Ancient Ruins of Athens

Up and Down the Hills of Naxos

While tourists and giant cruise ships flock to the teeming, Instafamous Santorini, Naxos remains one of the Cyclades' best hidden gems. The island is still unheard of by many foreign visitors, despite being just an hour from Mykonos, but, trust me, it's more than worth your time. The island boasts ancient Byzantine history, authentic hilltop villages, mouth-watering local delicacies and endless, pristine sand beaches. So, take your time exploring this underrated treasure and you could soon feel yourself falling in love with an island that has every shade of blue under the sun.

For casual visitors, there's enough else on offer to keep you busy for a week or so. An easy place to start discovering Naxos’ charm is the old town – also known as “Chora”. It’s the first place you’ll see when hopping off the ferry at the main port. Here, I’d recommend wandering down the bustling sea front promenade, lined with vibrant shops and eateries which have unbeatable sunset views in the evenings. The steep lanes of the hilly main town provide an atmospheric wander, while out in the countryside loom the tower-mansions of the Venetians and their descendants, Byzantine country churches, and a few very ancient monuments. The biggest mainstream draw is Náxos entire southwest-facing coast which, from the resort of Agios Prokópios down to Agiassós near the island's southerly cape, essentially forms one great long beach.

Despite Naxos being the largest of the Cyclades, it’s surprisingly easy and cheap to get around. With such a varied landscape, Naxos offers a little more adventure than a standard, poolside island retreat. For travelers that like a challenge in the great outdoors, the plethora of mountainous hiking trails offer stunning vistas of green highlands dotted by quaint, white villages.

My Santorini Dream Come True

I've always loved the idea of travelling all around Europe. Doing something there must be way too expensive. Where are the "it" restaurants that I need to try? What areas of the city should I stay at? How would I know where the good spots to shoot? So many questions to consider before I pack my bags and get on the plane. Next thing I know, I've already landed my foot on the soil of the Greece Islands. Being the shutterbug that I am, I wasn't one to complain. I grabbed every opportunity and took a gazillion photos of all the traditional houses, churches, and stores lined up the narrow winding paths leading up the hillside. Each corner has its own story, has its own memory, and I could just get lost in it. Everything that I had imagined about this island was breathtaking! The only time I stopped clicking away was when I reached the top of the hill to take a moment to admire the panoramic view of the entire island and the vast sea. It's moments like that that remind me how truly lucky I am to be able to see and experience all that. Isn't the world so beautiful?

Wallet on standby. Passport ready. Finally my fantasy has now become reality.

PHOTO DIARY | Bonjour, Paris - Day 5

Can't believe I'm posting our last day in Paris! If I haven't said this enough on my travel photo diaries, it's always bittersweet leaving a different city. I think it's due to the fact that it's a definite sign that vacation is over, and it's time to go back home and face the real world. Back to being an adult and all the things that surrounds it. But yeah, we still had all morning to sightsee so we journeyed up to visit Sacré-Cœur Basilica. It has the best view of all of Paris. Better than the view from the Eiffel Tower in my opinion. Then we walked around Montmartre and came across an artisan market. We weren't allowed to take photos unfortunately, but I discreetly filmed a bit of it here. Such a rebel, I know. It was really cool to witness local artists create their work in front of you. You get to see their talent and  their hard work.

PHOTO DIARY | Bonjour, Paris - Day 4

A week or two after this trip, I decided to rewatch The Da Vinci Code movie for fun. Also, to understand the movie better. Glad I did, because it's set in Paris (some scenes specifically at The Louvre). Don't you love it when you see a film, and you recognize the location because you've been there. I got way too excited, and tell myself that I've actually seen that area with my own eyes! Hah, I feel butterflies in my stomach just by thinking about it. Besides that.. I absolutely love this museum. You honestly need a full day in order to see each exhibit. We didn't get to unfortunately. As if I don't have enough reasons to go back to Paris. We had planned on visiting to Notre Dame Cathedral and the Panthéon, because they close early. As I've mentioned on my post here, we've only seen the outside. Then, we had a nice dinner at Café Panis.

PHOTO DIARY | Bonjour, Paris - Day 3

Paris is definitely one of those cities you'll fall in love with. Don't get me wrong. I did, but I also felt butterflies in my stomach when we reached Versailles. Funny story.. It was a struggle to get there. For us, anyway. I know we've been taking the subway for the first two days in Paris, so we should start to be pretty confident about it - and we were. Until the city's transfer system ruined our momentum. We were literally stuck inside the station for at least 10mins trying to figure out how to get to the other subway line. Turns out, you have to go out of the station and go back in at the other entrance. Also, don't forget to scan your ticket while doing so! The rest of the journey was pretty smooth after that tiny hiccup.

I kind of lost my train of thought for a second. Paris.. Train.. Versailles.. Got it. So we got off at the last stop, and we've arrived at this quaint town of Versailles! Wish we could've stayed a bit longer there, but we were just so beat up from walking around Château de Versailles. This place is honestly a must-see and I feel like I'd never get tired of exploring.

PHOTO DIARY | Bonjour, Paris - Day 2

Our second day was pretty chill. And by that, I mean, we kind of slept in and didn't get to do much. Was suppose to check out The Louvre early in the morning. Clearly didn't happen haha so we decided to go to the Catacombs of Paris instead. Such a huge line up when we got there. The average time was 1.5-2 hours, and they weren't exaggerating! Literally waited for an hour and a half. Super worth it!! I've yet to watch the movie about the Catacombs - which made me feel excited about checking this place out. It's definitely the highlight of our day though. Very interesting if you think about it, but it's really cool to be underground looking at skulls and bones of dead people. Our only mistake was we should've went later in the afternoon because they close at I believe 8pm. By the time we got out of there and walked to the Panthéon and Notre Dame Cathedral, they were already closed. Hence, the limited amount of photos for this post. My sis and I were both still pretty exhausted from the day before, so we walked around the Latin Quarter, bought souvenirs, and had dinner at this restaurant called Hippopotamus.

PHOTO DIARY | Bonjour, Paris - Day 1

Back in April, I did a trip out to Montreal for a few days (see here) and as you know, I don't speak French at all. Most people in the city speak English as well so that wasn't a huge problem for me. Until our sudden trip to Paris, the City of Love.. or City of Lights..? Whatever you want to associate it with. You can just imagine my struggles when my sister and I flew out to France. To our luck, she had taken French during high school so she knows and can understand basic conversations.  Still wasn't enough, but we manage to make it through, didn't we?

Our very first day was pretty hectic and exhausting, because we arrived early morning and had to get going after settling in to the apartment. Obviously we did get some sleep during the flight, but y'all know how uncomfortable the seats are! Especially if you're only on economy. So 7-8hrs travel time..  Plus time difference.. Not so good.

Reasons To Attend Toronto's Festival of Beer

I can definitely feel the summer heat. Music festivals and food festivals are everywhere!

But did you know Toronto is also hosting a beer festival? I didn't. Until now..

PHOTO DIARY | All Around Leslieville

#emptyAGO

Ever dream of visiting the gallery without the crowds? On Thursday last week, I got the opportunity to be part of 20 Toronto photographers, bloggers, and social media influencers for an early-bird, behind-the-scenes tour before the art gallery opened to the public. This experience was the pilot event, the first of its kind at the AGO. Here are a few of the shots I've taken during and after the tour. Follow the rest of the squad's #emptyAGO experience on Instagram, and stay tuned for updates! See more at: http://artmatters.ca/wp/2016/05/emptyago-live-feed/?_sp=7ca368549b5ac500.1464714013576

School? Unusual Brunch Spot..

Happy Friday! They say, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day." For people like me who love sleeping in every morning, we rarely ever make it out of bed by 9am. If we do, it's most likely because we have to (ie. work) or because of food. I'm a huge fan of going out for brunch. Not on weekends though, because it's always busy and the lineup is crazy if you go late. So jealous of everyone who lives next door to a really good brunch spot. Not much of a big deal for me as I usually go on weekdays. Hate the crowd and waiting in line. Although at some places, their weekend brunch menu is different. On the bright side.. it's better on a weekday because it's not as busy. I can take photos and no one can judge me!

PHOTO DIARY | #GentsExpo 2015

Toronto Men's Fashion Week is long gone but that doesn't mean that's the end of a full event for you handsome gents! Of course, ladies are always welcome to attend. On the weekend that just passed, The Gentlemen's Expo has returned for its third year with tons of great attractions, entertainment, and all things related to fashion, tech, music, sports, cars, food, and most importantly, alcohol. That's pretty much why guys love to attend these kinds of events. All for the booze. Someone tell me I'm wrong ;p