Swiss Christmas

This year Troy and I had to distract ourselves from the lack of family being around for the holiday season.

We chose alcohol and snow to get us through.

The Swiss Alps seemed like the perfect spot to get ourselves our first white Christmas. And it was white. SO WHITE AND SNOWY.

Zermatt, Switzerland and Geneva are beautiful. I hope that anyone who has an entire stack of cash to blow, definitely head here. The Swiss Alps were one of the most expensive places I've ever been and we probably should have saved up a bit more to really explore every aspect. The train up the mountain was over £100 per day and a plate of simple spaghetti was over 20 Swiss Francs. WHOOPS.

There was also no one in our age range. Only upper 40-year-old's and their small children hitting the slopes with their fixed income. So for kids on a budget, I think we did pretty well. Our Christmas was amazing in our AirB&B cabin and I can't wait to visit our wonderful host soon!

Thank you Switzerland but you haven't taken the Arizona sunshine out of this girl - I STILL HATE SNOW.

SwissChristmas2014 from Amber Sumpter on Vimeo.

Sunshine in Spain

In this dreary winter weather, let's remember a bit of hope.

"The sun will come out, tomorrow," in three months.

Below is the GoPro video of the trip Troy and I took to Sitges and Barcelona back in September 2014.

I absolutely loved every sun filled moment and finally uploading this video keeps me hopeful for coming summer months!

Keep warm friends, the sun is simply sleeping.

SitgesBarcelona 2014 from Amber Sumpter on Vimeo.

Next up - a snowy adventure to the Swiss Alps!

P.S. I hate snow.

Twitter: @ambersumpter

A Tucson Thanksgiving

The holiday's are the hardest time for someone living abroad. So this year I decided that with my Grandma Reva feeling low and me missing my family and friends more than you could know - It's TUCSON TIME.

It was over a year and two months since I'd been home. That's way too much time for a family girl like me! Then I thought, let me surprise everyone! A huge thank you to Drew Eary for keeping the secret and setting up almost all of the surprises.

After arriving and hearing my mother say a few too many bad words in shock of my arrival, I got my own surprise. On Thursday, Thanksgiving day, I found out that my master's dissertation results were a PASS.

My journalism British master's has been an absolute success and it was so special that I got to share my celebration with my family and friends in my Tucson home!

I can't thank all the people in and out of this video enough for the constant support. It's been a whirlwind of a year in England and it was such a blessing to be able to come home just as I left it.

Feel better fast, Grandma Reva!

Enjoy the video below family and friends! I love you all more than I could ever explain. Thank you for absolutely everything. 

A Tucson Thanksgiving from Amber Sumpter on Vimeo.

Isha's 12th Birthday!

Guys, I've fallen in love. Madly in love with a 12-year-old named Isha. Don't be too jealous, Troy!

She's the happiest and most vibrant person I've met and I'm almost obsessed. Okay, actually obsessed. The United Kingdom has beautiful cathedrals and history, but Miss Isha has moved back to Spain for school and I MISS HER. My summer love has ENDED. But Christmas is just around the corner and she's coming back to England for a visit!

Okay, get ready for adorable overload because here's a video of her birthday day spent at Thorpe Park. Enjoy! Love you and miss you, Isha!

Isha's 12th Birthday - Thorpe Park! from Amber Sumpter on Vimeo.

Amsterdam 2K14

Okay.

I'm going to start off with a beat of honesty here - I absolutely suck at blogging. I apologise for being so far and few between with these blog posts, but grad school has been killin' me.

HI NO, not an excuse I want to use. I'm making a public internet apology and a promise that I'm going to figure it out and get myself up and running with more frequent posts. YAY ENGLAND!

This past week I took a quick four day trip to the land of good times, Amsterdam.

Now we've all heard that people's most memorable moments about the city are the cannabis filled streets and girls with no clothes on that want to take your money, which is legal, but that's not what I got from it.

Amsterdam is the most vibrant and alive place I've ever been. It's a true component to my volunteer trip to the Dominican Republic from summer 2011. There's always something to do. Whether it's taking a canal boat ride, sitting waterside for lunch, or simply walking down one of their many breath taking streets, you'll find yourself gawking, well at least I did, at the well kept and architecture rich city.

After wandering through the Van Gogh museum and Anne Frank House to see some of the most famous pieces/places in the history of the world, Troy and I relaxed in the grassy park outside of the again famous, Rijksmuseum.

We then found ourselves finding a few surprises in the infamous Sex Museum. We also took ourselves through the Heineken Experience. And to top it off, we spent an entire day a bit outside of the city at a flower park. Literally, a park full of flowers called Kukenhof. Can I just live in this heaven of flowers?

It's incredible that in a few short hours on a train you're in a different country soaking in some of history's best.

England is the spot to be and I found true bliss in Amsterdam.

See the pictures below and have a look at my first GoPro traveling video. I think the GoPro cameras are one of the greatest late inventions and I'm so excited to have captured some of the funniest moments on film.

Blog back soon, I promised remember?
- Amber

Amsterdam 2K14 T&A from Amber Sumpter on Vimeo.

Follow me on Twitter - @ambersumpter

Déjà vu

It's like deja vu when I'm walking through Lincoln's High Street and I think "Hey, I remember that guy from high school!" Then I snap back to reality and realise, no I'm over 5,000 miles from Tucson - that's not him. But over the winter break, my memory was jogged with a few familiar faces.

First, I found my way to Paris, France. WOW! What a spectacular experience it was to ride the slanted elevator up the Eiffel Tower, take a Christmas Eve cruise on the Seine river, and get pickpocketed! Don't worry, we got our things back because Troy's Dad chased the 12 year old amateurs down and his wallet appeared quicker than I thought it would. But it was quite an experience to see some pickpockets in action. 

Not being able to spend Christmas with my family was tough, I have to admit. But I had the next best thing - the boyfriend's family. They were more than welcoming, I mean they did pay for me to tag along on their Paris family holiday, but it was different. Changes happen as we grow and mature, but I would have given up my spectacular Christmas in Paris to spend a few moments to be a part of my family's Christmas traditions.

Flower market in Paris

Seine river cruise with the lovely sister from anotha' mister

Paris, France

Where you at Quasi?

Christmas day at Notre Dame

Morning sun at the Louvre

The Louvre

Xx

My extended family for the holiday - The Bowman's

Second floor of the Eiffel Tower

Finally Paris has been checked off my bucket list. And as I couldn't make it all the way to Tucson for any of the winter festivities, someone came to cheer me up. My best friend! She flew across the Atlantic for 10 hours to ring in the new year with me. That was a TUB of icing on top of the holiday cake. Miss Chloe Wetzel, ladies and gentlemen - I could marry this one. 

Chloe and I spent nine days together taking a quick tour, actually galavanting through, Lincoln and London. I fed her mulled wine and English tea (which she's now obsessed with) as we climbed Lincoln's Steep Hill and made friends with the local Lincoln wildlife - swans. We spent time at the Lincoln Cathedral and the arboretum. Then, spent a few days in London for a quick tour of all the main attractions and finally, a trip to Lyceum Theatre. We saw The Lion King - second tub of icing on top of our multi-tiered cake. 

When I finally came to and realised that my university work was beginning to collect dust, it was time to get back to the grind. Winter 2013 and welcoming 2014 was quite a success with a few familiar faces to get me through the next few months. I love my Tucson family and friends, but London, you're still my obsession. The next step after grad school - HELLO, HIRE ME LONDON! 

Chloe in Lincoln Cathedral

Lincoln Arboretum 

Westminster Abbey 

English heaven!

Walking like the professionals did on Abbey Road

A short visit goes a long way. Xx

Follow me on Twitter - @ambersumpter