My Regal guide to the UK that’s fit for a Queen!

Posted in Custom Maps, UK by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

I can’t believe it’s taken me until June 2015 to get to the UK! It’s always been on my list, but never made the commitment until recently. Highlights of the trip through London, Bournemouth and Edinburgh are as follows:

Grabbing 4 posh friends and making it a week long epic adventure!
Drinking so much tea that we started talking with an English accent..”cheerio!”
Eating some of the BEST food in my life…Indian and pies anyone?!?
Chatting with so many locals and finding secret hidden spots!
Discovering the best pup in the world (next to Lilo)…Greyfriars Bobby!

If you have a trip to the UK coming up, use my Regal guide to get you to the best spots! Have questions? Make sure to ask me in the comments field and I’ll help you out!!

Traveler Trip: London is EXPENSIVE! Grab a group (we had 5) and split the cost of an AirBnB or VRBO rental. Saves your wallet and live like a local!

23Apr2015

First Timers Guide to NYC!!

Posted in Custom Maps, New York, NY by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

How do you describe NYC in one word? Maybe vibrant, speedy, aggressive, stylish or modern? Overall, I think for a first timer, NYC can only be described in one word – overwhelming! There is a quick pace to NYC and at seems as though everyone is walking with a purpose. There’s also so much to see that it’s often hard to fit everything into one trip. My advice is that you see NYC in pieces. Start with the touristy stuff and expand from there to the little neighborhoods on each trip!

For all you first timers, I’ve made you a handy little map to get you through your first trip to NYC! It’s a collection of what I saw on my first few trips to NYC (some for fun, some for business). Here are some of my unique finds:

NY Public Library – offers FREE tours! It’s also where the original Winnie the Pooh stuffed animals are housed! (Located in the children section)
- Right next to Bryant Park – also free! (Calling all Project Runway Fans!)
Russian Vodka Room – I’m not sure if we stumbled into this place…or stumbled out of this place, but it was fantastic! Belly up to the bar and talk to strangers! I met a news reporter who was waiting to interview a famous hacker (they never showed up)! Ohhhh how I love you NYC.
2 Bros Pizza – As a true Chicagoan, I like my deep-dish, but I was on the HUNT for NY style pizza. Not saying 2 Bros is the BEST, but it was only $1, and you can fold it! Eeeekk! Also, if you go really late then you will find the BEST people watching. Seriously.

Travelers Tip: Make sure to sign up/follow NYC Food Gals! Their Instagram Site (@nycfoodgals) showcases yummy meals from all over the city!!

Have you been to NYC?? What are some of your favorite spots?? Make sure to leave comments in the field below!

6May2014

What I really need is an Eiskaffee!!

Posted in Austria, Travel Bites by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

These last few weeks have been so busy with a packed schedule and work travel that I stopped myself a few days ago and thought, “What I really need is an Eiskaffee!!”

Never heard of it?? It was new to me too until I went to Vienna, Austria two years ago. My sister and I were walking down one of the most famous streets in Vienna, Graben Street, when right in front of us was this cute, little, unassuming cafe called Julius Meinl. We noticed the waitresses carefully delivering delicious drinks to anxious customers and knew we had to immediately find out what they were.

We found out the delicious drink was called a Eiskaffee – “Expresso poured over vanilla ice-cream with whipped cream.” There was also another drink that my sister decided to try called the Melange – “Expresso, equal parts steamed milk and foam, dusting of meinl eruropean cocoa.”

So next time you’re in Vienna, try and make a stop in Julius Meinl for a flavor-packed coffee! Luckily for me, there are a few Julius Meinl’s located in Chicago so whenever work gets crazy again, I’m heading straight there!

Photo courtesy of northamerica.meinl.com

23Mar2014

I don’t want to be mean….but Sacramento, your “Chicago-style” pizza is terrible.

Posted in California, Travel Bites by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

In my last post, I told you a little story about how I ended up at Folsom Prison…in my stilettos. Although a bit terrifying at first, it’s a great example about how fun and unexpected your travels can be! The reason I ended up in Folsom, CA in the first place was because 1/2 the people in my training class proclaimed that a certain pizza restaurant was “the best Chicago-style pizza in California.”

The restaurant they were talking about is called Chicago Fire and I’m sorry, but it DOES NOT taste like Chicago style pizza!! I suppose it’s ok if you’ve never had Lou Malnati’s or Giordano’s, but if you have, you’ll agree that it doesn’t quite match up. Although I figured I would come to this conclusion, I wanted to make a sincere effort and embrace the highly recommended spot. The Folsom location didn’t open until 4pm, which was 4hrs away, so I settled for the Sacramento location.

I ordered my take-away cheese deep-dish pizza and enjoyed a much needed drink at the bar. Remember, I had just been to Folsom prison so I probably could have used a few drinks at this point! The staff was friendly and the restaurant itself was lively which made for a very entertaining 30-40min wait. While I was waiting and scanning the bar scene, I noticed something missing…no Old Style. “Surely it’s a mistake,” I thought. How could you have a Chicago-themed restaurant with no Old Style? I kindly asked the bartender if they had any and I knew my answer when he looked at me like I had 3 heads. At least they had PBR (which debuted at the Chicago World Fair in 1893).

Finally, my pizza had arrived!! I was so hungry at this point but decided to just bring it back to my hotel so I could eat and pack for my flight the next morning. Here’s what I saw as I opened the box…

Looks amazing, right?! Probably tastes just as amazing, right?!? NOPE. While it LOOKS like a traditional Chicago deep-dish pizza, the taste was just….off. The cheese and tomatoes were similar to Lou Malnati’s, but the crust was just not right and if you can’t make a good crust, then what’s the point (in my professional opinion)! Unfortunately, I couldn’t take the smell anymore so in the hotel hallway it went.

My advice, save yourself the trip and ship yourself a Lou’s or Giordano’s! A better option, if you’re in the traveling spirit, would be to book a trip to my hometown of Chicago!

30Jan2014

Is it Gelato o’clock?

Posted in Italy, Travel Bites by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

In 2011, my sister and I went to Italy in the hopes of discovering the most mouthwatering, savory, flavorful meals we’ve ever tasted in our lives. What we didn’t realize was that we would discover all of those things in one divine item…gelato. In two weeks, we managed to consume what a normal human would enjoy in two years (ok, maybe four). Seriously! We ate so much that we just starting saying “Is it gelato o’clock?” to each other.

Don’t believe me? Yeah…umm…just scroll down.

oops.

Holy ~~Guacamole~~ Gelato!

Right?!?

We walked absolutely everywhere, so I’m happy to report that we did successfully fit back into the coach airline seats for the long flight home.

If I had to narrow it down (and give you somewhere to focus) I would say that GROM and Giolitti were my favorites. You can only find Giolitti in Rome, but GROM is all over Italy and a few other countries. There are also three locations for GROM in New York so the USA can get their fix too!

Curious to know what flavors we tried? Duh, OF COURSE you are!

Drum roll please……((Deep Breath))…..Chocolate, Oreo, Dark Chocolate, Baileys, Cinnamon, Mint, Stracciatella, Salted Caramel, Pistachio, Bacio, Hazelnut, Coconut, Maroon Glacee, Pear, Fig, Caramel, Italian Opera Cake, Biscotti, Tiramisu, Caffe, Nutella, Honey, Basil, Caramelized Fig, Walnut, Cannoli, Sesame, White Peach & Lavender and Bellini.

Have you tried gelato? What are your favorite flavors?

16Jan2014

The most amazing thing I ate in Prague! (Hint: It has cinnamon and sugar on it!!)

Posted in Czech Republic, Travel Bites by Kristina @ Three Little Birds travel

I’m going to ask you to do something very important, but a bit touristy, on your next trip.

Take pictures of your food!!

Sure, it’s a tad bit embarrassing to whip out your phone or camera and snap away at your dish, but how else are you going to remember how you gained all those well-deserved pounds?! When I came back from a two week trip to Italy, I ONLY posted pictures of the food I ate. Almost 1/3 of those pics were of gelato! ….no judging!

In celebration of all the well-deserved pounds I’ve maybe gained, I’m starting off a new section of my blog, Travel Bites, with the most amazing thing I ate in Prague, Czech Republic.

Introducing….the Trdelnik!

Cinnamon & Sugar Trdelnik

I found this tasty treat all around Prague and it’s absolutely delicious. It’s a perfect pick-me-up for when you’ve been walking all day and just want to sit on a park bench and relax. They come in different varieties, but my favorite was the cinnamon & sugar one.

Important: Make sure you buy them FRESH! They are much better when they come right off the hot stick.

Trdelnik in the making!

Fresh Trdelnik from a bakery next to the Charles Bridge

If you’re curious to know how they actually prepare these treats, you can click on this Trdelnik YouTube Video I found.

Feeling extra ambitious and a visit to Prague isn’t in your near future? You can try and make these at home! I found a great recipe from Pauline’s Cookbook that you can try. Let me know how it goes!

To see a collection of my favorite Travel Bites, check out my Eat, Drink, Travel Pinterest board.