Las Vegas Bowl

My dad and I were casually discussing the BYU bowl game over Thanksgiving and talking about whether or not they would end up in Vegas.

We were 99% positive they would, and decided that if they ended up playing Utah we had to be there.

My oldest sister was already going to be there with her family for a vacation, so before Utah was announced as BYU's opponent we got tickets.

Good thing we did because tickets sold out pretty dang quick once Utah was announced.

We got in the night of the pep rally held down on Fremont Street.

For this being my first time to Vegas, I was less than impressed, and couldn't wrap my head around the appeal of Vegas from what I had seen.

                                 

                                  

The pep rally was fun, but we were hungry and anxious to get to dinner!

We ended up at the Wynn and had the most delicious dinner!

                                 

                                  

We ordered three mini desserts and it was brought out on this cute little tray with orange flavored cotton candy.

The desserts were warm cookies and mint milk, creme brulee, and a decadent orange mousse cake.

The entire dinner was absolutely incredible, but the desserts were definitely the icing on the cake!

I've never tasted cotton candy like that in my life.

Not only was it orange flavored, but you couldn't taste the chunky sugar at all.

We even asked if we could take it to go because we were going to be meeting up with my niece and nephew, but the waiter told us it would disintegrate by then anyway!

                                 

                                  

We walked around the displays and shops (PRADA, anyone?!) at the Wynn and then headed to our hotel for bed.

I woke up the next morning so nervous, and let's just say the day didn't start off too great.

My mom had a migraine and stayed at the hotel, the parking situation at the stadium was an absolute nightmare, we barely made it for kickoff, and then within the first seven minutes of play time Utah was up by five touchdowns.

It was rough.

BUT...

It turned into a game and I could not have been happier with how BYU played from then on out!

Utah fans got quiet real quick and (in my humble opinion) if BYU would have gone for an onside kick in the fourth I think they easily could have tied it.

After the kind of start that they had, I was proud and happy in the end!

The entertainment was great, as to be expected from Vegas.

Before kickoff, Nellis AFB did a flyover and it was deafeningly spectacular! 

That's one way to get a crowd riled up for a game!

They also had some of the cast from Cirque du Soleil perform during halftime.

After the game we met up with my sister and her family and headed out to explore some of the resorts. 

                                 

                                  

That was the Vegas I expected!

All of those hotels are incredible.

We ate at Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville and then headed over to the High Roller to see Vegas from the sky!

                                  

Vegas redeemed itself a little bit, although I do have to say that I swear I just saw dollar signs everywhere I went.

That entire city just screams money.

The next morning before leaving to head back home we went to brunch at a french restaurant in the Venetian (I know, it didn't make sense to me either ;) ).

It was so good and made me seriously miss the food in France.

We walked around some shops, including Louboutin...

                                 

...had some gelato (nothing like the real stuff!), and then headed home.

It was a great quick trip with some of my favorite people!

My Month in Europe: Strasbourg Days One and Two

Strasbourg Day One

After Paris our next adventure was on to Strasbourg, the capital of France!

We desperately needed a little bit of a break from the adventure filled days of London and Paris, so this couldn't have come at a more perfect time!

Our travel day to Strasbourg was very relaxed, and to be honest, I don't remember a whole lot! 

Before we left Paris we stopped by the Paris Temple site, where we had a presentation from a member of the church involved with purchasing the ground the temple was to be built on. 

I was so miserably tired that I was hardly coherent and barely remember the presentation.

Oops!

Once we got to Strasbourg we went to an "American" diner called Franky's. 

I was surprised to be craving a hamburger and a milkshake, but I suppose nearly two weeks into the trip I just wanted a little taste of home!

I had the best chocolate banana milkshake and I was satisfied for another few weeks until we were home :)

That night we just spent in the hotel playing catch phrase, chatting, and catching up on some major sleep.

Strasbourg Day Two

The next day we woke up bright and early for a business visit with the European Union. 

I was really ridiculously excited for this visit, but unfortunately, I was still so exhausted.

When we were preparing for the trip, our teachers told us that there would be a point that we hit a wall, and this was definitely that point.

Our tour guides for the EU were fantastic and so incredibly knowledgeable.

At one point they took us to a room for a presentation with comfy chairs and dimmed lights, and I can honestly say I don't think I've ever struggled more to keep my eyes open. 

I kept looking around and nearly half of our group had their eyes closed.

I felt so bad, and we probably came across as so unprofessional. 

Overall though, it was a great visit!

We had the rest of the day to ourselves, so first up on our list was a nice long nap.

Katy and I went back to our room and were out nearly as soon as our heads hit our pillows.

That was the most glorious nap of my entire life...

Until...

The loudest, blaring, fire alarm woke us up.

I am an incredibly light sleeper, but it took me a good minute to realize it was a fire alarm disturbing me. 

I thought it was Katy's phone and I was so irrationally angry at her, I was about to yell at her to make it stop.

Then, at the same time, we both realized it was a fire alarm.

I confusedly and sleepily poked my head out the door, half dressed, wondering if we actually needed to go downstairs.

By the time Katy and I were putting on clothes and shoes and grabbing our most important belongings, the fire alarm stopped.

It took us a good while to snap out of our groggy and grumpy state, but once we did we felt refreshed enough to head out for the day!

Katy, Brandon, Ryan, and I all went to Old Town to explore and walk around for a bit. 

It was absolutely perfect and everything I had imagined France to be!

Bakeries, patisseries, Fromageries, Creperies, Chocolatiers, quint mom and pop shops, dogs wandering around off of leashes, cobblestone streets, and more. 

I was in heaven. 

I mean, just look at that! ^

We made our way to the Cathedral Notre Dame de Strasbourg, which had magnificent architecture. 

Story goes that the building owner didn't want the design of the cathedral to ever be replicated, so once they finished building it he took all of the architects and builders up to the top and pushed them off. 

The locals claim this to be true, but who knows!

After the cathedral we were on a hunt for crepes and gelato.

We found a place that served both, and I'm pretty sure were those obnoxious tourists who don't speak french, don't know how to order food, and went back twice for crepes and gelato ;)

But let me tell ya, those crepes and that gelato sure hit the spot.

Who says you can't have dessert for dinner?!

When in France, right? :)

Straciatella, Raspberry, and Mango gelato pictured above :)

What I wouldn't give for some of that right now!

On our walk back to the hotel we sampled nearly everything we could in all of the different shops.

It was a truly fantastic, relaxing, and rejuvenating day.

Exactly what was needed!

My Month in Europe: Paris Day One

Ohhh you guys...

What to say about Paris...

I was so incredibly excited for Paris having studied French (and France) for two years in high school. 

My best friend Bonney and I would dream about going there, speaking perfectly fluent french, and eating every last bite of food we could handle.

So when we woke up at a grueling 4AM to take the Chunnel to Paris, I was beyond excited!

(But also incredibly distressed about my fried hair, which I discovered the night before. I'm sure there will be a blog post about this sometime in the near future. It was traumatic to the point that I ran around the train station like a maniac trying to get good enough WiFi to facetime my mom.)

That train ride was silent, let me tell you.

I'm pretty sure almost all of us were dead to the world the entire time.

Once we got to Paris, there was some immediate culture shock within seconds of stepping off of the train. Ireland and England weren't bad at all because nearly everyone knew English, but here, it was incredibly hit and miss.

I was surprised at the amount of French I remembered though, particularly when it came to food!

I had always heard that Paris was dirty and smelt bad, and let me tell you, that is definitely the truth.

The difference between the undergrounds in London and Paris is night and day, and just the city in general is, well, gross.

Not wanting to let those first impressions get in the way, a group of us girls headed straight for the world-famous Lafayette Department Store after dropping our things off at the hotel.

I was in designer shoe and handbag heaven, let me tell you.

I think I almost passed out at the sight of "PRADA" on the wall!

From there we headed off to find some lunch and the Notre Dame.

On our little walk we got our first glimpse of the Eiffel Tower!

We ended up finding this little outdoor cafe called L'Annexe, which I still dream of going back to!

Our server was so nice and helpful. He gave us some tips on eating out in France, such as that you don't have to tip and the server should swipe your card in front of you.

I ordered a Tartine Provencal which is a baguette, prosciutto ham, cheese, tomatoes, olive oil and herbs.

I realize this sounds easy and boring, but oh no no no...

It was to die for!

This was everything I expected and more after two years of my french teacher telling me how amazing the bread and cheese is in France!

Also, the vinaigrette on that salad was delightful! 

After lunch we went to the Notre Dame.

It was breathtakingly beautiful inside!

The stained glass architecture was incredibly intricate.

There was one mural made out of carved wood, I believe, that told the story of Christ from birth to crucifixion.

Each pane was a different snapshot of Christ's life.

It was beautiful!

From the Notre Dame we went to do some souvenir shopping.

I bought two beautiful paintings/drawings and a couple of kitchen-type things for my mom :)

That night we had a YSA Fireside with the Paris YSA ward.

They rolled out the red carpet when it came to feeding us!

There was a whole spread of pastries and desserts, along with a really delicious soup in bread bowls. 

So far the food in France was exceeding all expectations, and I was definitely not complaining!