Author: Diamond Sharelle

Zimbabwe

I’m not sure if I’m more mad at myself or at Covid for my delayed travel blog post! 

I visited the Motherland for the first time December 2019! I had thee most beautiful experience there with my two sister-friends Andrea and LaShannon, hey boos hey! What I didn’t know was this would be my last trip before this deadly Covid-19 flu would take over America! So, we spent three weeks in the motherland starting in Zimbabwe!

Zimbabwe, oh the culture, the people, the food! Amazing! Some would never add this country to your list, but I’m here to tell you don’t sleep on it. To this day I still keep in touch with our driver Brian, he always reaches out to check on us and say hello. Our hotel accommodations in Zimbabwe were at A’Zambezi River Lodge, Victoria Falls, literally on the River of Zimbabwe National Park.  At night during dinner one evening a hippopotamus walked right past the dining area, it scared us forsure since it was wild. I attempted to capture a picture to post later but that didn’t quite work out as clear as I desired he he. 

Lunch with a view is something I love, during this trip we visited The Lookout Cafe not once but twice. I also purchased three of there hot sauces served with lunch to take home, so yummy!

Brian, my new friend also took us to the Monde village right outside of the main town to visit a dear friend of his Mr. Chrispen Ncube. He and his family welcomed us with open arms and showed us around their homestead. The love they have for each other and family is like no other. Mr. Ncube shared that if a mans brother passes away before him he is to take care of his wife and children as they are his. The day we spent in their village we met his wife and his brothers wife who is now his responsibility. He also shared that since there is a fee to go to public school they typically only send one child at a time to school unless they can afford to send more than one at a time. 

My girls and I truly cherish the time spent in Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 and I highly encourage you to visit some day. 

Hong Kong 

A day in Hong Kong! When I booked my flight to Africa I saw a flight with a one day layover in Hong Kong, and said why not?! Me and my girl Drea landed around 7am, I didn’t get much sleep on my flight from San Francisco but I was ready to hit the town and site see. We knew at some point we were going to need a spot to take a hot shower and a nap at some point before our flight to the Motherland so we booked a room at the Mira Hotel (a Marriot Bonvoy hotel). It was cute, chic and perfect for a day in Hong Kong. We decided to take the scenic route to the hotel and purchased a bus ticket to ride into the city from Hong Kong International. Everyone knows Hong Kong is a big city for imports and exports so we weren’t surprised to see all the cargo crates lined up headed into the city. 

Once we arrived at the Mira Hotel, while freshening up we had to decide where we would hit during our short stay. We started with Chater Garden outside of Central Station, but first we needed to eat. I told Drea we had to have real Dim Dum while in Hong Kong. We found a restaurant recommended to me from a coworker called Dim Dim Sum- Wan Chai! Sooooo, the food was good but shortly after our food arrived to our table I spotted a friendly critter on the wall *yuck*. We had walked 20 minutes to find this restaurant so opted to finish eating but I was super turned off by the bug. We ate pork and shrimp dumplings, noodles, squid and rice balls. Next we took the metro with the locals to Chater Garden which was fun and quick, we didn’t even get lost lol! 

Next on the list was Victoria Peak to ride the Tram overlooking the city. Dim Sum was a light meal so we decided to partake in drinks and appetizers at Bubba Gumbs. The tram ride at Victoria Peak was roughly 10 minutes up the hill but it was worth the site and selfies *Wink* . Upon recommendation from our hotel we grabbed drinks at the Ozone uptop of the Ritz Carlton. It is the highest bar in the world at a altitude of 480 meters. Our flight to Zimbabwe was leaving at 12:30am so we grabbed one last meal at the airport before take off. I enjoyed some Korean noodles with spicy chicken that hit the spot and guaranteed me a nice overnight nap on the flight. 

Xoxo

Diamondsharelle

~MeandMyPassport~

My girl Drea and I arriving in Hong Kong December 2019

I’ve wanted to visit Monaco since 50cent window shopper, 2005. I had to give this location a solo post as it’s been a dream stop of mines, I also learned that although part of the South of France it is it’s own country! Monaco is said to be the rich mans playland (in other words Vegas times 10) let me tell y’all it lives up to that name! And the train ride from Nice only cost me €7 euros and took roughly 15 minutes to get there.

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I didn’t do much window shopping there, I actually found a Louis Vuitton bag that I had been eyeing online for a while, a signature belt and mini wallet to match. Ok, call me cliche but everyone always post online eating at Cafè de Paris, so I did as well. While there, I opted to sit outside so I that I could people watch, they had mist sprinklers so the heat didn’t bother me too much. I ordered a classic mojito, grilled sea bass with potatoes and veggies. For dessert I ordered three scoops of gelato, mango, passion fruit and chocolate…amazing! 

The Monte Carlo Hotel Casino is one of the main attractions to visit while in Monaco. The line to get inside wasn’t too bad on the day I visited, they have a lovely cafe just outside of the casino for those who do not gamble but still want to experience the Monte Carlo Hotel. I am not a big gambler but you can’t visit Monaco and not try your luck, I opted to play the slot machines for a bit instead of losing on the craps tables lol. I won a few dollars and called it a day and took my earnings with me (I’m a sore loser) so I know when to stop! Monaco I will be back!

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Xoxo

Diamondsharelle

~MeandMyPassport~

Where do I start!! I guess I’ll start by saying I wish I was back there right now! He He. Ok so the first time I visited France it was suggested to stay in Airbnb’s so, I decided to book a Airbnb in Nice for five nights $348.14. (Looks like nice but it is pronounced niece). I arrived around 9pm from my British Airline flight from London so I was not up to figuring out the train ride to my Airbnb and opted for a very expensive uber ride for convenience. Since I was back in France better believe there were lots of stairs and my place was at the very top floor of the building. In my head I thought I better not drink too much wine any evening since I have to walk up seven flights of stairs. That definitely didn’t stop me LOL *wink*. 

My first full day in Nice consisted of walking around town, checking out the local shops and restaurants. I tried socca at Chez Pipo a popular sweet dish in Nice; it was pretty decent but a bit bland in my opinion. That afternoon I stopped at Ballanger and had the best chocolate covered waffles with strawberries on top and of course an espresso. Mind you, expresso is literally everywhere and super cheap so it’s easy to have one everyday even if you barely drink them at home. That night I had dinner at Babbo (beneath Hotel Geneve) and y’all my rigatoni was so bomb I went back the next day for dinner as well. 

Now for some town hopping, on day three I booked a full day wine tour in Provence through Airbnb experiences for $135. The wine tour included tastings at three different local wineries and round trip transportation. It was a group of I believe six which was perfect size and our guide was friendly and funny. Our first stop was Domaine de Canta Rainette, I really loved their Roses’ most but their reds were also tasty. The second stop was Chateau Font du Broc, the cellar was impeccable and I loved their signature white wine. So of course a bottle came home with me to the states! The last stop was Chateau de Saint-Martin, passed down for 11 generations ran by women on the mother’s side of the family. Just based on the history I was in love with the location but the wines were very tasty, my favorite was their grande reserve 2018 Cotes de Provence. The wineries in Provence do not export their wines so if you want them in your house or store you have to buy them in person. 

Antibe, another beautiful town in the South of France was only one train stop away so I made time to spend a day there for some fun in the sun and more wine tasting. I grabbed some gelato and sparkling water with lime to cool down some from the heat at a beach side restaurant. I booked a private wine tasting for one in Antibe via Airbnb for $23 where I learned about short maceration, bleeding and direct pressing when it comes to making wines. I felt like I learned more in my one on one sit down as it was an intimate setting. 

Before leaving I had to make dinner reservations at Le Plongeoir. The view was to die for, overlooking the water after the sun comes down and it’s cool outside. I opted for the risotto with grilled prawns which I had never eaten, it was okay to me but I don’t have another to compare it to. For dessert I ordered one of their popular dishes the strawberry cake. Overall I had a nice time and the view was nice, but it was not my best meal in the South of France. 

Xoxo

Diamondsharelle

~MeandMyPassport~

Riding countryside through the United Kingdom taking in all the scenery was a very peaceful way to arrive in London. I arrived to Central station on a Friday early afternoon. Summer time in Europe I expected the weather to be mid 80’s but to my surprise it was only 70 degrees and partly cloudy. Once I got off the train, I followed the signs to the Underground station and bought a ticket.  Surprisingly it wasn’t as hard to find and purchase as some may think. 

I was only spending three days in London and The Rockwell was recommended to me by a Facebook travel friend. My gps said it was a six minute walk, but by the time I got off the metro it was pouring rain so ya girl got an uber. I sure did, was no way I was about to walk six minutes with my backpack, purse and medium size roller bag! *shrugs shoulders*. The lobby of The Rockwell was welcoming and cozy and although my room was not ready yet the hotel bar was waiting my arrival.  My hotel room was a European single, which mean it was tiny as hell (319 euros/$422 for three nights). Literally you walk in and to the immediate left a small bathroom, a single size bed, small desk and small fridge fully stacked. Although I had never been in a room this small it was very clean which is a biggie for me. Although it was recommended to me I also checked the online reviews because cleanliness is important to me. 

 I started my trip in Paris, so I did not have any London currency converted yet, thankfully almost everywhere takes debit/credit cards. For those of you who don’t know London’s currency is in Pounds which means if your from the US are money really isn’t worth crap there.

So I’m a foodie, one of the things I love about traveling to different countries is trying out new foods. I’m not a big meat eater and London has lots of meat, hardy meals. I found myself sticking to the lighter meals since I couldn’t bring myself to eat steak and burgers everyday. I ate at a cute Sushi restaurant called Kappa twice during my stay. One place that was memorable and yummy was Nandos, it’s a pretty popular restaurant in London. I had a spicy chicken meal that also came with french fries and garlic bread. I also also ordered a side of salsa and pita bread. It was one of my best meals during my stay. 

 High Tea! I’m already a tea drinker but who doesn’t want to experience High Tea in London. I went to the cutest place called Caffe Concerto at roughly 11am, I chose to get the Prosecco combo which included tea, a cucumber sandwich, salmon sandwich and a chicken sandwich. In addition a assortment of pastries which included macaroons (a personal favorite of mines), cheese cakes, and a chocolate truffle pie. Following my tea and snacks I received a glass of Prosecco to top off my High Tea experience. I could not leave the cafe without taking a picture in front of the beautiful flowered wall. On my last day in London I visited La Cave a Fomage for cheese, meat and wine tasting. Had an awesome time and prices were very reasonable. The three places I mentioned above I would definitely visit again when back in London. 

I didn’t spend enough time in London, so I will be back again. It was also more spread out than I expected so next time I will probably rent a car to see more. 

Xoxo

DiamondSharelle

~MeandMyPassport~

24 days in Europe: Solo 

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Some of you are thinking omg what was she thinking! But it was awesome! Traveling solo is already a wonderful thing as you get to move to your own beat. I love not having to wait for others to get dressed, deciding what activities we’re going to do or not do, bliss!  Now of course before I left everyone was like be careful, watch your bags, 24 days is long, your crazy, but I had a great time. I flew into Paris and began to trot around Europe on a journey to never forget. 

I will be 100% honest around day 17 I was like hmm I would have been ok going back home today, but I was headed to the Amalfi Coast on day 18. Right when I got tired of lugging my bags around and changing locations I was headed to one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen. 

Please stay tuned as I release blog post of the different location’s I visited this past summer 2019 Europe trip on. 

Xoxo 

Diamondsharelle

~meandmypassport~ 

So Hawaii. wasn’t a passport stamp location for me but it is for others visiting from outside of the United States. As close as I live to Hawaii this past June was my first time visiting. I stayed on the island of Honolulu at the Waikiki Resort Hotel, it cost me $196 a night, my resort fees were $27.59. My hotel was literally a two minute walk to the beach! How much better can life really get! This was not a solo trip, my girl stayed next door at the Aholiani Resort Waikiki, which on average cost $375 a night for a standard king room and her resort fees were almost double mines at $51.73 a night. Let me tell you although it is highly rated, had an awesome pool and bedroom views, she had to have maintenance come twice to fix her toilet.

One thing I liked about my hotel location is that there were several restaurants and bars in walking distance all within ten minutes. During my stay I ate at Paia Fish Market, Hideout Waikiki, Cheeseburger Waikiki and La Cucaracha Mexican bar and Grill to name a few places. My favorite place to eat was Paia Fish Market, Opah fish, fish tacos, rice and fries yesss ate there twice. Someone told me prior to going to Hawaii to make sure to eat at Giovanni’s shrimp truck, the Dole Plantation and visit Laniakea (Turtle) beach. So, I decided to take the scenic route through town, hopped on the bus which cost $5 for a day pass. My first stop was the Dole Plantation, I purchased a train ticket around the plantation to take in the beautiful scenery and listen to the history as well a ticket to the garden. I loved the garden, it was absolutely beautiful. There is no way I can leave out the pineapple soft serve…OMG I wish I could have brought back two cartoons home. It literally melted in my mouth.

 My next stop was Giovanni’s Shrimp truck which was about a 20 minute bus ride from the Dole Plantation. The line was crazy long, I think 20 people were in front of me but it was worth the wait. My meal was about $12 or $15 dollars for spicy garlic shrimp and rice. I don’t hardly take public transportation at home but I managed, my last stop was Turtle beach. You guys, I literally was chilling with turtles at my feet, they don’t touch you because they are scared of us but they were big and beautiful. The weather was perfect that day, 85 degrees so not too hot. Ok confession I caved at the end of my day I had to at back to my hotel to change off our sunset cruise so I took a Lfyt back to Waikiki beach. 

Most people want a massage on the beach by their hotel right, I am people lol.  But I had a massage while in Waikiki at Lava Massage & Day Spa and let me tell y’all the view from the top of the building bomb overlooking the city. Me and my girls also got a chance to interact with some of the beautiful locals at Paradise Cove one evening for a Luau! Lots of dancing and tasty food. 

If you have never been to Hawaii, I suggest your go visit. I definitely plan to go back to Honolulu but I would love to also visit Maui in the future as well. 

Xoxo 

Diamondsharelle 

MeandMyPassport~

This trip really just fell into my lap! Copenhagen I wanted to visit at some point but was not at the top of my list, but Sweden had not been on my radar. I happen to have to travel there for work winter 2018 and decided to spend some extra days. I’m not a big fan of cold vacations but they can be fun as well. I arrived in Copenhagen in November, and it was roughly 45 degrees. I took the train to Lund, Sweden which was only thirty minutes and four train stops. Lund was a small town but very cute and since it was the holiday season it was decorated and welcoming. I stayed at the newly built Park Inn by Radisson about 10 minutes from the train station in Lund Tetra Pak Area. 

Uber is available there but not popular, most of the times I used uber it took at least 10 minutes for a car so I found myself in a taxi more often than less. Swedish are big for their fresh fish and pastries, I only had fish once, sushi, Thai, an amazing pizza at La Cucina that had egg, prosciutto and bacon, I’m not an egg on my pizza fan but it was yummy. Maybe the wine helped with the taste lol. I also visited Surf Shack for a tasty burger and garlic fries.

Most nights I chilled at my hotel bar but one evening I hit up Harrys for a few drinks, small mellow crowd. One day I took a bike from my hotel and road around town, through the botanical garden, Lundagard Park, past the University’s and Lund cathedral. I drank coffee daily, as Sweden is close to France they have lots of cafes with lovely lattes and all the pastries you can think of. At night I walked through town, which was decorate with Christmas lights. They have a number of bars to stop inside for drinks but not really a party party town. 

Copenhagen, Denmark was a much bigger city than Lund, Sweden. They have lots of shopping near the city center, alley ways full of big name brand stories or small local shops at each turn. They has so many food options on every street it made it hard to decide what to eat. Since it was the holiday time, they had two outside areas set up with outside cooking, tasting areas for meats and cheeses. I had a yummy sausage from an outside grill and I brought several cheeses to bring back home to the states. I took a boat cruise around Copenhagen in 25 degrees that felt more like 15, my nose was red as ever and my face was icy but seeing all the buildings and learning some of the history from the guide was worth sitting in front of the heater for the next hour in my hotel.  

I’ve become a huge fan of Airbnb experiences so I always look up the cities I’m in to book at least one. In Copenhagen I booked a Copenhot experience at 8pm. They had five hot tubs on the ocean dock, with two saunas overlooking the water. The night of my experience it was 42 degrees but sitting in that hot tub looking out at the water was an experience I’m glad I had and think everyone should experience it. They also had wine, beer and light snacks available for purchase. 

In Sweden and Denmark I learned of a coffee shop chain by the name of Espresso House. I enjoyed several flavors of lattes there, but my favorite was the Gingerbread Latte *hmm hmm hmm*. I think I went to this coffee shop five out of my seven days there. Partly because I was so jet lagged that I barely slept for three and a half hours a night.  Cost, for inquiring minds on average breakfast at cafes were between 3 and 6 euros, lunch was no more than 20 euros and dinner depending on taste was no more than 30 euros at most. My hotel in Sweden was roughly 130 euros a night and my Copenhagen hotel was The Square, it was a cute hotel with a lovely cocktail evening every evening. 

Xoxo 

Diamondsharelle 

MeandMyPassport~

Hey y’all! So my during part of first trip to Europe I hit Amsterdam! I was not sure what to expect visiting Amsterdam since the only things I heard about were people smoking marijuana everywhere,the Redlight District and boats on the canal. Let me tell you all, I absolutely LOVE Amsterdam and cannot wait to visit again. It kinda reminds me of a big, cleaner San Francisco minus the canal. 

I took a three hour train ride up from Paris, the ticket cost a bit more than I expected (€239) but we’ll worth it. I stayed at Xo Hotels Park West for three nights, my room was very European in size, but chic and very clean for €323.10. It was very easy to get to the city center via the light rail-bus, sorry I can’t remember how many euros is cost to ride but it was inexpensive. 

If no one has told you yet, omg so many good places to eat there! Two of my favorites were Mannekenpis for they’re awesome French fries which included roughly thirty choices of sauce toppings, Cut Throat’s red velvet waffle and chicken was yummier than I expected and pleasantly filling. 

I knew that during my trip I wanted to visit the Moco museum but I was lucky to find out on the day I bought a ticket Banksy had an exhibit, which was amazing. His exhibit pieces felt so real life as I passed through every room the artwork felt more real. I couldn’t come to Amsterdam and not hope on a boat tour through the canal, I booked my ticket through “Those Dam Boat Guys” a recommendation from a friend and I was not let down. The canal is beautiful, the guide was knowledgeable, I booked a tour at rough 6pm so I was able to enjoy the sunset *sigh*. BEAUTIFUL! My favorite bridge was “7 bridges canal” of course I got lots of dope selfie shots! 

You can’t visit Amsterdam and not visit a Coffeeshop, yes Coffeeshops are were they sell marijuana for those who like to partake. Coffeeshop Green Place  had all types of flavors for you marijuana lovers and adult beverage and I was happy to hear some old school hip hop music. For those who plan to travel if you want coffee please go to a Cafe’ not a Coffeeshop *smile*. I did not get to visit the Anne Frank museum, if you don’t buy your ticket months in advance there is a raffle online everyday for tickets. I’ll have check it out during my next visit!  

I couldn’t leave out my brief walk through the Red Light  District, I had to see what the hype was and believe me I was there less than ten minutes. Not my kinda crowd! Yes, there are woman in the glass windows along the alley streets and sexual acts with woman are exchanged in those same dark alley streets of the Red light District. How could I forget Adam lookout, I met another solo traveler from the states and we spent the day exploring Amsterdam together, we took the ferry over to ADAM lookout to take in the sky view of town, have some drinks and bring some adventure to our trip on there sky high swing. So, looking at the swing while waiting in lineit seemed pretty simple and chill but once we were seated I felt how high we really were. I’m all for asw tues and usually don’t scare easily but I was a bit nervous on that swing ride but glad we did it. The view was breathtaking. A must when in Amsterdam. 

Amsterdam owes me nothing! I wish I had been able to stay a few more days but I’ll be back!! 

Xoxo

DiamondSharelle

~MeandMyPassport~

Hey y’all!! I don’t know anything in French but hello (bonjour!) and thank you (Merci). So stepping off the plane in Paris was both exciting and overwhelming to say the least. It was suggested to me to stay in an Airbnb while in Paris so I booked a single flat in the Montmartre area of the city. I was in walking distance of the metro however it was my first trip so I did the American thing to do and paid for a €58 uber from the airport. Lol. Learn from my mistake unless you really are scared to take a risk straight off the plane, ask for directions to the metro (train) and buy a ticket for way cheaper than €58. Paris in October feels like San Francisco so it was a brisk 65 degrees. 

So although this was a solo trip, my fellow traveling cousin told me she had a 24 hour layover in Paris on her way to Iceland (which is on my list too) so I sent her my Airbnb info and boom! Paris got a dose of the dynamic duo for the evening. First stop Musee’ du Louvre of course since she had one night only. The artwork OMG y’all so beautiful, detailed and breathtaking and the ticket to get in only cost €17. The Mona Lisa was the most crowded exhibit and it was hard to get a selfie with her, but y’all know I got one he he. Next we hit the Eiffel Tower for dinner at the dock with a beautiful view. No one told me it flicked at night, so beautiful. I think I took 10 videos that night of it! We did not eat at the restaurant inside of the Eiffel Tower but right across the street where the boat cruise picks up and drops off. Please don’t be mad I can’t remember the name. 

Ok it’s safe to say the rest of the night was a *blurr* but I did have a random Instagram story saved with a tag. So at some point we had whiskey and ginger ale at Frog Revolution where I danced with some random girl who would not leave me alone and loved my American accent. Lol. And around 2:45am we at pizza somewhere I don’t know the name either, Instagram reminded me of that also. Just being honest! *giggles*

After seeing my cousin off, I had a wine and cheese tour booked  with Luis, Instagram name @winetoursparis that I booked through Airbnb experience that cost $63.63. Awesome Awesome Awesome! It was a group of 8 and we walked through a small area of town picking up cheese and bread to pair with four wines of his choice at his friends restaurant/bar. Luis was funny, the group was super chill and I’m pretty sure we were all tipsy by the time our three hour tour was over. 

After my brief trip to Amsterdam (talked about in my next blog post) I spent my last night in Paris before returning home. I booked an Airbnb that was five minute walking distance to the Eiffel Tower! How awesome right?! Well yes and no, it was a great location, but I had to walk 7 narrow flights of steps with my shopping bags and a full size suitcase. No fun. None the less I went back to the Eiffel Tower to get a daytime view of how beautiful it was in the sun. 

I love love love macaroons, so who doesn’t go to Ladurée while in Paris. Overpriced yes but you have to go at least once for the experience! So I had two scoops of ice cream, two macaroons and a glass of bubbles. 

Trip complete and I flew back to Cali in the am! 

Xoxo

DiamondSharelle

MeandMyPassport~