A FAMILY TRADITION

For the last 14 years we have gone on a holiday to the snow with my family. Though the family consistency has changed over the years (we kids dated around for a bit) and the destination changes frequently, the week is always filled with warmth, games, cheese platters, wine and laughter. This years trip took us to Les Menuires, Les 3 Vallees in France. May there be many more editions of this lovely family tradition!

NEW YORK! NEW YORK! - PART II

I found it pretty hard to answer all my friends questions about what my favourite thing was in New York. There's not really one thing. It's not really just one sight.

Before we went to NY, I decided not to take a tourist guide with me. Instead I purchased New York City Notebook by Moleskine (It's if filled with handy maps and empty pages so you can write your own guide) and browsed the sites of some of my favourite bloggers for tips. The result was a great week where we experienced a NY we would have never experienced otherwise.

I used to cherish my lonely planets, but there is no better tour guide than people who love and know their city. So hurray for New Yorkers and Moleskine who made our NY trip all the more special.

Pictures were taken with my Nikon D700 & Nikkor 24mm 2.8 D

NEW YORK! NEW YORK! - PART I

My mother and I try to go for a city break together each year. Normally we stay close to home as living in Europe gives you pretty good access to many great cities. However we've been dreaming about that one city far away for years now. This year we decided it was time to go! And off to New York we went.

I consider myself a city girl, living in the capital of my country, but Amsterdam feels like a village compared to NYC. Nonetheless we had a great time, walked many miles and saw loads of cool things! Six days is nowhere near enough to see it all, so we'll be back NY!

Pictures were taken with my Nikon D700 & Nikkor 24mm 2.8 D

A PROPOSAL

Apart from the raw beauty of the country, there is one more reason Iceland will always have a place in our hearts. At a deserted lighthouse where once stood the now washed away village of Básendar, my bf told: "Sit down. I'm going to ask you to marry me." He went to one knee, unfolded a piece of paper where he wrote down all the reasons why he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me, and gave me the most gorgeous antique victorian ring from 1890 he found in an antique shop back home in Amsterdam. Needless to say, I said yes to the man!

Pictures were taken with my Nikon D700, Nikkor 24mm 2.8 D & Nikkor 85mm 1.8 D. All pictures are edited with VSCO.

ICELAND - PART III

Pictures taken with my Nikon D700, Nikkor 85mm 1.8 D & Nikkor 24mm 2.8 D. All pictures are edited with VSCO.

ICELAND - PART II - VATNAJÖKULL GLACIER

While all the national parks and nature attractions are completely free in Iceland, booking guided activities can be very expensive. After some thought we decided to do only one guided tour. A glacier walk + ice climbing adventure on the Vatnajökull glacier. And we are so glad we did. Our guide Fannar was great, very passionate about the glacier and we learned a lot from him. The ice climbing was tough but such a rush. And there is something very humbling about walking around on an enormous river of ice. The scenery below isn't all that bad either. Most of the villages around the glaciers have private waterfalls in their backyard. How cool is that?

Planning to go to Iceland and wondering what to do? We can definitely recommend this tour.

Pictures were taken with my Nikon D700, Nikkor 24mm 2.8 D & Nikkor 85mm 1.8 D. All pictures are edited with VSCO.