links we love.

1// not your typical tourist destinations, but 10 european cities definitely worth visiting. 

2// 52 places to go in 2015. 

3// a teenager's view on social media, & from two fellow teenage girls, she nails it. 

4// really interesting.... how the 'perfect female body' has changed over the past 100 years. 

5// make this week more productive! 25 things you can accomplish in five minutes or less from mackenzie at design darling.

have a wonderful week!
xo.

a bottomless bucket list. {mary grace}

i'm extremely blessed & lucky to have traveled as much as i have & i fully realize that. my family has a strong belief in & pull towards traveling the globe & seeing the endless beauty that it has to offer. for myself personally, i think an essential part of life is to broaden my horizons & explore cultures or ways of living that differ from my own. i also think that traveling is the world's best way to seek adventure & step outside of my comfort zone. 

here i have listed some of my most exciting and most memorable adventures that i have experienced in various countries across the globe. i also included my bucket list of things that i hope to do with the remaining years of this beautiful life...

_________________________________________________

some of my favorites. {that i have done}

1 ... white water rafting down the nile

2 ... going on an african safari

3 ... sailing the italian coastline

4 ... exploring the ruins & castles of france

5 ... walking through fields of lavender in provence, france

6 ... climbing giant's causeway in ireland

7 ... visiting the blue mosque in istanbul

8 ... getting lost in a turkish bazaar

9 ... going on a golden monkey trek in tanzania

10 ... visiting the mayan ruins of tikal in guatemala

11 ... attending a neil young concert & gambling in monte carlo's famous casino, monaco

12 ... renting a car for a day & driving across the islands of santorini & mykonos, greece

13 ... visiting westminster abbey & buckingham palace in london

14 ... navigating the canals of the netherlands

15 ... seeing the beautiful gothic & renaissance architecture in split, croatia

16 ... hiking angel's landing in zion national park, utah

17 ... four-wheeling through zion national park, utah

18 ... taking an RV road trip through america's west coast

19 ... doing a wreck dive in the cayman islands

20 ... swimming with stingrays in the cayman islands

some of my favorites. {that i can't wait to do}

1 ... hike the entire appalachian trail. yes, the whole 2, 168 miles :)

2 ... go husky sledding in the swiss alps

3 ... hike el camino de santiago in spain

4 ... hike across the mudflats in the netherlands

5 ... ride an arctic icebreaker in finland

6 ... go whale watching in iceland

7 ... mud baths in turkey

8 ... see the northern lights in sweden

9 ... eat sushi in japan

10 ... hike the grand canyon in arizona, usa

11 ... explore the pyramids of egypt

12 ... visit sniper's alley in sarajevo, bosnia

13 ... ride horseback through snow in transylvania, romania

14 ... camel trek in the sahara, tunisia

15 ... scuba dive in the red sea coral gardens, egypt

16 ... mountain bike in kenya

17 ... hot air balloon ride in namibia

18 ... float on the dead sea, jordan

19 ... visit the old city of jerusalem

20 ... off-road across the dunes of qatar 

21 ... sea kayak in alaska

22 ... snorkel with orcas in norway

23 ... heli-hike in new zealand

24 ... canyoneer in karijini, australia

25 ... explore ancient ayutthaya ruins by elephant, thailand

a couple of other countries that i am very interested in visiting: indonesia, papua new guinea, & cambodia.

____________________________________________________

there you have it! the long list (which i could endlessly add on to) of adventures i am determined to accomplish over the span of the rest of my life. i mean hey, our world is pretty amazing, isn't it? just look at how many unique & obscure excursions you can embark on in a number of different countries. planet earth is an amazing place that is meant to be explored & i'd like to use it to help me make the most of my time here.

this post was made in part by the help & ideas of roughguide's 1000 Ultimate Travel Experiences: Make the Most of Your Time on Earth. 

if you haven't read this book or even just flipped through its pages, please do! it'll make your traveler's heart so very happy...not to mention it will make you want to catch the next flight out & start your journey across the globe.

what's on your bucket list? happy traveling!

xoxo,

mary grace.

mlk day.

photo via the happiness project facebook page. 

in honor of martin luther king day, a quote to inspire some optimism as we start this week! 

happy monday!

xo. 

the cayman islands. {grand cayman, north shore}

we made it to the last leg of the trip! such a bittersweet ending. personally, i feel as if there’s always a sadness when leaving a vacation spot, especially if it is somewhere that just captures your heart (which might just be the case of my relationship with guatemala :)), but there’s something so enticing & attractive about the idea of home, especially since i’ve moved up to chicago for school. i’ve come to realize that i’m the kind of person who loves to keep moving, who loves change, who loves to be active. and i think that’s why i enjoy traveling so much. i’m drawn towards the idea of a life that isn’t stagnant, a life that is filled with constant exploration & stimulus. don’t get me wrong, there’s always a need for alone time & ‘me-time’ at points, but that’s not how i want to spend the majority of my life. i love people too much.

anyways! on this third section of our trip we moved from the west bay of the island to the north shore. it was new years day when we transferred, so we were all pretty exhausted from our night of celebration at royal palms; we did stop at a cute little restaurant located right on the water called over the edge café, though. our last few days were pretty low-key. we had a house with a little private beach so we took advantage of the great snorkeling & kayaking. we spent countless hours on our ‘backyard beach’ trying to soak up the last rays of the trip & finishing our novels.

saturday was a fun day. we took a boat with our previous dive instructors, shaggy & dominick, to stingray city, a small area of the sea that boasts crystal clear turquoise waters & houses about 18 stingrays. we hopped in the water with shaggy & dominick & the sweet animals swam right up to us, gliding over our feet & nudging us like little puppies. they swam up our stomachs & backs, almost as if they were trying to hug us (just makes you realize the pure beauty & majesty of animals). dominick then handed us squid to feed the rays; it's such a funny feeling as they suck up the squid from your hand using their mouth located on their underbelly. although these animals do have the potential to be dangerous, these specific ones have been acclimated with humans for many years & recognize that humans = free food! so these sweet rays have no intention of hurting you (that is, unless directly threatened). we ended the excursion with a snorkel at a shallow coral reef & then grabbed some drinks & appetizers at kaibo beach bar with shaggy & dominick, two awesome guys (who, by the way, have the coolest life stories…i could listen to them talk about their global experiences all day). later that night, we cooked homemade pizzas & my dad experimented with a first time attempt at making conch fritters (out of conch that he caught himself, might i add) & they were delicious! maybe not the healthiest, but darn good.

we decided to spend our last day at rum point, a fun area with an open-air restaurant & a nice beach with a dock that’s perfect for watching the wild sunsets. we packed up our luggage for our flight the next morning then went out & ate at over the edge once more for a farewell dinner. i sure will miss you, warm weather...

well, let me tell you, nothing can really prepare your body for switching from balmy 85 degree weather to negative degree weather (that just so happens to be occurring in both st. louis & chicago). the island was a great getaway filled with amazing new experiences & amazing people but, as i sit here now in a quaint coffee shop in chicago, i can’t help but feel ecstatic to be back. i just love it here. 

^^so, what are the chances?! i must have passed this sign plenty but it only caught my eye on a trip home from the grocery store. i had to do a double take & after i realized what i had just seen, my dad whipped the car around so we could take a picture. i mean, it must be fate...^^

^^such a fun part of the island.^^

^^didn't i say the sunsets from rum point dock are just breathtaking?!^^

^^a last day on the beach at rum point.^^

^^this view never gets old...^^

^^a farewell dinner at over the edge cafe with the brothers.^^

 ^^adios, grand cayman. thanks for having us & showing us just how amazing this world is.^^

wherever you are, have an awesome week!

xoxo,

mary grace.

the cayman islands. {grand cayman, west bay}

another five days has passed! it seems unbelievable, as the term 'island time' is all to real here. long days & long hours filled with sand, salt, water, & wind prove to eradicate any concern for the time of day or even the need to do anything but relax. we moved from the east end of the island to the west bay (not very far considering the island's total length from east to west is only 22 miles), to a condo complex called coconut bay. here is where we spent much of our time exploring the caribbean sea.

our first two days were spent doing a lot of reading & basking in the beautiful sunlight. over the course of our 6 days there we had some really yummy meals at macabuca, an oceanside tiki bar & grill connected to the cracked conch, a well-known restaurant on the island & just a couple minute walk from our condo. we also had a fun night out on saturday at calico jack's, a dive bar right on the beach with a great DJ and a fun dance floor. our next two days were spent submerged under the sea, boasting some of the prettiest and unique sights i have ever seen. on the first day, we learned how to scuba dive! my parents have been diving all around the world, so they went off with a separate instructor to do a deeper dive, but the four of us (ian, sam, courtney & i) completed paperwork & went over diving fundamentals with our instructors pierre & dominick. they then helped us suit up (gravity makes the tank & equipment quite heavy, but when in the water the weight is released) and we dove right into the sea.

i fell in love with scuba diving. it took a bit to get acclimated to the idea & the feeling of breathing underwater and keeping the flow of your breath at a constant, slow inhale & exhale. it just doesn't seem natural! the other adjustment that i had some trouble with was my ears, since the pressure affects them the deeper you descend. during our first descent, a 45 minute dive at about 45 feet, we practiced basic skills under the water & saw all the beautiful sea life happening around us. it was pretty exhausting but well worth it!

our second day of scuba was unreal. we did a wreck dive at the ex-uss kittiwake dive site & i've never seen anything like it. the experience was like no other. we descended to 65 feet & swam all the way through the ship, ascending & descending to different floors & even visited the ship's eating quarters & bathrooms (which, by the way, still have the mirrors in them. a fun opportunity to see your reflection & wave to yourself :)). 

we got lucky & spent our new years eve on dominick's boat. we set off on the water & stopped for lunch at a yummy beachfront grill called kaibo, then spent the rest of our afternoon at starfish point. starfish point is the perfect place to hang out & interact with all the others boats that arrive throughout the day. it has waist-high waters (so clear & so turquoise) filled with starfish & the occasional sweet stingray. both animals love to play & be held. as the day faded into night, we invited dominick over for a home-cooked meal of seafood & veggie stir-fry then headed out to royal palms beach club to celebrate the end of 2014. it was a blast. nothing beats a beach party with an awesome DJ & fireworks to signify the commencement of the new year.

here are a few photos from our time in west bay...

^^our view every morning & every night.^^

^^fun at calico jack's.^^

^^before & after. scuba day 1.^^

^^a beautiful sunset every night over the caribbean sea.^^

^^steering at the wreck site of the ex-uss kittiwake.^^

^^one of the neatest experiences i've ever had. a wreck dive at 65 feet to the ex-uss kittiwake, a former search & rescue ship. we got to scuba all the way through it & around to the back propeller.^^

^^on dominick's boat.^^

^^the best man ever.^^

^^i'd say new years eve was well spent...^^

^^starfish point is the perfect place to spend a sunday afternoon.^^

^^selfie with sammy.^^

^^hey there, mr. starfish.^^

^^look who we found! frisbee the stingray is so sweet & loves to play but has no tail, therefore not dangerous.^^

^^ringing in the new year at royal palms beach club. i haven't had that much fun celebrating in a long time! an awesome beach party with a DJ & a great atmosphere.^^

 i hope your holiday season // celebrations were blessed & fun...happy 2015!
let's make it a good one.

xoxo,
mary grace.