Trinidad & Tobago Trip: Part 1

Last week Monday I flew into Trinidad which is where is spent the first part of my trip and also where my parents live. I got to accomplish everything I had planned with hardly any extra time to spare.

Monday:
We arrived around dinner time so my best friend and her husband picked us up from the airport and we went for dinner at Mandiero's Peri Peri Grill. That was my first time trying Portuguese flame-grilled food and it was excellent.

Tuesday:

We went the beach with friends to hang out and soak up some sunshine on my pale skin and then stopped at the lookout on the way home to catch some breathtaking views of Trinidad's north coast.

 Later that night (which was also St. Patrick's day) we went to a pizza restaurant for dinner to celebrate my best friend's birthday. After dinner we stopped off at one of the few Irish pubs on the island to have a couple drinks for St Patty's and to hang out for a bit before calling it a night.

Wednesday:

We went to lunch with my parents, visited family and did a few errands during the day. 

In the night, I had a fun blogger dinner meet-up with Kay and her friend Alicia. We went to Samurai for sushi and wine which was amazing! The food was awesome and the company was even better. We stopped off at a new bar called Buzz for a couple drinks after and had a blast chatting.

On Thursday morning, K and I headed over to Tobago with one of my girl friend's and her baby girl for the wedding of a lifetime but this post has become long enough so I will have to do a part two. 

Phew, I'm tired from all the traveling and need to catch up on some rest this week and not to mention blogging before I leave this weekend for a work trip...I know it's crazy!

Curry Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped

1/2 cup celery, chopped

1/4 yellow onion, diced

3/4 cup light mayonnaise

2 teaspoons curry powder

1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp Paprika

What To Do:

1. Boil chicken breasts in salted water for 20 minutes until fully cooked. Let chicken cool for 10 minutes and then chop or shred. You can also use cooked rotisserie chicken.

2. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Refrigerate in an airtight container for 1-2 hours to let the flavors blend.

3. Serve chilled or room temperature in a sandwich, wrap or lettuce wrap. 

Enjoy!

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Let The Wedding Weekend Begin

Happy Friday loves!

This weekend I celebrate my dear friend from high school's wedding beachside in Tobago. She stood by my side three years ago at my wedding and now I'm honored to see her walk down the aisle. A full wedding and trip recap to come next week. In the meantime, here's a quick flashback Friday of my wedding party and the bride-to-be. 

Wedding photos by S&S Photography

I did a recap of our Wedding at Paradise Cove in Orlando a few years back when I first started blogging. 

You can also follow me on instagram to keep up with my travel adventures. 

Have a fabulous weekend everyone and I'll catch you next week!

Places I Want To Visit: International Destinations

Naturally my idea of a dream destination includes the beach, ocean and relaxing with a frozen cocktail but I do appreciate city site-seeing and learning about historical sites. I think it's important to experience all aspects of the world we live in and immerse yourself in different cultures to step outside of the little bubble we live in from day to day. There's just so much more out there to experience and here's some of my dream international destinations.

Playa Del Carmen, Mexico

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Cuba

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Maui, Hawaii

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Santorini, Greece

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Barbados

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Paris, France 

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Lisbon, Portugal

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Bora Bora, Tahiti

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What's your dream destination overseas?

Irish Broccoli & Cheddar Soup

Happy St. Patrick's Day! 

To be festive, I decided to try my hand at this Irish soup recipe. With just a few changes, it came out really good and was a delicious dinner for Sunday night.

Ingredients:
1 (12 oz.) bag Steam-In-Big Broccoli Florets
1 (32 oz) container reduced sodium chicken broth
3 cups mashed potatoes
2 stalks celery, chopped
3/4 yellow onion, diced
1 cup fat-free half & half
1 tsp fresh thyme
 4 cups Irish Dubliner cheddar cheese, shredded
Ground pepper, to taste

What To Do:
1. Add chicken stock, broccoli, onion and celery in a large pot. Bring to boil and then simmer 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes.
2. Blend broccoli/chicken stock mixture in food processor or blender and then return to pot.
3. Stir in half & half, mashed potatoes and thyme. Simmer for 10 minutes.
4. Reduce heat to low and slowly stir in the Irish shredded cheese. 

Enjoy!

1. Follow Kate and myself via GFC and Bloglovin.

2. Link up your favorite recipes or food-related posts.

3. Grab our Recipe Swap button and link back to our blogs.

Weekend Whereabouts & Epcot's Flower & Garden Festival

Hope everyone had a fun and relaxing weekend. Mine was a bit of both which was perfect before my trip today. I'll be unplugged from blogging and the computer for the next week or so but Kate and I's Tuesday Recipe Swap is still scheduled for tomorrow.

On Friday night, K and I went to a new location of Chuy's Tex Mex restaurant in our area which was SO good. Really great food and drinks for an affordable price plus a fun environment. 

On Saturday morning, I went to the hairdresser which took almost 3 hours to get highlights, a cut and style ugh! We then headed to Epcot for the Flower and Garden festival to celebrate a friend's birthday who was visiting from Philly.

Saturday was a sunny and hot day in Florida. We walked around Epcot with a group of friends and had some drinks in China, Africa, Mexico and England. The slushy margarita from Mexico was key to cool down from the heat!

On Sunday, I went to the spa for a mani and pedi and then packed for our vacation. You would think after all these years of traveling, I would have mastered the art of packing a suitcase. There's still no method to my madness and I always end up overpacking by a lot! At least it's easier packing for a tropical destination which requires less bulky clothes and shoes and lots of bikinis. 

On Sunday night, I finished up some blogging and hung out with our wrinkly girl before we leave her with the "sitters" for a week. That's become the toughest part of traveling now but she does love the place that we board her at and they take good care of her. 

Joining the lovely Biana for her Weekending linkup. 

Friday's Favorites & Weekly Recap

Happy Friday!

So happy to be finally adjusted to the time change and, better yet, the weekend is here! I have some fun plans for tomorrow and I'm always looking forward to catching up on some sleep. This week consisted of:

~ adjusting to the "spring forward" BS time change

~ lunch date with a girl friend at our favorite Thai restaurant
~ planning out the schedule for my upcoming trip and, not to mention vacation, back to Trinidad

~ sticking to our meal plan and healthy dinners at home

~ the ongoing struggle to keep my head above water with the life/work/blogging/sleep balance
~ happy hour yesterday with Kerri for $5 martinis and small plates. So fun catching up!

I'm sure some of you are gearing up to celebrate St Patrick's day this weekend. I will be out of town next week and don't feel the need to drink my weight in guinness and harp. Don't get me wrong, I love a good St Patty's celebration (see here and here) but this year, there's just too much going on.

Joining the lovely Amanda for her Friday Favorites linkup. 

Fun Nails for St Patty's Day
Love this green color with the gold sparkly accent nail.

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Favorite Fashion Find:
This Kate Spade Gold Plated Cuff. Not to mention they have a 40% of sale on everything going on now with code EXTRA40.

Favorite Beauty Product:
Body Shop's Tea Tree Skin Clearing Facial Wash

St Patty's Recipes:
Loving this Irish Coffee recipe from ladies at The Sequin Notebook.

If you're looking for some party food ideas, I made this Spinach Crescent Bites recipe last year which was a party pleaser and perfect for St. Patrick's Day celebrations.

Favorite Funny:

Have a lovely weekend!