A Walk in the Pink Park: June 2016

Colors of Italy Sandwich

Need a quick snack?

While in Italy, I found myself making this sandwich a few times, as it was super easy and delicious!!

Here's what you'll need:

2 slices of bread

1 cherry tomato

2 mozzarella balls

1 handful of arugula

A drizzle of pesto

A drizzle of olive oil

A pinch of rock/sea salt & black pepper

Got all that? Ready? Let's go!

1. First, you'll need to cut up your cherry tomato & mozzarella ball into fourths and add to one slice of bread (cut however many you need to evenly cover the bread if it's more/less than that). Then add the drizzle of pesto on top.

2. On the other slice, cut the other mozzarella ball and add, along with the handful of arugula on top.

3. Once ready, coat the pan with the drizzle of olive oil and put on medium heat. Put both slices separately inside the pan and leave to cook for about 5 minutes. Check underneath to see if the bread is a golden brown - if so, pick up the arugula slice with a spatula and flip it over on top of the other slice. Press down gently to get them to stick and let cook for one minute. Repeat for the other side.

4. Remove sandwich from the pan and add a little bit of rock/sea salt & black pepper on top for flavor.

5. Enjoy!

Thanks to everyone who has been keeping up with my posts and stay tuned for more!!

Hi friends! The other half of my spring break post is here!! For rest of it, I went to Amsterdam as well as Paris; both were amazingly beautiful. Follow my journey of the two cities below!

Amsterdam

Beautiful canals line the streets along with the many bikes (the city is very friendly toward bikers) - as the locals say "We're like Venice but we're not sinking" haha!

Train Station

Dutch Cheese Museum

The Fault in Our Stars Bench

I was so excited to find this - kind of hard to find but was worth it after reading the book & seeing the movie!

Anne Frank House

Such a moving experience! Definitely worth it!!

Pancakes Amsterdam

Pancakes are eaten as lunch or dinner, never breakfast in Amsterdam, so we sought to find a nice "lunch" spot where we could taste the local favorite. This place came highly recommended and it did not disappoint!! I got a bacon, cinnamon and ice cream pancake - delicious! Plus, they gave out free keychains.

They're known for their fries (which were so good!) and also tend to put melted cheese on their hot dogs - who knew?!

Heineken Factory

We ended up visiting where the beer started and it was such a unique experience. We learned the history, the process and even the pouring of the beer - I had never done a tour like this before and was really glad I did!

Fun Fact: Foam is important to beer because it protects it from oxygen (which causes beer to lose it's flavor) and keeps it from getting flat/lose the bubbles.

I Amsterdam Sign

A bit crowded but still cool to see!

Stroopwafel

Specoloos cookie with caramel on the inside, highlight of the trip in all honesty because they were so addicting!

Paris

Eiffel Tower

This literally took my breath away seeing it sparkle at night like this!

Wouldn't be Paris without some Nutella-filled crepes!

Notre Dame

New location of Love Lock Bridge

The city was worried the locks would sink the original so it was moved to a fence nearby instead

Here's the original!

Where Carrie Bradshaw proposed to Big on Sex and the City - and right across is the famous Louvre Museum.

The Louvre Museum

Mona Lisa

Cool to see but so tiny in person!

Croque Monsieur

sandwich with cheese grilled on the outside (ham & cheese on the inside too)

Angelina

Amazing hot chocolate and the favorite spot of Audrey Hepburn!

Devil Wears Prada Fountain

You know the one - where Miss Andy Saks tossed her phone & rid herself of being taken over by her dragon of a boss, Miranda.

Champs Elysees

THE shopping street - try not to get sucked in!

Guerlain

Famous for their makeup

Laduree

Known for their famous macarons - so pretty & good! I felt like Blair Waldorf walking in there!!

Louis Vuitton Flagship

Need I say more?

Arc de Triomphe

Creme Brulee

Another local favorite - creamy custard with a crystallized sugary crust

Ponte Alexandre III

Beautiful bridge that is on the way to the Eiffel Tower - wish i got pictures of it in the day but still magical! Made me think of Midnight in Paris with Owen Wilson walking across it.

Versailles

Louis XIV built it because he was a very grand king who bought lots of clothes, threw big parties, and wanted something no one else had. Fun Fact: Since he never took showers, he also had a hand in starting the perfume industry. Louis XVI & Marie Antoinette also lived here as well.