Night time exploring around Stockholm

The sun went down and I wanted to see what the Swedish capital had to offer at night. Decided to go around at the risk of freezing. Since, it gets a lot colder at night. However, I’m in Stockholm and I don’t know when I will be back. I guess this was a yolo moment…**cringed**

Stockholm at night photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

When I got outside, I was hit with a cold blast of air. The air felt like when you put your head in the freezer or by the air conditioner on a hot summer’s day. However, without the warmth when stepping away. This cold was strong and I just had to adapt to it. Which, I eventually did.

A dark street in stockholm photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Stockholm is very beautiful during the day. Once nightfall comes, it another level of beauty. Seeing the skyline at night was truly amazing. I couldn’t tell if it was the cold or the view. Regardless, my breath was taken away. Every major European city at night has this attractiveness that most of the world lacks. You see more flashy lights and taller buildings elsewhere. Yet; in Europe, most major cities are not like that. There’s like a classic charm here. I know i mentioned this before. It’s just what I keep noticing

Walking down one of the main roads in stockholm at night photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Walking around, I was in awe of everything. It felt like I was in the north pole. Which is not too far from here. As if Stockholm was where Santa Claus lived. I’m sure if I was a kid, it would had been a dream to travel here. It’s cool that Swedish culture has roots to Nordic culture. Which is probably why, I hoped to see elves here working with St. Nick.

The beautiful “tunnel” photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The pathways here are so beautiful. Walking down the alluring cobblestones street, I turned to my right and saw what I’ll say was a “tunnel.” Imagine walking through this every day. I’m sure it looks pretty to us but for the locals, it’s whatever. Sometimes we don’t value what is in front of us everyday.

Just outside of another main street photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Eventually, started walking further down the street. More and more stores kept appearing. All of them were advertising hot chocolate. Being distracted by the beauty, I almost forgot I was freezing. The hot chocolate ads brought me back to reality. It was time to warm up. However, my night of exploring was still not over. Couldn’t wait to see more of this Nordic city has to offer.

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

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June 17, 2020 10

Freezing in Stockholm, Sweden

Yeah, for some reason this winter I went to some really cold countries. There was a reason why the tickets were so cheap. It must had been the weather. Still, I won’t let it ruin my time. Sometimes, you get what you pay for. It was only 340 from NYC, so you know there had to be a catch.

A street outside of my hostel photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

When I got to Stockholm, I was surprised that it wasn’t as cold as I expected. It felt like winter in New York City with more snow. At the beginning that’s what I thought the cold here was. Also, I was surprised to the diversity I kept seeing. It really felt like I was in Queens with all the cultures I saw. For those who don’t know, Queens in New York City has a community for almost ethnic group in the world.

A square in downtown Stockholm photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

It was mid-January when I was in the capital of Sweden. So there were leftover Christmas decorations. Still in shock about the diversity here. Saw Ethiopian and Iranian restaurants thinking I was in Manhattan. It’s funny how we Americans don’t realize how multicultural European cities are. In the main Nordic countries, excluding Finland, they are sometimes even more welcoming to immigrants than the usa claims it is.

A protest in stocholm photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Another view of the protest photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

I kept exploring and somehow I ended up in a protest. I have no idea how I keep getting myself into these situations. Not trying to get caught up into what was going on, I left that area in a hurry like a kid running away from getting a vaccine. Im not trying to spending time in a Swedish jail. If I knew the local language and what the protest was about I would had stayed. However, it’s like playing russian roulette.

A Swedish bus photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The more I walked around, the more I felt the cold. Yeah, this wasn’t like NYC. The cold up here sneaks up on you. I started to feel like I was an ice cube. It’s crazy how people here are so used to the cold.

Another public bus in stockholm photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

After exploring for a few hours, I had to head back into my hostel. It was way too cold for me to just walk randomly around. Still my first impressions of this swedish capital were good. Couldn’t wait to see what more this city had to offer!

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

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For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

June 10, 2020 17

Going to the Buckingham Palace and stumbling across a marathon

On my way to the Buckingham Palace, I came across an event. It was at Green Park when I noticed all these people gathering around. For those who don’t know, you must pass Green Park in order to get at the entrance of the Palace. The park was surrounded by DJs playing loud music and portable bathrooms.

A sign showing where to start the marathon photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

It was crazy that I stumbled across this. The environment felt like a concert for a famous artist. Everybody was going around with water bottles and sitting mats. This gave me memories of the concerts back in San Francisco’s golden gate park. It was such nostalgia.

Vitality sign photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Started walking further into Green Park towards the palace by following the signs. It’s surprising to see how green the parks are in London. Yes, we got beautiful parks in the USA. However, you still feel like you are in a city. Here in Green Park. made me felt like I was in a country side. Of course this was when I was away from the marthon.

People finishing the marathon photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Got into the entrance of the Palace, I was stopped by the event offers. We were not allowed to cross while the runners were in the way. Who would had thought this event would affect my time at the Buckingham Palace.

People running in the marathon photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Eventually, the runners left and gave us a clearance. I started walking towards the palace. Couldn’t wait to see what this landmark had in store.

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

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For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

May 30, 2020 6

First impressions of London/ Christmas in May?

After a 7 hour sit-down, I landed in London. My first thoughts about this city were how friendly the locals are. I could tell I wasn’t in New York anymore. The attitude of the people was down to earth. The complete opposite of the Big Apple. Where New Yorkers are lost in their heads. It’s funny how I went to Ireland a month before. Should had just stayed in Dublin and took a ferry to the UK. You never know where life is going to take you.

Train station in London photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Took the Heathrow express train from the airport into town. Took the local underground train to get to my host’s location. Asked a few random Londoners where to go. They were more than happy to show me the right way.

Christians celebrating Christmas in may photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Once I was pointed towards the right direction, I came across a Christmas march. It was a group of West Africans called Kimbanguist. They were celebrating the birth of Jesus on May 25th. I was baffled and interested at this expression of their community. For starters, I never expected a group of Christians to celebrate this holiday at this time of the year. Second, anything that has to do with learning a new culture is what gets me motivated to travel more.

The apartment i was staying in photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Met up with my local host at Starbucks. We went inside his building and he gave me the keys to my room. To my surprise, the way England has built their homes is completely different than it is in the USA. Americans, love their space! The Londoners, not so much. The way homes are built in London are hard to explain. It’s like the first floors are for walking up to the apartments or the living room. However, the floors are like narrow alleyways.

Mafia style car photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Left my bags and it was time for me to explore. Was so excited to see what the hype was about. I hoped London will up to it’s positive rumors. Of course, I was not let down. This city had made me into a better person.

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

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For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

May 23, 2020 23

Getting lost at night in a foreign place

Getting lost can be fun when you have your phone or a back up plan to find your way around. Sadly, this wasn’t the case for me. What made it worst, my phone had died and I was in an unfamiliar city. No taxi in plain sight to be found. It was at this very moment I knew the horrible situation I was in.

Clarion_Hotel_Limerick_Ireland_at_Night — The clarion hotel

Had to use my foggy memory to get back. It was a diffcult task but I had no choice. Started to retrace my steps, slowly but surely the enviorment started to look familiar. I remember the clarion hotel that my airbnb host pointed out. She said use it as a pinpoint to know where you are at. Kept walking and trying to remember the surroundings.

A home at night photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Got back to the residential part of the city. This is where it got hard. A lot of the homes looked the same at night. The streets and curves, everything looked similar. I started to get a little nervous but, I still felt like everything will be alright. Asked a group of women where a certain street was. They claimed they didn’t know where any street was. I remember the name of the street closest to the my airbnb apartment. Normally, I wouldn’t mind being out this late and lost. However, my flight was in the morning and I left my passport in the apartment. It was no fun.

A random street full of homes that looked the same photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Eventually, I found the street. Walked in the direction that made sense and looked fimilar. The more I walked, the more I felt calm. I found the building to where the apartment was at. I noticed it wasn’t too far from where I asked the group of women. It was hard to believe they didn’t know where this street was. However, a random guy with an American accent asking for directions at night. I’m pretty sure they probably thought I was going to rob them or something. Either way, I was happy to be back in the apartment.

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

May 16, 2020 27

Exploring downtown limerick , Ireland at Night

After eating that awesome Indian food, I had more of limerick to explore. To my surprise, limerick closes really early. It was only 10 pm and everything was nearly closed. Yeah, that entitled new yorker in me was annoyed at this.

Being the only one on the street photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Sometimes people have midnight cravings. Yeah, it’s kind of a new york or big city thing. It felt like a ghost town. The moment was a little creepy. Gotten used to having people out and about after 1am. So, it was almost like the locals know something that I don’t know.

The Treaty Stone photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

I randomly found this Memorial. I learned about it from my airbnb host. This stone is very important to the city’s history. It is said to be used in the signing of forming limerick. It ended the williamite war which was a war related to the independence of the republic of Ireland. Another awesome moment of experiencing history.

dowtntown photo couresty of Hugo Morel

another emypt street photo couresty of Hugo Morel

The streets looked really empty. It’s clear this place is not for the younger crowd. This is more to raise a family. I like the quiet and calm amtoshpere. Being in new york city, time moves too fast. You don’t really get to appericate the moment. Here 30 mins felt like 3 hours. It was defintely a great dose of fresh air. Sadly, I was just reminded I had to go back and I forgot the way. Took my phone out to find there was only 3 percent of battery left. Checked to see the address of host’s home and the phone died before i could write it down. With my bad memory, the address was gone. I had to find a way out of this mess soon.

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

Sorry for posting on Thursday. Had a wild day yesterday.

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For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

May 9, 2020 12

Eating Indian Food Limerick, Ireland

Sometimes when you are out and about, you tend to forget that food is needed. Out of nowhere, your stomach starts to yell. You are reminded that you are hungry. However, when you are out at night in an unfamiliar city. You have to eat what you can. Especially, if the city closes everything early.

The entrance to the Indian restaurant photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

I stumbled acrossed this Indian restaurant. At the time, seeing an Indian restaurant in the middle of Ireland seemed out of place to me. Looking back, since the Republic of Ireland was once part of the U.K. It just make sense the Indian food scene should be good here. Oh, it is very good.

The stair to the restaurant photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

When you enter the restaurant, you are greeted with stairs. You can hear Indian music playing in the backgroud. It felt like I was stepping into a little India. The restaurant looked like any typical Indian eating place. The difference is the music playing in the background. It was a woman with a high voice singing in Hindi. It really gave an authentic experience. I kind was hoping that people jump out dancing like in the Bollywood movies.

The food came and my stomach became happy. Still yelling but this time with joy. Stuck with chicken because I’m not as adventurous as most people think. Every time I see goat on the menu, I keep being remind of those youtube videos of yelling goats. Moral of the story, careful what you stumble on the internet.

Sitting on the table photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The food was amazing. The spices on the chicken were really good. It tasted a lot better than majority of Indian restaurants that I went to. This experience made me want to go India one day. I know the food will be different in India than the USA or Ireland. Yet, this made me excited about India. It was around this time, I noticed I left my phone charger. Who knew that would create a problem in the near future.

Stay safe everyone and remember to wash your hands!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

May 2, 2020 23

Exploring Limerick at Night and learning about Irish history

Exploring a city at night is something you always have to be careful. Especially, if you aren’t a local or aren’t a friend of one. However, since it was my last night in Ireland. I wanted to make the best out of my time. I spoke with my air bnb host before going out and exploring. She assured me that Limerick in general is very safe. Just don’t go out flashing your new iphone or watches. So becareful when exploring this city at night.

20190902_161544 — A beautiful view of downtown photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Walked and found this beautiful river. I couldn’t resist the colors and the view. It was on a bridge connecting the residential to the downtown. It was a very humbling experience. I was so far from home and so far from where I grew up. Kind of wish, some of my childhood friends could see this with me.

Another view of the river and downtown photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Kept walking further on the bridge. Found a statue, sadly I had no idea what it meant at the time. Had to google it after the trip. Learned so much from the Irish and the history of the people.

Statue of a general that died in the rebellion photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

So this statue is one of the many memorials to honor the Easter Rising. The Easter Rising is an important part of the Irish history. It started on Easter week of 1916. During the time of World War One. Irish Republicans started a rebellion to get independence from United Kingdom. There were other rebellions before this one. However, this was the one that ultimately lead to having majority support of an independent Ireland.

A description of 1916 but of course, I didn’t read photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Of course, at that time I was clueless of standing next to history. Sometimes you don’t value where you have been until after the fact. Kept walking reckless without trying to remember my path. Unfortunately, that would be a problem later on.

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April 25, 2020 0

Who were the Celtics?

I was walking around Dublin and this interesting set of benches caught my attention. The benches had a viking ship design. I knew about the Celtics being associated with Ireland. However, vikings never crossed my mind when I think about Ireland. So It made me asked, Who exactly were the Celtics and What is their relationship with the vikings?

Viking benches photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The word Celtic actually comes from the word Celts. I know big surprise. The Celts were ancient Europeans that were in the British isles before the Anglo Saxons and before the Normans. Where the Celts originally came from is up to debate. Most say central Europe (Austria) and some say Anatolia (modern day Turkey). Some historians believe the Celts made their way to British isles through the Mediterranean then out from the north tips of France. Genealogists and archaeologists believe they just spread out from central Europe and expanding their culture outwards. What is clear is that they had strong impact on Europe, which is still seen today.

Map of the Celts, the yellow is where they believe the Celts originated from

The Celts were diverse. They had many different people that went under the label of Celt. As seen on the map above, the Celtic language was far spread. Unfortunately, most Celtic languages and culture was lost due to roman invasion. The Celts were not homogeneous. A lot of Celts fought against each other. Irish Celts fought Scottish Celts regularly. Which brings up the question, Why are the British Isles are always associated with the Celtic culture? Well, that is because of the languages of the isles.

celticlanguagesmap — Brought to by https://www.mustgo.com/worldlanguages/celtic-branch/

The British Isles languages still have strong influences from the Celtic language. Before the English empire took full control of the Isles, the languages were Celtic. Sadly, most of the native speakers are far and few between. I really love how Ireland, Wales and Scotland have been actively reinstalling their languages into the schools. There are other parts of the Celtic culture that still lives outside of the British Isles. In Brittany, a region in northwest France still has strong Celtic roots. Also, northern Spain called Galicia. Although, the Galician was heavily latinized. If you understand Spanish, Galician is extremely similar. You can understand almost 70% to what Galician is saying or writing without having prior knowledge of the language. The galicians are still proud to claim their Celtic roots. The Gaelic and galicians, if you look at the two words you can see their is a common root word somewhere. Lastly, there is a part of Canada that speaks Gaelic. It’s an area called Nova Scotia, Canada. It is Scottish Gaelic. The language was brought over through Scottish immigrants.

the route of the vikings to the British isles photo courtesy https://transceltic.com/pan-celtic/celts-and-vikings-scandinavian-influences-celtic-nations

Now the Celtic and viking relationship is very interesting. The vikings kept invading the British Isles. There were wars for land and power between the two. Started from the very northern islands leading all the way down to Ireland. Eventually, the vikings kept settling in the Isles and mixing with the pollution. So contrary to the popular belief, a lot of vikings had red hair. The Nordic god Thor, actually had red hair. The vikings most likely left their red hair genes in the Irish genetic pool.

So this is just a very brief introductions to the Celtics. I love the mythologies and arts the Celtics have left the world. If you want to learn more of their culture, here are some links and YouTube videos that I got information from.

sources:

websites:

https://transceltic.com/pan-celtic/celts-and-vikings-scandinavian-influences-celtic-nations

https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/celts

https://www.ancient.eu/celt/

YouTube videos:

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels! Please keep healthy everyone!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

March 21, 2020 12

A step through time at Dublin’s Castle

In the heart of Dublin lays a governmental building on dame street. The history that these walls have seen is astounding. Never been someone who likes monarchs; however, I was convinced to come here by a few local I met. Main reason why I came here is to see the Irish history in person.

20190901_071743 — Dublin castle sign photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

When you first come into the Dublin castle area, you will notice a few gift shops. Didn’t bother going in them because I’m sure the prices are on the tourist trap side. There is another gift inside the castle that you can visit. They sell generic touristic items like key-chains and magnets. The other store outside the castle sold crystals and fine china. Things that would cost me more money to bring them back home. Imagine bring a large crystal on a trip to the USA and being stopped by a security guard at the airport. They check your bags and they find this giant rock of a substance they are not sure of. I’m a Hispanic of African descent, it’s best not to let them think I’m smuggling some new type of drug. Besides a few small crystals on necklaces or bracelets, I’m not going to take that risk.

20190901_072101 — A knight in front of the crystal store photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The whole outside of the castle really gave me that old age feel. During the times knights, dragons and wizards were a part of everybody’s daily lives. You could almost hear the classic Irish music playing as you walk around. Makes you wonder how many people passed by here. Picture the battles that were fought to maintain these walls. I mentioned this before, I wish we could have a time machine to travel back into the past. Where you can see the events happen in real time. One could dream right?

20190901_072327 — Entrance of into the courtyard of the Dublin castle photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

I kept mentioning the history of the Dublin castle without actually explaining it. So, this castle was built when Ireland was on under the English rule. During the times of King John of England in 1204. Later being completed in 1230, this castle has been used as a governmental building. Even today, this is where the president of Ireland holds his meetings.

20190901_074254 — State dinning Room photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Once inside, you have to leave your bags and purses in a locker. You will have to pay to get in the castle. There are no videos allowed in the castle. You are allowed to take photos of course. Just remember to have the flash off.

The photo above is the state dining room, also know as the picture gallery. I’m guessing because people take a lot of photos here. This is actually the oldest part of castle. It was the only room to escape the many fires over the years. Also, it has never gotten any major modifications. Meaning, it has kept it’s original decorations. Truly, it’s like stepping in time.

20190901_074502 — State drawing room photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

Now, the picture above is the State Drawing Room. I have no idea who the people in the picture were. I just knew they were important to the Irish history. Sadly, most of this room was destroyed by a fire in 1941. It was reconstructed in 1968, this room is probably one of the newest in the castle. Once a reception room for the king at the time, now foreign dignitaries use it.

throne at st. Patrick’s hall photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

The throne room photo courtesy of Hugo Morel

What is a castle without a throne? An expensive mansion? The pictures above are the thrones I have found on my trip throughout the castle. I was expecting more to be honest. I guess movies have influenced my mental picture of what a throne should be. I was expecting a bigger chair with tons of gold on it. The one on the right is in the throne room. Apparently, this was built for King George IV’s visit to Ireland in 1821.

The throne on the left, I found in St. Patrick’s Hall. Which is the biggest room in the castle. It has a blue carpet on the floor. So, it’s hard to miss. I read this is the throne for the president of Ireland. Always cool to look at in person. When you are in Ireland, I definitely recommend taking a visit. It will be worth the money!

Thank you so much for reading! Much love and safe travels!

Ps. Got in contact with a few friends I met in Wuhan, China. Will explain it in Wednesday’s post!

For videos about cultures of the world and to see our travels, subscribe to our youtube channel!

For my underwater photos, I use the gopro hero 7 white.

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Here are links to hotels and other deals.

For Hotels, make sure to click here. For apartments make sure to click here. For Resorts click here. For villas click here. For bed and breakfast and for Guest houses, make sure to click the links!