Amsterdam

Hello :) Time to finally continue these travel posts. These past two weeks I've just started doing all the social media for the olive company I work for Molives, and so have been busy updating their facebook, twitter & blog, hence why I haven't had time to update my own. If you'd like to follow us on instagram too @molivesolives, that would be cool! 

Anyway! So you've all seen where I stayed in Amsterdam, now let's look at what we did after we finally managed to leave our lovely boathouse ...

One afternoon we decided to fit in with all the cyclists and hire bikes for the afternoon. We rode around  the canals and I loved it!

As a reward for bike riding, we shared a cheese fondue with cheesy bread and fruit. 

We went to a magnum bar where they dip a magnum in the chocolate of your choice and coat it with deliciousness. I chose mine coated in a milk chocolate and topped with rose petals, pistachios & chocolate macaroons. Totally yum! I think there's one in Sydney now ...

One sunny Saturday morning we went strolling ...

And we came across a farmers market. I love stumbling across markets ...so much incredible produce!

Olives 

We just had to pick up supplies for a picnic on the canal. There was jambon in the croissant and feta in the olives. 

This guy had the right idea

After we had lattes. It really was the most relaxing day :)

One night we had dinner and boats just like this just kept going past. Just your average weekday night in Amsterdam. 

Stylish lady on a bike!

The canals, the canals... so darn picturesque.

Only the coolest bar ever just near where we were staying. 

By the end of our 4 day Amsterdam visit, I think I actually wanted to live there. It was really one of my favourite places ...and I would definitely go back and see more of The Netherlands too! 

Hannah x

On a Boathouse in Amsterdam

 Hello :) The next part of our trip was in Amsterdam...home to beautiful canals, bikes and all those popular coffee (read: weed) shops. I thought before I show you pictures out and about, I would firstly dedicate an entire post to our accommodation, as it was a boathouse, and hence why I was quite excited! When I found it on a hostel website, I rang Renee and we promptly booked for 3 nights.

We were greeted by the lovely lady who lives there and shown around. She wrote down a lot of helpful suggestions of what to do and for the most part was away, which was actually quite nice...as it meant the boathouse felt like our own.

The exterior...oh how pretty it looked in the sun!

I loved waking up, popping on the kettle, and peering out of this window. Life felt like it was at a slower pace.

Eggs & bacon were provided for breakfast, so each day we made variations. Buttery scrambled eggs one day, and boiled eggs the next.

The kitchen area ...

The living room was perfect for reading a book, or having an afternoon nap. As you can probably already gather, it was so cosy that we didn't want to leave!

Our bed. Super comfortable and roomy.

And the cat I took way too many photos of ...

Boats going past ...

Until next time boathouse!

Hannah x

Copenhagen

Hello :) I am back! I landed on Saturday morning and have since embraced afternoon sleeps and am slowly realising I start back at uni tomorrow. Only two semesters to go! But back to my travel adventures...I'm still working out how I want to blog about my trip. Should I do a post on every place we went, or will that be too many... but oh there's so many photos and foodie snaps and it's fun to share! So at this point, I'd say there will be quite a few posts. Yay! Let's get straight into it...

So on the first of July, my friend Renee and I left our boyfriends behind, and excitedly headed off to Europe for a month! It was my first time to Europe, so was super keen to explore new places and spend a month just relaxing and taking it all in. The previous uni semester had been particularly stressful, so was definitely looking forward to a break.

Our adventure actually started in the Scandinavian country of Copenhagen. I'll also mention now, we didn't do that much "research" for the trip. For peace of mind, all the hostels were booked in advance, so we knew where we were staying each night, however didn't have a plan when we got to the country. We just grabbed a map, asked around, walked around for hours each day, and made each day spontaneous. 

Copenhagen ...

Walking around & watching all the cyclists go past

Refuelling with a delicious smoked salmon and cream cheese bagel

The hotel was one of the only places we stayed which provided breakfast. I had lots of rye rolls with butter, ham and cheese, as well as yoghurt, fruit, tea...we made the most of those "free" breakfasts!

Stumbling across a summer market selling fresh raspberries...

Delicious salty, rye crackers. 

Prams crossing the street

An antique shop in a quiet street

 I had read somewhere about this porridge bar in Copenhagen called Grod, which sounded totally cool & we decided to go there on the last afternoon. It was a hole-in-the-wall place, just a few seats. 

Being a porridge bar, it serves traditional oat or spelt porridge in the morning and for lunch and dinner provides porridges with a base of barley, or rice (there were congee options), more "risotto" type dishes. They even had a porridge recipe book, if only I could understand Danish!

We went for a late lunch and I choose this barley based risotto with fresh peas, ricotta, pepper and watercress. One of the best meals of the trip. Seriously, the flavour was just amazing! So fresh, moreish and seasoned well... a meal we talked about for a while. Renee opted for one with tomato, croutons, pesto, and parmesan & loved it too.

The interior...

The main canal, so lovely to walk along and have an iced coffee!

Cafe life...

And yes of course we visited where Princess Mary lives! Although sadly she was currently in her summer residence...

 I loved Copenhagen... the bikes, the colourful houses, the flat streets & all those trendy prams and pregnant ladies. The Danish have serious style!

Hannah x