted to go to Paris as I have never been there and I was very keen to see all the obvious touristy attractions like the Eiffel Tour where we ended up having a little picnic as well as Sacré-Coeur, Notre Dame and the Louvre. It's so interesting how every city is so different to any other and just has its own vibe which I really enjoyed. The architecture, little cafés, parks and the Seine just create a beautiful and magical atmosphere.
If you ever go there I think it was really convenient to take a day ticket for the metro which costs 7 euros and also try a baguette and croissant while you're there :)

Day Trip to Prague!

It was Sunday morning when a friend of mine sent me a text and asked me if I would like to come on a day trip with her and a few friends and of course I wouldn't say no to a little road trip! I didn't know where we would go until they picked me up and I was sitting in the car and then they told me we would go to Prague which I was super excited about as I haven't been to Prague since I was maybe 14. So Prague here we come!! After a three to four hours drive we arrived and sunshine as well as a vivid and positive vibe welcomed us in Prague. We spent the day mostly walking around the city and just taking it all in. This day honestly filled my heart with so much happiness and just reminded me again that each day has so much to offer. Sometimes the smallest things take up the most room in your heart. It doesn't have to be a trip somewhere but just in general enjoying each day to its fullest is so important and sometimes we forget so this is a little reminder :)

Nina

Blogvorstellung

A Weekend in Beautiful Amsterdam!

For everyone of you who has already been in Amsterdam will probably know that Amsterdam is such a beautiful city. And even though it's not even that far away I've never been there so my sister and I finally decided to go to Amsterdam for a weekend. For me the best part was just walking through the streets and realizing how beautiful the scenery looks with it's many channels, boats, lovely buildings, bikes and flowers. You pass so many cute cafés and little shops that it's just amazing to walk around there. And I'll promise you that you'll stop every ten meters to take another photo!! 

If you wonder what else you can do in Amsterdam. There are free ferries from the Central Station going to other parts of Amsterdam or you can visit one or multiple of the museums. We've been to the Moco Museum. The current Banksy and Warhol exhibition was really nice! Other than that I can recommend visiting some of the markets, having a picnic in a park or doing a boats tour!

The cheapest way to make this stay possible was to take a bus there (from Germany) and to stay at an Airbnb, which you might want to keep in mind are a lot more expensive on the weekend than during the week!

Have you even been to Amsterdam? And if so what was your favorite thing about the city?

Nina