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jill honeycutt

DESIGNER + EDUCATOR + CREATIVE THINKER

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  • thesis work
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bonn, germany.

day 86 // sat april 7

It's always fun to be a tourist in your own city. Saturday was the day we had to say goodbye to Ris & Jarrod, so sad. We walked them to the train station and decided we would hunker down to get some work done. Well, that was short lived because about an hour later Jens texted and asked if we wanted to go to the Poppelsdorfer neighborhood and explore. The day was too pretty not to say yes—75 degrees and sunny. 

We first walked across town to Poppelsdorf Palace. This is currently part of the University of Bonn. It hosts a botanical garden and lots of great lawn space for people to lounge. Jens had been telling us about this great Tibetan place. I personally had never had Tibetan food, but he said they made the noodles right in front of you and it was delicious. The place was really tiny, but with tons of character—my favorite type of restaurant. 

After grubbing (for real) we continued our walk through Poppelsdorf. This is a cool area of Bonn I didn't even know existed as a student. There are lots of cool restaurants, cafes and beer gardens. Jens is a volunteer firefighter so he took us to his station, which is part of an old fortress (pretty cool). We wanted to stop by a well known coffee shop called Brews Lee, but it's apparently closed on Saturdays. Sad day. Instead we stopped at Fiddler's, an Irish pub. He took us through parts of the new University of Bonn campus. I didn't realize how big and how many students attended the university. Lastly we stopped by a bicycle coffee stand that Jens frequents often. Super nice guy that owns it. 

It was a fun day! 

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day 87 // sun april 8

We went to a local basketball game with a few other faculty members from A&M that are also currently working at AIB. We all live in the same building so we meet up for pizza first. It was a fun experience to see how other culture experience sports. Especially coming from such a strong background like A&M, I wasn't sure what to expect. 

tags: bonn, sun, university, coffee, tibetan, food, firefighter
categories: travel
Monday 04.23.18
Posted by Jill Honeycutt
 

tarragona, spain.

I'm so behind on writing—I've got to be better! Nonetheless, we went to Spain and it was great. Read more below! 

day 70 // thur march 23

Gotta love airstrikes, ya know? I was honestly so excited because we were not flying RyanAir flying to Spain. Somehow I still ended up disappointed in our flight. Due to a super convenitinet air controller strike in France our flight couldn't leave at the scheduled time. We sat in the airport about an hour pa. After we finally boarded the plane, we sat on the runway for another hour or more! So frustrating, especially knowing someone was meeting us at our destination. 

Once we finally arrived in Barcelona, Nathan greeted us at the airport. He was so kind to give us a ride back to Tina's house. By the time we finally got there we were starving. Originally our flight was set to land at 7PM. We actually arrived about 9:30PM. He took us to an outdoor mall with a lot of food options, it was late though so it was pretty quiet. We had some food and caught up for awhile until they kicked us out of the restaurant. 

He drove us back to Tina's house where we were staying and got us settled. Marissa and I also stayed with Ms. Tina back in 2011. She was so kind to open up her home to me, both times! 

day 71 // fri march 22

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We spent the day in Tarragona. This is smaller port city located in northeast Spain, about an hour outside of Barcelona. The weather was perfect! I was dying for some sunshine and the good Lord provided. We had a nice slow morning with yummy coffee and breakfast then Nathan and family came to pick us up. Our first stop was the Ferreres Aqueduct which was part of the Roman aqueduct built to supply water to the ancient city of Tarragona. Wade was itching to go to the aqueducts in Rome, but we just didn't have time so I'm glad we got to see these! 

After that we headed towards the coast. We walked through a lot of the Roman ruins. This included amphitheatre, walls, tower, and more. The view was stunning! We had a late (normal for the Spanish) lunch at the nice restaurant in an old house. It was really yummy! I had a salad with goat cheese, fish, then a creme pudding. We kept exploring and even did a little shopping. Before we knew it it was evening time. We dropped Nathan's girls at the swimming practice and headed back to the apartment. Tina laid out quite the spread with bread, cheese, proscuttio, and more. My favorite type of meal. We all just chatted until time for bed. 

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day 72 // sat march 24

We knew from looking at the weather it was going to rain, pretty sure it said 100% all day. With that being said, we had another slow morning. Nathan picked Wade and I up mid-morning and took us to their house. We had the nicest day catching up. We sat around the table for at least 10 hours talking and eating (of course). Sheila was so kind to make us SUCH good food. For lunch we had gazpacho and a really, really yummy dish that I can't remember the name of. Trust me, it was very good. Then we had strawberries with whipped cream. 

Of course we had coffee that afternoon. Then later had croquetas, cheese, and tortilla. Makes my stomach and heart so full thinking back on that day. Obviously you can see we talked and ate all day, and I wouldn't have it any other way! It was so nice. Wade and I have been going and travelling so much it gets tiring. That's not a complaint in the least, but it was nice to feel at home. To have good, meaningful conversation around a table. 

day 73 // sun march 25

Sunday was our last day, but luckily our flight wasn't until 8PM. We loaded up and went into Barcelona. First up was the Sagrada Familia. It's a must see. It had changed so much since I saw it last. There were totally new sections that had been built! We explored for awhile before we had to head to the airport. Nathan, Shelia, Tina and family are always such kind hosts. Wade and I left feeling like part of the family. 

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tags: spain, barcelona, sun, beach
categories: travel
Sunday 04.08.18
Posted by Jill Honeycutt
 

rome, italy.

day 60 // mon march 12

We got to Rome about 11AM on Monday. We had the most time scheduled in Rome because it’s so big and there is so much to see, plus the Vatican is a city in itself. Wade was most excited about visiting Rome. It is always a cool experience to see something you've grown up seeing in movies, on tv and in textbooks. 

We found and checked into our Airbnb. This was my favorite Airbnb so far. It was owned by a couple that were designers of some sort. It was simple and clean but the extra touches made it feel cozy. We had an espresso machine in the room, plus every morning around 9am they would put a basket of breakfast goodies outside your door—nothing too extravagant but muffins, toast and orange juice. It was a very nice gesture. 

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After getting settled in we decided to explore because the weather was so perfect! Our Airbnb ended up being a 10 minutes walk to the colosseum, a cool surprise! We walked around the perimeter, but didn’t want to go in just yet, that was for the next day. We eventually found the Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and this pastry shop called Regoli Pasticceria that was recommended by our Airbnb host. You know it’s going to be good when no one really speaks English. Regoli is an artisan bakery founded in 1916 and is still run by the Regoli Family. We decided on a traditional Roman pastry, a strawberry tart, and another puff pastry of sorts. The strawberry tart was SO good. Would recommend the little bakery hands down. 

After scarfing down our pastries we took a nap and relaxed in our apartment. For dinner we went to a place nearby that had pretty good reviews for some pizza. I had a Diavlo with spicy salami. I enjoyed it. Then I ordered 2 desserts... whatever, when in Rome. I had tiramisu and catlana (which was essentially a cream brûlée).

day 61 // tue march 13

Our first full day in Rome began with a relaxed morning. We had read that it’s best to buy your tickets to the Roman Forum and Colosseum at Palatine Hill. Much less of a wait, plus an easier entrance. I would agree 100%. We walked passed the crowded and waited less than 15 minutes. We started at Palatine Hill, then strolled along, soaking up the sun and the sites. We walked through the Roman Forum (so much to see!). I couldn’t get over how great the weather was—sun shining, blue skies, and great temps! We took a lunch break and found a by-the-slice pizza joint. We each got a slice and took it back to the steps of a nice building we spotted along the way. We enjoyed our late lunch then decided it was time for the main show. We headed to the colosseum and there was no line at all. Since we had already bought a combine ticket that morning at Palatine Hill we just walked right in.

Later that night a group of students who were also in Rome had reached out about having dinner. This entire experience was a hoot. The place we originally wanted to go wouldn’t take a group as large as ours until 10pm. Our backup plan was a place across the street. We all sat down then ordered, and I don’t even know how to explain it... it was like the manager and the waiter were arguing? They also were almost convincing you on what to order. All that to say, my food was actually tasty, but the entire experience just felt awkward and anxiety laden for me. 

After our full day of perfect weather we were pooped. We laid in bed and watched netflix (it was the first time we had a TV since being in Europe). 

day 62 // wed march 14

The next day was dedicated to the Vatican. We took the subway to a stop nearby. Apparently we arrived there right after the Pope had been speaking (we didn’t even know that was happening, oh well). We had to wait a few minutes for the gates to open back up, but once they did the crowds flooded in. We waited probably 30 minutes to get into the church. Afterwards we bought our Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel ticket at a booth inside the Vatican. It was 4 euro more a person, but that allowed us to skip the line at the actual museum—definitely recommend. We spent a few hours in the museum and made it to the Sistine Chapel which is at the end of the journey. Wade and I were both blown away by the ceiling, although it wasn't what either of us were expecting. 

Wade then met a friend from school at a video game museum. I walked around the neighborhood and eventually took a break at a  cafe. I ordered a small sandwich and did some people watching. After reuniting we took a walk down the river to the neighborhood where we had dinner reservations. I had found this place via another blogger online. She had 1 picture of the place and I was sold. Not to mention it was pretty far off the beaten path. We got there a little early, but they were able to seat us immediately. The restaurant was called Meridionale. It was such a cute place! We started with an appetizer of squash pie with fontina cheese. I ordered carbonara and it was SO good! We then ordered tiramisu and it was served in a cute little coffee cup. Probably one of my top favorite meals so far this journey. 

After dinner we wanted to see the Trevi fountain at night, so we walked through the streets to the last destination of the evening. We through a coin in and called it a night. 

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day 63 // thur march 15

The last thing to cross off our list while in Rome were the Spanish steps. We headed that direction, found them, got handed roses like a million times, then decided to move on. We found this neat park close by that we explored for awhile. It had the coolest busts scattered throughout the park. After 3.5 jammed packed days we left and headed south towards Naples. This was my pick because I wanted to see coastal Italy and Cinque Terre was too far out of our travel path. Not to mention I LOVE me some Neapolitan–style pizza. Let’s get real. (the pizza did not disappoint, the city itself, well)

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tags: rome, italy, food, pasta, sun
categories: travel
Wednesday 03.28.18
Posted by Jill Honeycutt
 

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