Bogota!

Dear readers,

Bogota, the capital of Colombia, is a vibrant city! You have to be a bit careful while exploring this city, since it is not known as one of the safest cities in the world, but it is really worth a visit.

Our first stop was at 'La Candelaria', a neighbourhood near the President's palace with museums, colonial buildings, cafe's, restaurants and many more.

At Museum Botero

Alpaca's...so cute!!! :)

Street view in 'La Candelaria'

Me in front of the 'Monetary museum'

Soldiers protecting the city

After wandering through the streets of the center of Bogota, we decided to visit 'Montserrate', a monastery up in the hills of Bogota. You can either go hiking, by train of by airbus...we decided to go by airbus...haha, YES, we are lazy! :P

On our way to Montserrate, a monastery up in the hills of Bogota

See that little ride way up there...we were sitting in a similar one :)

Montserrate!

View of Bogota from Montserrate

Aside from visiting all the tourist attractions, we love to have some culinary experiences as well! Whether it is in one of Bogota's finest restaurants or with room service in the coziness of our own hotel room :D

@ Asadero La Bonga restaurant

Club sandwich - room service

Mexican burger - room service

We had chosen such a lovely hotel in Bogota with an incredible spa, which we made sure we used...what a relaxing experience that was!

@ our hotel - AR Salitre Hotel & Spa

Sipping our wine in front of the fire place

When visiting Bogota, you MUST go to this famous restaurant named "Andres Carne de Res". There are actually two of them, one in Zona Rosario (a good and vibrant neighbourhood in Bogota) and one in Chia (a one-hour drive from Bogota). Both are really nice, but we decided to go to the nearest one and so ended up at the one in Zona Rosario, called D.C. We had such an amazing experience...I seriously have never experienced a restaurant like that! The food is GREAT, the atmosphere is AMAZING and the overall experience is something you will NEVER forget!

@ Andres Carne de Res - Bogota's most famous restaurant...A MUST!!!

Best mojito ever!

Hmmmm!!!

Visitante ilustre...took it back with me to home!

I was by the way so bummed when I got home and saw the quality of the pictures...I am not sure what I did to my camera, but I am sure I messed up its resolution, because the quality of all my photos is so not good :( Well, at least I still have photos, since I know some people who ended up having not one single photo of their holiday, since their camera got stolen...always staying positive here :D

What do you think of our experience in Bogota? Has any of you been there or does any of you live there?

Love, Melissa

The answer for stress!

Dear readers,

I think nobody is immune for stress, although some of us stress a whole lot more than others. I think everybody knows the serious side effects stress can cause, not only physically, but also mentally. But no worries: I have the answer for you! Of course, it is a bit of a luxurious remedy, as you could expect from me :) So, what is it, you might think. Well, it's booking an all-inclusive vacation to Hotel Riu Palace in Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic! There you will enjoy endless white beaches, lukewarm ocean water, the kindest people, top-notch service, culinary food, fabulous cocktails and of course...the sun! You don't have to worry about a thing at this hotel. Everything is well taken care of! The only thing you have to do, is get up in the mornings, have the most amazing breakfast and stroll to one of the pools or the beach...oh, and order a mojito :)

The Dominican Republic offers you a variety of day trips to choose from. You can swim with the dolphins, go to different small idyllic islands by boat, go on a bustour to Santo Domingo (the capital), race in a James Bond speedboat and so on, so you will not be bored for a minute!

Feeling it already? To convince you just a bit more, here are some pictures from the hotel!


Overview of Hotel Riu Palace *****


The private beach located just behind the swimming pools


The poolbar


One of the restaurants at the hotel


The lobby area


The hotel bar


The hotel suite

I have been in the Dominican Republic 5 times now and for me, this is one of those vacations that really eases your mind and your body, so you will be totally recharged when going back to your home country. The last time I went was in 2008 and I stayed in this particular hotel, which in my opinion is one of the best in Punta Cana in its price range.

Have you ever been to the Dominican Republic? If not, are you now thinking about maybe going?

Love, Melissa

Boutique hotel in Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Dear readers,

Two years ago my boyfriend and I took a roadtrip through Florida. We went from north to south and had an amazing time! Although all the hotels we stayed in were truly fabulous, there was one which really stood out: The Pillars Hotel in Fort Lauderdale. It's a boutique hotel and has a membership of the "Small Luxury Hotels of the World". It only has 18 rooms, which makes it really cozy and personal. It has a pool deck overlooking the waterways, which makes a day at the pool so much more relaxing. Furthermore, this deck is also used by their restaurant. This restaurant is so exclusive it can only accept hotel guests and friends of the hotel. The night we ate dinner there, we were told they could only accept 20 guests per night. Although it was a bit expensive, the food was delicious and the view breathtaking and priceless! So, if you ever consider going to Fort Lauderdale, try booking at this lovely hotel. You won't be sorry! To give you an impression of what the hotel looks like I have copied some pictures from their website.

Love, Melissa



The pool and poolside rooms.



The bedroom we stayed in.



The pooldeck overlooking the waterways.



The waterways.



The restaurant.