5 Fun Things to do this Halloween in New York

I must confess that I'm not much of a Halloween person. I adore seeing all the pumpkin decorations and eating absolutely everything that contains pumpkin––including the 40 Carrots pumpkin frozen yogurt, which I tried today––but I'm not that into Halloween. Back home, I would normally bake pumpkin coffee cake, hang out with some friends and go watch the zombie parade, which was my favourite attraction. But other than that, I barely noticed Halloween.

However, Halloween is a pretty big holiday in New York, and although I haven't decided what I'll be doing yet, I have been thinking of some cool ideas. They're all super different plans, so I guess they suit different moods and personalities.

1. The Village Halloween Parade

This is an old-time tradition to celebrate Halloween in New York––it's turning 41 this year. This year's theme is "the garden of earthly delights." Those of you who like to dress up can join the parade and its massive puppets, music bands and artists. There's also a costume contest, so good luck if you're thinking on participating!

For those of us who don't particularly like the idea of wearing costumes––or coming up with a cool one, which seems to be my problem––people-watching is a good idea. I really love to see how creative and crafty people are when it comes to Halloween costumes, and I'm dying to take some pictures during the parade.

2. Death Becomes You at the Met Museum

This event is planned around the current exhibition by the Anna Wintour Costume Center at the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Death Becomes Her: A Century of Mourning Attire––which is absolutely beautiful and you should all see!

This evening program includes a wide range of activities, ranging from a guided tour of the exhibit to performances, gallery talks, and art-making activities. Visitors are encouraged to wear nineteenth-century grievance attire, so I'm pretty sure you'll get to see some amazing dresses this day! It is also a more relaxed activity than many others, so it will probably be nice if you're just planning on chilling out for Halloween.

3. Visit a Haunted House

It's been a very long time since I last visited a Haunted House––despite the fact that I really enjoyed them––so it might be a good time to go back there. There are quite a lot of haunted houses in New York this season, so you'll probably have a lot of options. To be honest, I haven't done much research on this, but this TimeOut article might help. One of my friends also told me that the one near Times Square was very good!

4. Party Out!

I'm not really sure I'll be partying on Halloween, but I've seem some pretty cool events that I would totally attend to if I were on the right mood. My personal favourite is the Masquerade Ball at the NoMad Hotel––just because I love masquerade balls! But I would also consider attending the Freedom Party NYC Halloween Jam, which features a pretty cool group of DJs that will be playing varied music and making you have lots of fun.

I'm not really sure I would consider this a party, but there will also be a concert of The Infamous Stringdusters in the Highline Ballroom that could also be fun. I'm not 100% sure but you might get some drinks while listening to their music––which I recently found I really like––and share a cool evening with friends.

5. Stay in and Watch Movies

This is definitely not what I'm planning on for this Halloween––I really, really want to go out, even if it's nothing crazy––but I guess it's always an option. I'm not really into horror movies––although they seem to be a widely accepted favourite for Halloween––so I would probably recommend watching a cute Halloween-related movie that takes you back to your childhood. My personal favourites: Casper, Edward Scissorhands, and Hocus Pocus. I guess we could also add some more recent ones to the list, including the Harry Potter series, and Maleficent.

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

5 Things To Do Before The Summer Ends

The summer might be one of my favourite seasons––ok, I love them all, but right now I'm particularly loving the summer! I usually love travelling during this season and getting some rest. But this year, because I spent most of the summer working, I didn't really have time to do all the things I love to do during the warm days.

However, with my job contract having ended yesterday and with another month of summer to go, I thought it would be a good idea to write a small bucket list of the things I still want to do this summer. Here's how it goes...

1. Have ice cream for dinner



2. Go to the beach



3. Spend a whole day by the pool



4. See the sunrise



5. Get another tattoo

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

International Dance Day

As most of you already know, I love dancing. It's one of the few things––together with horseback riding––that make me forget completely about the world around me when I'm doing it. It makes me fly to another world, while making me feel happy and relaxed.

Today is the International Dance Day, and I could definitely not let it pass unnoticed in my blog. So I decided to search my laptop for some old pictures from my dance group's performance back in October, during the Contemporary Dance Festival in Bogota.

Love,

Photography: Diego Castellanos

Sushi Nights

Friday night was spent making sushi and ceviche at a friend's house, while drinking some rosé wine. It was one of the best nights I've had in a while, because we had the chance to chat, laugh and have lots of fun while cooking.

The food was also absolutely amazing, so what else could I ask for?

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

It's Tea (Read: Chocolate) Time!

Last Friday, my mum, my sister and I decided we should have a girls' afternoon and have tea together. We wanted to indulge ourselves with a lot of sugar, so we actually changed the tea for something more powerful... hot cocoa!

My sister, who's always trying to break the Guinness record of the person who has eaten the biggest ice cream ever seen, ordered a huge ice cream. I tried it and it was really good...

...But nothing like my delicious strawberry & banana crepe. It has the perfect amount of fruit, it was sweet, but not excessively, and it came with a scoop of ice cream. What more could I ask for?

Yes, you're right. Hot cocoa. That's what topped up my crepe. It was sweet, it had a big load of marshmallows, and it warmed me up in a cold afternoon.

Nothing better than a good time with my favourite girls, overdosing with sugar, right?

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio

Nights in Rome

There's no doubt Rome is a magical city. Especially at night! Thankfully, I had the chance to explore it all over again during the night in-between Terni and Naples –our following destination.

We had dinner at my new favourite restaurant, called L'Archetto. Truth be told, going through the menu was a little exhausting, since it's got at least 50 dishes, all spaghetti. But I managed to choose the best they have––or maybe they're all as good and I would have loved any other as much as I loved the one I chose? It was called Chanel, and it was spaghetti––naturally––with lobster, cheese, tomato and brandy. Absolutely delicious!

After that, we went out for a walk around the city, and ended up it Trevi Fountain, where we had some fun and took some pictures! I won't exhaust you with words... These images will probably say more than what I could ever write!

Love,

Photography: Laura Beltran-Rubio