It’s almost Valentine’s Day, and the city knows it. There are explosions of pink cards in every corner store, massive displays in the window of Butlers Chocolates, and happy couples blocking traffic on every sidewalk.

(I could do without that last one.)

Yes, love is in the air, even if the last thing I kissed was the Blarney Stone. I’m in the middle of a full-blown romance with Dublin, and I’m not even sure when it began…

With Saint Valentine’s Day right around the corner, it seems to be all anyone is talking about. And while my special someone is 3,705 miles away, love is visible all over Paris, but then again it always is. Paris is known as one of the most romantic cities in the world, if not THE most romantic city, and there’s no doubt about why. All over Paris, you can find people kissing everywhere: on the streets, in shops, and especially on the metro … it’s no wonder Paris has such a reputation.

With all of the wonderful punny Rome titles (Rome around the world, When in Rome, Rome if you want to, etc.), I couldn’t just settle on one. So instead, I’ll settle for my favorite place in Rome, and quite possibly my favorite place ever: the Trevi Fountain. There, I said it. And I’m sure you’re all judging me for being a stereotype because the Trevi Fountain is “so cliche”.

The same day that I boarded a plane for Quito (exactly 1 month ago!), the New York Times published an article highlighting 52 places to visit in 2014. Ecuador ranked 7, and made the top 5 if you exclude destinations in California, my home state. Needless to say, I picked the right place to study abroad!

[A Day Trip to Ifrane]

Six girls and a driver in one cab? Totally normal. Not enough seatbelts to go around, but who wears seatbelts here? For us in Fes, it’s the cab life.

An awesome girl in our program decided to organize a Saturday afternoon trip from Fes to the city of Ifrane. (And by organize I mean find six people to fit in a grand taxi and decide to go to Ifrane.) The rest was up to us to figure out where this taxi was and what to do once we got there.