Author: Roisin Astell

Photo I took on the boat coming back from Ellis Island

Our New York Trip

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What a week. Our time in New York has come and gone, but boy was it amazing. It seems just like yesterday we were stepping of the plane and heading into the hustle and bustle of Manhattan. For anyone reading who knows my family personally, you will all acknowledge that my parents are extremely organised and like to have the holiday planned to the tee. Although being in New York for just under a week, we managed to cram so much into these few days. Unfortunately, this meant that whilst there I didn’t have the time to write up any blog posts to update everyone on what we were up to, as whatever spare time we had was taken up my sleeping (!) Therefore, I have decided to just do a quick summary and include some of the photos that I took whilst out and about. There are a few things that I want to blog in detail, such as our visit to the beautiful Cloisters Museum (which was so tranquil, you would not think …

Sainte-Chapelle, Paris

Autumn? What Autumn? Summer time in Paris

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The weather here in Paris has been insane recently. Whilst the beginning of last week was cold and wet (I wore my winter coat for the first time this year…), this weekend offered us sunny, beautiful summer weather. Obviously this meant that I had to try and make the most of this blissful heat wave, which took the form of a picnic by the Seine. A little cliché, I know, but when in Paris eh? Below are some pictures that I took during the day. We also thought that we might as well be touristy for the afternoon, so took a few photos during our wander around the city. See if you can guess some of Paris’ most famous sites that we visited.

A picture I took from the top of the Empire State Building

One week till New York!

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I cannot believe that this time next week I shall be on my way to New York, hell yeah!  Just over three years ago (wow, I feel old writing this) for my 18th birthday I was given the trip of a lifetime to stay with my Auntie in Chicago. Whilst there, we had a little vacation to New York to see some family and friends, and I absolutely loved it. The only negative part about the trip to NYC was the weather. We travelled there during the peak of a heat wave, and it was just way too hot to do much. So, this time round, my Mum was adamant that we went during a ‘cool’ time of year, and October seemed perfect! I cannot wait to go there! I really do love America, and perhaps could see myself living there for a year or two in the future. I’m not too sure what we’re going to get up to, although I do know that a must is a visit to the Morgan Library and Museum …

Récemment

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Before I begin writing to my hearts content about the recent happenings for me here in Paris, for those avid (or not so avid) readers who drop by every now and then onto my blog will have noticed that I have a new layout and design! This morning I spent a while amending and changing various CSS coding (which to most people is geeky computer talk). But I think that I have done a good job so far, as there is still bits here and there that I would like to change. Simple, yet elegant. So this last week and weekend has been very busy, not necessarily because I’ve been doing heaps of things, but I guess this is to be the Au Pair life. I don’t think I have mentioned it yet, but two weeks ago I started at my new language school which is right in the heart of Paris, a stone throw away from the beautiful Notre-Dame Cathedral. In fact, you can sometimes hear her beautiful bells ringing during the day (at least …

A guide for the weekend

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To all, I am so sorry for the belatedness (is that such a word?) of this post. This week has been so busy. Now that I am properly in the whole ‘Au Pair schedule’ with the family and school, I’m finding it hard to find the time to just have a few minutes to sit and write to my heart’s content. Luckily, I have managed to snag a few minutes from the day to write this post. This weekend saw the visit of my boyfriend Malek to Paris! It was so nice to see him, as we’ve been apart for over a month now. For those who don’t know, Malek is also an au pair but in Madrid! – he copied me, I swear! Having arrived extremely late on the Friday night, the weekend began slowly, and after a breakfast/brunch on Saturday we headed to the Sainte-Chapelle. Yes, I know how much I go on about this chapel, but Malek’s never been there and he did take the time to read (definitely not forced at all…) …

History of Art at University of York – 4th place in the national rankings

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I just wanted to say a massive well done to the History of Art Department at University of York for being ranked in 4th place in The Sunday Times University Guide 2015!  It’s a great success and I couldn’t agree more with the outcome. I have written many times throughout my blog, History of Art at York is amazing. All those working within the department should be extremely proud with themselves – I know for certain that all I could write in the National Student Survey regarding my time here were positive things. I hope everyone who still studies at York, or will soon be joining, will experience the outstanding work within the department. Well done! http://www.york.ac.uk/history-of-art/news-and-events/news/2014/the-place-to-be/