Back in early April, while snow and cold were sweeping through Canada, I was fortunate enough to be in what I consider to be, absolutely, the most beautiful country that I’ve ever been too — Montenegro.

Montenegro is a relatively new country (it broke off of Serbia in 2006) on the Adriatic Sea that uses the euro. The main language is Montenegrin but English is (thankfully!) wide spoken.

A lot of people balk at visiting the Balkans (I love puns) because of the perception that the area is poor or still suffering from the effects of the Yugoslav Wars. The reality is that Montenegro has a tourist industry that is rapidly growing due to its beaches and beautiful mountain ranges of black rock.

I visited two coastal towns, Budva and Kotor. Budva is known as a “Russian Playground” and there are Russian billionaires and yachts galore! The downtown area has free wifi and there’s a walled city that takes you back to the Middle Ages

Kotor is the most tourist-y town in Montenegro and has a reputation as being a party town. The main tourist attractions are, again, a walled city, a castle 1350 steps up a steep mountain (seriously, it’s QUITE a work-out) and the amazing colour of the water.

In terms of price, Montenegro is one of the cheapest countries that I’ve visited. Plates of food can be had for a few dollars, accommodation prices are low and, as in most Eastern European countries, the price of travel is ridiculously low.

Welcome to Bulgaria!

Recently I wrote about how Montenegro was my favourite country but today I’m going to tell you about my second favourite — Bulgaria.

Bulgaria!? Isn’t that one of those really poor, backwards countries? No! Yes the trams can be updated and the wages are scarily low but the country is chock-full of the nicest people you’ll ever meet, low prices and a wide variety of activities.

The capital city, Sofia, is a likely starting point in this former communist country. The public transportation system is highly effective and only costs about $0.70 per ride and, although the hostel I stay at was so cheap that I was spending about $100 a week, food included!

Just outside the city, you can visit Mount Vitosha — either to hike or ski, depending on the season. An hour south brings you to a small mountain range and the Seven Lakes Region. Other popular sites in Bulgaria include Veliko Turnovo — the medieval capital of Bulgaria and Varna — the sea coast capital on the Black Sea.

Even though I spent a month in Bulgaria, I didn’t visit Varna (I thought that March would be a bit too cold to visit the sea!) but it is definitely on my list for next time!

Istanbul is a city mired in history and has the unique honour of being the only city which is in both Asia and Europe.

Although rough around the edges, Istanbul is a modern city and, by far, the largest that I’ve ever visited. I was completely overwhelmed at the sheer number of people that were everywhere I went. That being said, the country is doing relatively well for the region — it’s been a month since I’ve left and it’s still one of the few places that I’ve been where I could go to a Krispy Kreme, Starbucks or refill my MAC make-up (not that you go on vacation for those things, but it’s nice to have an extra-hot venti soy latte every once and awhile!)

My favourite parts of Istanbul were the beautiful mosques and the enormous markets:

Silk scarf that I bought at a market:

There are two main sections to the tourist part of the city — Taksim Square/Istiklal street and the Golden Horn. Most of the tourist attractions are on the Golden Horn which makes it an attractive place to stay (also pricey!). However, if you’re into nightlife or want to have a wide variety of options to eat each night, Istiklal street is the place that you want to be!

Some words of caution however! While many people I’ve met over here have only had positive experiences, the country is still developing and there are many scams that abound. It’s important to read travel forums regularly (or wikitravel) to know what kinds of scams to look out for. Also, a single woman traveler might feel harrassed walking around alone.

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There have been so many Paris-related posts lately on Chic Darling!

When I decided to come to Europe, I wanted to by-pass France entirely — last time I had been the people were rude, the place smelled and I stayed at a really run-down hostel. However, my inner-frugalista won and I begrudingly took the cheapest flight to Europe available — direct: Montreal->Paris.

Long story short — I had a fantastic time in Paris! Turns out, when you speak French to people and are not dressed like a hobo, people are much friendlier!

Here are my Top Picks of places to visit:

• Arc de Triomphe: This is my FAVOURITE site in all of Paris. There’s nothing to really see per se but it is a beautiful landmark and there’s an observation deck
• The Louvre: The Louvre is a former palace which, in itself, is impressive to visit. However, it is filled with the most beautiful art that I’ve ever seen and you could spend days just admiring everything
• Notre Dame Cathedral: A bit smaller than I imagined but very impressive when you think about how old it is!
• Musée d’Orsay: See the Louvre
• Eiffel Tower: A staple to visit when in Paris — but to be avoided on Valentine’s Day! Every time I’ve visited I’ve seen many marriage proposals which can lift your spirits on a bad day
• Tour Montparnasse: A nice place to have an overview of Paris but without the lines of the Eiffel Tower or l’Arc de Triomphe
• Champs d’Elysées: A luxury shopping street in Paris — nice to visit but unlikely that you can afford anything aside from the food or something from the Virgin Megastore
• Catacombs: AMAZING! Not for the faint of heart or the claustrophobic though… About 20km below ground, cramped quarters and walls made of bones: An experience to not be missed!
• Sacré-Coeur Basilica: Huge and quite impressive
• Moulin Rouge: I’ve never been to Moulin Rouge but a friend of mine loved it!
• La Défense: La Défense is where the architecture-nerd in me comes out — so, SO many beautiful, modern buildings. There’s also a shopping centre that was once the largest in Europe
• Versailles: Going to Versailles is a day-trip but well worth it! The palace is enormous and quite ornate, the gardens are HUGE and beautiful and the town is cheap and very stereotypically-French
• Panthéon: Another place that I haven’t visited but plan to when I head back to Paris before I go home

L’Arc de Triomphe — my favourite!

Notre Dame Cathedral

All of Paris is COVERED in gold

The Eiffel Tower at night

More random displays of gold

A copy of the flame that the Statue of Liberty is holding. This is also a de facto memorial to Princess Diana as it sits atop the tunnel where her car crashed in 1997

A wall of bones in the Catacombs

A typical Parisian breakfast — a croissant and an espresso!

I love Dutch paintings so the Louvre was particularly enjoyable for me

Venus de Milo

View of the entrance to the Louvre from inside

You can enter the Louvre from this area and the lines are generally shorter. However! If you have no bags for security to look through, you can bypass the line entirely!

Ah Rome — the Eternal City!

Rome is one of those weird cities for me — I knew it existed, I knew the major landmarks but I really had no idea what to expect. New York, Paris, London, Venice — all of these cities are constantly in movies and so, when you visit, you feel like you’ve been before. Rome was… not like that, at all.

That’s not to say that Rome isn’t beautiful — the countryside surrounding the city can be jaw-dropping — and the city is so old that it’s hard to not find beauty everywhere you look.

I stayed in Rome for 9 amazing days courtesy of Hostelz.com. Hostelz.com is a relatively new hostel booking website that searches the web and allows you to see what all the other hostel booking websites are charging, so that you can get the cheapest price without manually searching a bunch of different sites. In addition, Hostelz.com has user-reviews that you won’t find elsewhere, as well as user-uploaded photos — both of which help you to make a more informed decision when choosing a hostel.

Here are some helpful facts about Rome:

• The metro only has two lines. This will infuriate you if you’re tired and just want to go home
• You need a map. No exceptions
• Overall, the city is very walkable and, depending on how you manage your time and energy, get around without the metro
• The drivers are crazy and you will be nearly run over a few times at least
• Rome’s economy is tourism based which means there are many different accommodation types, tours, vendors and English-speaking people around
• Southern Italy is notorious for pick-pockets, so be careful!

Have you ever been to Rome? Did you enjoy it as much as I did?