All Time Faves: Bands

Day 28: What are your top 3 favorite bands?

What does it take for a band to be considered a favorite? do I need to have every single record they ever made? been to at least one of their concerts? like ALL their songs? If that's the case then I don't have a favorite band, but here's three bands I love:

1. Blink 182. The obsessions started when their hit album Enema of the State came out in 1999 (I'm all about the 90's). After that, I looked all of their older stuff up and continue to follow their career up to their self tittled album. I'm actually really excited that they are releasing a new album this year (California), but before I get that, I need to catch up with what came in between: Neighborhoods. I've seen them live once (they came to Mexico ages ago) and I don't have all their records nor do I like all their songs.I think what I like about Blink 182 is their music over their lyrics. Usually I'm more of a lyrics person, but despite what their songs say, their music just makes me happy. (Image via here)

2. The Ataris. Remember that time (in the 90's, of course) when you'd make friends in online chat rooms? Well, back then I met this guy named Sam. He introduced me to The Ataris and many other bands of the sort. That's how I started listening to punk rock music, when I was in Secondary school. What stood out from The Ataris over the other bands was also their music and occasionally their lyrics too. I felt like their music had messages of love, friendship and family and over all, it made me happy to listen to it. I don't have all their records (just a couple), I've never seen them live,  and I stopped following their career. But we'll always have San Dimas High School Football Rules. (Image via here)

3. Maroon 5. There's more to Maroon 5 than just how hot Adam Levine is. I love their music AND lyrics, possibly more than the music itself. I don't have ANY of their records but I've seen them live once. (Image via here)

Other bands I really like include Imagine Dragons, Mumford and Sons, Green Day, Good Charlotte, New Found Glory, Sum 41, All American Rejects, Simple Plan, Unwritten Law, MxPx, Mest, Coldplay, Keane, One Republic, Lifehouse and Florence and the Machine, amongst many, many more. 

What are your top 3 favorite bands?

g.

*Cover image via here

Messy Pants

Day 27: Are you messy or neat?

I think for housing stuff I'm quite messy (like changing clothes and throwing them around the house, leaving shoes downstairs and things of the sort). On the other hand, I like to keep professional stuff on the neater side (like the office, important documents and stuff).

Here for example: what is a PetCo bag doing on my coffee table along with my makeup bag and a hyacinth bin? oh, and back there you ask? just some Lego Architecture sets I bought TWO YEARS AGO and A's sweatshirt thrown over my chair. But look further and see all those books organized by color, how pretty :)

So what about you? Neat freak or Messy pants?

g.

Ten Cities

Day 26: Name 10 places you would like to visit

I love traveling, but then again, who doesn't. The choosing where to go, researching where to eat and what to see, the nerve wrecking experience which is buying plane tickets and booking hotel rooms online... 

Here's my list of 10 places I would like to visit, in no particular order:

1. Chicago. The windy city. Chicago is one of those cities filled with great architecture. It's home to buildings by Mies van der Rohe, Louis Sullivan and Helmut Jahn. Hell, it was home for Frank Lloyd Wright and where the Prairie School movement was born. As an architect, how could I not want to go there? (Image via here)

2. San Francisco. Maybe it is the kid in me who wishes was a part of the Tanner family or maybe I've just been watching too much Full House lately, but San Francisco has always appealed to me. It's just such an iconic city and for once, architecture has nothing to do with it (except maybe the Golden Gate Bridge): Alcatraz, Fisherman's Wharf, Chinatown, Lombard Street... It seems like the kind of place you could take the time to really see the city without having to worry about missing stuff. (Image via here).

3. LA (and everywhere around it). Santa Monica, Venice Beach, Malibu, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Anaheim...  God, I think this is the place where I want to go the most. Being such a tv freak, walking around any of the aforementioned places would be like a dream come true, like living in movies and tv shows I've loved for years. Seriously, just walking around Rodeo Dr pretending to be friends with Kelly and Donna would do it, but there are so many great things to do and see in LA: Disney Concert Hall, The Broad, LACMA, and a whole lot more of architecture based picks. Plus the food scene and latin vibes and basically everything. Earth, swallow me now and spit me in LA. (Image via here)



4. Positano. Ahh, the Amalfi Coast. It is one place that seems to be thriving these days, but of course, why woulnd't it? It keeps popping on my instagram feed implanting on me the idea of going there asap. The whole place just looks so romantic and laid back, like the perfect place for a honeymoon or an anniversary trip. (Image via here)

5. Paris. Because no one ever said 'Veracruz is always a good idea'. Although I've been once before, ever since I read that Jordan and her family moved there for a year,  I've been obsessed with the idea of spending a long time there, as in more than four days (like last time). It's the kind of city that has more to offer than touristic attractions. I've run around Champs Elysées and done the eternal lines to climb the Eiffel Tower (not that I would mind doing it again), but I'd like to really spend time in Paris. Sit at cafes, peruse flea markets, drive a vespa around the city, the true Parisian experience. (Image via here)

6. Amsterdam. When I was studying in Sheffield, Amsterdam was supposed to be part of a summer holiday but fell through at the last minute. I'd still like to go some day because I think the Netherlands has such a rich culture and Amsterdam seems to be a beautiful city with the canals and clogs and... windmills? (Image via here)

7. Tokyo. So exotic, right? As you can probably tell by now (except maybe for Positano up there), I'm more of a big city kind of tourist, way more into going to places where there are many things to do and see, over laying by the pool reading (not that I don't enjoy that as well). Plus, again with the culture and the architecture. (Image via here)

8. Shanghai. Those sights, that skyline... that's all I got, but seriously, big city, architecture, what more is there to it? well, of course, Shanghai Disneyland :) (Image via here)

9. Sydney. At some point in my life I was obsessed with the surfing culture (And the Olsen's twins unrealistic traveling movies). But taking that aside I feel like Sydney is a very cosmopolitan city, and one which has it all: beaches, great architecture, culture, art, and the Sydney Harbor Bridge & the Opera House. (Image via here)

10. Rio de Janeiro. A was the one who actually planted this seed on me, but what attracts me of visiting Brasil, other than food, is (you guessed it) the architecture. Actually a trip to Brasil would need to include other cities like Brasilia, Sao Paolo and maybe even Curitiba to check out Oscar Niemeyer and Lina Bo Bardi's work, not that the beaches of Copacabana wouldn't be enough for me ;) (Image via here)

So basically my picks depend completely on architecture and things to see (aka landmarks) which result in quite busy holidays, rather than relaxing ones. Oh, well! Live while you're young!

Other cities I'd love to visit include: Copenhagen, Beijing, Perú & Machu Pichu and everywhere I've been before, except now with A :)

G.

All Time Faves: Disney Character

Day 25: Who is your favorite Disney character and why?

My guess is I've said this plenty times already but this is a tough one. I LOVE Disney. I love everything about Disney. I even worked there for one summer. I love Disney so much that making me chose just one favorite character is practically impossible. Yet, after literally perusing a list of Disney characters, one name stood out for me: Hercules.

To be honest, the movie holds such a special place in my heart. I remember seeing it at the movie theater (oldest one in Veracruz which no longer even exists). For my last year of secondary school my class did a theatrical production (an adaptation) of this movie and presented it in front of the whole school (I was one of the muses). How could I not love it?

But Hercules, man. He was the best. First of all how he is taken away from his home and family, having to grow up without everything he was entitled to. Bummer. Then, I think like most of us, going through a super awkward phase growing up as the weird, clumsy kid. Facing bullying and name calling for 'being different'.

I love that he knew he was special and different and he wasn't gonna let anyone tell him otherwise. I love how he had a dream and went ahead and fought to become who he was meant to be (going the distance, haha), a true hero. I love that he never stopped being that clumsy kid with a big heart, who even chose love over everything he fought for (returning to Mount Olympus with his family). I mean, what's not to love? Plus it does help that he has Ricky Martin's voice in the latin version :)

So there. Hercules is my favorite Disney character. What's yours?

g.

ps. Read about How I became a Disney Cast Member here.

*Image via here.

Current Reads

Day 24: What book are you currently reading or what was the last book you read?

The last book I read was 'The Choice' by Nicholas Sparks. I actually bought it without knowing there was a movie... but I'm kinda glad I did. Now I get to watch the movie and judge it since 'I read the book'. 

I bought it last month at the airport when I was heading to Nuevo Vallarta for work. There's so much time to be killed at airports while waiting to board flights. Then I got to read by the pool in the afternoon while I was away, which was a real treat.

I hadn't read anything in the longest time and had forgotten how much I enjoy reading. I spend too much time on the computer, tv or phone, so it was nice to relax on the couch with a cup of coffee yesterday in the morning to finish the book.

Do you have any good book recommendations? I'd love to hear!

g.

Getting Excited

Day 23: What is one thing that you are excited about?

Right now I'm extremely excited and really looking forward to seeing Adele live in Mexico City! The concert is on a Monday of a long weekend so we're planning to make a trip out of the whole thing. 

My best friend from home is meeting us in Puebla and then we're spending the weekend in Mexico City where we're meeting more friends who are also going to the concert, so it should be a weekend filled with food and drinks and hopefully some culture in there at some point.

We got the tickets in October last year so you can imagine how much we are all looking forward to it.

Other than that, I'm excited to take a holiday with A at some point before the end of the year and maybe sneaking in a quick trip to Playa del Carmen with a couple of girlfriends and visit my brother by the end of summer.

What are you excited about?

g.

*Image via here.

Prized Possessions

Day 22: What is your most prized possession and why?

When asked this question before, my answer has always been the same: my most prized possessions are two stuffed animals my grandmother (my dad's mother) bought for me growing up. She was a professor with a degree in special education whom we lost from cancer way too soon. She was caring and loving and really fun. These bears are a Fozzie Bear from the Muppet Babies and a rattle Teddy Bear. I actually remember getting both of them around the time I was 4-5 years old. The store where we got Fozzie still exists in a really old shopping center in my hometown. As for the other one, it was originally supposed to be for my (then) baby sister (who was actually still on the way) but I loved it so much, I kept it for myself.

My bears at home in Veracruz

There's absolutely nothing special about them, except the fact they were gifts from my grandma. They have both seen better times (Fozzie's nose was bitten off by my first dog, Spanky and the Teddy has had more washes than anyone could count). They are old and ragged, but I love them so much.

For as long as I can remember, they traveled with me around Mexico, the United States, Canada and even got to go around Europe during my time in England. They lived with me through the Disney ICP, my holiday in Puerto Rico and my year in Sheffield. Finally they moved to Mexico City with me after returning, where we lived for almost three years.

Here in a hostel in Dublin (pardon the mess)

About a year and a half ago when I moved here with A, I decided it was time to let go of them. Not in a 'get rid of them' kind of way, but I just didn't think they belonged in my 'adult house' with my boyfriend. And so I keep them in my childhood bedroom back home in Veracruz where I know my mom keeps them safe until it is time for them to meet their new owners (hopefully my kids, some day).

I have plenty of things I love back at home, but these are definitely the ones I cherish the most. What are your most prized posessions?

g.

*Cover image via here.