Busy Bee

I'M ALIVE

I am so sorry that I haven't posted in ages

I'm going to try to give you a run down of the past few weeks as short as possible

First--

The Camino

It was probably the hardest thing I've done

It's so difficult to explain the camino unless you've done it, but it was an incredible experience

Through all of the blisters, sore feet, legs, hips, knees, shoulders and back, the rain, the mountains and everything in between, I enjoyed my journey

The first day we hiked 37 kilometers, 26 the next, 24 on the third day and finished with 16 on the last day

There is a saying in Spanish, "Con pan y vino, se anda Camino"

Which means with bread and wine, you walk the camino

This held true, the majority of what we ate was bread and pasta, and we had our fair share of wine

Along the way there were so many grapes and figs we could just pick and eat while hiking

They were SO delicious

There truly is no way I could describe the way I felt during the camino

We met so many inspiring people and saw some magnificent sights

It definitely will not be forgotten

Here are some of my favorite photos

 Minor break down

I know it's gross, but I just needed to share this photo with you

I tried to spare you by not making this photo huge hahaha

After being home for a week, my friends and I headed to IRELAND (!!!) this past weekend

You guys

I thought I was in love with London, but I absolutely adored Ireland (they're probably tied)

Everything about the country was perfect

The people were so incredibly nice and genuine, their accents are to die for, the rolling green hills are breath taking, and the beer is great

We went with a tour group which provided hostels, transportation, tours and more

It really helped us maximize our short time there

We took our 3 hour flight from Alicante to Dublin on Thursday night and immediately went out to experience the night life

We kicked off our time with an Irish Car Bomb (which is apparently offensive, whoops) and hung out with the locals

The next day we spent hours walking through Dublin, stopped for a delicious lunch, then made our way to the Guinness factory to tour and enjoy a pint

We spent another night on the town and made our way to the Cliffs of Moher the next day (part of The Half Blood Prince was filmed here, I almost died)

After enjoying the beautiful sights, we continued our journey to Galway, an absolutely beautiful city bursting with life

We ditched our tour to explore for ourselves and I'm really glad we did

We spent our final night enjoying a few pints and some AWESOME live music in a pub where I'm sure we were the youngest people

We were honestly so sad to leave, I completely fell in love with the city

I already told my mom we need to travel there together at some point

Here are a few of my favorite photos from the weekend

Now we're off to Paris on Wednesday!

I hope you guys enjoyed this super long post

Thanks so much for reading

XO Kara

Hasta Luego!

Hi friends!

I'm about to embark on a very exciting journey

I leave today for a week long hiking trip along El Camino de Santiago (or The Way of St. James)

It has existed for thousands of years, and was an extremely important Christian pilgrimage during medieval times

There are numerous routes, but my group won't be doing the entire trip

Instead we will be doing a 100 kilometer journey, ending in Santiago

I am beyond excited! And also quite nervous

I have heard so many good things about this experience, I just can't wait to take it all in

Tonight we take a train to Madrid, and then an overnight train to where we will begin our journey at 5:30 am tomorrow!

It will be our longest day; we'll hike until sunset

Along the way we will be stopping in villages and small towns to eat, and staying in Christian hostiles at night

Here is what I'm bringing for the week long journey

 Overview

 Top row-- Spandex shorts. Sports bras and socks. Under Armour zip up. Light blanket and small towel.

Bottom row-- Two pairs of shorts and running leggings. Longsleeve. 3 t-shirts and a tank. Black PacSun pants.

 Right side: Nike's. Crocs. Diabetes supplies [not shown, but I also have an obscene amount of juice boxes and fruit snacks, I anticipate my blood sugar going low a lot]

 Toothpaste. Motrin. Clinique moisturizer and face wash with wash cloth. Eyelash curler. Maybelline Mega Plush mascara. Baby Lips chapstick. Foot cream [gross, but it's supposed to help with blisters]. Shampoo. Body wash. Sunscreen. [And deodorant, I just forgot to lay it out].

 Fossil watch. Coach sunnies. iPod. Trail mix. Homemade trailmix [pretzels, dried apricots, dried figs, blanched almonds and M&Ms], mini journal

 Do I look like I'm ready to go hiking? Hahaha

Can't wait to be hauling this bad boy around the trails

Wish me luck and I can't wait to share stories with all of you!!

Talk to you in a week :)

XO Kara