Kelly Purkey: travels

November 09, 2016

My Morocco Trip Traveler's Notebook

I love documenting. I'm kind of obsessed and likely always will be. When I get to combine it with pretty paper and inking up stamps, I love it even more. Right now I may be behind on my Project Life album, haven't made a scrapbook layout in well over a year, and have more ideas for mini albums that I honestly think I will ever have time for. But still... I love it all and will continue to try to make making stuff and documenting a priority.

Back in June I went to Morocco for ten days and it was one of the best trips I have ever taken. I blogged a little about it here and wanted to create a mini album to document the adventure. I started putting it into a Traveler's Notebook and am really happy with the final project. I've been working in the space of pocket pages for so long that it really was a fun challenge for my brain to try to do things in a Traveler's Notebook size.

I shot a quick overview video of the Traveler's Notebook and flipped through all of the pages so you could see the inside. Click below to watch it or you can view it on my YouTube channel:

Here are a few the inside pages:

All of the photos were printed on my Epson Picturemate printer onto 4x6 papers and this helped tremendously. If you're looking for something to put on your Christmas list, I highly recommend it. In the video I also mentioned how using the spreads in the Traveler's Notebook felt like a throwback to doing a 12x12 layout, which was so much fun and made me miss doing them. Maybe 2017 is the Year of the Layout Comeback. Wouldn't that be cool?

InLinkz.com

Posted at 08:00 AM in scrapbooking, stamping, travels | Permalink | Comments (8)

September 21, 2016

Exploring Greece: Santorini

Earlier this month I took a trip to Europe and spent a few days in Santorini then a few days in Paris. It was my first time in Greece and I cannot wait to go back! The island of Santorini was absolutely stunning and there was so much to enjoy. The views and the food were absolutely some of the best I've ever experienced - plus a glass of ouzo each night before bed doesn't hurt either.

I split my time between exploring the villages of Oia and Fira, each charming in their own ways. The views in Oia were better, with their sunset said to be the best in the world (can you believe it?!) but the crowds were thick. Fira was easier to relax and wander around.

The weather was gorgeous for the entire time I was there and I got to spend the mornings out on the black sand beach, which was a treat as well. I got to catch up on some reading (Amy Schumer's The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo and Everything, Everything - which was fantastic) and a little podcasting.

If I stay in a hotel when I travel, I like being loyal to the Starwood brand so I ended up staying at the Vedema Resort. It was incredibly beautiful with top-notch hospitality and the best free breakfast buffet. I was not shy about helping myself to every cheese on the buffet along with the incredible Greek yogurt topped with honey. My mouth is watering as I type this.

To get to Santorini you have to fly through Athens and even though all I saw was the airport, it was enough to whet my appetite for more of that city. I definitely see a lot more Greek cheese and yogurt in my future.

Posted at 08:00 AM in Europe, Travel, travels | Permalink | Comments (4)

August 17, 2016

Visiting Mexico City

This year has been full of a lot of fun trips and I'm all about getting away for just a weekend to experience somewhere new. I jumped on a great deal to visit Mexico City, which is a city that I've never been to before. My previous travels to Mexico have only been quick trips to beaches, so I was really looking forward to visiting this huge city. I've had a few friends who have been recently and they've all had great things to say about their trips. Not to mention, the New York Times ranked it the number one place to visit in 2016. Oh yes, let's go!

I only went for three nights but really wish I would have stayed for three more just to eat more food! The food was amazing. Amazing. Mexico City is gaining a reputation for having some of the best restaurants in the world and when you add that on top of cheap tacos + beer, incredible desserts, and avocado everything - it's a wonderful place to go for a perfect dining adventure.

I stayed at the St. Regis Mexico City which is home to J&G Grill and the most incredible avocado pizza. I'm not joking when I say this is one of the best things you will ever eat! I was lucky enough to get to sit and chat with the chef for a while and he told me that it's so simple that I could even make it at home. Some day I am going to try, because dreams of the avocado pizza now haunt me.

Mexico City is also home to three of the World's 50 Best Restaurants so I definitely had to do some eating research on these places. I chose Pujol and think that it was a great decision. The tasting menu was delicious and inventive, including the dried ants that were included in one of the dishes. Yes, ants! I love that it was Mexican food with a high end twist and low price tag.

I saw El Moro Churreria on the guide from DesignLoveFest and immediately knew that I had to go after seeing photos. Well, I went twice. And probably should have tried to stop one (or two or three!) more times. I went for the ice cream sandwiches made out of churros. Oh goodness, these were delicious. I have to say that I've always thought give me a donut over a churro any day but then when I had the ice cream sandwiches, it was one fabulous treat. And the branding was so on point - hard not to love a pretty place serving up tasty treats in style.

In between trying to eat everything that I could, I also took in a little art and some shopping. Mexico City has the most museums of any city in the whole wide world. Let me say that again - in the whole wide world! It's easy to pop in a take a look, but my favorite was the outside of the Museo Soumaya which made my heart skip a beat when I saw it. I also booked a ticket to Luis Barragan's studio, which is so beautiful it deserves a blog post all its own.

One last thing I want to say about visiting Mexico City is that it felt safe for me to explore even though in recent years there have been murmurs to the contrary. There are neighborhoods that you should avoid, but that is the case in a lot of metropolitan cities. I took Uber rides everywhere I wanted to go and even if the ride was way across town through heavy traffic, it never cost more than $3. Crazy. Everyone I met was very friendly, willing to help me out with my very poor Spanish, and allowed me to wander through their hometown. It is a wonderfully rich city that is so affordable to visit and I hope to see again soon. If only for that avocado pizza!

More places I recommend checking out:
Modern Mexican & #12 on the World's 50 Best - Quintonil
Bakery - Panaderia Rosetta
Food hall - Mercado Roma
Tacos - El Califa (multiple locations)
Breakfast - Restaurante Lardo
Seafood & oyster bar - La Docena
Lunch & good coffee - Eno
Cute boutique hotel - Carlota

Posted at 08:00 AM in adventures in eating, travel eats, travels | Permalink | Comments (5)

July 11, 2016

Riad El Fenn in Marrakech, Morocco

In June I spent ten days traveling through Morocco visiting Marrakech, Fez, Casablanca, and maybe smaller cities in between. I traveled some of it alone, met up with friends, and ended up making some wonderful friends I shared some fun times with along the way. Unlike anywhere I've ever been before, it was by far one of the most challenging (and often frustrating) trips I've taken but also by far the most delightful + rewarding. So many great stories and experiences from my first adventure in Africa.

I ended up with over a thousand photos but these from my second day in Marrakech are some of my favorites. Although I stayed at a different hotel, I really wanted to check out the riad El Fenn. I had seen a few photos posted by a friend and it did not disappoint. I could have spent all day (or likely days) snapping pics of all the beautiful details and secret spots tucked into the space hidden behind the walls of the medina.

There are three beautiful swimming pools, gorgeous courtyards, and a restaurant at the very top with perfect views of the city. It's so peaceful and a place you literally never want to leave.

Morocco has a special style all its own and there was no better place it was on display than at El Fenn. Please go visit and see it all for yourself!

More eye candy on El Fenn's Instagram account and Facebook page.

Posted at 08:00 AM in travels | Permalink | Comments (7)

June 27, 2016

Visiting Iceland's Blue Lagoon

Back in early May I spent a few days in Iceland on my way home from Europe. Iceland Air has this awesome program called My Stopover, where you fly to Europe and book in some extra days in Iceland without paying extra. You can select how many days you'd like to be there, then the ticket price is still on par with other airlines for going to Europe. It's brilliant for their tourism industry and such a great deal for travelers. So on my way back from Paris, I spent three nights in Reykjavik.

When I lived in NYC, there was a season where Iceland Air wallpapered the subway stations and cars with ads to come visit Iceland. Whatever marketing dollars they spent on that worked on me because I could not wait to go. Every time I'd see a photo of the Blue Lagoon on Instagram it would make my fingers itch to just get there. When I finally did it felt like a dream and outlived my expectations.

The Blue Lagoon is a perfect place. I was expecting just kind of a city pool type feeling with rinky dink lockers and worn down showers but let me tell you, I was wrong. The facility was so clean and felt like a spa. And the lagoon is beautiful. Beyond. Even in May it was still very chilly outside so sinking down into the warm water felt so good. The milky water is actually clear but appears blue because of the way the sun hits it.

You're allowed to stay as long as you'd like and there's a little private corner of the lagoon where they do massages in the water. You lay on a foam raft and they hold you up to massage all over while most of your body is still submerged in the water. It's very relaxing but at the same time my mind kept thinking a million questions - how does my body float in water? How does this stay so warm? How do you get a job being a masseuse at the Blue Lagoon. Ha!

I literally felt like I'd been waiting my whole life to experience the Blue Lagoon. I loved every second. It was a hard crush at first sight on those subway ads and a love that made my heart leap out of my chest when I finally saw it with my own eyes.

Posted at 08:00 AM in Iceland, travels | Permalink | Comments (8)

Kelly Purkey